Logic board repair + thermal paste replacement...?

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So i took my macbook pro mid 2012 to get looked at cause it was shutting down when held a certain way. Also the screen would freeze but sound would keep playing on the background. They told me there was a problem with the logic board and that it needed repair. However they refuse to repair without also doing a "desoxidation" which is their fancy term for cleaning, and replacing the thermal paste. Now this service alone costs THE SAME as repairing the logic board, and they refuse to repair it without replacing the thermal paste. My question is, is this as irrelevant as I think it is? Because i truly don't think the thermal paste has any bearing in the board's malfunction, they're literally just trying to cash grab me. Sadly they are also one of the very few if not the only trustworthy places to repair a mac that's out of its warranty, so I am not very happy, but perhaps im wrong and this is ~ absolutely ~ necessary. Ty in advance
 

pigoo3

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Now this service alone costs THE SAME as repairing the logic board, and they refuse to repair it without replacing the thermal paste. My question is, is this as irrelevant as I think it is? Because i truly don't think the thermal paste has any bearing in the board's malfunction, they're literally just trying to cash grab me.

First of all we need to keep things in perspective. This is a 2012 MacBook Pro (7-8 years old)...if it's a 13" model...and if it was working 100%...it may only be worth about $250-$300. Unfortunately it is not working 100%...which means it's probably worth significantly less than $250-$300.

Thus we want to be VERY careful not to spend too much money getting it repaired...since if you took the current value of the computer + the estimated repair cost funds...these funds together could purchase a newer computer (used)...that is working 100%.:)

As far as the thermal paste question. As you may or may not know...the thermal paste (in many situations) is a "connection or link" between a computers CPU or GPU and a heat sink. Heat sink is necessary to dissipate the heat generated by the CPU or GPU during use. When thermal paste gets old...it dry's out & shrinks (and maybe falls out)...and the "connection" between the CPU or GPU and the associated heat sink is lost. This will cause the computer to operate at a higher temperature...and if the temperature gets high enough...the computer will start acting "funky" or shut off.

Thus one thing I would look for is unusually high fan speeds. If there is a thermal paste issue...the computer will be trying to cool itself off by increasing the fan speeds. If you're not experiencing high fan speeds (or a loud fan/fans)...then the thermal paste theory may not be the correct issue.

HTH,

- Nick
 
M

MBAmtloin

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is "they" the apple store?
The apple store (and other on-line "experts") told me my Imac g4 needed a new logic board years ago when all that needed was a new pram battery, reset and reinstall.
so be careful
Ifixit has an article about the 15" thermal here
your macbook pro is a great machine but not worth that price getting repaired.

i would reset the pram and investigate why the screen is going dark, could be a software issue or even not enough cool air flowing into the macbook pro.
There are little things like having a laptop close to the wall, on glass or metal and even not cleaned out that will throttle the machine.
i fond out that if I plug my Macbook into one socket in my house, the trackpad stutters and gets choppy just last month.

hopefully there is a solution I or someone might help your macbook pro with, most cases a simple pram clearance, removal of cat hair or more power will remedy he problem.
 
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is "they" the apple store?
The apple store (and other on-line "experts") told me my Imac g4 needed a new logic board years ago when all that needed was a new pram battery, reset and reinstall.
so be careful
Ifixit has an article about the 15" thermal here

They are the technical assistance place I took the computer to. Unfortunately the apple store refuses to look at my computer cause its out of warranty (for some time now lol). They don't claim to need to replace the board, they simply wanna repair it. Sadly I took too much time to get the shutting down issue resolved and now the computer quite simply is too slow for me to attempt any software fixes. I was even thinking the hard drive might have died as well,but they didn't mention it.


However before I stopped trying to do anything to it, I tried everything. I reset pram, I tried every single mode of turning on the mac, I had to reinstall the software to get it to turn on, and that's after 4 hours of booting. Idk if me not addressing the first problem caused other issues, but the computer is unusable as is. Finder was freezing which to me is usually the signs of a dying hard drive.

The repair of the logic board itself isnt crazy expensive, but the fact that they wanna charge me twice the amount cause they refuse to let go of replacing the thermal paste is whats pissing me off.
 
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Thank you,I handt even thought abt the fact that the computer may not be worth the amount they want me to pay lol. I didnt report to them any heating or fan issues, to my understanding there was nothing unusual abt how they were operating. I dont actually believe they think anything is being caused by the thermal paste, I think they're just used to putting the thermal paste replacement along the cleaning to ramp up the price of the repair. Since they said they need to repair the logic board, it made me wonder if the thermal paste had anything to do at all with said problem or if they truly just wanted to make the repair more expensive. The full list of problems I reported to them was: the computer shuts down or restarts when held from the left side, the screen freezes when playing videos/movies but the audio is still playing on the backgroung and th computer is extremely slow, taking up to 4 hours to boot, when it boots.
Nothing abt temperature or fans on my end.
 
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From your post, they are not saying the thermal paste is the issue, but that when they open it up to do the repair, to be sure it will work properly the thermal paste needs to be replaced. If they offer any warranty of their work at all, the thermal paste being replaced is insurance for them that if the paste is bad and the CPU fails because of it, they won't get into any discussion with you. Taking four hours to boot says the hard drive is probably dying as well. It may pass a test because the test just tests that the drive responds, not that it responds quickly.

From all the issues, I'd say the machine was done. Like Nick, I think your money may be better spend looking for a replacement.
 

chscag

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I have to agree with Nick and Jake. Save your dollars and start looking for a replacement. The Apple on line refurbished store is a great place to find a new or newer MacBook Pro and save some money. The machines that Apple sells from their refurbished store are fully warranted and are like brand new.
 
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Thanks for the opinions everyone. I think I will try to get another machine for this one, the repair isn't worth it.
 
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I have to agree with Nick and Jake. Save your dollars and start looking for a replacement.

What about cloning to an external drive and use it as a boot Drive to at least test to see whether it might be the internal drive causing the problem or not.

Not even the slowest external drive should take four hours to boot unless it was also full or almost kaput.


- Patrick
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