# HP Pavilion DV6 laptop won't power up



## SimonaB

The full model is: *HP Pavilion dv6-1216sa 15.6 inch Notebook (AMD Turion X2 Dual-Core Mobile Processor RM-74, 4 GB RAM, 320GB SATA HDD, Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4530, LightScribe)

*I was busy browsing on it a few days ago (it had only been switched on for about 10 minutes or so) and all of a sudden it just died! The laptop wasn't being moved at the time - I didn't click or open any funny attachment - nothing. Dead.

When I try to power it back on, the lights come on and I'm pretty sure that for a split second, the fan does too - but that's it. Max 2 seconds and it's dead again. Nothing even has a chance of appearing on screen.

I've tried the following to eliminate:

1) Hard drive - no problem here. Removed it and docks perfectly fine (without errors) to any other computer

2) Battery - Removed it and tried powering up. No difference.

3) Power cord - Removed it and tried powering on with only the battery. No difference

4) Taken the whole thing apart to see if I can see any loose cables or dust build-up inside. Nothing.

5) Holding down the power button for 30 seconds. 

I've had the laptop since August 2009. Any suggestions or thoughts??

I'm no techie by far but vaguely know my way around.

Thanks in advance!ray:


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## GZ

Hello SimonaB,

Does the light around the DC jack light when you plug the computer in? (if not around the jack, there should be a light to indicate power somewhere)

Here is a link to your service manual.
http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c01758220.pdf


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## SimonaB

Thanks Gavin. Yep, as soon as I plug the power lead in, the little light comes on.


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## Derreem

Did u try removing all external hardware and then try powering up


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## SimonaB

Derreem said:


> Did u try removing all external hardware and then try powering up


Mmm, by "external hardware" do you mean anything connected to the laptop (such as via USB or other cables)? If so, there was nothing plugged in at the time (apart from the power cable) and nothing now.

Mmm, something else that might be worth mentioning. Since more or less the very beginning, I've had problems with the laptop over heating and temps pushing 80C easily on the core (watching movies while browsing and with other apps open). 

When I googled around, it seems to be a very common problem with these laptops.

Two or three times (max) in the past 18 months that I've had the laptop since new, it's gone into auto-shut down when it overheats or I've been using it for too many hours at a time. If I let it cool down, it then powers back up with no problems.

But I always have a well vented and all vents clear of obstructions. And quite often (if working on the laptop for long periods) use one of those usb connected fan trays to help keep it cool.

When it now died, I only had it on for about 10 minutes when it happened (wasn't hot) - and I hadn't used it for 3 weeks (away on holiday).


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## Derreem

Literally remove the HDD and anything else that u could remove and leave the case open remove the battery also and try powering with the Adapter check put a fan directly on the laptop and see What happens


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## SimonaB

Thanks for trying to help Derreem. OK, I have removed Hard drive, battery, memory & DVD (can't see or think of anything else to remove) - no difference whatsoever. Still tries to power up for about 1 second & I can hear the fan. Deductions?


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## GZ

Hello SimonaB, 

Sorry it took so long for me to get back to you.

The computer, when it attempts to turn on does it "cycle"? What I mean by this is, do the lights come on for a period of, say, 20 seconds then turn off for a couple seconds and come back on?


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## SimonaB

Hi Gavin. Unfortunately not. When I press the power button, it only tries to turn on for about 1 second (I can hear the fan and little lights on the keyboard turn on) but after that split second, it just shuts off again. Then nothing.
The same keeps happening no matter how many times I try this. No difference.


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## GZ

It is acting like a power issue. When you turn the computer on, does the light (where the power plugs in) dim or go out?


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## umarabbasi

Check first his heat sink is not dust and then near the power jack have one BGA IC resoled it or replace it your problem is solved


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## zlectronic

To make sure the power supply for your laptop, use the multi-meter tag on the DC Power Jack, see any voltage. Most of the fault caused by the bad contact of Power DC jack


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## SimonaB

gavinzach said:


> It is acting like a power issue. When you turn the computer on, does the light (where the power plugs in) dim or go out?


Sorry for the late reply, but I've been away.
Nope, as long as it's plugged in, the power light stays on - perfectly solid and stable.


