This post is more than 5 years old
4 Posts
0
43293
November 19th, 2012 20:00
AC Adapter PA-10: Upper limit DC volts output
Hi all. Could someone in the Community please help with the following query?
My family has 3 Inspiron laptops, a 1150, a 6000 and a 8600. The 1150 and the 6000 get power from PA-12 adapters (both Model No. PA-1650-05D) and both work fine. I measured their output DC voltages with a digital Parameters 7080B multimeter - one gave 19.5V and the other 19.4V. The 8600 got fed by a PA-10 brick (Model PA-1900-02D). Its battery is now exhausted and it will not take any charge from the PA-10 or either PA-12. Nor will it turn on / boot (in fact none of the LEDs in the top right hand LCD display hinge will light up with either the PA-10 or a 12 connected). It did boot up several times on the battery alone prior to its demise.
The DC output of the PA-10 I measured as 20.4V. I'm wondering if that is still acceptable or, if it is not (too far high out of range), if that might have contributed to the 8600 dying? I've not been game to try the PA-10 in the 6000 or 1150 just in case it is putting out too much voltage and it blows them up. I was thinking about opening up the 8600 and tracking the 20.4V through the input socket at least to see if I have an open circuit from the socket into the MoBo. Thanks in advance for any help / replies.
Nightowl_7
0 events found
Nightowl_7
4 Posts
1
December 27th, 2012 23:00
Hi again both MicroTest and SpeedStep.
I checked the power socket for continuity with the multimeter through each of the 3 input conductors and onto the circuit board tracks. All were O.K. so it implies the problem is further along the circuitry between the socket and the battery. I borrowed a good 8500 and swapped over its fully charged battery into the 8600 (no AC adapter connected) but this did not enable the 8600 to POST let alone boot. The DDR RAM and the HDD were then swapped from the 8600 into the 8500 and it came up fine with each switch on test - did not bother with the DVD drive - can't imagine how it would block the 8600 from POSTing. Now I am at a loss to understand why the 8600 continued to POST and boot while ever its battery had juice in it (after the failure of the AC adapter) but now won't kick over with a fully charged identical battery from the 8500. As SpeedStep noted, not worth pursuing it any further so the good bits have been taken out of it and the rest is being recycled.
Thank you both very much for your initial quick replies and advice. Please regard this thread as closed now as your info has answered my opening query. Wishing you all a safe and Happy New Year and the Vulcan greeting: "Live long and prosper".
Nightowl_7
MicroTest
4 Apprentice
•
934 Posts
0
November 20th, 2012 07:00
> try booting the faulty 8600 without the battery.If it doesn't boot check the power jack - loose connection?
> I think 20.4V should be still fine and not cause the laptop to fail.The output voltage of a normal voltage regulator
is normally allowed to deviate by ± 5%
> Note: If the power rating of the PA-12 adapters is lower than that of the PA-10 the laptop will not charge the battery
in case you can fix the laptop.I assume that your (older?) laptops use the same Dell specific power adapter design.
speedstep
11 Legend
•
47K Posts
1
November 20th, 2012 09:00
PA-12 is 65W PA-10 is 90W.
Most common failure is the power socket but motherboard components could also be damaged.
Not worth fixing any of these.
Nightowl_7
4 Posts
0
November 20th, 2012 19:00
Hi MicroTest and SpeedStep.
Thank you both for taking the time to reply so quickly and to share your knowledge. I tried MicroStep's suggestion of removing the battery and trying to boot it with just a PA-12 adapter connected - nothing happened. I did not use the PA-10 as I got no green LED light up on the back of the brick when I plugged it into the first AC wall socket. Using a different wall outlet lit up the LED so I checked its output with the multimeter again and it was showing 22.6V this time. Every chance the adapter is packing up so with the main Dell label on the Inspiron 8600 saying it can use the PA-10 or PA-12 adapters (both have the same DC output jack with the fine centre wire identifier pin), I used one of the two I am sure of notwithstanding its lower power output rating as SpeedStep noted.
I will open up the laptop as per the Dell manual and check continuity through each of the 3 connector zones of the MoBo socket onto the soldered connections for each on the board. I have an output cable I desoldered from another dead PA-12 that I broke open to connect into the MoBo socket and can attach one Ohmmeter probe to each feed wire in turn. If a dry joint is present will resolder it. If no joy, then clearly the copper tracks take the input into some IC or other as per MicroStep's YouTube video from Dell above and that is beyond my abilities to check, repair or fiddle with. The 8600 will then become parts for friends' machines as per SpeedStep's advice.
Again many thanks for your replies. I'll post the results of my MoBo socket testing in due course.
Nightowl_7.