CCFL backlight in PB 145 / 160 /165 = CCFL backlight in PB 180?

[Shaddam IV]

Hi, a beautiful PB 180 has come into my possession. No tunneling (yet. It's been running about an hour. Fingers xed). However, the CCFL is a bit on the weak side. Would anyone here know whether the same tubes are used throughout the 1xx (140, 145, 160, 165, 180) line, or are they different? The inverter boards are NOT the same, that I know. The backlight cables of my 160s are white and pink, while the 180 has two white cables. Thanks!

 

[dankcomputing]

Every panel appears to have a different size CCFL.

 

[croissantking]

I agree: I think they’re different.

I have two 180 LCDs and they both have the same dim backlight… dim as compared to say the much brighter display I have in my 165. So I suspect it might just be a dim bulb by design.

I’m planning to go down the LED replacement for one of these displays, but am still at the baking stage of my endeavours. All in good time!

 

[dankcomputing]

I'm looking for a replacement CCFL for a Powerbook 160. It was never a separate part number and never sold separately; back in the day the entire LCD assembly, backlight and all, was treated as a whole unit.

It is possible today to buy CCFL tubes of the appropriate sizes, so maybe the thing to do is to take the measurements of what's in there and order the replacement that way. This is probably one of the reasons why the inverter boards differed slightly between the different LCD models - the CCFLs were different sizes and shapes.

For example, these are the inverter boards for the Powerbook 140 (above) and 160 (below):



And these are the CCFLs for the Powerbook 140 (above) and 160 (below):



The 140 CCFL goes in the Sharp LM64P51 and the 160 goes in the Sharp LM64P58. The different sizes correspond to different voltages, hence the different inverter boards. I haven't measured the 140 CCFL as mine's working, but the 160's CCFL appears to be 160mm x 3mm in size.

If you wanted to replace the CCFL in the 180, you would have to take the LCD out, get the CCFL out, measure it, and see if you can find one that matches the same dimensions and hopefully voltage. I haven't opened up an active panel yet. Hopefully the CCFL on those would be in a separate compartment, as it was on the Sharp passive panels, so you might not necessarily need to take the entire panel apart to get to it.

 

[croissantking]

Someone on here has done it and written about it on their 180

 

[Shaddam IV]

I'm looking for a replacement CCFL for a Powerbook 160. It was never a separate part number and never sold separately; back in the day the entire LCD assembly, backlight and all, was treated as a whole unit.

It is possible today to buy CCFL tubes of the appropriate sizes, so maybe the thing to do is to take the measurements of what's in there and order the replacement that way. This is probably one of the reasons why the inverter boards differed slightly between the different LCD models - the CCFLs were different sizes and shapes.

For example, these are the inverter boards for the Powerbook 140 (above) and 160 (below):

View attachment 69955

And these are the CCFLs for the Powerbook 140 (above) and 160 (below):

View attachment 69956

The 140 CCFL goes in the Sharp LM64P51 and the 160 goes in the Sharp LM64P58. The different sizes correspond to different voltages, hence the different inverter boards. I haven't measured the 140 CCFL as mine's working, but the 160's CCFL appears to be 160mm x 3mm in size.

If you wanted to replace the CCFL in the 180, you would have to take the LCD out, get the CCFL out, measure it, and see if you can find one that matches the same dimensions and hopefully voltage. I haven't opened up an active panel yet. Hopefully the CCFL on those would be in a separate compartment, as it was on the Sharp passive panels, so you might not necessarily need to take the entire panel apart to get to it.

Thanks! I plan to open the Bezel and disconnect the CCFL cable plug. I understand that there will be a couple hundred Volts (at very low amperage), so I plan to use a CCFL cable from a non-functioning powerbook, plug it in, and cut off the dead CCDL - in this way, I should be able to safely measure the voltage (and power consumption). If someone has a better idea regarding how best to do that, I'd be very grateful. Cheers!

 

[Shaddam IV]

I've now replaced several CCFLs in powerbooks 160/165 (about 3 mm thin) and a Powerbook 140 (about 5 mm). You need to save the cables of the old CCFLs and make sure that you don't cut them - they're just the right length.
I've also opened the 140's hard drive and given the platter a few "manual" spins as it wouldn't start up. I wrapped a a thin strip of tape around the head stop bumper as that bumper had become quite sticky. (Look up "Repair Conner drive" or "Repair Quantum drive" on YouTube.) As long as you do it on a humid day you should be ok - the humidity takes care of lots of the dust in the air (which then won't enter your drive while it's open).

 

[desertrout]

I've now replaced several CCFLs in powerbooks 160/165 (about 3 mm thin) and a Powerbook 140 (about 5 mm). You need to save the cables of the old CCFLs and make sure that you don't cut them - they're just the right length.

Very cool. What was the result? And what length of tube - is the same for all?

 

[Shaddam IV]

This is what I measured (old tubes): 140/180: about 154 mm / 4.8 mm 160/165: about 158 mm / 3 mm.
This is what I used (new tubes): 150 mm / 5 mm and 150 mm / 3 mm.
You need to carefully pry the rubber caps off the old CCFL's ends and move them down the cables, since you want to keep them. Unsolder the tubes' wires from the cables. Take the new tube, bend its wires, and solder the cables to the tube's wires, close to the bend. Then move the caps back up to cover the tubes' wires. Done.
The tubes I got aren't particularly bright, but the display is now less yellow than it used to be. Perhaps I need to recap the inverter board, too, but I haven't yet been able to source the required capacitors.

 

[desertrout]

This is what I measured (old tubes): 140/180: about 154 mm / 4.8 mm 160/165: about 158 mm / 3 mm.
This is what I used (new tubes): 150 mm / 5 mm and 150 mm / 3 mm.
You need to carefully pry the rubber caps off the old CCFL's ends and move them down the cables, since you want to keep them. Unsolder the tubes' wires from the cables. Take the new tube, bend its wires, and solder the cables to the tube's wires, close to the bend. Then move the caps back up to cover the tubes' wires. Done.
The tubes I got aren't particularly bright, but the display is now less yellow than it used to be. Perhaps I need to recap the inverter board, too, but I haven't yet been able to source the required capacitors.

Brilliant - thanks! I've been meaning to replace a few and hadn't seen anyone replace the OG CCFLs, just retrofitting LED's.