OT: Reflowing GPUs and the fruit company (was Re: Resurrecting integrated circuits by cooking them.)

[Jerry Weiss]

On 7/28/19 8:33 PM, Jay Jaeger via cctalk wrote:
> On 7/28/2019 4:24 PM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote:
>> On 7/28/19 1:02 PM, Jerry Weiss via cctalk wrote:
>>> This method is not limited to "vintage" components.
>>>
>>> My MacBook Pro 2011 fails dues to its (famous) problem with the discrete
>>> AMD GPU connections.   A reflow restores the laptop, but inevitably I
>>> have repeat the process every few months. Depending on who you believe,
>>> the fault is with the A) poor thermal design, b) BGA solder used or C)
>>> bumps on the AMD GPU itself.  The reflow is easy enough to do, but
>>> disconnecting the very fragile cables to remove the motherboard is not
>>> for everyone. Using an inexpensive infrared thermometer improves the the
>>> process.
>> <snark>
>> And of course, the solder is Pb-free...
>> </snark>
>>
>> --Chuck
>>
>>
> Exactly.  And machines of that era had a lot of problems (I have
> reflowed two early PS/3's a total of three times, and a MacBook) as
> manufacturers climbed the learning curve.  The Microsoft XBox 360 "Red
> Ring of Death" was another instance.

I sometimes wonder if I  leave the MBP in alone/unused for a year, 
whether it would heal itself by growing some "tin whiskers"