ECS HT 2000 motherboard

[gcap]

Hi Folks,

I just joined the forum and wanted to get a bit of info.

I have an ECS HT 2000 motherboard which is unstable, this board is inside an eMachines box. What happens is that the power will shut down suddenly for no reason. I have tried all kinds of stuff like trying different hard drives, clearing the CMOS, taking all cards out/then reseating them, taking out the memory/reseating it, and checking to make sure there is thermal grease on the CPU. But no matter what I try the result is the same with the power shutting down suddenly for no reason. After reading here on the forum, I think it might be the caps, they are OST and I guess those not a good brand. The ones in question are (6) 6.3v 1800uf, and (3) 16v 1800uf. I went out to the store but there are suffixes like HN and HZ and didn't know which would be the best, tried to download the PDF's at the store but couldn't get those files, nothing there. Also tried to write a note to the store but no one has answered. I want to put in an order but this doesn't give me a whole lot of confidence so hopefully someone here can alert the store owner.

This computer is an older system but I still can put this to use and want to see if I can repair this freakin' thing !



gcap

[PCBONEZ]

Couple things:
~
The OST are a good bet but bad caps in the power supply can also cause your symptoms.
~
There are different 'grades' of low ESR.
Whatever brand might make 6.3v 1800uF in 15 different grades. [Different series of caps.]
What you use for new should be at least as good as what the old were.
To know what you need you have to know which series of OST and look up their data sheets.
http://www.ost.com.tw/products_ec.htm
~
For low ESR apps the volts and uF aren't all the specs you need to know.
The ESR and Ripple ratings are very important here.
That's why you need the data sheets.
For the new caps:
- ESR should be the same or less than the old ones.
- Ripple should be the same or more than the old ones.
(And of course they need to physically fit so you need to check the diameter and if it's under something [like a heatsink] the height.)
~
Here is an intro/comparison to different grades of 'good caps'.
http://www.badcaps.net/forum/showpos...1&postcount=17
~
The caps you listed sound like they are all VRM caps.
If that's true the either HN or HZ will work and they are the top two grades.
(My preference would be HM or HN depending on what the originals are. HZ are over-kill.)
There are times when over-killing the grade is bad but that is rarely a problem in a VRM.
~
http://www.nichicon.co.jp/english/pr...ini/pict_f.htm
~

[bigbeark]

I recapped one of these. It had TK caps in the VRM, all were bulged. I replaced with Panny FJ series caps. Board worked perfectly after that. Mine came out of a Compaq Presario. This is a very common motherboard.

[PCBONEZ]

Originally Posted by bigbeark

I recapped one of these. It had TK caps in the VRM, all were bulged. I replaced with Panny FJ series caps. Board worked perfectly after that. Mine came out of a Compaq Presario. This is a very common motherboard.

TK is both a brand logo and a series name in several other brands.
Which did you find on this board?
.

[gcap]

Thanks for all of your replies.

I looked more carefully and here are the details...

the (6) 6.3v 1800uf OST's say RLZ 105*C O736 (* degrees, an oh not zero in front of 7)
the (3) 16v 1800uf TK's have this text - 105*C ATWY 744A

I went out to that OST place but it didn't show any data sheets for the RLZ, I didn't see that.

Well, with this extra info maybe someone will know what I should get.

Once I am able to get these parts I will let you folks know what the results is. I am very curious to see if I can get this system going.

