Announcement

**willawake** · 01-06-2006, 01:16 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

welcome!

nice system you have. i am sure after recapping it will be totally stable again and will last for many years. no need to worry.

can you get a few more pics showing both sides of the caps so i can read the data. if they are nichicon HM it would be very interesting news. how long was the board in service?

**Spiccolli** · 01-06-2006, 01:49 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Thanks for the compliment - I researched quite a while when i built this fine lady. Unfortunately, I have already shipped her off, but I do have a couple more pics that i took right before I boxed her. They are a better angle, but I don't think that they will provide enough information.

As to your other question, the board has been running about 24/7 for just over 2 years. I guess that's pretty good, but it seems to me that it should have lasted longer. I have had a few other asus boards and they are still going like the energizer bunny. After this incident, i checked them out and all the caps are fine. Luck of the draw I suppose.
I'll check with the badcaps.net tech and see if he will let me know what caps they are exactly. So far he has been very attentive and helpful.

Attached Files

**willawake** · 01-06-2006, 02:00 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

yes they are nichicon, Chris/Topcat will let us know what series they are when he fixes the board. no need to ask.

**Chris1992** · 01-06-2006, 02:36 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

BTW, that Chris is not me. (: Nice system, but I'd upgrade the PSU a bit.

**dood** · 01-06-2006, 05:51 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

I just had a machine in for another issue, that had an A7N8X in it, and I was happy to find ALL Rubycons in the main spots...

**Mustang** · 01-06-2006, 08:03 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Originally posted by dood

I just had a machine in for another issue, that had an A7N8X in it, and I was happy to find ALL Rubycons in the main spots...

Same with my old rev 1.04. The 8 caps pictured were Rubycon 3300uf 6.3v. The 1000uf and under were all OST however. Those in the picture might be OST.

**Spiccolli** · 01-07-2006, 10:06 AM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

I don't remember seeing OST on them - I'm pretty sure that the markings were nichicon or posibly chemi con which would indicate United Chemi Con I would think.
If they are nichicon, I am curious as to why they gave out. Are Rubycons really that much better?
What can I do once I get back a stable board to ensure that this will not happen for as long as possible? I use an APC UPS already (1500), and my power supply is highly rated (and real expensive at the time too) and I have checked the voltages from time to time and they are very steady indeed.
One poster recommended a new power supply due to the 400watt rating on my current PS. Does anyone else think this PS is now too small? It was the largest I could find at the time that wasn't going to cost me over $300.

I did a bit of poking around and found that the Seasonic S12-600 provides incredibly steady and reliable voltages. Also have heard that PC Power and Cooling and Fortron are great companies as well.
One thing I do remember from an electronics class I had a long time ago is that things such as power supplys operate at their best when they are under no more than about 70-80% load, thus providing the best performance at that area of the power curve. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? - Any PS recommendations?

**willawake** · 01-07-2006, 10:13 AM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

they are nichicon. the smaller caps in the photo are ost. they might be HM series from the time nichicon screwed up a batch.

I did a bit of poking around and found that the Seasonic S12-600 provides incredibly steady and reliable voltages. Also have heard that PC Power and Cooling and Fortron are great companies as well.

they are all good brands. if you want a good psu then budget for $70-100. if your psu is out of warranty then open the lid and show us some photos. we can tell you if it is any good.

i doubt if the psu was the issue in this case though. take a look at the caps, they are all bad off-spec product.

**Spiccolli** · 01-13-2006, 07:52 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

ok willawake, tell me what ya think. Here's the specs:

Now here's a top-down view. You can see the dual thermal probes on the aluminum heat-sink:

Now here's the best view i can get of the caps on the board:

A view to show the rest of the caps on the board (same jamicons):

And of course the big teapo that is in there:

BTW: there are 2 beefy adda fans that keep things quiet

This PSU runs great - still very quiet although it does spit out alot of heat, I am running a bunch of stuff in the box. As you can see, it is still quite clean for a PSU that has been running just about 24/7 for almost 3 years. I think that you are quite right to say that my issues are not power supply related.

Attached Files

**linuxguru** · 01-14-2006, 01:59 AM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

The PSU looks well-made, but it seems to have at least one bulging cap on the secondary side in the second pic. Try recapping the secondary caps on the PSU to see if it improves things.

**Per Hansson** · 01-14-2006, 03:36 AM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

I agree with linuxguru; the capacitor furthest down in the second pic looks bulged.

Jamicon is not a very good brand so I would recap it just to be sure... Otherwise the powersupply looks well built, i.e. well worth a recap. Impressivley clean for being in use for 3 years!

Even my Lian-Li PC65 case manages to get some dust in even though I use and regularly clean it's dust filter... What kind of case do you use?

**Spiccolli** · 01-14-2006, 09:35 AM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Thanks for the input!
I do believe that this is a bit of an optical illusion. When I had it open, all of the caps were perfectly flat and standing straight up. These particular caps seem to have a wider than usual channel in the vent markings and the flash reflection makes the edges of them look beveled, causing them to look misshapen:

Also, being that this is a digital camera (canon powershot s410) it does not have a great focus when doing close up shots:

Per Hansson: I also use a Lian-Li, the PC-70. The rest of her specs can be found in the first post of the thread in case you are interested - fantastic case, but quite large.

