Replacing a Zune 80gb socket

D Vautier 3/20/2014
My Web Site
 email

The Zune 80gb uses the same charging port as the 30gb does.  The port consist of a solid metal frame with 6 larger pins and 18 shorter pins laid out on a little plastic strip in the middle of the socket.  The pins are beveled at the top. Extreme care should be used when inserting the sync plug because if just one of those pins gets bent disaster results.  You have to replace the socket.

I first began replacing by desoldering the two outer joints and then the two inner joints of the socket.  I did have the luxury of a few spare motherboards to practice on.  This allowed me to carefully rock the socket back and forth when removing the pins.  You can apply some heat to the pins but do not make any transverse motions or the pins will get bent and not match up.  Motherboards always seem to go out before anything else on these things and I have lots of bad MBs laying around.

So when you remove the bad socket be sure not to damage the good MB.  The hardest part is getting the solder out of the two back holes.  When replacing put a little bit of paste on the pin section.  There should be enough solder there already.  When you solder never go across the pins.  Here is an example of a removed socket.  I had to straighten out some pins.

 

 

  

 
There are only 4 pins in a usb, two for charging and two for data.  The zune has 24 pins.  When you resolder you only have to get some pins right for it to work,  1,9,13,14,19,20, and 21.  I don't know what those engineers were thinking of when this thing was designed.

Here's what my old pins looked like. groan!!!

 

 

 

 Pin 01 - USB 5VDC(+) (common with Pins 2,3)
Pin 02 - 5VDC(+) (common with pins 1,3)
Pin 03 - 5VDC(+) (common with pins 1,2)
Pin 04 - Unknown (used on travel remote) 1.75 VDC
Pin 05 - Unknown (used on travel remote) 1.75 VDC
Pin 06 -
Pin 07 -
Pin 08 -
Pin 09 - Video (+)
Pin 10 -
Pin 11 -
Pin 12 -
Pin 13 - Audio L (+) (also audio on travel remote)
Pin 14 - Audio R (+) (Also audio on travel remote)
Pin 15 -
Pin 16 -
Pin 17 - Unknown (used on travel remote) these are likely our trigger
Pin 18 - Unknown (used on travel remote) these are likely our trigger
Pin 19 - Ground (common with Pins 22,23,24,and shield)
Pin 20 - USB Data (-)
Pin 21 - USB Data (+)
Pin 22 - USB Ground (common with Pins 19,23,24,and shield)
Pin 23 - Ground (common with Pins 22,19,24,and shield)
Pin 24 - Ground (common with Pins 22,23,19,and shield)