Changing voltages.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

I forgot to update you guys on the PC! All the new polymer capacitors are in place. I did not change the capacitance or voltage at all for any of them. The fan speeds and voltages are stable (finally!!!). I replaced the thermal compound on the CPU. I physically cleaned the system. I did not remove the heatsink or replace the thermal compound under the northbridge. I'm debating on whether or not I should do that.
I fixed the air flow and added a 120mm front intake fan as well.

I backed up all the data, formatted, and then I installed Windows 10 64-bit (yuck) back on the machine. I noticed before the format he some IIS web server running on the machine but didn't have access to the htdocs directory (or whatever the IIS equivalent was). I think maybe he was infected. He had no knowledge of it.

I had to type the 10 product key. He got the free upgrade so I just used magic jelly bean to grab it. When it installed, it installed all the drivers automatically. I fully updated it, put a bunch of basic programs on it (Chrome, Firefox, Adobe Reader, etc). I got most of his old "pictures" to open up using an archaic Microsoft program called Microsoft Photo Premium 10. There are some files that aren't pictures, just text files that hold the location to pictures (like these dang NTI CDM files). There's some old Nero Disc Image files as well. I'll probably find away to extract them. Hopefully 7-zip can handle those things.

He had a 128GB flash drive that he gave me that had pictures on it. As far as I can tell, the flash drive is completely dead. I've tried it in two computers now. It's not even recognized. It's as if I didn't have anything plugged in at all, yet other thumb drives work. I'll plug it into my Linux box and see if that recognizes anything. Thanks for all the help!!!!!

[ChaosLegionnaire]

Re: Changing voltages.

I did not remove the heatsink or replace the thermal compound under the northbridge. I'm debating on whether or not I should do that.

u should. i mentioned previously that gmch northbridges tend to run quite hot because of the graphics portion. might even wanna ghetto slap a 40-60mm fan on the northbridge!

[diif]

Re: Changing voltages.

Double check the drivers Spork.
Ive seen a few Win 10 installs, Microsoft picked any old drivers just so there is no allow triangle/exclamation mark but its choice of drivers was rubbish.
Wireless dropping every 5 minutes and crazy trackpad issues.

Crack the case open on the USB stick and check the connectors aren't damaged.
If you have a suitable tester check the crystal.

[stj]

Re: Changing voltages.

do the chipset - seriously.
i have seen everything under those heatsinks from bubble-gum (use white spirit to desolve it) ,to tape, to NOTHING!

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

Double check the drivers Spork.
Ive seen a few Win 10 installs, Microsoft picked any old drivers just so there is no allow triangle/exclamation mark but its choice of drivers was rubbish.
Wireless dropping every 5 minutes and crazy trackpad issues.

Crack the case open on the USB stick and check the connectors aren't damaged.
If you have a suitable tester check the crystal.

Thanks. I don't think it's a driver issue. I'll tell you why Diif and then you tell me if you agree or disagree.

1) Fresh install, hard drive was formatted (after partitions were deleted)
2) Other flash drives work in this PC just fine. I was using our 128GB flash drive to hold the backup data.
3) His flash drive does not work in our other computer. I thought maybe he never safely removed it and just unplugged it and it damaged the file system. However, if this was the case, the computer should at least detect it as a raw unformatted volume. It doesn't even show up in Disk Management.

For the crystal, my oscilloscope should work fine, right? I didn't know thumb drives had a crystal. It's fairly new. Should we open the thumb drive or check to see if it's under warranty first?

Thanks

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

u should. i mentioned previously that gmch northbridges tend to run quite hot because of the graphics portion. might even wanna ghetto slap a 40-60mm fan on the northbridge!

What does gmch stand for? I'm guessing MCH stands for Memory Controller Hub, seeing how in these older PCs, before the northbridge started being built into the CPUs, the northbridges were sometimes referred to as Memory Controller Hub (or Integrated Memory Controller Hub if it had on-board video if my memory servers me correctly).

The northbridge on this Asrock is a G31. Does the G stand for G31 and the MCH just stand for Memory Controller Hub?

I'm going to try replacing the thermal compound on there without removing the board from the case. Wish me luck!

As for the fan, I'd have to wire something directly up to a molex connector. All two motherboard fan headers are being used.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

do the chipset - seriously.
i have seen everything under those heatsinks from bubble-gum (use white spirit to desolve it) ,to tape, to NOTHING!

