FundyBG
Member
In short:
4004A Super Slim with 12gb flash and no SYSCON errors had faulty 5v to 1.8v wifi/bluetooth regulator causing power and wireless controller issues. regulator was disconnected and the power problems seem to have stopped. shorted components still on board and on module board itself. looking for advice on what to do if module is confirmed dead and how to diagnose it further
I have attached a photo showing the caps that I know are shorted (in the red circles). What should I do and what should I NOT do going further? I read that trying to install any FW when the module is disconnected/dead/damaged will lead to a brick but I have already reinstalled FW several times with no issue. Does having flash storage instead of NOR have anything to do with this or maybe the chip was holding out for one last time? The shorted caps and lack of power seem to indicate a chip failure but then why would it just work/fail after disassembly and reassembly or by leaving it unplugged for a bit? Will soldering the new regulator cause problems if the shorts remain? Conventional wisdom tells me "yes" but at the same time it did manage to survive a couple FW installations in that half-dead state so idk
I also ruled out a BGA fault using a pressure test. Replacing the whole module is not an option for me and while I don't mind not having it connected, I would like to at least find a way to install newer HFW in the future without bricking.
4004A Super Slim with 12gb flash and no SYSCON errors had faulty 5v to 1.8v wifi/bluetooth regulator causing power and wireless controller issues. regulator was disconnected and the power problems seem to have stopped. shorted components still on board and on module board itself. looking for advice on what to do if module is confirmed dead and how to diagnose it further
I bought a 4004A Super Slim (nickname Steward) with 12gb flash storage for cheap a few days ago. The seller said: "Console for parts. Does not turn on and has no red light when plugged in. Repair shop said a new PSU is needed"
When I tested it however, it worked perfectly fine. No SYSCON errors and only 5 improper shutdown out of 600+. I cleaned it, wiped the HDD and flash storage - still working fine. Updated to HFW 4.92 from OFW 4.82 and... the controllers no longer wanted to sync wirelessly. WiFi worked as normal so I thought the problem was with the HFW. I reinstalled OFW 4.92 in safe mode and that seemed to fix the issue. After some time playing I decided to unplug it and put it aside it while I worked on a different console.
The next day I tried to plug it back in to try HFW again but there was no stand by power, not even a blink. I disassembled it and confirmed the PSU was working. When I plugged it in to check the motherboard voltages I was surprised to see power was working again! I changed the CMOS battery because it seemed a bit low and tested again - no issues at all. Reassembled fully and installed HFW 4.92 and played for a few hours - still no issues.
Right after unplugging it for storage, I remembered that I had forgotten to install a few pkg files so I plugged it back in - controllers no longer sync again but WiFi is still good. I thought to try to leave it unplugged for an hour to see if anything changed and it did - no power at all. I disassembled it again and checked for shorts around the WiFi/Bluetooth module - BINGO! Shorted caps and only 0.3v coming from the regulator. I will buy a new AMS1117 regulator but for the time being I decided to just cut away the old regulator to see if that will restore power - it did, obviously without wifi and bluethooth. Caps are still shorted though which scares me a bit that the chip itself may have died.
When I tested it however, it worked perfectly fine. No SYSCON errors and only 5 improper shutdown out of 600+. I cleaned it, wiped the HDD and flash storage - still working fine. Updated to HFW 4.92 from OFW 4.82 and... the controllers no longer wanted to sync wirelessly. WiFi worked as normal so I thought the problem was with the HFW. I reinstalled OFW 4.92 in safe mode and that seemed to fix the issue. After some time playing I decided to unplug it and put it aside it while I worked on a different console.
The next day I tried to plug it back in to try HFW again but there was no stand by power, not even a blink. I disassembled it and confirmed the PSU was working. When I plugged it in to check the motherboard voltages I was surprised to see power was working again! I changed the CMOS battery because it seemed a bit low and tested again - no issues at all. Reassembled fully and installed HFW 4.92 and played for a few hours - still no issues.
Right after unplugging it for storage, I remembered that I had forgotten to install a few pkg files so I plugged it back in - controllers no longer sync again but WiFi is still good. I thought to try to leave it unplugged for an hour to see if anything changed and it did - no power at all. I disassembled it again and checked for shorts around the WiFi/Bluetooth module - BINGO! Shorted caps and only 0.3v coming from the regulator. I will buy a new AMS1117 regulator but for the time being I decided to just cut away the old regulator to see if that will restore power - it did, obviously without wifi and bluethooth. Caps are still shorted though which scares me a bit that the chip itself may have died.
I have attached a photo showing the caps that I know are shorted (in the red circles). What should I do and what should I NOT do going further? I read that trying to install any FW when the module is disconnected/dead/damaged will lead to a brick but I have already reinstalled FW several times with no issue. Does having flash storage instead of NOR have anything to do with this or maybe the chip was holding out for one last time? The shorted caps and lack of power seem to indicate a chip failure but then why would it just work/fail after disassembly and reassembly or by leaving it unplugged for a bit? Will soldering the new regulator cause problems if the shorts remain? Conventional wisdom tells me "yes" but at the same time it did manage to survive a couple FW installations in that half-dead state so idk
I also ruled out a BGA fault using a pressure test. Replacing the whole module is not an option for me and while I don't mind not having it connected, I would like to at least find a way to install newer HFW in the future without bricking.