Best,

Gcap

[PCBONEZ]

Diameters?
I can't suggest specific caps when I dunno the diameters.
.
Diameter is important [and sometimes length] for more than one reason.
Obviously if only an 8mm will fit then suggesting a 10mm won't do.
And:
Some series can have 3 or 4 can sizes for any given uF & volts combination.
The ESR and Ripple will be different for each can size even when the uF and volts are the same.
.
.
Something like this is good enough:
.
OST RLZ 1800uF 6.3v __mm
TK ATWY 1800uF 16v __mm
.
Or Diamater and Length like
OST RLZ 1800uF 6.3v __x__mm
.
We can see the temp in the data sheets [and almost all are 105C anyway] and those 4 digit numbers are date or batch codes and kind'a useless.
[Is easier to follow without the extra info. - We know you're new to this.]
There is also often an 'M' in there somewhere and that's just the uF tolerance code for +/-20%.
One that's not +/-20% on a mobo or in a PSU would very very rare and it's in the data sheet anyway so no reason to mention it.
.
.
I'm assuming there are all VRM caps because you haven't said.
VRM has high side [PSU side - 16v] caps and Vcore [CPU side] caps.
.
.
RLZ is a mystery series [no data sheet published] which probably means it's a special order cap sold to manufacturers only.
I would fail-safe and use Nichicon HN (or HZ if you can't get HN).
-Or- [ONLY if they are Vcore caps] use 6x 1000uF(or higher) solid polymers with ESR of .007 or less.
[6x 820uF is only 4920uF total which doesn't give me a warm fuzzy. Based on what I've seen on production boards with poly in Vcore I like to see an a minimum of 5500uF there.]
.
.
I attached the ATWY data sheet.
There is only one 1800uF 16v so it's as follows:
TK ATWY 1800uF 16v 10x25mm .012/2800
.012 = Ohms ESR
2800 = 2800mA Ripple
.
The Nichicon HM, HN & HZ series caps
HM 1800uF 16v 10x25mm .012/2800
HN 1800uF 16v 10x25mm .009/3190
HZ 1800uF 16v 10x25mm .0065/4140
.
So for the ATWY an HM is exact match, HN an upgrade and an HZ is WAY over-kill.
[HM grade caps are already a bit over rated for the 16v side of the VRM [Rubycon ZL are several grades lower and not too unusual there] so there's really no reason to upgrade from HM specs. It won't hurt any thing but there's probably not any real advantage either.]
.
[This is -way- general, okay. Definitely exceptions.]
As far as typical original caps for the Vcore side of VRM:
If there are 7 or more caps HM is the typical grade and if there are fewer HN is the typical grade.
Few manufacturers use HZ because if they need ESR that low going to solid polymer is cheaper.
On the Vcore side of VRM upgrading [lowering ESR] is an advantage but if going as far as HZ then it's worth at least considering Solid Polymer because they are better [if the ESR is the same] and they are getting cheaper all the time.
.

[gcap]

Thanks a bunch PCbonez for those extra details !

Sorry, I forgot about the dimensions, here are the measurements...

OST RLZ 1800uF 6.3v 8 x 20 mm
TK ATWY 1800uF 16v 10 X 25 mm

Well, I think I will now be able to place an order and get this project going.

Gcap

[bigbeark]

Originally Posted by PCBONEZ

TK is both a brand logo and a series name in several other brands.
Which did you find on this board?
.

TK was the brand. They were 6,3v 1800uf. There was no model or series number. The vent on top looked more like an embossed design than something functional. One or two had blown out the bottom bung and bulged the top. Very poor cosmetics as well, they looked cheap.

[Scenic]

Originally Posted by bigbeark

The vent on top looked more like an embossed design than something functional.

Semi off-topic: That description also fits Sacon FZ's. I did some experiments with those a while back just out of curiosity..
When soldered onto a PCB of some sort, they'll violently pop the vent on top with some of their guts flying out in the process. When freestanding (loose cap with wires soldered to it) however, they blow out their rubber bung first in 90% of the cases. And even then it takes an awful lot of time with a finger-burning hot cap for it to happen. The rubber bung bulges as much as 3mm (!) outwards before it pops. Bad design is an understatement for those lol

[gcap]

I wanted to give you folks an update on what happened with this motherboard repair.

The caps finally came in the mail so I had to go down and get a soldering iron to start work. I ended up buying a 30W iron and asked the manager if I could bring it back if that wasn’t hot enough, she said I could do that.

