Thinkpad 560x suddenly wan't start
Jim H
anything at all on the screen. There are also no beep codes etc.
If the Ac adapter is plugged in, the battery light will flash and the
righmost light stays on constantly, without the adapter the unit is
completely dead. Inserting/removing the battery has no effect on this.
Hope someone can help me with this, thanks in advance if you can!
--
Jim
JHEM
Install a new CMOS (RTC) battery.
Regards,
James
Ian S
news:oprr5ww8...@news.eclipse.co.uk...
The flashing battery light (orange I assume) indicates that the battery
needs charging. It should switch to steady orange with a working AC adapter
attached or green once it is fully charged. Here's what the manual says
(http://snurl.com/1s0g):
1.you don't hear any beeps. Note: If you are not sure whether you heard any
beeps or not, turn the computer off; then turn it on again, and listen again
then:
Make sure that:
The battery pack is installed correctly.
The AC Adapter is connected to the computer and the power cord is plugged
into a working electrical outlet.
The computer power is on. (Turn on the power switch again for confirmation.)
If these items are correct and the screen remains blank, have the computer
serviced.
2. The screen is blank and you can't hear any beeps. Note: If you are using
an external monitor, go to "External Monitor Problems" on page 122 then:
If a power-on password is set, press any key to display the power-on
password prompt, and then type the correct password and press Enter (see
page 51). If the power-on password does not appear, the brightness control
lever might be set to minimum brightness. Adjust the brightness level. If
the screen still remains blank, have the computer serviced.
Good luck!
Jim H
Thanks, but afraid that this doesn't seem to really help, I'll explain...
> The flashing battery light (orange I assume) indicates that the battery
> needs charging. It should switch to steady orange with a working AC
> adapter
> attached or green once it is fully charged. Here's what the manual says
> (http://snurl.com/1s0g):
The light doesn't come on at all without the charger, with it it flashes.
It'll come on whether the battery is in the computer or not, but only when
the AC adapter is plugged in.
But isn't it the case that the computer should work without a battery, so
long as it has power from the mains. The adapter seems to be working or
else it wouldn't power the lights to flash when the battery is removed and
there is no other source of power.
> 1.you don't hear any beeps. Note: If you are not sure whether you heard
> any
> beeps or not, turn the computer off; then turn it on again, and listen
> again
> then:
There are no beeps.
> Make sure that:
> The battery pack is installed correctly.
Already mentioned above
> The AC Adapter is connected to the computer and the power cord is plugged
> into a working electrical outlet.
yep
> The computer power is on. (Turn on the power switch again for
> confirmation.)
It doesn't have a power switch (not a rocker switch anyway, like a desktop
pc) - it only has a momentary contact switch, which can't really be 'on'.
> If these items are correct and the screen remains blank, have the
> computer
> serviced.
I've got a lot of expeciance in computers, and am a poor student. I'd
rather not pay half the value of the machine to get it sorted.
> 2. The screen is blank and you can't hear any beeps. Note: If you are
> using
> an external monitor, go to "External Monitor Problems" on page 122 then:
>
> If a power-on password is set, press any key to display the power-on
> password prompt, and then type the correct password and press Enter (see
> page 51). If the power-on password does not appear, the brightness
> control
> lever might be set to minimum brightness. Adjust the brightness level. If
> the screen still remains blank, have the computer serviced.
No password
>
> Good luck!
Thanks!
--
Jim
Jim H
located, or know what kind to use?
On Fri, 11 Jul 2003 23:19:43 GMT, JHEM <James@ESAD_SPAMMERS.thinkpads.com>
wrote:
--
Jim
JHEM
> thanks for the advice. Does anybody have a diagram where the cmos
> cell is located, or know what kind to use?
The good news is that it's a common button type watch battery located under
the memory access cover on the bottom of the unit, probably a CR2025.
The bad news is that it's one of the encapsulated ones that IBM used to love
using that has a pigtail attached for connecting it to the laptop. PITA to
replace cheaply.
http://www-3.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/document.do?lndocid=PFAN-3T5RFV
Regards,
James
Jim H
> The good news is that it's a common button type watch battery located
> under
> the memory access cover on the bottom of the unit, probably a CR2025.
>
> The bad news is that it's one of the encapsulated ones that IBM used to
> love
> using that has a pigtail attached for connecting it to the laptop. PITA
> to
> replace cheaply.
>
> http://www-3.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/document.do?lndocid=PFAN-3T5RFV
>
> Regards,
>
> James
Thanks. I found the yellow-encased cell in the memory compartment. I found
the the offical IBM ones for $44, but I can get that kinda battery for
£3uk. I'll have a go at getting a generic one in there.
--
Jim
Ian S
The IBM hardware manual that James referred you to says the backup battery
should have a voltage between 2.5V and 3.7V assuming you have a voltmeter to
check it. The manual also indicates that there is an error code 161
associated with failure of the backup battery but you apparently don't see
anything let alone an error code. Unfortunately, the symptoms you describe
are associated in the manual with a DC/DC card problem. The good news is
that 560x items are available on ebay in general and the DC/DC card in
particular http://snurl.com/1s4e .
