Hey everyone, I’m running into a brick wall with my ASUS Zephyrus G14 (GA401QC) and could use some expert eyes on a logic board issue.
The Background:
A few months ago, a metal clip from the battery connector caused a short on the board near the battery/charging area. Initially, the laptop still turned on and ran at full speed, but it would not charge. I took it to a shop where they identified a fried capacitor and a faulty BQ24800 charging IC. Both were replaced.
The Current Problem:
• On Charger: The laptop works perfectly. CPU clocks are normal, and it performs fine.
• On Battery: The CPU instantly locks to 0.40GHz (400MHz) and stays there.
• Diagnostics: HWiNFO64 shows PROCHOT EXT is triggered (Yes) the moment I unplug. CPU temps are fine (around 45°C), but it acts like it's overheating.
Since the BQ24800 and the nearby capacitors were already replaced, why is it still triggering an external thermal/power throttle only on battery? Is it possible there is carbon residue under the chip or a damaged sensing trace (SMBus/Current sensing) that only trips when the AC adapter isn't providing a stable override?
Has anyone dealt with a "partial" success repair like this on a Zephyrus?