MacBook Air 13" Mid 2013 Microphone Replacement

Written By: Walter Galan
  • Comments: 75
MacBook Air 13" Mid 2013 Microphone Replacement

Difficulty

Moderate

Steps

10

Time Required

30 minutes - 1 hour

Introduction

Use this guide to replace the microphone.

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    • Before proceeding, power down your MacBook. Close the display and lay it on a soft surface, top-side down.

    • Use a P5 Pentalobe driver to remove ten screws securing the lower case, of the following lengths:

    • Two 9 mm screws

    • Eight 2.6 mm screws

    Pulling the fan cable out was terrifying but you actually just pull on the cable itself. No way to get any leverage at the connector to dislodge it. Did come out easily but like I said, scared me!

    allison -

    Draai de schroefjes voorzichtig los en leg ze op een stabiele plek neer en let erop dat de schroefje een verschillende lengte hebben.

    bwgvanderveer -

    I thought I could replace my 256 Gb SSD with 512? regards

    ola m -

    Do you have good Test Point Voltages? It appears there are silver colored Test points on the I/O Board. I am working on a water spill and trying to troubleshoot if both the I/O board and the Logic need replaced.

    andrew -

    It's probably not necessary but may be a little safer to completely discharge the old battery before replacing it.

    Larry Smith -

    tell a model that was not inferior to the speed of the one in the laptop.

    Thank you

    ilyabuhov -

    Do i need to order tools separately to replace the battery i just ordered?

    anne uhlir -

    im looking for a Logic Board for a

    Apple - MacBook Air® - 13.3" Display - Intel Core i5 - 8GB Memory - 128GB Flash Storage (Latest Model) - Silver Model: MQD32LL/A

    Any help is appreciated.

    Jamie Comstock -

    P5 pentalobe screwdrivers are too big! The correct size for these screws are p4 pentalobe. P5 pentalobe was just able, with difficulty, to turn some of the screws. If the screws were at all tight, my p5 was unable to get them out, and started to strip the screws. A p4 screwdriver fit better and removed the screws with ease. (I was using high quality Wiha brand screwdrivers.)

    William Skinner -

    I had same experience (with MacBook Air 13-inch Mid-2012) … had to get P4, which worked swimmingly

    eric -

    Very simple installation. The screwdriver heads were exactly what we’re needed, one head for the outside case screws, the other for the screws holding the battery in place. The computer started right up. Now to see how the battery holds up, but I have a good feeling about this!

    Dennis Eaton -

    My P5 and the T5 worked perfectly with my early 2015 Air 13”! And it is super fast! Thank you iFixit!

    Pennny Beach -

    The supplied kit and instructions worked perfectly!

    Nikolay Andreev -

    Comments that the P5 pentalobe are too large are absolutely spot-on. There is no way the P5 pentalobe bit I have will work with the MacBook Air without destroying the screws. Hard target search for P4 pentalobe bit in progress…..

    joemoog -

    Bonjour j’aimerais changer mon SSD de 128 Go pour en mettre un de 512 Go. Je ne sais pas ce qu’il faut prendre car il faut qu’il soit compatible avec le macbook air A1466. J’aurais vu un Samsung Evo 970 500 Go mais si je ne me trompe pas, il faut un adaptateur.

    Merci pour votre aide.

    chicco33 -

    oui, vous aurez besoin d’un adaptateur, pour completez le changement.

    Dan -

    The tool kit should include tweezers for re-inserting the battery connector.

    Andre Clement -

    P5 pentalobe worked perfectly for me. Instructions were spot-on. Antenna connections were a bit fiddly to refit but got them in ok.

    michaelquinnell -

    Maybe the problem some are experiencing is that the designations are confusing (blame Apple rather than iFixit). the P2 is also known as PL1. The P5 is also known as PL4. The P6 is also known as PL5. So it is possible to mistake the P6 (PL5) for the P5 (PL4), meaning it (P6-PL5) will be too big, while the P5 (PL4) will be just right. Sort of a 3 Bears explanation, but it is very confusing.

    Thomas Lewis -

    To add to this. In searching for the P5 screwdriver to buy in UK, as far as I can tell, it is also known as

    Pentalobe 1.2(mm)

    also

    P4 = 0.8

    P6 = 1.5

    Just unscrewed the back case of MacBook Air 13” mid 2011, with no problems using Pentalobe 1.2

    nijafe -

    I have not replaced a display on the A1369 but have done many A1466 which is a newer 13” model. They seem really similar and its not clear why one needs to remove the logic board to remove the display. The antenna cables on the A1466 dont have to rest under the logic board but can be tucked in the hinge crevice. Cant this same thing be done with the A1369?

