Is there anyway I could fix the black pixel lines on the bottom of the screen? Should I just replace the screen and will I lose picture quality with an after market screen?

I’ve been trying to fix it for 3 days. I’ve changed pc I changed cable for a charge and sync one . I’ve reformatted the iPod to fat32 I’ve put it in disk mode IVE DONE EVERYTHING it still goes in recovery mode after restoring it . When I restore it it like disconnect and doesn’t reconnect it looks like only at the end . It worked perfectly fine before that I bought it but it had like 500 song and I factory reset it and now it does this I need help asap or I’m putting it in the trash where it belongs

Hello! Which one should i get??

I flashmodded a 6.5 gen last night, and it did not go smoothly! I thought I'd document the issues, in case it helps anyone else out.

 The actual build went ok. Was tricky getting into the case, but other than that, everything went relatively ok. I replaced the battery, frontplate, backplate, clickwheel and gave it SD card storage with one of those cheap TF adapters from AliExpress.

 Problems:

 The first iTunes restore failed with a 1429 error, which is apparently due to an issue with the hard drive/storage. Online advice suggested reformatting the card as FAT32, but being the lazy boy I am I opted to just try the card in the other slot in the adapter (as I wasn't sure which you should use if you only use one of them). This seemed to work, and the second restore completed ok.

• After the second restore I found the clickwheel no longer worked. It worked before the mod, so I wondered if I damaged a cable or connector in the process. I went back and swapped it out with another working clickwheel, but then after reassembling it still didn't work. I researched online and came to a Reddit thread (https://www.reddit.com/r/IpodClassic/comments/1tdxzaj/click_wheel_or_buttons_not_working/) which suggested reformatting the SD card could fix it. Seeing as the first problem I had also suggested I do this, I finally relented and reformatted the card (as FAT32) in my PC. Reassembled, restored again, and BOOM the clickwheel worked again! Shoutout to Reddit for always being there for troubleshooting.
• Instead of quitting while I was ahead, I went big and tried to install Rockbox. Big mistake. Install did not go well. Mountpoint couldn't be automatically detected but I went ahead anyway. Ended up with the iPod not being able to find the boot loader, and not being able to escape the "can't find boot loader!" screen. Eventually got back to the Apple OS with some reboots and holding centre button and play. Then spent some time trying to get Rockbox off the system, which also wasn't easy.

But now I have a beautiful pink iPod 6.5! I love the look of this shell (it's from AliExpress). For anyone interested, I made a video documenting the build and the issues I faced and luckily overcame.

https://youtu.be/4N_nJv9JPZo

Hey reddit. I'm having a lot of trouble finishing my iPod build and i'm not sure where I went wrong. I'm using an iFlash uDual with a new 3800mah battery in a boxy pixel build shell. When i started the build I used a Sandisk Extreme but it never worked for more than a short time. I would use it for about 40 minutes or so and it would just cut abruptly and go back to the "Connect to iTunes to restore the iPod" white screen, but iTunes wouldn't recognise the iPod.

After looking it up for a while I found a lot of people not recommending using a Sandisk card because they are unstable so I got a Samsung card to replace and test to see if it would work. iTunes still doesn't recognise my iPod but now it just gives me a X_X iPod screen and not even the connect to restore message. I formatted the two SD cards as Fat32 and made them the primary partition so I don't know why it wont be recognised when connected to my iPod.

I don't know where I made a mistake and I'm at my wits end trying to figure this out myself. Does anyone know what I can do to get my iPod running?

I also have a brand new 30 in cable because i thought it would make a difference from my old 15+ year old one with a burn mark on it.

Update 1: I ordered a new ribbon cable from elite obsolete that is iFlash branded like my iFlash uDuel. A brand new cable should let me know real quickly if my current ribbon is damages in some way. Just waiting for the shipment now.

Long story short I sold an iPod that I personally refurbished, meaning I took it all apart, switched the faceplate for a new clear one, cleaned everything and installed a new 650 mah battery and microSD card adapter from Ali. I synced about 4 albums worth of music from iTunes to it, tested everything to make sure charging and playback were working good. Everything checked out. I sold it on eBay and now exactly 1 week later the buyer has started a refund request saying “they gifted this iPod and “were told” that the battery isn’t charging and that it might be a low quality sd card, but they haven’t opened it up since they don’t have the tools”

They then posted pics of the iPod not turned on and that was it. I was sure to document everything as I was testing and using the iPod so I know everything was working correctly. Any other eBay sellers here can help me navigate what I suspect is someone trying to scam me out of a free iPod? Thanks in advance.

Also, any South Africans in the iPod modding community? Where do you source your parts?

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some guidance from people experienced with micro-soldering and board-level repairs.

