HELP Unbrick ASUS N550JV

[pablod]

Hi.

As you might guess my ASUS N550JV laptop got bricked.

I was not doing a BIOS flash or mod.
I had just succesfully finished installing a new SSD, installed windows, booted ok.
Then I reinstalled the original drive as secondary and changed a boot setting on the BIOS, saved and exit and that was it...
No more asus logo, no nothing.

Problem is consistent with this description for a different ASUS laptop from another guy (and I'm also out of warranty).


I'm an experienced tech guy and though I don't repair computers anymore I used to do it for several years, so I tried everything I could think of and some more.

What I've tried/did so far:

- Removed everything (BAT, HDD, SSD, etc.)
- Reset Bios (both by what I assume is the reset button and by unpplugging the BIOS bat)
- Every usual key combination you might think of (F2, F10, CTRL + ESC, etc. etc.)
- Several BIOS recovery procedures described in this forums and others.

What I've found so far...

Normal behaviour now is I switch the laptop on and the keyboard lights switch on inmediately for a couple of seconds, fans start spinning and the laptop stays like that with only power led on and fans spinning.

The only thing that produces something different is switching the computer on while pressing CTRL + HOME
When I do that the USB port gets read.

I tried to put different BIOS images on a pendrive following AMI and Insyde recovery procedures (Also tried AWARD just in case)

As I have access to an identical second (working) laptop, I checked and suspect the BIOS is AMI.
I attached a picture of the working laptop BIOS in the end of this post.


I used several BIOS downloaded from the ASUS site and a dump from the second laptop done using AMIBIOS_and_Aptio_AMI_Firmware_Update_Utility

When I use an empty pendrive and with most of the filenames tried, the pendrive gets accessed for about 30 seconds and then keyboard light switch on and laptop keeps dead just the same.

Using "Andy's tool" I get recovery names "N550JV.bin" and "N550JV.207"
I perceived that if I use "N550JV.bin", instead of accessing the pendrive for 30 seconds, it gets accessed for about 10 seconds but still produces the same result: none!

BIOS names I've tried so far:

N550JV.bin
N550JV.207

AMIBOOT.ROM

Also tried the original downloaded BIOS names:
N550JVAS.208
N550JVAS.203

And just in case...
N550JVAS.207
N550JV.208


I've tried puting a bunch of files with different names on the pendrive and also individually.

I just don't know what else can I try other than flashing the BIOS chip on an EPROM programmer (wich I'm trying to find anyway)

I've attached the BIOS dump image from the working laptop.

ANY HELP/IDEAS ?

Please!!

   

  BIOS Dump.rar (Size: 2.12 MB / Downloads: 101)

[Helvehammer]

I bricked my first computer last week ! AND I recovered my first bricked computer THIS week ! I was lucky I had an asus mobo in a desktop and the cmos chip was socketed for easy swapping. YOU'RE not going to be that lucky, I am afraid. But I DO have an idea sloshing around in my noggin. I have a bunch of mobos that have the cmos soldered down on the board - why not obtain a socket [and to avoid soldering/unsoldering pins EnMasse] and use a group of small insulated wires and go one-to-one from the (now sawed off the board) original chip's "legs" to the legs of the socket? You would have to find an electrically matching chip and flash it on an electrically matching machine. Since you have a matching machine+chip you only have to unsolder En Masse the good one, clean up it's legs so they will go in the socket, start it, swap in the new blank chip and flash it - and you fixed the broken one. I would go ahead and use the wires/remote-mount socket idea on the other one as well. I realize there may not physically be room for that idea to work on a laptop. Also, they may not want to sell you a chip because of the stealing problem with laptops. Well, buddy I tried to help. Good Luck and Happy New Year, Okay?

[pablod]

I will eventually try to reprogram the BIOS chip somehow.


I am hoping this can be avoided with some software recovery process, so if anyone can take a look and see if he/she can find something either on the BIOS image or the procedure that can shed some light about what can be done before tampering with the chip, it would be great.

Thanks

[pablod]

So. I'm hoping to reprogram the BIOS chip directly.

Can anyone help me get the binary image of the BIOS?

Which tool can help me get this done?
Either from the update firmwares from ASUS site or from another working identical laptop.

I have a friend with an identical laptop but he's in a different country without access to a ROM reader so I have to extract it by software.


Thanks

[girolamo]

Hello
I need unlock bios password of my note book ASUS  U36JC.
I read spi flash and supose must rerwrite mx25L3206 with proper hex file.
In atasment is what i read from bios spi.
Can help me sommeone with oem bios file?
Thanks in advance
  MX25L3206.BIN (Size: 4 MB / Downloads: 12)

[BDMaster]

Here You go :

https://www.sendspace.com/file/2epaky

Let me know
Regards

P.S. before write the Bios Rebuild use AIDA64 (cracked version to get FULL) and upload a Full Report
to get all your DMI Data to rever them after . . . If You can make a screenshot of Menu Tab Information too
and upload it here !

[fpwanderley]

Hi pablod.

I also have a Asus N550JV and I'm currently looking for the .ROM file for my mobo BIOS.

Does any of you have it and can provide it to me?!  I'm quite desperate for it, since I can't buy a new mobo for myself because it is sold in Brazil. So I'm holding my hopes on a fresh BIOS for my BIOS.

Thanks in advance and look forward to listen from you.

Cheers.

[Byteman]

I have the exact same problem today  with my Asus N550JV. It happened when I was trying to install OSX on the laptop. Everything was fine actually with one setup usb. I just tried another installation source. First display garbled. I had to restart using the power button then it no longer booted up. Just heavily working fans on a black screen. No bios, nothing! I don't expect an intentional malicious code inside the file. 
Could you resolve your problem? I'm curious what your problem was. Is it really a bios chip that needs replacement or flashing?
best regards

[Byteman]

Could any of you solve the problem with n550jv bios? I have the exact same problem and service center can only replace the motherboard. Please help?

[halfchemistry]

Could any of you solve the problem with n550jv bios? I have the exact same problem and service center can only replace the motherboard. Please help?

Hi, I have n550jv and chip reader, do you need the bios dump?