It was pink really really sticky bubble gum. Not sure what white spirit is but 70% Isopropyl Alcohol wasn't working so my wife used something they use at work called Un-Du. It's safe on plastic and all that jazz. This stuff is amazing! I was working on the heatsink, she was working on the chipset. I just put a tab on a Q-Tip and it just evaporated the stuff. It didn't move it to the Q-Tip or anything, it didn't get pushed around. The stuff just dissolved. Amazing stuff.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

She's put back together and working great. She's really fast now! It's really strange, ever since I replaced the power supply and the capacitors, when I open programs, they don't crash, the computer doesn't take 10+ minutes to shut down, I don't have to try to turn the PC on a few times to get it to successfully load Windows. I hope he's going to happy.

[stj]

Re: Changing voltages.

white spirit is the stuff you clean paint brushes with.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_spirit

[ChaosLegionnaire]

Re: Changing voltages.

What does gmch stand for?

on intel systems, they called northbridges with integrated video controllers graphics and memory controller hub. thats what gmch stands for tho imch is used also for older intel pcs.

It was pink really really sticky bubble gum.

oh no! its the infamous pink bubble gum thermal compound. i really really hate that sheet! its a pain to clean off! and its found on a lot of video cards and northbridges. i had to use a metal scouring sponge to scrape it off the heatsink on one of my radeon 9600 non-pro video cards. good thing a lot of it didnt stick to the die. it took quite a lot of arcticlean and ronsonol lighter fluid to clean it off. what a pain!

at least now the nb will be running much cooler. the pink bubble gum stuff is crap and runs at least 5-8°C hotter than arctic mx-4.

[stj]

Re: Changing voltages.

oh no! its the infamous pink bubble gum thermal compound. i really really hate that sheet! its a pain to clean off!

white spirit liquifies that shit on contact!

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

white spirit is the stuff you clean paint brushes with.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_spirit

Ahh, we always called that paint thinner or turpentine. I know the stuff you're talking about.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

on intel systems, they called northbridges with integrated video controllers graphics and memory controller hub. thats what gmch stands for tho imch is used also for older intel pcs.

oh no! its the infamous pink bubble gum thermal compound. i really really hate that sheet! its a pain to clean off! and its found on a lot of video cards and northbridges. i had to use a metal scouring sponge to scrape it off the heatsink on one of my radeon 9600 non-pro video cards. good thing a lot of it didnt stick to the die. it took quite a lot of arcticlean and ronsonol lighter fluid to clean it off. what a pain!

at least now the nb will be running much cooler. the pink bubble gum stuff is crap and runs at least 5-8°C hotter than arctic mx-4.

Thank you for the little bit of history lesson there! Much appreciated.

If you're interested, for that dang pink bubble gum thermal compound, you should buy a bottle of this stuff:

http://www.amazon.com/UnDuProducts-0.../dp/B003TZQPTS

I just put a very small dab on a Q-Tip and just touched it to the stuff. It just dissolved it. There wasn't anything on the Q-Tip, it didn't turn pink, it didn't push the stuff around, it just simply made it vanish. I've never seen that before. It's like it somehow just broke the stuff down to nothing. It literally took maybe 3 seconds with that Un-Du stuff. I figure it must be made out of magic.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

white spirit liquifies that shit on contact!

I checked the MSDS for the Un-Du. It seems to contain Naphtha. I believe Naphtha is used in paint thinners. So perhaps they're the same thing? I bet the paint thinner / turpentine / white spirits would be cheaper than this stuff.

[diif]

Re: Changing voltages.

Napththa is a petroleum distillate. Its different to turps/white spirit. A quick Google turns up all volumes.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

Napththa is a petroleum distillate. Its different to turps/white spirit. A quick Google turns up all volumes.

Okay, I read a bit about it but don't really know much. I googled it earlier and saw this:

Naphtha is a petroleum solvent similar to mineral spirits but with a greater volatility; it is used chiefly as a paint thinner or a cleaning agent.

I just skimmed it because I had to help my dad fix the pool pump. I should have read it a bit more in depth. Thanks for correcting me.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Changing voltages.

The MSDS for the Un-Du stuff didn't say anything about not using it if you're pregnant. You think it's probably something my wife should stay away from?

[diif]

Re: Changing voltages.

I doubt the tiny quantity used would make a difference, if it was being used all day I don't think it would be good for anyone.
To me, if something dilsolves something or has that smell about it then its probably not a good idea to breathe the fumes in/get on the skin.

[stj]

Re: Changing voltages.

dont forget to clean off the cleaner with IPA before you use the MX4.

[dmill89]

Re: Changing voltages.

Better yet use Acetone (the stuff from the hardware store, not nail-polish remover which is diluted and has additives), it won't leave a residue like paint-thinner, Naphtha, kerosene, etc.