Announcement

**willawake** · 01-01-2006, 06:37 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

I found leaking caps on both the MB and video card but continued anyway as I have had leaking capacitors on my Soltek board for a few years without any bad side effects.

trying to get it up and running in that state is not a good idea. badcaps on the board mean that you will be trying to troubleshoot wierd issues and crashing which result from the now badly filtered power going through the board to your components.

when you see leaky caps it is the time to recap the board and then it will be completely stable again. you could leave it all running in that bad state and perhaps at the moment the board finally fails to post it may damage your cpu/ram etc and also leave the board in a state where much more work than recapping will be needed to fix it.

you can find replacement caps here :

New Zealand - Farnell http://nz.farnell.com
New Zealand - RS Components - http://www.rsnewzealand.com/
New Zealand - Jaycar Electronics - http://www.jaycar.co.nz

**quattro** · 01-01-2006, 07:35 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Thanks for the quick reply,

I did check the "Where can I buy replacement capacitors" thread, but somehow missed the Farnell link for NZ. I was having trouble finding 1500uF caps, but it turns out Farnell carry them, so thanks for pointing it out.

I realise replacement is the best idea, im just worried that after all my time/effort/$$ spent in doing so, the problems could still exist, and be due to a simple hardware conflict or something. You really think the 'crash at the same place each boot' problem i described could be cause by bad caps?

**willawake** · 01-01-2006, 09:02 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

you were already running a GF card on that board before so i dont think there is any hardware conflict.

If you want to still use the GF4 card which has badcaps you will have to recap that also. otherwise you will get video corruption and other issues.

the crash on booting into windows can be a driver issue or it can be badcaps. if i see badcaps on a board i recap it before i start any other troubleshooting, it is a waste of time otherwise to try to figure out wierd issues which are probably related to the caps.

run some memtest86 and see if you get any errors.

will a recap solve the problem? probably it will. you might damage the board though if you dont recap it carefully. many beginners have reported success with their first recapping, if you search the forums. a few did not.

since the board is still posting it is worth a try. your choice anyway.

**Rainbow** · 01-01-2006, 12:06 PM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

I never attempt to troubleshoot any problems if there are bad caps on the board. The board has to be fixed/replaced first and there will be likely nothing to troubleshoot then.

**quattro** · 01-01-2006, 08:14 PM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Ok, now that i can source all the caps i need there isnt really any reason not to replace them, just to confirm im getting the right ones:

Albatron KX400-8XV Pro:
6.3v 1000uF
10v 3300uF These are replacing 10mm diameter ones, they are 12.5mm, but should fit.

Leadtek Winfast A170 DDR:
6.3v 1500uF

Soltek SL-75DRV2
I would like to replace these too, although the system is running fine at the moment, but i cant find any 10v/2200uF 10mm diameter ones, only 12.5mm and above, but they would be too large as there are a few lined up closely together. I suppose ill leave this for another day.

There were others with similar specs available, but i basically based my decision on price in the end. Are they ok to use? are there better ones i could choose?

Thanks again

(BTW, ive run memtest86 and the WD HD test with no errors, hence why i ruled out RAM/HD problems)

**Rainbow** · 01-02-2006, 03:09 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Board with bad caps often passes memory tests but running something more demanding crashes (I use Duke Nukem 3D in DOS and then Prime95 in Windows 98).

**davmax** · 01-02-2006, 05:48 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

2200uF 10V 10mm are very hard to find in good quality caps. You can get them from the following site: http://www.computekinc.us/prod01.htm

Unfortunately the minimum quantity is 20 off . They will ship International and their normal shipping is costly, ask them to quote shipping USPS Global. This is an effective and cheap option. Also ask for the quantities you need of each type. Farnell are not cheap it might be an idea to try this source and compare.

Note that I to am in a remote part of the world, Western Australia.

Good luck.

**quattro** · 01-02-2006, 06:26 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Yeah, Farnell isnt too cheap, but that minimum 20 order is a bit of a problem.

I found this: 2200uF 10v 10mm

But they have a max temp of only 85*C, would they work you think?

**kc8adu** · 01-02-2006, 06:31 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

use 6.3v
the vcore these filter is less than 2v

**davmax** · 01-02-2006, 06:59 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

This is where you must be very careful. It is easy to find the incorrect spec caps. That type you reference is a standard low frequency component and would be totally incorrect if replacing a low impedance type required for high frequency filtering. If a capacitor is marked LOW ESR or similar do not replace with anything but a low ESR type of the same temp rating.
If you request a quote for your total need you should get a better deal, they do say ask for what you need. The caps recommended for motherboards and power supplies must be low or ultra low ESR, the latter is best for the 3300uF size.

Importing caps has no duty problem in Aust it might be different in NZ. ie anything under A$500 is normally no problem if sent by air mail (USPS Global).

Nothing gained unless you ask for a quote. Good Luck

**davmax** · 01-02-2006, 07:01 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

kc8adu. I guess you are referring to the 3300uF caps?

**davmax** · 01-02-2006, 07:14 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Be careful with cap diameters. 8mm caps have a 3.5mm lead spacing, 10mm and 12.5mm have 5mm lead spacing. Caps placed close together can also be a problem if diameter is increased.

**davmax** · 01-02-2006, 07:17 AM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

See new thread below for answers.

**quattro** · 01-02-2006, 06:46 PM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Originally posted by davmax

See new thread below for answers.

Huh?

Anyway, as time is a bit of an issue, i think ill go for Farnell, they said the delivery would be next day.

So that last link is no good, ill just leave the 2200uF/10v ones for now. What about the first links i posted, would they be good for replacement?

Thanks

**quattro** · 01-02-2006, 07:29 PM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Just discovered this:

Another cause maybe...

I didnt build this pc, but who ever did, didnt know what they were doing.

**dood** · 01-02-2006, 08:11 PM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Be very careful when removing that to reseat it... you could damage the processor with the pressure being distributed unevenly...

**kc8adu** · 01-02-2006, 08:20 PM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

ouch.
if that is an amd you will be lucky if it lives.

**davmax** · 01-02-2006, 08:25 PM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Yes Quattro. The heat sink looks as though it is not properly installed. Do you have a heat problem?

Re caps. I looked at you earlier links. The 1500uf is fine.

the 3300uF part number should be 769095
the 1000uF ditto 767335

I have just finished two motherboards getting parts to fit and right performance cost me quite a lot between Farnell and RS Components and about $30.00 in delivery costs.
I only discovered Computek a few days ago whilst still looking for 10mm 3300uF.
I wish I had found them before. For two reasons. 1. The capacitors they supply are ultra low ESR better than the ones above and needed for the 3300uF part. 2. They are the right size.
I have six 3300uF close together, 12.5mm will not fit.
So now I have ordered min of 20 only 3300uF and will have some to spare (8).

**quattro** · 01-02-2006, 09:28 PM

Re: I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

I did have a heat problem, ~70*C, and constant crashing. But after cleaning the dust out from the heatsink it went back to safe 40/50*C temps.

You think it would just be better to leave it? It is an Athlon XP, so the die is very vulnerable the way it sticks out, you can see the whole chip is slanted, that is, there is a lot more pressure seating the pins on the left side than the right.

Thanks for the tips davmax, how long did it take for delivery from Computek?
I'm starting to think the 12.5mm 10v 3300uF's wont fit in place of the 10mm ones i need to replace, i may have to look elsewhere, not even Computek have them, but I've emailed them anyway.

Announcement

I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

I know theyre bad, but are they the cause?

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment