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daveyanthony

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 30, 2019
38
13
Tennessee
Hello, I recently bought the PowerBook listed in the title, more specifically it's the 1.5GHz model. I bought it as a fixer upper as it was decently priced compared to other listings, it was said to work fine and had some cosmetic damage. However, i'm having some issues with the battery and the ram and i'm not completely sure what's causing it, whether it's the charging port, or the battery connector, or the logic board. I ran coconut battery and allegedly it says the battery is nearly brand new with only 40 or so cycles, but it never seems to charge. The computer immediately dies whenever the charger is disconnected, (and I am using the correct 65 Watt charger), and the battery never seems to charge. I have tried troubleshooting a bit, I (tried) resetting the PMU/SMC (don't quite know if it was successful), I also tried resetting the PRAM, and I had weird outcomes with this. Most of the time it would still say "battery connected, not charging" however, on rare occasion, the computer would try to charge immediately on boot into OS X, then after a few seconds it switches back to "not charging" (as indicated on the top menu bar icon). The second issue, is the ram slots. The computer only recognizes 1 of the ram slots, (the "lower" one on system profiler). Is this a fixable issue or would I need to replace the entire logic board to fix it? Sorry for the massive wall of text, but thanks to anyone who manages to read it all and help! ?
 

z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,589
4,543
You have a failed DC-In board and a bad RAM slot, both known issues the Aluminum line is prone to.

You will reed to replace the DC-In board to repair the charging issue, and short of replacing the logic board for no real advantage, use a single 2 GB memory stick in the lower slot, which maxxes it anyway.

Out of all these models, exactly which one do you posses?

 

daveyanthony

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 30, 2019
38
13
Tennessee
You have a failed DC-In board and a bad RAM slot, both known issues the Aluminum line is prone to.

You will reed to replace the DC-In board to repair the charging issue, and short of replacing the logic board for no real advantage, use a single 2 GB memory stick in the lower slot, which maxxes it anyway.

Out of all these models, exactly which one do you posses?


Thanks for the reply, I have the 1.5Ghz 15 inch A1095. I also thought of using a 2GB stick, but I didn't have any on hand and i'm having trouble finding one on ebay and related sites, all I can find is 2x1gb sticks but no where can I find a singe 2gb stick. As for the DC-in board i'll have to try and find one of those too.
 
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z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,589
4,543
You can try at your own risk, but I would suggest this one if you want to be safe, as the latter is described specifically for the A1095, while both listings have different part numbers.


Hmm... I can't find any suitable PC2700 SODIMMs either. Alternatively, you can try scrubbing the upper slot with a fine brush and isopropyl alcohol in the event it is simply dirty, and then try again. If that doesn't work, you could also try using another module in the upper slot, but otherwise I think you may be out of luck there, unfortunately.
 

daveyanthony

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 30, 2019
38
13
Tennessee
Thanks for your help, I really appreciate it. I was able to source a NOS bottom case and NOS display housing so it will nearly be like new cosmetically. I guess I'm fine with the 1GB of ram as well, I don't plan on using it as a powerhouse or anything just some web browsing and light classic gaming.
 

z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,589
4,543
It's no trouble.

When you get around to Web browsing, might I recommend the following for better performance than what you will inevitably get with vanilla TenFourFox ...

 

daveyanthony

macrumors member
Original poster
Jul 30, 2019
38
13
Tennessee
It's no trouble.

When you get around to Web browsing, might I recommend the following for better performance than what you will inevitably get with vanilla TenFourFox ...

Oh you don't have to ask me twice, I use it, and MANY other programs you've made on EVERY G3+ machine I own LOL, great product btw really makes a huge difference and breathes some life into these relics.
 
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z970

macrumors 68040
Jun 2, 2017
3,589
4,543
Oh dear ... my greatest apologies if I've actually managed to ask you twice...

I've seen many folks on this forum complain about performance who don't even know about the patch's existence, even though it is a stickied thread in this subforum, and have found that I or others occasionally have to (justifiably) remind people that there do exist ways to improve life on these perceived "slow" machines. - However, you can never really keep track of who in fact is aware of what, I'm sure you can understand. So when you only wish to assist your community, sometimes you just can't help yourself even when given the risk of obnoxiousness...

... Anyway, the pleasure is mine, sir. :)
 
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