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[stickyfingers]

Just got a bricked DS, and even though I'm a newbie at this, I was sure I could fix it.
Main proplem being that when turned on, there was a flash on the bottom screen and a "click" in the speakers, and then it shut down again. When the charger was inserted, the charge light didn't go on as well. To me, it sounded like the blown fuse problem, so I imagined bridging the F2 was going to fix the problem. Inspecting the mainboard seemed to support that fact.

1st question:
I measured the current on the pins of the charging circuit with the charger inserted, to check that out. It said 5.2v, where as there was no current on the pins that connect to the battery. Shouldn't there be that even though the battery is not connected?

I started soldering (being a newbie at that as well) on the mainboard to bridge the F2, and did a terrible job. At one point I was sure that I had actually fried the mainboard. I don't know if I actually succeeded in bridging the F2, but having assembled the thing again it still did the light up/shut down thing. Was it blown in the first place you ask? I'm not entirely sure, as my multimeter went belly-up, and I'm trying to get a new one.

In the end, I dismantled the whole device to make sure all cables were securely connected. While doing that I discovered that the top screen cable was ripped a bit.

2nd question:
So my main question is now. Is the ripped top screen cable the reason why the thing doesn't boot?

3rd question:
There seems to be evidence a bid of leaked fluids in different places on the mainboard (rusty colored residue on the bottom screen foam), could that indicate that the thing is toasted?. Remember it still does the light up/shut down thing.

Any help or advise will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

[mudlouse1]

1) the battery has 3 pins, 2 are the positive and negative and i believe the other is for some control circuit. i think that if the battery isn't present (or is faulty) then the ds won't charge the battery (should be true for most li-ion batteries). also, current is the value in Amps and voltage in Volts.

if the fuse is definetly blown, just remove it (it's much easier to solder that way). you may also be interested that there's a F1 fuse somewhere on the board.

2) it's a possible cause. when the ds powers up, it does a test and if the circuit isn't completed it will switch itself off again. unfortunately, there isn't really any way to test this unless you have another cable/screen lying around.

3) hard to say without seeing it. it could be liquid damage or could be flux (from soldering).

[Devil_Spawn]

it sounds like BOTH problems are correct,
a) i think you need to check f1 as well
b) the ripped cable is definitely causing the trouble with the flashing screen

[stickyfingers]

Thanks for the quick replies!

a)
I did check F1, and it seemed OK. Another dumb question. Do I check measure the resistance going through the fuse or what?
1)
How can I (with a multimeter) check that the DS the charging the battery (apart) from checking the voltage?, which is 3.7v, or can I drain the battery (I don't have another DS) to check if the charging circuit is working?

Probably a dumb question, but how do I remove a fuse? de-solder it?
Having done a terrible job on the first run, I'm probably not oing down that road again, unless I really have to.

2)
My money is on this one. Will try to get a replacement screen to check it with

3)
This worries me a bit. Shouldn't the PCB (and screens) be squeaky clean, unless you actually poured coffee or something into the device?
If the device is able to do a circuit check (with power to bottom screen and speakers), shouldn't I be able to conclude that the mainboard as such is OK?
Will try to see if I can get a picture of it.

[mudlouse1]

a) i use the resistance readings, if the fuse is good there should be a value but if it's blown it should be an erroneous value (depends on your multimeter) because it cannot conduct.

1) i don't know too much about batteries i'm afraid.

regarding the fuse, it should be held on with solder. just melt it and the fuse should come off leaving two small pads.

2) do you have the original DS or the Lite? the ribbon cables on the lite are attached to the screen whilst the original has an extra cable which runs up to another pcb and not the screen. depending on which, you may need to buy a screen or a cable.

3) i've seen small patches of flux dotted about on some boards but if someone spilt drink over it, there should be evidence of that on the surface and in between gaps. even if it was liquid damaged, there's a good chance a fuse was blown to protect the system.

unfortunately, just because the system can do a self test, it doesn't mean it's 100% salvageable but it's worth pursuing.