Need Motherboard Part Number for Aspire 5552G-7641

My laptop 5552G-7641 started locking up about two weeks ato - display freeze, WiFi light on, HD activity light off, no response to keyboard or mouse, recovery by pressing and holding power button until the laptop shuts down. Time from boot to lockup was about 5 minutes, sometimes less. Windows event log has no event recorded that indicates that a problem has occurred at the time of lockup.

I changed RAM from DDR3 2X4 GB 1600 MHz (overkill, I know, but overspecified for reliability) back to the original 2X2 GB with no change. I couldn't find the original HDD so I wiped my 1 TB Seagate SSHD and reinstalled Windows 10 Pro, build 1903, from thumb drive, but it would lock up before installation could complete. I found a WD Black2 Dual Drive 120 GB SSD/1.0 TB HDD that I never installed, and put that in, installed Windows 10 Pro in the SSD and enabled the 1 TB HDD before it locked up AGAIN. I find that I have about a half hour before lockup now. Nothing is installed except Windows 10 Pro 64-bit and Netscape. There is no sign of accumulated dust or lint in any of the ventilation ports and the fan runs OK. I've decided that it has a problem with its SATA bus and I need a motherboard.

I have a dizzying array of numbers from the bottom of the computer and from under the cover for the HDD and RAM, and under the RAM, and from web research, but nothing reliable that I can count on for a motherboard part number. I've turned up several motherboards for the 5552G series for sale on various web sites, all with different part numbers. I want to keep my AMD quad-core 2.2 GHz processor with its S1g4 socket/chipset (it works with a chipset that supports DDR3 RAM so it must be a gen 4), so I definitely need the right part number.

From the decal below and to the right of the keyboard and other places around the computer and from web research:

Model: Acer Aspire 5552G-7641
MFG date: 1102 (February 2011)
Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 N970 (Socket S1g4)
Display: 15.6" HD LED LCD
Video processor: AMD Raedon HD 6650M
DVD-Super Multi DL drive
Acer Nplify 80211b/g/n
6-cell Li-ion battery

Whole laptop part no.: LX.RC402.074

Product Desc: AS5552G-7641-US W7HP64AS/N970/4G/500GB//6L2.2/15.6

Possible motherboard part no.: MN.WVF02.001 (quite unreliable, based on a web offering that matched most of my numbers and had this part number)

Please, someone give me the correct motherboard part number, or, tell me where I can find it, online or on the motherboard, in the BIOS, or with a utility like CPUID. I haven't removed the entire bottom of the case yet, as I still boot the computer and poke around Widows 10 for system information, but I am ready and willing to do so if I know where to look for a part number. I would rather have another motherboard ready to install before I tear it down completely.

A hint as to where I could get a new motherboard would be helpful, if such a source exists at this late date. Otherwise I will stalk Amazon and eBay for one to pop up.

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Commodore_1995#

Are you sure the sata port is bad and have you tested it with another hdd?

motorfingers

I wiped the original HD by booting a Windows 10 build 1903 installation on a thumb drive and deleting all the partitions, and the computer would lock up in a few minutes, not allowing enough time to install a new OS. I could run on the thumb drive without lockup. This eliminated software as the problem.

I changed the HD to a WD Black2 dual disk, 120 GB SSD plus 1 TB HDD and installed Windows 10 Pro on the SSD and enabled the 1 TB HDD. It would run about a half hour before the same lockup. My last few experiences with it have been only about 5 minutes before lockup. I'm trying to complete the latest Windows Update to get the latest drivers for my hardware on it and am not having much luck.

So, yes, I've changed the HD. I don't have a bus analyzer that I can insert between the motherboard and the HD that would flag errors. The Windows event logs did not show an error before the lockup or a reason for the lockup.

Commodore_1995#

Have you tested each ram individually?

motorfingers

No, I had upgraded RAM in 2015 to 8 GB (2 x 4 GB). I found the original 4 GB (2 x 2 GB) of RAM and put it in, and there was no change in behavior. I did not run the Windows memory test because in the past I have found it to never terminate and not to tell you anything. Also, the computer locks up a short time after boot.

Windows Update has an update for the AMD S1 chipset but it wants me to use a "different account" to download it. Windows 10 Pro activated (the Windows 7 activation code is available from BIOS and activates the two Windows 10 upgrades), but I'm not logged in a Microsoft account. Same message regarding an update for the touchpad, but I'm mostly running from an Aten KVMA switch and, in any case, the touchpad works fine.

I'm having difficulty in getting Windows Update to complete without a lockup.

Commodore_1995#

Have you checked the processor and hdd?

motorfingers

The HDD was a Seagate 1 TB SSHD when the problem began a couple of weeks ago. To eliminate software as a cause, I deleted all its partitions and attempted to install Windows 10 Pro on it. Lockup occurred before the installation completed, multiple times. I installed a WD Black2 dual (120 GB SSD, 1 TB HDD) and installed Windows 10 Pro on the SSD, then enabled the 1 TB HDD as drive E:. Lockup still occurred, but in about a half hour instead of just a couple of minutes. With continued use, lockup happens earlier and earlier. At this time, it's hard to complete a Windows Update without lockup.

Appleteck5097

Hello send me your mother board I will repair for you can send pic of mother board. What is your main problem you mean mother board locked with bios .

Commodore_1995#

Try disconnecting SSHD and leave only ssd connected and check if the problem persists.

motorfingers

egydiocoelho: The WD Black2 dual drive is not two HDs. There is only one package,the standard 2.5" laptop HD format. It installs in the standard Acer HD tray with 4 screws and plugs directly into the Acer motherboard, just like any standard 2.5" laptop HD. It's new and I opened the packaging, including sealed static bag, to install it in my ailing Acer last week.