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## SimonaB

umarabbasi said:


> Check first his heat sink is not dust *and then near the power jack have one BGA IC resoled it or replace it your problem is solved*


Thanks, but I have no idea what this means :sigh: and doesn't sound like something I can resolve or do myself.

Is this a motherboard issue? Pardon my ignorance.


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## SimonaB

zlectronic said:


> To make sure the power supply for your laptop, use the multi-meter tag on the DC Power Jack, see any voltage. Most of the fault caused by the bad contact of Power DC jack


Sorry, but I'm not an electrician and don't have voltage tools.
I don't know what a DC jack is.

All I know is that it doesn't work - whether plugged into the wall or running on battery.


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## GZ

Hello again SimonaB,

Welcome back. The actual cause of your issue eludes me at the moment. It isn't your fault, I am having a hard time asking the right questions in this case.

How comfortable are you with disassembling the computer?


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## SimonaB

gavinzach said:


> Hello again SimonaB,
> 
> Welcome back. The actual cause of your issue eludes me at the moment. It isn't your fault, I am having a hard time asking the right questions in this case.
> 
> How comfortable are you with disassembling the computer?


Thanks for persevering Gavin 

I'm pretty OK with that and wouldn't have a problem stripping it back as far as I need to.

I can't remember if I've mentioned this before, but here goes: when I press the power button and the machine tries to power up for that milli second, all the little lights come on for that split second too.
The one on the DVD drive, the wifi, the sound, a little light by the touch pad and another one one the right hand side.


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## GZ

http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c01758220.pdf

The above link is the service manual for your notebook.

Follow the troubleshooting steps outlined in the following linked thread.
http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f108/black-screen-issues-and-troubleshooting-498132.html

Post back your results and any changes you may notice.


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## SimonaB

gavinzach said:


> http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c01758220.pdf
> 
> The above link is the service manual for your notebook.
> 
> Follow the troubleshooting steps outlined in the following linked thread.
> http://www.techsupportforum.com/forums/f108/black-screen-issues-and-troubleshooting-498132.html
> 
> Post back your results and any changes you may notice.


Thanks for that. OK, need to summon up some energy first! Will post back later today.


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## GZ

Take your time. Read the service manual. It will save you some headaches.

Grab a pillbox... (not for self-medication:grin So you can keep the screws separated by type.

You will need, at least, a #1 Phillips Screwdriver and a small flat screwdriver.

Good luck!


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## SimonaB

Hi Gavin. Sorry I never came back to this. Had to go away on business the next day and never got round to it. I had an old Thinkpad I've been using as a back-up, but I fear that's not long for the world. So I had no choice (literally) but to go out and buy a new laptop :sigh:

But guess what happened when I got home? My 18month old desktop died within 5 minutes of booting up. Dead as a dodo. What the heck?! Am I a doomed computer killer? :upset:
Anyway - I'll start a different thread about that and hopefully at some point (when I have time) get back to this one.


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## GZ

Sounds like you are having a rough time about it!


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## teachnmom

I am having the same exact problem. Only difference is, I am not as comfortable taking apart the laptop. Has anyone come up with any solutions for this problem. If you go to HP's support page, there is absolutely nothing on this problem. The power cord works fine as we can use it on my daughter's computer. I thought the battery may be bad but I was told that it should still power up if it is plugged in, and it doesn't. There is a blue light that is on where the power cord goes in. There is also a blue light on the front of the laptop that stays on showing it is getting power. When I push the power on button all the lights on the computer light up blue for one second but nothing even attempts to boot up. As with the person who started the post, I also have had overheating issues. I have had to replace the hard drive due to this. No one around here seems to know what is wrong with it and I have no idea what will be charged if I take it in somewhere. So. if anyone had any ideas on what could be wrong, I sure would appreciate it.


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## SimonaB

teachnmom, I still haven't been able to resolve mine's issues. I was going to give it one last shot this weekend and then sell it "as is" for parts (the likely outcome).

I've since bought a new Sony Vaio laptop - the best decision EVER. No overheating - in fact, no matter how many hours I use it, it doesn't even vaguely warm up. The fan is dead silent and the vents aren't at the bottom!

I'm usually good at fixing things (despite not being a technician), but this has me stumped. Good luck with yours!


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## teachnmom

SimonaB:

Thanks for the update on yours. Also, thanks for the recommendation on a new laptop. We will definitely have to get a new one. It won't be a HP so it is good to know which one is good.