I got to work but quickly found out the solder didn’t want to heat up at all, I fiddled around for about 45 min. and stopped. The store was closed so I couldn’t get a hotter iron. I was thinking to try an older soldering gun I had laying around to see if that would work. But even that seemed like it wasn’t enough, and this was with a 100W gun !! What kind of project was this, was it welding or soldering ?? Damn !

I was really careful and slowly I was finally able to get one old cap out ! Then 2 more, but the last 3 were really tough, had to use a heated up needle to clean the holes in the board which took a lot of time. Then the tip of the needle broke off inside one hole, it was stuck but I got some needle nose plyers and luckily got that out. Finally got all of the holes cleaned and preped up with the new caps, and went back to the 30W iron to solder them in. Well, this went quite well since I had a different kind of solder, this was the easy part. When it was done, I checked over the board to make sure there weren’t any splashes of solder on other connections. It was a good thing as there was 1 fleck of solder on another part which I removed. Got everything all back together and then the time came to turn it on. I was wondering to myself if it was going to work after all of that effort. Ok, power on....drum roll please....system turned on...now I was able to finalize the Wind7 install, it kept going, no sudden drop of power like before, then suddenly the screen went blank, crap ! Oh well, all work down the drain, but suddenly it came back on again, it was just adjusting the screen resolution... freakin' thing playing around with me ! hahahaha ! Everything went fine after that, system works fine !! It is a big rush when you can get something repaired like this ! The unsoldering was a very tough job, I never had anything like that ! I felt like I was cutting a path through the jungle !

It was a good thing one of the people here said something about the purple motherboard having strange solder, a least that gave me a heads up to not give up too early. Also the person who said he was using needles to clean out the holes, when I first read that I really wondered what in the hell was he talking about, now I know !! I needed that knowledge along with a few of my own tricks in order to get this job done. All I can say is you know this boy has a few skills to use a 100W iron on a motherboard without taking off the pads !! Hahahaha !



Next up is that other system which has memory issues but I am not sure which caps I should replace, there are about 2 or 3 near where the memory sticks are located. But maybe there are other ones that are also important. When I get a chance I will put up some photos so you can have a look.

Anyway, wanted to post what happened and thanks again to the people who helped me out.

Gcap

[Scenic]

congrats

As for the solder not wanting to flow even with a 100w soldering gun..: always add some fresh solder (even when desoldering). There's normally no flux whatsoever on a motherboard, making it next to impossible to get started. Adding fresh solder will also add some flux. it's easy once it starts going..

[PCBONEZ]

Congrats!

Someone give the boy another stripe!
.

[Oili]

Hello to you all.
I'm also a new member in this forum and I also have problems with ht2000 board.

Can you help me to identify this part: Sunlei R56M. The marking indicates that it probably is a resistor, but can a resistor make noise? I could swear that I heard a noise coming out of these three components. And of course, the caps around them are fried.

[retiredcaps]

Originally Posted by Oili

Can you help me to identify this part: Sunlei R56M.

If the pcb designation is L10, then it is an inductor.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electro...e_designations

PS. We prefer images hosted here and preferably not inline.

[Oili]

Thank you for your input. A lesson learned.

However, I'm not totally sure about my motherboard model. The only useful information that I can see is: V:1.0A 15-V13-011010 and that doesn't tell me if this is also L10? But coils would have been my next guess.

[c_hegge]

Probably an AMD690VM-FMH

Replace the bad caps with http://www.badcaps.net/store/product...roducts_id=152

[severach]

No need to check anything until those capacitors are fixed. The capacitors can cause the squealing.

[Scenic]

ECS AMD690VM-FMH is the board model. Seems to be an OEM board for Fujitsu-Siemens computers.

Kinda curious as to what's below the white "AMD690VM-FMH" sticker between the CPU and the RAM slots..

[Oili]

Originally Posted by Scenic

Kinda curious as to what's below the white "AMD690VM-FMH" sticker between the CPU and the RAM slots..

Just the same.