Thanks again for your taking a look and feedback

Attached Files

**willawake** · 01-14-2006, 11:46 AM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

psu is an Enhance built unit with active PFC. looks fine.

camera is fine also. check for minimum focusing distance in the manual, if you have probs you are probably too close, step back and use the zoom

**PeteS in CA** · 01-14-2006, 05:51 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Yep, active PFC. The heatsink for the O/P rectifiers would have me nervous about drawing 400W, even with two fans. Where P/Ss are concerned, I like heavy metal,

. "Quiet" fans usually means slow speed and low airflow.

**dood** · 01-14-2006, 07:15 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Like the copper heatsink in that PSU! Add those pics to the Power supply build quality thread, if you would...

**Spiccolli** · 01-14-2006, 08:51 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Are you saying that the "heavy metal" IS the copper?, or are you saying that this PSU should have larger heatsinks? Do you ask that I add it to the build quality thread as an example of a good one, or an example of a bad one?

Although the PSU is "Quiet", there are 2 80mm adda fans and I can attest that it definately spits out alot of heat and pretty quickly at that!
Seems to me that the heatsinks are doing their job well. I think I'd rather have the 2 fairly quiet 80s than a single, slow rotating 120.
Looks like there is one pfc for each fan. If one of them gives out, at least there is still the other one in operation until I notice the failure. Hopefully the pfc will crank up the survivor.

**AK0R** · 01-14-2006, 10:26 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Originally posted by Spiccolli

Thanks for the input!
I do believe that this is a bit of an optical illusion. When I had it open, all of the caps were perfectly flat and standing straight up. These particular caps seem to have a wider than usual channel in the vent markings and the flash reflection makes the edges of them look beveled, causing them to look misshapen:

Also, being that this is a digital camera (canon powershot s410) it does not have a great focus when doing close up shots:

Per Hansson: I also use a Lian-Li, the PC-70. The rest of her specs can be found in the first post of the thread in case you are interested - fantastic case, but quite large.

Thanks again for your taking a look and feedback

Wrong cap. The one of concern is the lower one in the upper picture; you see about a quarter of it in the bottom-right of the lower picture.

Also, in your earlier post, the cap in the picture directly to the right of the larger output toroid (the one without the heatshrink) appears to be slightly domed as well.

My philosophy: just because it doesn't look bad, doesn't mean it isn't bad. Caps aren't that expensive. Why not use this opportunity, while your motherboard is being recapped, to do the same on your power supply? PSUs are much sturdier than motherboards, are usually single-sided (rather than multi-layer), and are very easy to repair. If you did no more than replace the output caps with high-quality parts, you'd be doing your motherboard a huge favor. You can easily do the job yourself in an hour.

**Spiccolli** · 01-14-2006, 11:49 PM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Originally posted by AK0R

Wrong cap. The one of concern is the lower one in the upper picture; you see about a quarter of it in the bottom-right of the lower picture.

Ok, here's better pics:

it's an optical illusion - that cap's top is flat as a flapjack.

Originally posted by AK0R

Also, in your earlier post, the cap in the picture directly to the right of the larger output toroid (the one without the heatshrink) appears to be slightly domed as well.

i have no idea what a toroid is - is that the copper-wound ferriswheel lookin thing?

if so, here's a closer look:

quite flat

Originally posted by AK0R

My philosophy: just because it doesn't look bad, doesn't mean it isn't bad. Caps aren't that expensive. Why not use this opportunity, while your motherboard is being recapped, to do the same on your power supply? PSUs are much sturdier than motherboards, are usually single-sided (rather than multi-layer), and are very easy to repair. If you did no more than replace the output caps with high-quality parts, you'd be doing your motherboard a huge favor. You can easily do the job yourself in an hour.

umm, there's no way i could do the job myself, let alone in an hour. I've never soldered anything in my life. I am inept. In fact, it scared the hell out of me messing around with taking off just the cover. With everything I have been told, touch the wrong thing in there and ZAP! - game over.

I do appreciate the comments. If there is a general consensus that thinks I would be better off with a new, beefier power supply, or one that has better components, I would get one. What's the sense having Topcat recap my board with Rubys if my PSU is just gonna muck things up, right?

Does anyone else following this thread think this PSU is now out of line with the recapped board i will be getting back?

Attached Files

**linuxguru** · 01-15-2006, 01:56 AM

Re: A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

The point being made is that the PSU is well built, and it will not cost you much either in money or time to ensure that it stays good for another 5-10 years. Think of it as cheap insurance. A well-engineered and maintained piece of proven technology is almost always better than an unproven piece of new technology.

However, if you have no background in soldering/hobby electronics, just close the cover and leave it alone.

Announcement

A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

A7N8X - Aren't they supposed to have quality caps?

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment