Hardware Help diagnosing a damaged 3DS

[spkuja]

Hey all,

I hope someone can help shed some light on what may be wrong with a 3DS that I have recently acquired.

So, I bought this 3DS on eBay thinking it may be bricked. It was listed as faulty, it charges and the blue power light comes on.

I've tried using NTRBoot but nothing seems to happen.

Interestingly enough, if I press the power button once, the blue light will come on and then turn off. Just like it does when it's missing a payload. If I press the power button a second time it comes on and stays on. No other LEDs light up and the screens stay black - they don't even power on.

Once the console turns on, the only way to turn it off again is by removing the battery. Holding the power button down doesn't seem to work.

I've opened it up and reseated the WiFi chip as this was the only advice I could find online. I've also tried booting with nothing in the game slot or SD card slot as well as having both B9S and A9LH payloads on the SD card.

Does anyone have any ideas on what else it may be? It does not appear to be water damaged but I have messaged the seller to see what caused it to stop working.

To be clear, I am aware I bought a faulty console, I bought it as I wanted to have a go at restoring it.

 

[Kubas_inko]

Hey all,

I hope someone can help shed some light on what may be wrong with a 3DS that I have recently acquired.

So, I bought this 3DS on eBay thinking it may be bricked. It was listed as faulty, it charges and the blue power light comes on.

I've tried using NTRBoot but nothing seems to happen.

Interestingly enough, if I press the power button once, the blue light will come on and then turn off. Just like it does when it's missing a payload. If I press the power button a second time it comes on and stays on. No other LEDs light up and the screens stay black - they don't even power on.

I've opened it up and reseated the WiFi chip as this was the only advice I could find online. I've also tried booting with nothing in the game slot or SD card slot as well as having both B9S and A9LH payloads on the SD card.

Does anyone have any ideas on what else it may be? It does not appear to be water damaged but I have messaged the seller to see what caused it to stop working.

To be clear, I am aware I bought a faulty console, I bought it as I wanted to have a go at restoring it.

Does it make any sound?
Try recovery mode.
Try putting boot.firm to root of SD.
Try putting arm9loaderhax.bin to root of your SD
Try NTRBoot once more (you might have to fiddle with the card a little and make sure you have strong enough magnet). Otherwise, your 3DS might also have dead cartridge reader)

 

[spkuja]

Does it make any sound?
Try recovery mode.
Try putting boot.firm to root of SD.
Try putting arm9loaderhax.bin to root of your SD
Try NTRBoot once more (you might have to fiddle with the card a little and make sure you have strong enough magnet). Otherwise, your 3DS might also have dead cartridge reader)

It doesn't make any sounds. No popping noises.

I've tried both payloads on the root of the SD as well as two cards loaded with NTRBoot.

I know the magnet is fine as it's the same one I've used on the various other consoles I've installed CFW on.

I'd like to say I know the game card slot is fine but there is no way to be sure, but I would hazard a guess and say it's probably okay. Nothing looks untoward.

Something I forgot to mention in the original post (while I'll add in) - Once the console turns on, the only way to turn it off again is by removing the battery. Holding the power button down doesn't seem to work.

 

[Hatchetball]

You could try older payloads and Luma versions until you get results. Could just be older firmware

 

[spkuja]

You could try older payloads and Luma versions until you get results. Could just be older firmware

But the very fact it turns on and the blue light stays on the second time would indicate it doesn't have CFW installed, surely?

 

[Hatchetball]

But the very fact it turns on and the blue light stays on the second time would indicate it doesn't have CFW installed, surely?

Have you disassembled it any to check the components? Or are you just staring at the 3DS and hoping for the best that you can install CFW?
Ribbon cable for screens? Display damaged? Really no info on it. "Oh no I can't install CFW" isn't good enough lol Does the screen light up?

 

[spkuja]

Have you disassembled it any to check the components? Or are you just staring at the 3DS and hoping for the best that you can install CFW?
Ribbon cable for screens? Display damaged? Really no info on it. "Oh no I can't install CFW" isn't good enough lol Does the screen light up?

I'm pretty sure you'll find I've not once complained that I am unable to install CFW on the machine. And as I stated I have opened it up, at least to check the WiFi chip. As I am unsure of the possible reasons why it may not be functioning is why I have asked for advice on here prior to digging any deeper. Please do not mistake me for one of the regular 12-year olds who frequent this forum begging for information. I' merely trying to obtain as much information as I can before I dismantle it completely. While I'm not overly bothered if I end up causing more damage, I would like to repair it if I can.

The console itself is in immaculate condition despite a few scratches on the outside. There are no signs of it being dropped, the screens are not visibly damaged. As I stated in my original post if I press the power button once the power light glows and then goes out, as if it has CFW installed and is missing the payloads. When you press the power button for the second time the power light comes on and remains on. The only way to power down the system is by removing the battery. Again, neither of the screens light up, they remain off.

 

[Hatchetball]

The console itself is in immaculate condition despite a few scratches on the outside. There are no signs of it being dropped, the screens are not visibly damaged. As I stated in my original post if I press the power button once the power light glows and then goes out, as if it has CFW installed and is missing the payloads. When you press the power button for the second time the power light comes on and remains on. The only way to power down the system is by removing the battery. Again, neither of the screens light up, they remain off.

I would recommend looking at the speaker cable, I know you said it doesn't make the popping noise but it sounds like it is either the camera or speaker connection. Check for tearing along those cables first. They are not protected very well and merely opening the console can damage them. https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Nintendo+3DS+Speaker+Assembly+Replacement/6174
Blue light on, then off, usually indicates speaker or camera malfunction (More likely speaker) on regular consoles. (No CFW)
Edit: Check the screws for wear, if you see any indication that it has been opened before, assume the person who did it did not hook up the ribbon cables correctly. They are not easy to get back in place and the person likely just sold it instead of trying to figure out the problem with the repair. If you are going to do the repair, I would use rubber tipped tweezers specifically for any ribbon cables.

 

[spkuja]

Thanks, I'll give that a go over the weekend and report back. With any luck it will help!