MacBook Pro 15" Retina Display Mid 2015 Right Speaker Replacement

I’m having a problem trying to get the screws off. I have a set of pentalobe screwdriver set. I found one screwdriver that fits perfectly on one set of screws, but I am unable to unscrew it. I tried using some force pushing the screwdriver into the screw, but nothing happens. Any suggestions?

All the screws on mine are the same length for some reason.

I would recommend the first step is: Run the battery down to ZERO before doing any next step. This reduces risk to you, people nearby, to the MBP and greatly reduces the risk of fire. Step 2 should be: Double-check that the battery is at zero.

I like others listed below and on YouTube, disagree with these full tear down 70+ steps being the only focus. I get that I have to be careful not to get the acetone solvent near the speakers. I skipped 25+ steps by: tilting the MBP away from the speakers and using very little acetone solvent. More pressure with the plastic cards and only a few drops of solvent. While giving the full set of instructions is fine it should be very clear that you can (at the user’s own risk) do this.

As above—I consider full disassembly to be far riskier to fragile cables and connectors than the risk for solvent spillage. I did steps 1-5 and 46-74. No issues. I HIGHLY recommend the iFixit magnetic Project Mat. It’s a white marker board surface gridded into squares and invaluable for labeling part sizes/steps in disassembly.

As above too. I benefitted from the advice. From step 51 onwards, I found a easier way using tip from China battery seller. Use a 2” width plastic scraper/plastic paint scraper to poke under the battery. Use moderate strength to poke and avoid rough handling of the battery so as not to puncture it. There is no need to pry the battery to avoid stressing it, just use a firm poking action under the battery and the double sided tape adhesive will yield. After 5 min of such poking, the entire battery pack can be removed without the hassle of pouring the adhesive remover from step 51 onwards. Get a scraper with a stronger handle so that it is more comfortable to poke.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32889670...

Heads up as you go…we (husband/wife team) had a notebook that when screws/covers were removed, we marked the step # and actually taped the screws into the notebook noted by the step number. This was very helpful on reassembly and we knew we would be using the exact screw into the original screw hole.

After replacing the batteries myself, I wouldn’t even consider doing it again. Not that it’s difficult to do—that’s not the issue. The issue is aftermarket batteries. I’ve been using notebooks for well over 30 years, and never had satisfaction with aftermarket batteries.

Modern lithium batteries are an amazing technological feat, but a dangerous one. So even putting aside that I’ve never found any aftermarket batteries with quality anywhere near original, I learned “cheap” aftermarket lithium batteries are downright dangerous.

After doing research into what’s involved with manufacturing lithium batteries, I know there are so many corners to cut, you’ll end up with junk regardless of what you pay.

A week after replacing my batteries with those from iFixit, they showed clear signs of failure. Thank goodness iFixit refunded my money.

After having Apple replace my batteries, everything is back to like-new. For my $199, I got not only excellent batteries, but a new keyboard and trackpad as well. That’s it’s done!!!

I found an Apple Support link that said MBP battery replacement was $199, but the 2 Apple Stores near my house would not provide any appointments. Instead, I scheduled an appointment with and “Apple Authorized Service Provider” & that repair center quoted about $750 to replace the battery.

I refused, went home, & opened a chat with Apple Support.

After a lengthy & painful chat session where the Apple tech didn’t want to provide a battery replacement quote (he feared other issues with the MBPr), he finally gave me an Apple price of just under $650 to replace the battery.

Did you go into an Apple store, or mail it in? I’m struggling to reconcile a price of $199 to get a battery + keyboard + trackpad against what I was just quoted 2 weeks ago. The new track pad & keyboard might have been due to repair tech error. i.e. they trashed those repairing your batter & had to toss them in.

I took mine in after being quoted for a $199 replacement of battery and keyboard, only to have the repair refused as they found a "water sensor" triggered and now I'm left with my AUD$5,000 laptop with messed up keys. Shame on me for not getting this repaired during COVID while under warranty. This is the first time I've truly been disappointed in Apple, but suppose it was bound to happen someday. I was quoted US$ 1479 to replace the battery and keyboard and the sensor (likely the logic board is replaced as well) if I were to send it in to the US repair center. Any chance these sensors can be triggered by humidity?

Same for me. It just never clips, regardless of the precision and the amount of force I apply.

I also think I stripped the screws holding the clips in place. Does anyone know what screw characteristics should I look for as a replacement?

Bloated battery had already popped my clips.

I chanced it, didnt disconnect the battery and all is well even after giving the insides a good vacuuming before changing the SSD.

It is just the top layer of tape that you want to lift, you need to seperate it from the bottom layer.

You don’t actually need to remove the tape or even peel it off at all. Just pull up the battery connector up with the tape still attached.

pay attention that the macbook in this picture is presented the “wrong side”: if you accidentally remove the tape covering the trackpad cable and thereby also take the trackpad cable out of the zif-socket, your keyboard and trackpad won’t work anymore. putting the trackpad cable back into the (tiny) socket will fix the issue though.

