Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

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  • -kickstand-
    New Member
    • Jul 2006
    • 2

    #1

    Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

    Hello all,

    I'm posting because I have a question about my KT7. I have had this board since the spring of 2000 and it has been the core of my main machine ever since it's original purchase. Needless to say, this board has seen a lot of usage. I'm really surprised to read that the KT7 was notorious for having capacitor problems because until recently, I have never had any issues from this gem.

    The issue I've encountered began earlier this week; USB devices stopped being detected. The problem is intermittent, but pronounced enough for me to be alarmed. Could this indeed be the start of capacitors going bad? I'd like to know just what is going on before I do my last upgrade on this platform. I've got a x850 XT and Mobile Barton enroute which will serve as the last 'hoorah' for this board before moving to an Intel platform some time down the road.

    When I get home this afternoon I'll part everything out and check the capacitors again. The last time I checked, I found a few bulging, but none were discolored or leaking. Should I take note of which brand of capacitor is being used and where?

    This board has seen me through 6 processors, 4 video cards and 3 cases, so I'd hate to give up on it now. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'll provide system specs that count for reference:

    Abit KT7 (Non A or Raid with modified BIOS)
    Athlon Thoroughbred B (Mobile with wire modifications)
    Sparkle 430 Watt PSU

    Thx.
  • Rainbow
    Badcaps Legend
    • Aug 2005
    • 1371

    #2
    Re: Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

    It's probably full of Jackcons. Some of them went bad very soon, some later (like yours).

    Comment

    • gg1978
      Badcaps Veteran
      • Dec 2004
      • 431
      • USA

      #3
      Re: Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

      I didn't think a mobile Barton would work on a KT7.. I just recapped one myself.. You'd probably be better off with a socket 754 sempron board and CPU, in order to effectively utlilize the X850XT.,..

      Comment

      • Shroomie
        Badcaps Veteran
        • Apr 2006
        • 356

        #4
        Re: Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

        Oh, the mobile Bartons are pretty incredible chips. However, the motherboard probably would be the bottleneck there.
        You know there's something wrong when you open up a PSU and are glad to find Teapos.
        Why I don't buy cheap cases!

        Comment

        • tazwegion
          Badcaps Veteran
          • Jun 2006
          • 444
          • Australia

          #5
          Re: Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

          Originally posted by -kickstand-
          I'm really surprised to read that the KT7 was notorious for having capacitor problems because until recently, I have never had any issues from this gem.
          Well, I've owned 2 Abit KT7's and both unfortunately had clapped out Jackon capacitors, recapping these boards is definitely a worthwhile exercise and I'd strongly recommend that course of action

          I'm curious... have you upgraded the NB cooler at all, the supplied 40mm fan doesn't have an overly long life span, and because there's not much 'meat' in the actual heatsink itself, stability issues with heat can/do result IME
          Viva LA Retro!

          Comment

          • -kickstand-
            New Member
            • Jul 2006
            • 2

            #6
            Re: Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

            Sorry for the late reply.

            I am in the process of cleaning my components in prepartion for my new CPU and video card and I have not noticed anything out of the ordinary. There is no odd smell, there are no leaking caps, but there are two swollen caps by the DIMM slots which is only noticable when viewing them from a side profile.

            I think it would be advantageous for me to recap the board if for nothing more than ease of mind and longevity. I have a diagram of the capacitors to replace, but I'm not too experienced with an iron. I can repair watches, so precision digits are not the issue, but I would feel more comfortable with the entire process if someone could point me toward a tutorial and maybe even suggest a decent kit to purchase. Also, can I replace the capacitors with those of solid design? I've heard solid capacitors have a better tolerance of heat and provide a more consistant voltage.

            @tazwegion - The northbridge chipset fan began vibrating horribly about 3 years in, so I simply removed the entire assembly all together. I measured the temperature of the chipset using external instruments while the system was under heavy load and was surprised to see the highest temp I could produce was 29C. I made the decision to leave the heatsink and fan off from that point on.

            Comment

            • Hagis2k
              Senior Member
              • Jul 2006
              • 66

              #7
              Re: Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

              Swollen / Bulging caps are a true sign that you need to replace them...

              Comment

              • tazwegion
                Badcaps Veteran
                • Jun 2006
                • 444
                • Australia

                #8
                Re: Abit KT7 Questions / Woes

                Originally posted by -kickstand-
                @tazwegion - The northbridge chipset fan began vibrating horribly about 3 years in, so I simply removed the entire assembly all together. I measured the temperature of the chipset using external instruments while the system was under heavy load and was surprised to see the highest temp I could produce was 29C. I made the decision to leave the heatsink and fan off from that point on.
                That doesn't seem too high, though I don't know the actual heat tolerance of the NB chip, I never actually measured the temperature of my NB, but I do recall the cooler being quite warm to the touch @ load (I run 24/7 applications), a larger passive chip-sink would provide peace of mind & silence, but I ended up using (meaty) 40mm Gigabyte chipset coolers I acquired very cheaply @ a local PC swap meet
                Viva LA Retro!

                Comment

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