Appleteck5097: I haven't disassembled the laptop yet. I'm still running it, trying to get the current Windows Updates installed. As far as I know, the motherboard isn't repairable, unless you have a test jig with hardware diagnostics on the HD and RAM interfaces that allows you to run it and diagnose it, parts including replacement surface mount ICs and components, etc. Since used motherboards are out there for $50 and sometimes even less, and this is a moderately priced laptop when new, nobody is repairing these. If you are serious, let me know what your services are.

motorfingers

Appleteck5097: The Acer 5552G-7641 boots to BIOS just fine. This was necessary to get it to boot from thumb drive. I used the BIOS option to restore factory defaults today to see if that would help; it locked on boot once but subsequently returned to operation for a few minutes after boot to Windows 10 Pro.

egydiocoelho: I did get the latest Windows Updates installed, other than the AMD update that wants a Windows Account logon. The Acer web site doesn't have that update. I'll write it down exactly and look on the AMD web site.

It locked up while counting down patches after booting with a new Windows Update, twice. The "Don't turn off your computer" warning was displayed both times. This did NOT brick the computer. All seems good now.

Commodore_1995#

I know this is not a definitive solution but you can get a caddy to put the hdd in the dvd place. If the problem does not occur, it means that you really have a problem with another sata port.

Now you have two more options:

a) send the motherboard for repair;

b) buy another motherboard.

motorfingers

I'll need to disassemble the computer to get to the CD-ROM drive and its connector. The BIOS has the CD-ROM in its list of boot devices, so I'm sure that it will find it. Where do I get a caddy that has both correct connectors and the proper pin mapping between them?

Another question that occurs to me is that this new information may help the repair person in that it will save a few minutes of diagnosis, but I will still need to repair or replace the motherboard.

When I do tear down the computer, the first thing I will do is to renew the silicone on the processor heat sink thermal interface and try again. My faint hope there is based on the observation that the time to lockup decreases when I have lots of threads running. Once when I had Windows Update installing, I started Task Manager and it locked up immediately, before I could switch to the Performance screen.

Commodore_1995#

You can get a 12.7mm caddy. But it is important to note that not all notebooks recognize the caddy and may not solve your problem either.

https://youtu.be/Eukrcw4chq0

motorfingers

I'm thinking that a caddy to mount the HD in the optical drive slot is not a good investment of time or money for me.

Thanks for the teardown video. As I expected, the Acer 5552G is built like a tank. What I didn't expect was scores of screws of several types, and several ribbon cable connectors to the motherboard and its cover. The 12-minute video was sped up, telling me that a trained tech would take about an hour to extract the bare motherboard. I love the use of transparent shipping tape, with labels, to hold the screws.

I did note that the heat sink compound looked OK. I can't tell how old the video is, but my hopes that renewing the heat sink compound would fix the problem is dimmed out. Even if the silicone dries out, the oxide should do the job as long as it is even damp with silicone.

The probability of getting it all back together with a replacement motherboard as a first-time job seems low. It looks like what I need is a computer repair with a reasonable warranty.

Note that a 5552G with a dual-core Intel processor at 1.7 GB or some such is worthless to me. There is only one 5552G-7641 motherboard.

This changes my question: How can I get a repair that likely requires a replacement motherboard, and definitely will return my computer with the AMD 2.2 GHz quad-core processor and DDR3 RAM support? I will want to be able to research the repair facility for reliability using customer reviews over a reasonable time.

Commodore_1995#

Have you contacted your Acer service center to find out how much it costs to repair a motherboard in the United States?

motorfingers

Acer has declined to repair the computer, citing parts availability. The email gave the three parts suppliers that they give on their web site. One of them brings up a "This Domain for Sale" page. A second has not responded to a question about availablity of repair or, failing that, a motherboard for a 5552G-7641. The third answered the phone but do not carry motherboards for Acer.

Acer appears to have the right motherboard for sale on Amazon - for $250. This is the one that appears to match the numbers I gave in the first message, and gives a part number of MN.WVF02.001. Apparently this is the price of a new motherboard. I'm prepared to wait for the right motherboard to show up, used, on eBay or Amazon. Windows System Information tells me that the BaseBoard is Product JE51_DN, Version V2.09, which may or may not be the same part offered for $250 on Amazon. The BIOS has some information that I captured in a cell phone photo but haven't transcribed.

Commodore_1995#

So I think the best option would be to try to repair the motherboard or even get a used motherboard that is working perfectly. You can also try contacting the user kev0806 to see if he has this motherboard available. The problem is that I don't think it's worth buying a new motherboard if it costs $ 250.

motorfingers

I've thought about buying a used 5552G-7641 and putting my RAM, WD Black2 and battery in it. Perhaps I can validate Windows 10 Pro by manually entering the Windows 7 activation code from my computer, perhaps not.

Your disassembly video for the 5552G reveals to me that changing the motherboard is probably a two-day job for me, with breaks for photography during disassembly to provide instruction for proper reassembly. Use of the proper threadlock during assembly is essential to retaining the durability of the laptop. I really don't need a new project that big right now.

In any case, it looks like a repair where someone else puts in a new motherboard, a used 5552G-7641, or a used computer with similar capability all will run in the $500 range, for an eight-year-old laptop that originally cost a little over $600 - albeit with significant upgrades to HD and RAM. I've built more desktops than I can count but never tore down a laptop before, and I did not realize how much work is required to do the job properly. The only route that makes sense in terms of cost is to get a $50 used motherboard and change it myself, and hope that it works OK and the validated OS on my HD doesn't push back on the license when it sees another motherboard and BIOS.