    Sean Love -

    Did mine today - but new battery wasnt charging. Went back in and noticed the battery connector cable was not quite 100% “seated. It was sticking out by less than a millimetre! - you need to give it quite a firm push in to get it seated properly. Otherwise - all ok .

    John Brennand -

    Just installed on a MacBookAir6,2 (13-inch, Early 2014).

    Was very easy.

    New iFixit battery looks great so far:

    Full Charge Capacity (mAh): 4922 -> 7333

    Jonathan Cross -

    can you tell me which size of screwdrivers you’ve used to crack it up, please? I have the same model and size,

    hawk_lpc -

    Screw P5 Pentalobe 1.2

    Mario Verlent -

    Install went flawlessly. Only challange was reattaching blue tooth antennas. Those sockets are so tiny.

    Joel Sebastian -

    Installation was a little challenging at first because the instructions on this site did not perfectly match my model (late 2013 to early 2015).

    Found this video on YouTube which described the procedure perfectly https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lue6lVWh...

    Also the Ifixit kit I received was well put together with everything I needed and more. The calibration went perfectly and I am very pleased. Will buy again!!

    Donald Niamath -

    Gently pulled out connector of old battery, then pressed and held the power switch for 1 minute. Unscrewed and removed the old battery. Pressed and held power switch for 1 minute again. I know from previous work that this helps drain charge from spontaneous recharging as the dielectric recovers. Gently “fine tuned” leads from new battery to connector till connector stuck out at right angle to the edge of battery. Held the battery by the edges and let the connector slide into the socket. Set the battery down and put the screws in all the way. Then checked that the connector was completely seated before tightening the screws. The laptop come on immediately and showed 98% charge and registered normal (checked in “About this Mac”. Very happy to this point. Now for calibration.

    Amir Zaidi -

    Thank you very much for the guilde. My MBA2011 had reborn !

    Billy Wong -

    Allow for electrostatics, otherwise you may cook components on the logicboard /motherboard (like I did with one of these!)

    See great advice: Electrostatic Discharge

    Fletcher Cole -

    … und wenn du eines von diesen wirklich kleinen Schräubchen vermisst: bevor du den Boden aufkehrst oder mit einem starken Magneten absuchst, schau mal am seitlichen (magnetischen) Ladekabelanschluss nach … ?

    ... and if you miss one of these really small screws: before you sweep the floor or search it with a strong magnet, take a look at the (magnetic) charging cable connection on the side … ?

    Blatt -

    Fot All People ha ing trouble finding their SSD

    DONT PRESS CMD +R + POWER

    instead press

    OPTION+CMD+R +POWER

    I just installed Monterrey with WD black sn 770 SSD in m'y macbook air 2015

    Albert -

    IFixit just had me submit "my story" re. fixing my MacBook Air 2013.

    This repair was NOT difficult. The battery is enclosed in a plastic frame. It is NOT glued in like the newer models of Apple laptops. And unlike older laptops, the battery is not totally enclosed in a plastic housing. So once you remove the screws holding the batterie's frame, you can remove the battery.

    Follow the instructions. Read the comments. Also read the comments re. installing a new battery.

    Good luck. - Eric J.

    ECJohansen -

    On the back of the laptop, notice that each screw is angled a little bit inward, aiming toward the middle of the laptop. Keep your screwdriver lined up with the screw (angled a bit outward as seen at 01:23 in the video: https://youtu.be/tToAwO6f-SY&t=83). This will help you get a good bite on the screw to get it out and avoid stripping the head of the screw.


    Use the same angle when putting each screw back in. If the screw is in line with its hole it should not feel like you are fighting to screw it in. If it does, check your angle and back up a little; you should feel the screw fall into line.

    Rich Garella -

    IFixit just had me submit "my story" re. fixing my MacBook Air 2013.

    This repair was NOT difficult. The battery is enclosed in a plastic frame.

    shrhh -

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    • Wedge your fingers between the display and the lower case and pull upward to pop the lower case off the Air.

    • Remove the lower case and set it aside.

    There is a nub on the inside of the case which is attached to the battery. When you try to pull it open, it appears to be attached to the plastic casing of the battery, which sometimes splits. I gently unhooked the nub from the battery before removing the case fully. This seems to happen if the battery has suffered some drop damage (plastic parts broken around screws and parts of plastic frame split). Just an FYI in case your lower case doesn't pull away easily.