Habe den Akkustecker beim putzen abgemacht um keinen Stromschlag zu kriegen, jetzt wieder eingebaut. Nun habe ich folgendes Problem: Akku wird geladen, aber steigt niemals ueber % und manchmal geht er trotz Anschluss an das Stromnetz einfach aus. Hat da jemand eine Idee?

My battery connector had another layer of plastic on it that I removed first

For an A1398, the screws on the adjacent cover were T6, not T5; one of the tips in the battery kit was suitable.

I need dis board hw much

After separating the battery connector, I took the addd precaution of placing a folded post-it between the connector bank and the socket.

You can also use a plastic tool to hold back the battery connector. My connector was under the plastic tab and had no screws. You may need to check the build version as there are a number of A1398 versions.

When you install the new battery, it may look like the holes in the connector need to be slid on to the connector toward the rear of the mac. I tried bending the cable to make it work. This could damage the cables. You really need only push directly downward on the connector, as you pulled up on it to remove it initially. It will pop into place with a little pressure, just make sure it's lined up properly.

I had to use quite a lot of pressure to make the connector on my new battery pop all the way down. I thought it was down already when it was only half way, as I was afraid to use too much force. Maybe it varies between different battery brands, but just make sure that the connector should go all the way down and not have a gap between the two parts.

" …ensuring that the battery connector doesn't accidentally make contact with the logic board."

You appear to assume that everyone knows which item is the logic board. I can attest that not everyone does. Clarity here would be helpful.

If you don't know what the/a logic board is, you probably shouldn't be opening devices.

I think there is a better way - where you disconnect the wifi card using the black screw in middle of wire 2 and 3 first and then untie these connectors. I pryed away the connectors but the sockets on the card were all damaged during the process. Ended up having to get a replacement card before reassembly could be completed. So again there are 2 components - connectors which are being pryed away and really fine and delicate socket. Very easy to damage them. Better to take the card off and delicately peel these connectors off. I would not recommend using these pry sticks mentioned here for that.

ATTENTION ! Cette étape est grandement sous-estimée, aucune mention de la délicatesse de l’opération contrairement à d’autres étapes bien plus facile… De plus, il semble possible de sauter cette étape en déconnectant seulement la carte comme expliquer sur la version anglophone du guide !!! J’ai endommagé le connecteur le plus proche du ventilateur, pour rien… Heureusement, tout semble fonctionner correctement…

AirPort/Camera Cables? not AirPort/Bluetooth Cables?

Je confirme qu’il est plus simple de déconnecter la carte (enlever la vis, et tirer délicatement sur la carte) que d’enlever les trois cables / I confirm that it’s a lot easier to disconnect the Airport card (just remove the screw and pull gently) than removing those 3 wires.

Agreed with Abhishek - removing the wifi card first makes this much easier.

How do you know which is which when reassembling?

As many have mentioned, don’t disconnect the wires is reallly a pain in the a… to connect them, it wont be easy and will take a lot of patience….. Better disconnect the card and carefully leave the wires connected.

Just finished replacing my display LVDS Cable with this guide and another one; awesome. I as well just removed the card and left the wires attached. Much easier.

This is one of those skills that you get experience right after you need it.

I learned these connectors doing RF work. They require a deft touch. Put slight downward pressure while you work to align the pair. Once you get the hang of it, you will know when they are aligned, and they will go back together with a light push and make a slight snap.

If they don’t immediately pop together with a light push, they’re not aligned quite right. Don’t force them, they have a very limited number of make/break cycles.

The cables should retain their bent shape well enough to show where each goes. One it too short to go too far off, and one is too long to fit to the nearest connection.

I’m one of those unfortunate ones that simply followed the iFixit instructions before reading the comments. On successfully reconnecting 2 of the cables and (miserably) failing with the 3rd, I realized the relevance of the comments. I decided to take a gamble and leave the 3rd connector unconnected and fired up my MacBook … strangely enough, everything works fine i.e from the comments, WiFi, Bluetooth, Camera (et al) should be affected but they are all still fully operational (maybe they’ll die with time - I hope not). I don’t like the thought of an unattached cable lying around in my Mac hence I agree with those advocating for alternatives to this step (unhinging the WiFi card as opposed to prying these cables).

Diese drei winzigen Stecker wieder aufzusetzen war tatsächlich die größte Herausforderung der ganzen Reparatur! Wichtig ist dabei darauf zu achten, diese waagerecht und passgenau aufzusetzen. Ich habe dazu die Lupe meiner Lötvorrichtung genutzt und zum aufdrücken die flache Seite des Spudgers.

These antenna connectors are the worst to reconnect. Depending on the model and what repair you are doing, you may not be able to avoid disconnecting them.

We took the advice of leaving the wires attached to the card, and unhinging the wifi the card cable. Worked great for us.

Ditto on just removing the card and leaving the antenna connected. Worked fabulously.

If you do need to get the cables back on the the card, I have found good results using the tip of a T5 driver to gently push them down (of course while aligning carefully with other finger). It gives a firm, flat & precise surface to press with + we know you have a T5 around!