Ian
(also working on repairing my 560x)
Jim H
> The IBM hardware manual that James referred you to says the backup
> battery
> should have a voltage between 2.5V and 3.7V assuming you have a voltmeter
> to
> check it. The manual also indicates that there is an error code 161
> associated with failure of the backup battery but you apparently don't
> see
> anything let alone an error code. Unfortunately, the symptoms you
> describe
> are associated in the manual with a DC/DC card problem. The good news is
> that 560x items are available on ebay in general and the DC/DC card in
> particular http://snurl.com/1s4e .
>
> Ian
> (also working on repairing my 560x)
>
Thanks. I have a voltmeter handy, the cell seems normal.
Now I think about it, doesn't the CMOS just store a few BIOS settings,
which wouldn't stop the whole PC from starting up.
What is the DC/DC - some kind of step down transformer? I have a lot of
experiance with desktop pcs but fixing a laptop is proving to mean learning
a whole lot more stuff I never knew existed (it took me half an hour to
just get the thing open!)
--
Jim
Ian S
The thing with laptops is that you don't have as many separate boards. The
DC/DC card is a sort of a narrow "L" shaped board that I also assume has
something to do with converting the power to the appropriate voltages for
the various electronic components. I heartily recommend downloading the IBM
560x hardware maintenance manual as it provides pretty clear visual
instructions for disassambly and a fairly straightforward troubleshooting
section. But it does sound as if this DC/DC card is your problem. I have no
idea what a new one would cost from IBM but no doubt it would likely be more
than the laptop is worth. I don't know how you would troubleshoot the card
itself. Ebay is a good source for parts or even a servicable replacement
laptop. The eBay link I provided as an example has the card auctioning at
$8.99 with no bids so far and 3 days left.
Ian
Jim H
> The
> DC/DC card is a sort of a narrow "L" shaped board that I also assume has
> something to do with converting the power to the appropriate voltages for
> the various electronic components.
Yep, AFAIK the input power has only a single 12v rail.
> I heartily recommend downloading the IBM
> 560x hardware maintenance manual as it provides pretty clear visual
> instructions for disassambly and a fairly straightforward troubleshooting
> section.
Got it. thanks.
> But it does sound as if this DC/DC card is your problem. I have no
> idea what a new one would cost from IBM but no doubt it would likely be
> more
> than the laptop is worth. I don't know how you would troubleshoot the
> card
> itself. Ebay is a good source for parts or even a servicable replacement
> laptop. The eBay link I provided as an example has the card auctioning at
> $8.99 with no bids so far and 3 days left.
I'm in the uk and can't see one on ebay uk so I've contacted the seller
asking for shipping prices here.
--
Jim
JHEM
>
> Thanks. I have a voltmeter handy, the cell seems normal.
> Now I think about it, doesn't the CMOS just store a few BIOS settings,
> which wouldn't stop the whole PC from starting up.
Actually, it can and does. The CMOS battery also provides the power for the
solid state solenoid that is activated by the momentary contact power
switch. All APM laptops work this way in order for the OS to completely turn
it off. Otherwise, you'd have to have a "Thing" type hand extrude from the
machine and turn a mechanical switch to "Off"!
Dead CMOS battery = unresponsive laptop.
> What is the DC/DC - some kind of step down transformer? I have a lot
> of experiance with desktop pcs but fixing a laptop is proving to mean
> learning a whole lot more stuff I never knew existed (it took me half
> an hour to just get the thing open!)
Yes, it's a DC in to DC out distribution transformer sub-card.
Regards,
James
Ian S
news:bEfQa.16972$C07....@nwrddc02.gnilink.net...
> Jim H <jh_really...@333.org> wrote:
> >
> > Thanks. I have a voltmeter handy, the cell seems normal.
> > Now I think about it, doesn't the CMOS just store a few BIOS settings,
> > which wouldn't stop the whole PC from starting up.
>
> Actually, it can and does. The CMOS battery also provides the power for
the
> solid state solenoid that is activated by the momentary contact power
> switch.
Why would the CMOS battery be used to do that when you have the main battery
or AC adapter available? Just curious.
Jim H
>
> Why would the CMOS battery be used to do that when you have the main
> battery
> or AC adapter available? Just curious.
This seemed strange to me too, but changing the battery fixed the problem!
Thanks!
--
Jim H
JHEM
>
> Why would the CMOS battery be used to do that when you have the main
> battery or AC adapter available? Just curious.
BION, it's a matter of simplification. Providing the correct current to the
circuit from either AC/BATT _before_ the unit is switched on was
problematic.
Having the CMOS battery perform this double duty was easier.
Regards,
James
JHEM
>
> This seemed strange to me too, but changing the battery fixed the
> problem! Thanks!
Glad to hear you got it sorted.
Regards,
James