MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

[Joe Black]

Just a quickie here.
I have many dead MOBOs, and couple of them are not-so-bad and would be worth time and effort fixing.

All of them are non-beep whatsoever tested with known good CPU,PSU and speaker(buzzer), reseted CMOS and all. All are carefully visually inspected and no bulky or leaked capacitors or other suspicious elements.
(Unfortunately, I don't own an ESR yet, just a capacitance meter)

Worth keeping or trash?

[stj]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

without a list you cant get an answer.

[Joe Black]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Interesting.

Well, there's yet another proof of my ignorance and lack of knowledge. I threw some of them in trash, using logic NO BEEP-NO FIX.

I have two here in my flat:

-"ECS elitegroup" RX780M-A (V:1.0)

-"MSI" MS-7309 (VER:1.3)

[ChaosLegionnaire]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

well i can tell u what type of mobos arent worth fixing. one of those are the nvidia chipset based mobos. they have the bumpgate problem and arent worth fixing but just keep them to cannibalise parts from to repair other mobos that are worth fixing...

no beep no fix is a poor way of diagnosing a board. use a post card instead. i have lots of boards that dont beep but i still manage to fix them with the help of a post card.

that ms-7309 board u mentioned appears to use a nvidia mcp61 chipset and is am2+. that is affected by the bumpgate scandal. not worth fixing. cannibalise everything u can from the board and then toss it.

[stj]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

most of the dead boards i'v seen have been bad caps or shorted fets - nothing complex.

[Joe Black]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Wow. Thanks a lot guys, this is an eye-opener.
I don't know why (MOBO is just a piece of electronics, like any other device) but even PC repair shops here will tell you that dead MOBO is a no-fix w/o even having a look...

I found some threads here about recapping and will take care in future when it comes to this.

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Old mainboards are generally not considered worth repairing because replacements are readily available and cheap. That is why most shops don't bother.

[SteveNielsen]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

It depends on what you plan to use the MB for too. Some people use them for more specialized purposes than general use. I use them because that's all I can get my hands on so I make as sure as possible they can work flawlessly. For boards I don't repair I salvage discrete parts from and test them before they go into my used parts boxes.

[momaka]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

most of the dead boards i'v seen have been bad caps or shorted fets - nothing complex.

+1

But sometimes a bad PSU can cause other damage too. Then you have to check every little transistor and diode that is on the board - at which point, most motherboard aren't worth the trouble. However, if you do have time on your hands and like to do this more as a hobby than making money, this could definitely be fun and a learning experience.

that ms-7309 board u mentioned appears to use a nvidia mcp61 chipset and is am2+. that is affected by the bumpgate scandal. not worth fixing.

I disagree somewhat. Yes, MCP61 chipset is quite problematic, but other than that, MSI mobos are excellent when they work.
If nothing else appears to be bad on the board (as in, all voltage rails for the CPU, NB, SB, and RAM are okay and come up), then give the MCP61 die a good reflow. If you do get the board to work afterwards, put the biggest cooler you can find on the MCP61 chipset - the cooler they run, the less likely they will fail again anytime soon.

Unfortunately, anything after nForce 2 chipsets from nVidia is very likely to have bumpgate problems. That said, I still see people on eBay buy broken boards like that to fix, so maybe there is a way.

Anyways, I think the best thing you can do if you want to fix those motherboards is start a thread for each (in the right motherboard section of the forums) and post some pictures of it. That way, we can see what you are seeing .

[retiredcaps]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Worth keeping or trash?

Given your previous posts that you want to learn, you should keep them and try to fix them. You can only learn so much doing simple recapping and fixes. Ideally you want a really hard one to fix where you end up with a lot of dead ends and frustration. Then, and only then, do you learn how things really work.

That is why I try to repair everything I own or am given regardless whether it beyond economical repair wrt to money and/or time. If I can't fix and exhausted all possibilities within my means/tools, then I try to salvage parts and recycle the rest.

I have fixed a lot of P4s, ATX PSU, LCD computer monitors, etc and usually give them away to friends, family or free to complete strangers via local advertisements.

As you learn more about the members here, try to follow those who do component level troubleshooting. More importantly, observe their troubleshooting techniques and how they arrive at their conclusion.

[Joe Black]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Totally agreed , retiredcaps. A splendid post, looks like a good sticky for newbies.

