Fixing my X40 - new motherboard, or repair the old one?

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spasticteapot · #1 Post by **spasticteapot** » Mon Dec 10, 2007 7:30 pm

After miraculously bringing back my X40 from the dead, it's still acting a bit squirrelly. While it does technically work, it still makes an annoying high-pitched whine while the battery is charging; after I removed the motherboard (again), I found it seems to be coming from one of the inductors.

Some of the repair services through eBay claim they'll repair your motherboard, instead of just selling you a replacement - which, in the case of the X40, is about $260, more than I want to pay.

My replacement laptop - an X60 - is driving me batty, and I'd like to get the X40 fixed so that I can sell off the X60 and not lose more than a few hundred dollars off of the stupid thing. (The X60 is a major step backwards for me: Awful battery life, pitiful Linux support, and a screen that's impossible to see at the lowest brightness setting.) Anyone know what I should do?

#2 Post by **rkawakami** » Mon Dec 10, 2007 8:04 pm

Personally, if I knew the noise was coming from an inductor and it was really bugging me, I'd simply buy a new one and replace it. I have not ever seen the outside (much less the inside) of an X40 but you might be able to find a match from what I posted in another thread:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.ph ... 003#354003

The inductor probably has a three-character "value" code on top. If it's a Sumida part, then match up that code with the first part of the suffix of the Sumida part number. If you can't find a match on that Mouser page, then post back here and I'll see if I can track down a replacement.

spasticteapot · #3 Post by **spasticteapot** » Tue Dec 11, 2007 12:24 pm

rkawakami wrote:Personally, if I knew the noise was coming from an inductor and it was really bugging me, I'd simply buy a new one and replace it. I have not ever seen the outside (much less the inside) of an X40 but you might be able to find a match from what I posted in another thread:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.ph ... 003#354003

The inductor probably has a three-character "value" code on top. If it's a Sumida part, then match up that code with the first part of the suffix of the Sumida part number. If you can't find a match on that Mouser page, then post back here and I'll see if I can track down a replacement.

Well, whad'ya know? Looks like I'm not the first to have this problem.

These look to be the exact same inductors. I'll probbably figure out which one, exactly, is making the noise using stethoscope or highly directional microphone, and then just order a replacement from Mouser.

spasticteapot · #4 Post by **spasticteapot** » Thu Dec 13, 2007 12:36 am

After a bit of monkeying around with the funnel, I'm pretty sure the noise is coming from one of the three small inductors in the picture below, labelled, respectively, "Delta SPT134-0R8," "3R3 M48," and "100 M47":

[img=http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/1230 ... ha4.th.jpg]

The "100 M47" appears to be the Murata CDRH104RNP-100NC (http://www.mouser.com/search/ProductDet ... 4RNP-100NC,) but I'm not so sure about the "3R3 M48". The SPT134-0R8 is listed on the Delta Electronics website, but I can't seem to find it anywhere - neither Mouser nor Digikey seems to stock these inductors.

Any suggestions, anyone?[/url]

K0LO · #5 Post by **K0LO** » Thu Dec 13, 2007 8:52 am

Squealing sounds coming from inductors are the result of poorly-secured windings that are free to vibrate at the switching rate of the power supply. You may be able to repair this if you can't find a replacement part.

We used to use a product called "Q-Max" when manufacturing inductors professionally. It is a polystyrene compound in an evaporating solvent. When it dries it locks the turns of the inductor in place so that they don't move around. Polystyrene has very good and low-loss dielectric properties and is a good insulator, so it has minimal effect on the inductor, even at hundreds of MHz.

You may be able to do the same by using a polystyrene model cement instead of Q-Max. Try to fill the openings in the inductor with the cement and allow it to dry. If you're lucky, the cement will make its way into the middle of the inductor and secure the turns against vibration. You could try thinning the cement slightly with a little alcohol to make it a little "runnier" if need be.

By the way, a squealing inductor in a switching power supply won't hurt anything; it's just plain annoying to listen to.

aboveliquidice · #6 Post by **aboveliquidice** » Sun Dec 16, 2007 3:35 am

I just found a mobo online - I thought it was going to be difficult to swap in, so I had a local guy do it - after he jacked it up, I tried my hat and it was pretty simple. Save yourself the time and heartache - just get a new mobo and call it a day. I got a squaretrade warranty on it as well - all in all, it wasn't a bad deal...

~above~

spasticteapot · #7 Post by **spasticteapot** » Sun Dec 16, 2007 10:51 pm

aboveliquidice wrote:I just found a mobo online - I thought it was going to be difficult to swap in, so I had a local guy do it - after he jacked it up, I tried my hat and it was pretty simple. Save yourself the time and heartache - just get a new mobo and call it a day. I got a squaretrade warranty on it as well - all in all, it wasn't a bad deal...

~above~

Where from? I can't find one of the Ultra Low Voltage version.

aboveliquidice · #8 Post by **aboveliquidice** » Sun Dec 16, 2007 11:03 pm

One is up for sale HERE

~above~

Fixing my X40 - new motherboard, or repair the old one?

Fixing my X40 - new motherboard, or repair the old one?

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