    Jeannie Crowley -

    To add - the slim 1cm tab “nub” is on the centre of the back cover & fits into a hole in the battery frame. I ran my fingers around the whole of the cover to eventually here it click out.

    nijafe -

    When closing this back up make sure that the antenna cable is tucked away neatly

    Gabriel -

    So this is a legit back cover for MacBook Air?

    ASHANTI SMITH -

    What about disconnecting the battery?

    Luke -

    I bought the part and tools from iFixit and followed the directions. The mechanical part went smoothly - maybe 10 minutes to disassemble/replace/reassemble.

    Getting Catalina (the current MacOS) to install was not working until I used Cmd-Opt-R (as noted in the OWC paper sheet that came in the box) which brought up the proper installer - I believe from a pre-prepared bootable SD card but it’s hard to say. From there the install succeeded taking ~1.5 hours.

    Beware that (a) the install requires a working internet connection for verification and updates, and (b) the system must have been running at least macOs 10.13 (High Sierra) before the install in order to have an EFI BIOS that recognizes the SSD.

    Lance Berc -

    As noted by others, be a bit careful removing the lower case. There is an oblong black plastic locator very near the center of the lower case. Unless you gently pry the bottom cover pretty much straight up, you will break the ends off of the locater.

    BobY -

    Thanks for the detailed photos. When repairing equipment, I don’t really like to disassemble plastic parts, they can be damaged, but your screenshots help a lot. For my studies, I am writing an essay comparing the reliability of laptops from various manufacturers and the complexity of their repair, maybe it will be useful for someone to check the essay for plagiarism here essay checker, when comparing different manufacturers, I understood why people love Apple so much. The minimum number of failures. Of course, repairing it in an official service is not cheap, but with the help of such detailed instructions, you can do it yourself and save a lot.

    Nexus -

    The screwdriver bit to use on these case screws is not named, but I found that my "CR-V 1.2" did the job nicely.

    The driver for the screws inside the case are named, as "T5".

    Jim Henderson -

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    • Grab the clear plastic pull tab attached to the battery connector and pull it toward the front edge of the Air to disconnect the battery from the logic board.

    • Do not lift upward on the connector as you disconnect it.

    @&?! - pulled plastic tab on new battery to line up with logic board pins look to be coming out of male connector? Argh?!

    James Bowkett -

    Can expect anyone from ifixit to get back to me?

    James Bowkett -

    Hi James,

    It may be that one of the pins did not lock in properly into the plastic housing. You can try pushing the corresponding wire into the connector housing to try to lock the pin in.

    If that does not help, please respond to my email. Thanks!

    Arthur Shi -

    When I pulled the plastic tab, it separated from the battery connector. However, I was able to remove the batter connector using a scalpel to separate the batter connector and disconnect the battery from the logic board without any damage.

    Annabell -

    Well, I was trying to detach the battery cable from the logic board and the housing on the logic board that the cable slides into popped off with it. Is there anything I can do to fix this, or am I out one logic board? :-(

    Dale Roe -

    The original battery plastic pull tab broke off when I tried to pull it towards the front of the Mac. How do I get to disconnect the battery connector now?

    shukry.saw08 -

    My connector would not release as shown, using reasonable force, so I unbolted the battery to slide it back, then was able to slide the connector back. Ultimately, it popped up on its own - suggest review of this process. No drama, nothing broken, all good.

    Marc Bracken -

    > und ziehe sie in Richtung des vorderen Rands des Air, um … <

    besser ausgedrückt: ziehe sie waagerecht nach hinten aus dem Stecker ….

    > and drag it towards the front edge of the Air to ... <

    better said: pull it horizontally backwards out of the plug….

    Blatt -

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    • Remove the following five screws securing the battery to the upper case:

    • Three 6.3 mm T5 Torx screws

    • Two 2.4 mm T5 Torx screws

    When going in reverse, it's easier to do step 3 before 4.

    John Heffernan -

    Screw normal torx T-5

    Mario Verlent -

    I can confirm. When doing the steps in reverse, it is definitely better to do step 3 before step 4! It’s a lot easier.

    Krangh -

    The center screw on my Macbook Air 6,1 is slightly longer than the 6.3 mm screws. John H. is right: when putting back together step 3 is easier and safer to do before step 4. In order of reassembly: Step 5, 3, 4, 2, and 1.

    markjville -

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    • When handling the battery, avoid squeezing or touching the four exposed lithium polymer cells.

    • Lift the battery from its edge nearest the logic board and remove it from the upper case.

