Motherboard traces to nowhere?

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  • larrymoencurly
    Badcaps Veteran
    • Oct 2004
    • 960
    • USA
    #1

    Motherboard traces to nowhere?

    I have an MSI Z68A-G43 (G3) motherboard with an Asmedia ASM1083 PCI-E to PCI bridge chip with 2 signal traces that each go into a serpentine for about 2" and then just end, without being connected to anything. These traces are on opposite sides of the circuit board, and actually they aren't even connected to their chip because the jumper positions for them are empty (no even pins soldered in). Also each serpentine trace is surrounded by a pair of copper traces that aren't connected at either end. How do such surrounding traces help when they're not connected to anything at either end?

    I can't find a datasheet or even pinout for this chip, but what's normally the purpose of circuit traces like this? Is it for measuring the capacitance of the circuit board material, to adjust the signal timing?
    Attached Files
    Last edited by larrymoencurly; 12-10-2012, 02:15 AM.
    Tags: None
    • ratdude747
      Black Sheep
      • Nov 2008
      • 17136
      • USA
      #2
      Re: Motherboard traces to nowhere?

      looks like an antenna almost.
      sigpic

      (Insert witty quote here)

        Comment

        • Th3_uN1Qu3
          Believe in
          • Jul 2010
          • 6031
          • Romania
          #3
          Re: Motherboard traces to nowhere?

          Yep, and the jumpers read SIM1 SIM2... that could be a GSM antenna. Don't ask me what it's doing on a *desktop* motherboard tho.
          Originally posted by PeteS in CA
          Remember that by the time consequences of a short-sighted decision are experienced, the idiot who made the bad decision may have already been promoted or moved on to a better job at another company.
          A working TV? How boring!

            Comment

            • kc8adu
              Super Moderator
              • Nov 2003
              • 8832
              • U.S.A!
              #4
              Re: Motherboard traces to nowhere?

              like said antenna will work well against metal and inside a metal case.

                Comment

                • selldoor
                  Slow Learner
                  • Dec 2010
                  • 7870
                  #5
                  Re: Motherboard traces to nowhere?

                  I have an "out of the box" suggestion - out of my mind some would say!!
                  To me it looks like a snake and in Canada they have a mystical pagan sea serpent called Msi-Kinepeikwa .
                  Perhaps Msi have adopted this as a good luck symbol to protect it from bad capacitors.
                  Anyone know if it appears on any othe MSI boards?
                  Please upload pictures using attachment function when ask for help on the repair
                  http://www.badcaps.net/forum/showthread.php?t=39740

                    Comment

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