Why do these wires/sockets need to be removed at all? They seem like they are pretty faraway from the battery.

As we are only replacing the battery, you can safely skip steps 6-26 and 28-48, no need to disassemble the computer to pull out the battery. Use nail polisher remover I was able to pull a super bloated battery out, without disassembling my MacBook.

Can I replace it with early 2015 monitor? Couldn’t find a cheap mid 2015 one but I found a reasonably priced early 2015 one and I would like to have it ?

I'm here to tell you that it is possible to remove and reassemble these wires, despite all the above comments making it seem almost impossible. I was planning to remove the entire card instead, but accidentally popped one of the wires when trying to get the card out. So then I just figured I might as well follow the instructions. Popping them was easy, getting them back on was a bit more tricky. Use a fine tip plier to hold the wire and place the plug in place, then press down (quite firmly!) with a spudge or something flat (I would advise against using a metal tool such as the torx driver, in case you slip and hit something). As long as the plug is directly above the connector and aligned properly, you won't break it. Use a good light source and a magnifying glass if needed. I brought my adjustable desk up to eye level so I could come really close and see what I was doing.

Before removing the wires, I recommend marking each with for example some tape so that you know in which socket to place them when reconnecting them later.

I got to this step and read a few more and was like oh shoot. I cannot be without my laptop if i mess something up and break a cable. The advice was right. I skipped all the extra removal pieces and just removed the battery. I did step 1-5. Then did step 26 and 27. Then steps 33 and 34. The finished with steps 46-51. I didn't have the blocks so i bypassed putting the laptop on a slant. so after step 51 i skipped to 56 and just started prying off the battery with a credit card and other ifix it tools. I do think the adhesive remover would be very helpful. I also wore goggles cause i caused a spark when i accident poked one of the batteries. Laptop is fine but it is very time consuming and difficult. I recommend getting the kit with the battery. Its only 10 bucks more and i think it would have saved me heaps of time!!!

supplied tool does not have a fine enough point here - won’t move at all

I used the fine point and also used the tweezers under the plug to relieve some pressure. I was very, very careful and made small moves. I seemed to get it out with no damage.

It was much easier following the instructions on the YouTube video, thanks! Looks like the process starts around 4:11.

why are we completely tearing the computer, just to replace the battery?

surely tearing it down could do more damage than being careful removing the bloated battery

Is this really necessary just to replace the LEFT speaker?

Terrible instructions on this one. I thought I was supposed to pull the cable off the bottom of the fan! Not photos showing the final result. Finally the cable on the right came away from the board and out of the socket with the flap lifted up. Please make this clearer or damage to the cable can take place.

Instructions are faulty. After removing fan screws and lifting the retaining flap, lift the fan with one hand while gently pushing the connector with the flat side of a spudge toward the back of the chassis. It should slide off.

I definitely needed to use the spudger to gently lift the cable from the board while holding the fan with one hand. The cable was stuck on the board pretty well. Once I broke the seal it was a simple case of pushing it out of the connector.

On the other hand, when reassembling, keep the screws until this step 29

The red screw above is the same one I had to remove to remove the I/O board back in step 24

The retaining flap broke on me as well and caused a near panic. I actually managed to fix it by careful inspection under magnifier and some trial and error with tweezers. The retaining flap itself is comb shaped - a solid edge and then combs that come out between the wires., and apparently just held in by the tiniest of detents. After trying unsuccessfully to push it back down between the wires, I surmised that the gaps in the “comb” side for the wires were sealed loop and that the wires it sat on were open ended. So I eventually ended up lining the flap up as if it were closed, and then carefully nudging it up onto the top wires, which was succesful, and then pushing it back into the open position to get the detents in place. Then to close it after reinserting the cable I walked it down bit by bit by pushing forward and *downward* on each side to help it maintain it’s ‘hinging’ effect. I think frankly you’re better off pushing larger ones like these down with your finger instead of a tool.

I’m pretty sure I inadvertently touched the connectors. Would this cause immediate errors or obscure, difficult-to-diagnose problems later in life ? Also strongly suggest using magnification when disconnecting and reconnecting this connector and others to ensure proper alignment. As Jerome said these are some of the most fragile parts of the system.

I'm jumping on the bandwagon here and saying that yes, pull the cable out towards the right (where the MagSafe connector) and not up. I also found using the tweezers made this easier.

Big fan of the tweezers.

I had to remove one of the screws from the battery board before the logic board had enough clearance to lift up.

We (husband/wife team) just slid the logic board out to right, and did not entirely remove. For reassembly, we reviewed all the cables and made sure they were positioned out of the way, or taped back, before repositioning the logic board back into position. Worth it to review before getting it back into position.

When the instructions say "above the battery" they don't mean physically above, they mean in front of -- very important, so that the cable ends up underneath the logic board (but not the connector, the connector needs to be out of the way so that the logic board goes above the cable but underneath the connector. Hope that's clear (I had to remove the logic board to get the cable back underneath the logic board)