    • If you're installing a new battery, you should calibrate it after installation:

    • Charge it to 100%, and then keep charging it for at least 2 more hours. Then, unplug and use it normally to drain the battery. When you see the low battery warning, save your work, and keep your laptop on until it goes to sleep due to low battery. Wait at least 5 hours, then charge your laptop uninterrupted to 100%.

    • If you notice any unusual behavior or problems after installing your new battery, you may need to reset your MacBook's SMC.

    Two Questions and a Comment:

    1) “Allow the battery to drain overnight” - Should the computer shut down automatically (during the first drain, as well)? If not, what percentage should the battery reach before charging it to 100%?

    2) While the battery is draining, can I use the computer?

    When installing the new battery, I found it much easier to insert the battery connector before screwing in the battery.

    Paul Larkin -

    When reinserting the battery, plug in the battery connector before screwing the battery into place. Some wiggle room is required to reconnect the batter and tweezers will help with the plugging in.

    Andre Clement -

    Check to ensure that all 5 holes in the battery enclosure are drilled through. One of mine wasn’t and needed a little push through before setting the battery in place.

    Also, as noted above, definitely re-connect the cable before screwing in the battery!

    Les Klassen Hamm -

    agree on reconnecting before securing battery.

    David Covington -

    Followed this guide step by step for a successful battery swap thanks iFixit!

    FYI, as someone else pointed out, if you try removing the battery connector after you have installed it for one reason or another the pins pull out of the plastic connector piece (the adhesive does not hold). You have to push the cable back into the plastic connector so the pins are all the way back in.

    Kent O -

    I did all of that BUT while I tried to pull the plastic battery connector in step 3 , instead the whole connector got out of the board and I can’t insterted back, I don’t know what to do now, any advice ?

    Gorashi -

    Kommentare 1 und 2: sehr wichtig. Danke Paul Larkin und Andre Clement!

    Comments 1 and 2: very important. Thank you Paul Larkin and Andre Clement!

    Blatt -

    Really useful and simple instructions, done in 10 minutes. Many thanks! H

    Hugh Blackman -

    Merci pour ce super tuto.

    L’opération c’est déroulée avec succès.

    Patrick Ponsard -

    There is a plastic film across the new battery that wasn’t on the old one, should I remove the plastic film on the new battery?

    William Campbell -

    Actual removal and installation was super easy. Just be sure to have a small container to put the screws in!

    Going through calibration right now

    David Springett -

    Thanks ifixit. Clear instructions. Quick and easy installation. Prompt delivery too.

    micks04 -

    As others note on step 4... For reassembly, place battery in area loosely, and reconnect. Then shift the battery fully into position. Eyeball it to roughly get it into the right place, but don't stop there. Take a tool like the spudger and place the pointed end in the screw holes one by one. Shift battery until line up looks good with a bright light. I put back the screw in middle of battery, then the others, etc.

    Alan Carwile -

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    • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the left speaker cable connector up and out of its socket on the I/O board.

    • Pry up from beneath the wires.

    How can I order that ribbon cable that goes over the fan housing?

    Chris Maki -

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    • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the left speaker off the adhesive securing it to the upper case.

    • Remove the left speaker from the upper case.

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    • Use the flat end of a spudger to pry the I/O board cable connector up out of its socket on the I/O board.

    • You do not need to remove the I/O board cable, simply bend it out of the way.

    • Carefully peel, but do not remove, the I/O board cable off the adhesive securing it to the top of the fan.

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    • Use the tip of a spudger to carefully flip up the retaining flap on the microphone ribbon cable ZIF socket.

    • Make sure you are flipping up the retaining flap, not the socket itself.

    • Carefully push the microphone ribbon cable straight out of its socket on the I/O board.

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    • Use the tip of a spudger to pry the microphone off the adhesive securing it to the left side of the upper case.

    • Remove the microphone from the upper case.

    i want this product where can find it ?

    the Microphone

    Waseem Rifai -

    I just wonder are there alignment holes to help get this centered.

    Denver morgan -

    There aren't alignment holes, so I used a marker to mark on the edge of the case above the microphone holes where each hole was. Then centered the two gold microphones on those holes. Worked great first time.

    blackketter -

Conclusion

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

Author

Walter Galan

694047 Reputation

One comment

To successfully complete the last step, the adhesive securing should not be too sticky.

Unfortunately it was in my case and now the dual mic is torn in two pieces.

I got a new one and would like to attach it to a new case.

What glue should I use?

Ed Vaessen -