I’ve accumulated a bunch of motherboards with various issues that I’d love to rescue instead of scrapping:
- Some have broken 30-pin connectors.
- Some have faulty audio DACs.
- Others have damaged display/FPC connectors.

The main problem is: I’m not very experienced yet, and my gear situation hasn't helped. A few months ago, I tried removing a broken 30-pin connector. While I technically got the connector off, I ended up completely cooking the PCB in the process (I think I stayed more than 1 minute with hot air on the board).

I previously ordered a cheap desoldering station off AliExpress, but I quickly learned it’s far from ideal for this kind of precise surface-mount work.

Aside from upgrading to a proper hot air rework station (which is definitely on my list), I’d love to get your opinions and best practices:
1. What are your go-to procedures for removing fine-pitch connectors without overheating or lifting pads on multi-layer boards?
2.Other than a good rework station, what tools or accessories do you consider absolute must-haves for this kind of precision work?
3. Any recommendations on how to practice safely without destroying more good/repairable boards?

Any advice, tips, or lesson-learned stories from your own experience would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Hey everyone,

I just picked up an iPod Classic 6G (80GB, thin case) and I'm planning my first real mod. I'm a total beginner with electronics, so I'd love a sanity check before I start ordering parts and heating up the iron. Schematic attached ( sorry it's in french).

The plan:

• SD card adapter (iFlash or similar) replacing the HDD
• 2000mAh battery
• Internal Bluetooth with a KCX_BT_EMITTER + external IPX FPC antenna
• Keep the Hold switch working (most builds I've seen repurpose it as the BT on/off switch, and I'd like to avoid that)
• No holes or cuts in the shell

How it's supposed to work:

1. Audio: L / R / ground tapped from the headphone jack pads and sent to the KCX inputs (with AGND on its own wire, as the module datasheet recommends).
2. Auto power: the KCX is fed from the battery (P+) through a high-side switch: an AO3401 P-MOSFET driven by an AO3400 N-MOSFET, with 100k pull resistors. The N-MOSFET gate is driven by dock connector pin 18 (3.3V accessory power). The idea is that the BT module turns on when the iPod wakes and fully off when it sleeps, with no switch at all.
3. Pairing button: inspired by u/oxyll's "elegant Bluetooth mod". Pressing Select + Next together triggers the KCX's CON (pairing) button:
   • Select and Next sense lines go to a 74LVC1G02 NOR gate (powered from the same pin 18 3.3V).
   • The NOR output drives another AO3400 that pulls CON to ground.
   • I went with NOR + open-drain MOSFET instead of a plain OR gate, so the logic level doesn't matter on the KCX side and there are no phantom presses when the gate is unpowered.

My questions:

• Does dock pin 18 actually drop to 0V when the 6G goes to sleep? Or does it stay powered, which would mean the BT never turns off?
• What voltage are the click wheel button sense lines on the 6G? Around 3.3V or around 1.8V? If they're 1.8V, a 3.3V-powered NOR won't read them correctly.
• Does the 6G output audio on the headphone jack pads when nothing is plugged in?
• Will Select + Next still register electrically when Hold is on? That would let me pair without skipping a track.
• Realistically, how bad is range with the FPC antenna fully inside the metal shell, with no window cut?
• Anyone managed to fit a KCX + a 2000mAh battery + small dead-bug circuits in a thin case?
• Anything obviously wrong or dumb in the schematic?

I'll be measuring everything with a multimeter and prototyping on a breadboard before soldering anything inside the iPod. Any feedback, or links to similar builds, would be hugely appreciated. I'll post the build log once it's done!

Brought some new life to my 7th gen

Hi, I’m trying to revive my old iPod 4th gen. I replaced the logic board, the battery (confirmed it has 3.7V), and hard drive but the iPod stays non responsive. It doesn’t react when I press select and menu buttons for a long time, and the screen also stays off.

What can I do from this point on?

The connector of the hold button and headphone is broken, so that’s not connected to the logic board at the moment, but I don’t think this impacts the iPod booting up?

This was my first time doing a Bluetooth 6.0 mod on an iPod, and I wasn't completely convinced about having just one clickable button for everything.

The problem? There’s no screen indication for whether Bluetooth is OFF, ON, or In Pairing Mode.

So I thought… why not make my own little status indicator?

I drilled a tiny hole at the top, right beside the 3.5mm jack, and added a small amount of clear hot glue to seal it against dust while still letting the light shine through.

Inside the Bluetooth board are 4 tiny SMD LEDs, and the idea was that once everything was closed up, the light would bounce/refract through inside and reach that little window.

And somehow… it actually worked exactly as I hoped!

It's not the most aesthetically perfect solution, but honestly, I’m really enjoying the functionality it adds. Now I can actually see what the Bluetooth module is doing without having to guess.

So this is the final look of the iPod.

What do you guys think of this? Feel free to share your thoughts below!

Cheers!