Logic board
MacBook logic board repair
Will not turn on, no sign of life at all, or it cuts out by itself. We measure the board through, find the fault and repair that, instead of replacing the whole board.
What is actually broken
A MacBook logic board is one slab with hundreds of components on it, and usually exactly one of them fails. A power rail that shorts. A charging chip that burns out after a spike on the USB-C port. A trace eaten away under a chip. The rest of the board still works perfectly.
We look for that one spot. That starts with measuring voltage on every rail, then with a thermal camera to see where the board gets warm while it should be doing nothing. A short circuit always gives itself away through heat. Once we know which component or which trace it is, we change it under the microscope.
Symptoms that nearly always come down to this
- Nothing at all, not even with the charger plugged in
- The MagSafe light stays off, or it stopped charging
- It starts and shuts down again after a few seconds
- The screen stays black but you can hear the fan
- There was a burning smell and after that nothing
- The fan goes to full speed the moment you press the power button
- It only starts without the battery, or only on one particular port
Why this works out cheaper
A new board costs what a new board costs, and on Apple machines that is a large slice of the price of a new one. A component costs cents. The difference is in the labour, and the labour is exactly what we are good at. On top of that comes something that often matters more than money: in a swap your storage leaves with the old board, because it is soldered to it. In a repair everything stays put.
How we work
From arrival to shipping.
Measure
Voltage on every rail, current draw at power on, thermal camera to pinpoint the short.
Find
The suspect component or trace is examined under the microscope and checked against the schematic.
Repair
Component replaced with hot air and solder, or a broken trace rebuilt with 0.05 mm wire.
Test
Boot, charge, every port, screen, keyboard, fan and temperatures under load.
Prices
What a logic board repair costs.
| Type of work | Example | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Diagnosis | Measurements and a quote, with photos of the board | €49 |
| Light | Charging port, charging chip, one component, one trace | €149 |
| Heavy | Short on a rail, an IC replaced, several traces | €229 |
| Very heavy | Work on or around the processor, several layers | €299 |
The diagnosis comes off the bill as soon as you go ahead with the repair. If it does not work, you do not pay for the repair.
Questions about logic boards
How do I know it is really the logic board?
You do not, and you do not have to. Plenty of symptoms that look like a dead board come from the battery, the charger or the screen. That is why we measure first and talk after. If it turns out to be something cheaper, that is the news you get from us.
My MacBook is from 2015. Do you still take those?
Yes. We work on every MacBook from roughly 2012 onwards, including models the official channel no longer has parts for. In component-level work, whether a complete board is still available makes no difference.
Can a short circuit come back?
If the cause was not dealt with, yes. That is why we look for two things: what failed, and why it did. A burnt charging chip often comes from a poor charger or from moisture in the port. We tell you that as well, otherwise you are back here in six months.
Do I get my own board back?
Yes. That is the whole point. Your board, with your storage and your files, repaired at the spot that failed.
Next step
Your MacBook does nothing at all?
Post it in and within a few days you will know what is really wrong, with photos of the board to prove it.