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SirSpectre
Gallente Harbingers Of Destruction
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Posted - 2010.03.18 21:00:00 -
[1]
So my friend blew a capacitor on his motherboard (used to be mine). Bought all new parts to build a new computer except a power supply. The old one will run everything assuming its OK.
Now what is the likely hood that the power supply caused the capacitor to go bad? |
Cornaris
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Posted - 2010.03.18 21:41:00 -
[2]
I think 'dirty' power will cause a bad cap to fail sooner, if that helps any. |
SirSpectre
Gallente Harbingers Of Destruction
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Posted - 2010.03.18 21:50:00 -
[3]
Originally by: Cornaris I think 'dirty' power will cause a bad cap to fail sooner, if that helps any.
Ahh! Didn't think of that. His house is in the middle of the forest, and his electrical service is pretty 'dirty.' A UPS should fix that for the most part right? |
Mari Iijima
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Posted - 2010.03.18 21:52:00 -
[4]
Yea, or some sort of power conditioner. |
Cornaris
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Posted - 2010.03.18 22:40:00 -
[5]
PSU's can produce 'dirty' power as well.
/me asks santa for an oscilloscope |
aetherguy881
Gallente
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Posted - 2010.03.18 23:24:00 -
[6]
Originally by: Cornaris PSU's can produce 'dirty' power as well.
/me asks santa for an oscilloscope
You've got a while to wait!
I've had all the caps blow on my old video card... That wasn't fun. |
Chaos Incarnate
Faceless Logistics
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Posted - 2010.03.18 23:39:00 -
[7]
Originally by: aetherguy881
Originally by: Cornaris PSU's can produce 'dirty' power as well.
/me asks santa for an oscilloscope
You've got a while to wait!
I've had all the caps blow on my old video card... That wasn't fun.
He's also got a lot of monies to save, oscilloscopes are expensive. Even the old ones from the 70s I used in college made me feel ritzy and wasteful
Anyhow, it's certainly possible that it's the power supply, although I think it more likely to be age and poor quality capacitors than anything.
I'd take it out and give it a once-over to make sure nothing's been screwed up/blown inside it. You should be able to have a rough look inside without taking it apart; some of the capacitors can store some energy for awhile, so best not to open it unless you know what you're doing. Also, be certain that the power supply is of sufficient quality (for those of you without an oscilloscope, weight and decent construction will usually help here), if it's not, tell him to buy a new one anyway. Cheap power supplies are accidents waiting to happen |
Sturmwolke
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Posted - 2010.03.19 02:14:00 -
[8]
Well, if it "blew" in the literal sense, it's either due to the cap short-circuiting (due to electrolyte failure) or over-voltage. Typical victims are the electrolytics capacitors used in electrical power/noise conditioning, these fail the most due to its non-solid state make up.
Newer electrolytic cap with solid dielectrics exist, but there're a bit more expensive - with respect to PC motherboards, they're usually advertised as feature like "All-Solid Capacitors".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor_plague
I don't think the PSU is the likely cause for over-voltage, because the typical PSU output voltage circuitry should include an overvoltage proctection by default. Therefore, any voltage that is applied to the motherboard is at normal tolerances. That said, your PSU is also subject to cap failures - usually the two big ones that your see when you open it up.
It's actually very easy to repair the faulty motherboard if you've got the proper tools. Plenty of DIY knowledge sites from Google, but also pay very close attention to electrical safety procedures.
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