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## zak650

I have the same problem on my HP DV6-2088dx, this is a link to another person with the same issue, she posted this video:

YouTube - ‪Help!! HP pavilion DV6 problem - not turning on‬‏

Good luck, If anyone finds a solution please post it here or make a video of the solution and put it on youtube.

Zak


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## power_8383

I am facing exactly the same problem with my HP DV6 1211AX
I have also tried many things to repair it, but no luck. 

The guy at HP's official service center said that it is motherboard's problem and I need to buy a new motherboard.

Why shouldn't I buy a new netbook, instead of spending 16000 INR ? (approx. 330 usd)


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## SimonaB

Given the choice between a new motherboard or a new laptop, in my opinion it's only one thing: new laptop! Still incredibly happy with my Sony Vaio and will never touch HP again.


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## ziow

I have exactly the same problem. Very similar Notebook specs and same model ("HP Pavilion dv6-1216sa"). When i press the power button, the power gets through to the notebook, but cuts off straight away after 1 second. The power LED comes on for that 1 second while the battery LED stays on solid (as long as power cord is plugged in). The Power cord, Battery, HDD, RAM and the Fan are all fine/functional but two things i'm not sure about is the CPU and the Motherboard because they the only component i think off that might be the problem. 
Of course one of the biggest problems with this notebook is over heating but before when once it over-heated and turned off it would turn back on after it had cooled down, now it doesn't.
I have not had any similar problem to this before, it's very interesting.

Let me know of any progress made, i will do the same.
Thanks


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## power_8383

I had the same problem.
At first it was related to GPU and after servicing it worked fine for 3 months but suddenly the same problem appeared again and this time my laptop has become unrepairable. :frown:


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## hillbillypop

SimonaB said:


> The full model is: *HP Pavilion dv6-1216sa 15.6 inch Notebook (AMD Turion X2 Dual-Core Mobile Processor RM-74, 4 GB RAM, 320GB SATA HDD, Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4530, LightScribe)*
> 
> I was busy browsing on it a few days ago (it had only been switched on for about 10 minutes or so) and all of a sudden it just died! The laptop wasn't being moved at the time - I didn't click or open any funny attachment - nothing. Dead.
> 
> When I try to power it back on, the lights come on and I'm pretty sure that for a split second, the fan does too - but that's it. Max 2 seconds and it's dead again. Nothing even has a chance of appearing on screen.
> 
> I've tried the following to eliminate:
> 
> 1) Hard drive - no problem here. Removed it and docks perfectly fine (without errors) to any other computer
> 
> 2) Battery - Removed it and tried powering up. No difference.
> 
> 3) Power cord - Removed it and tried powering on with only the battery. No difference
> 
> 4) Taken the whole thing apart to see if I can see any loose cables or dust build-up inside. Nothing.
> 
> 5) Holding down the power button for 30 seconds.
> 
> I've had the laptop since August 2009. Any suggestions or thoughts??
> 
> I'm no techie by far but vaguely know my way around.
> 
> Thanks in advance!ray:


Hi
We have the same problem and if everybody read what you said this could be answered a lot quicker
Your motherboard is done!!!! and HP dont want to know!
cheapest replacement Ive found is £60 from China
I put the £60 into buying a new ASUS. and threw mine in the bin!
it was 2 weeks over its gaurentee and HP wanted £250 to fix it at 3 months old the hard drive died at 10 months the power transformer died.


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## SimonaB

Thanks. I thought as much :-(
It's a long time ago now but I decided not to try and have it repaired either so bought a Sony Vaio which has been awesome. I sold my HP (with issues made clear to seller) for £50!


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## nabilbek

damn really no one could solve this? am having it nnow on dv6 3280ca
but it doesnt turn off (power button and keyboard and the fan but no screen ofc)
i think it is the power ic imo, ill try replacing it


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## Khojmma

I have a very similar issue here with my Hp dv4. The same exact problem except that all the little lights are always off except the one next to the AC adapter.
Any solution?


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## BIGBEARJEDI

It's most likely the Motherboard; HP has suffered tremendously from low Motherboard quality since 1999 when they decided to move all their factories to China and Indonesia. Their quality control is really really bad. Good news for us Techs--HP laptop repairs keep a roof over my head and food on the table. Keep up the Good Work, HP!!

BIGBEARJEDI


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