Momaka, that goes to you, too. The only problem is time, as I am just a hobbyst... Gosh I'd love to work in this field. But, probably would start to hate it then

[fzabkar]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

"Recappers" (the term makes me cringe) are not real technicians. If you want to be a real technician, then component level repair is what you need to do. Practising on dead motherboards is OK, but I would think that you would get more knowledge and satisfaction from repairing consumer appliances.

[ozzy214]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

If you have a buyer across the pond, dead boards are worth money. Here in the states I get as high as 4 dollar a lb boards all depending on what they are. My buyer I have been deal with for years if it interests you. http://www.cashforcomputerscrap.com/

Saves them from mother earth, gets them recycled, and keeps the planet green while making your pockets green..lol. And no I aint advertising, just passing it on.

[momaka]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Saves them from mother earth, gets them recycled, and keeps the planet green...

Don't buy too much into that.

Many "recycling" companies simply send their e-Waste to 3rd-world countries or ones with loose environmental regulations, where the scrap PCBs are soaked into baths of acid to extract the precious metals. The bi-products are then usually dumped into a river or landfill. And wires are regularly burned in the open-environment to get rid of the PVC sleeve so that the Cu/Al can be extracted easily. There is nothing green about any of that. Not to mention little kids and women are doing most of the work - slowly but steadily picking up carcinogens and adding it to the gene pool and passing it onto the next generation. Then people wonder why cancer rates are going up.

So no, e-Waste "recycling" doesn't necessarily keep the planet green. Not unless it is done properly. But for the most part, we like to think that it is, since we don't see the crap in our backyard.

I'm not against electronic recycling... but if something can be fixed and/or re-used, that is always better.

What pisses me off even more is that all big electronics stores near me offer e-waste recycling. Sometimes, I would see good stuff that probably just needs a simple fix. When I ask them if I can buy some of the stuff, the answer is always "NO".

But WHY? So that I can buy a new crappy product that will last just a few days past warranty and then throw it away again? To keep the "economy" going?

[ozzy214]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Don't buy too much into that.

Many "recycling" companies simply send their e-Waste to 3rd-world countries or ones with loose environmental regulations, where the scrap PCBs are soaked into baths of acid to extract the precious metals. The bi-products are then usually dumped into a river or landfill. And wires are regularly burned in the open-environment to get rid of the PVC sleeve so that the Cu/Al can be extracted easily. There is nothing green about any of that. Not to mention little kids and women are doing most of the work - slowly but steadily picking up carcinogens and adding it to the gene pool and passing it onto the next generation. Then people wonder why cancer rates are going up.

So no, e-Waste "recycling" doesn't necessarily keep the planet green. Not unless it is done properly. But for the most part, we like to think that it is, since we don't see the crap in our backyard.

I'm not against electronic recycling... but if something can be fixed and/or re-used, that is always better.

What pisses me off even more is that all big electronics stores near me offer e-waste recycling. Sometimes, I would see good stuff that probably just needs a simple fix. When I ask them if I can buy some of the stuff, the answer is always "NO".

But WHY? So that I can buy a new crappy product that will last just a few days past warranty and then throw it away again? To keep the "economy" going?

I do buy into it, because Mario is R2 certified. Yes I know him ny first name as I been dealing with him close to five years.

http://www.greenspotdropoff.org/r2.html

He went through hell to get that cert...

[kaboom]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Don't buy too much into that.

Many "recycling" companies simply send their e-Waste to 3rd-world countries or ones with loose environmental regulations, where the scrap PCBs are soaked into baths of acid to extract the precious metals. The bi-products are then usually dumped into a river or landfill. And wires are regularly burned in the open-environment to get rid of the PVC sleeve so that the Cu/Al can be extracted easily. There is nothing green about any of that. Then people wonder why cancer rates are going up.

PVC, unless completely burned beyond a certain temperature, gives off none other than dioxin, nasty stuff. Those smokey, open-air pits are hardly suited for the purpose. The hydrochloric acid that also results pales in comparison.

So no, e-Waste "recycling" doesn't necessarily keep the planet green. Not unless it is done properly. But for the most part, we like to think that it is, since we don't see the crap in our backyard.

All "e-recycling" was, is a cute name for interlocking interests to see that a key point of recycling never happens. From the late 80s-early 90's: Reduce, reuse, recycle.

Take stuff that only needs a cap job. Plenty of life left! Except for truly obsolete or non-repairable (HP!) stuff, there's no need for such disgusting waste to be "on display" as it is.

What pisses me off even more is that all big electronics stores near me offer e-waste recycling.

Gotta keep the masses enslaved, right? "That device is 5 seconds out of the box, therefore it's JUNK!" Didn't finish paying it off? Too bad, here's a shiny new toy, be good and go (further) into debt.

Sometimes, I would see good stuff that probably just needs a simple fix. When I ask them if I can buy some of the stuff, the answer is always "NO".

They get kickbacks from the state, whose partly-owned recycling "subsidiary" has, ahem, "arrangements" in place that perpetuate this.

Like the BS in Hicksylvania. Fast Eddie, years ago, pulled this. Anyone surprised? It was his shell companies, posing as "recyclers" and "routes to recyclers" that won the mouth-breathers over. Trouble was, they had "connections" and "brothers" in Canada that received the doomed stuff and sent it to China, where what you described continues to happen.

The adorable commercials and junk mail proclaim it to be wonderful- think of "thuhhh uuurrrrffff." Why just today, we got junk mail from one of those power-saver-scams telling of the "evil" of refrigerators. "Your refrigerator is baaaaad, because it runs 24/7/365."

And all this time, I thought they cycled on their thermostats...

But WHY? So that I can buy a new crappy product that will last just a few days past warranty and then throw it away again? To keep the "economy" going?

That, and to keep the "believers" enslaved. It's not enslavement to them once it's been given a pretty name. The best part is what people make of lead in CRTs. Oh, it's in there alright, but in the same sense as the chlorine and sodium in common table salt. The lead is not elemental! Is as much incorporated into that glass as the silica is, and I don't see CRTs crumbling into sand when I smash them. Short of being boiled in lye, that glass isn't going anywhere. So the lead stays put.

[stj]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

lead-glass is valuable, company's used to buy broken tubes from repair shops here so they could melt them down.

[ChaosLegionnaire]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Why just today, we got junk mail from one of those power-saver-scams telling of the "evil" of refrigerators. "Your refrigerator is baaaaad, because it runs 24/7/365."

i think i saw one of those so-called power saving devices for fridges and other electrical appliances here. i did my research and found out it was a power factor correction or pfc device for the ac line voltage going to the fridge. so the fridge motor will have a more stable ac line voltage thus it will last longer and consume electricity more efficiently.

however, those pfc devices are only good for appliances with a motor, besides fridges, washing machines have motors and can use some pfc. desk/stand fans and aircons also have motors. however, unless u run those devices for long hours daily, its hard to get a return on investment. more on the cost of those pfc devices later.

i dont run a laundromat, so i dont run my washing machine so frequently. electricity is expensive here so i dont run the aircon often. the fan is a cheap appliance and is not energy hungry. i highly doubt how much power a pfc corrected fan will save.

they are also charging like a hundred bucks for those pfc devices here. so expensive for such a simple circuit. dont see psu manufacturers charging so much for their pfc power supplies... i think i can just build my own pfc device and save money. in fact, i can just cannibalise a totally dead psu for the x and y caps, coils, rectifiers and primary cap and build my own poor man's ac line pfc device. why do i need to spend so much money on something that only costs less than ten bucks to build?

[momaka]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

Why just today, we got junk mail from one of those power-saver-scams telling of the "evil" of refrigerators. "Your refrigerator is baaaaad, because it runs 24/7/365."

And all this time, I thought they cycled on their thermostats...

^

The best part is what people make of lead in CRTs. Oh, it's in there alright, but in the same sense as the chlorine and sodium in common table salt. The lead is not elemental! Is as much incorporated into that glass as the silica is

Well, actually it does leach Pb
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead_glass#Safety
... but extremely slowly. So probably nothing to fuss about. I'm sure there are many other products that contribute to Pb leaching a lot more than CRTs.

so the fridge motor will have a more stable ac line voltage thus it will last longer and consume electricity more efficiently.

I don't know where you read that, but please do not blindly believe everything those things advertise, as that it is absolute nonsense!

You can't make any device consume power more "efficiently" simply by installing a PFC. The only thing PFC does is it makes the device appear as a resistive load to the grid. This only matters to the power distribution company, because you pay for the real power you use and not reactive or apparent power. I'll stop there as I've derailed this thread quite far now. But do a little research online on real/active/reactive power, and you will see what I mean.

[stj]

Re: MOBOs worth repairing or trash?

you want lead leaching - runoff from church roofs during rain.

you want mercury - get some cfl's or let some "doctor" stick a toxic vaccine in you.

want some asbestos? grind down some old brake pads.
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there is no shortage of nasty shit out there, but vested interests want you to look away from them.