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| Thread ID: 115301 | 2011-01-12 02:57:00 | question on pc repair bill, if problem not fixed 1st time..? | sooby (15023) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 1169111 | 2011-02-02 01:17:00 | Any PC still going from 2003 has to be considered a good innings IMHO, and would of thought the repair bill would probably be more than the PC was worth! Good point, altho i'm reluctant to scrap it entirely when a software patch or similar could keep it soldiering on for more years. Sounds cheap, and at 8 years old I wouldn't be surprised if it had leaking capacitors somewhere. If you're game you could open it up and have a look. Otherwise, if you've got a known good PSU try swapping them and see if it helps. how adventurous is opening up the PSU? Am i likely to make things worse? Don't have a spare PSU, but do have a multimeter if that helps at all -checking the output etc? cheers for the help guys |
sooby (15023) | ||
| 1169112 | 2011-02-02 02:21:00 | are there any ways to check the PSU without opening it up, like a software test? | sooby (15023) | ||
| 1169113 | 2011-02-02 02:31:00 | how adventurous is opening up the PSU? Am i likely to make things worse? Don't have a spare PSU, but do have a multimeter if that helps at all -checking the output etc? cheers for the help guys You're not likely to make things worse but the primary filtering capacitors can store a charge of around 300 volts. However, in most designs they get discharged quickly after power is disconnected and besides you would need to remove the circuit board from the case and go poking the terminals with your finger etc so really they do not pose a great risk if you are just looking. All you'd need to do is take the cover off the PSU and inspect the secondary filter capacitors for bulging\leaking. No need to touch anything really. Measuring voltage in BIOS or software or even with multimeter won't really tell you much. (because it will all seem OK) Normally if the PSU is that faulty that it registers as out of specification on a multimeter then your PC won't even start. What you need to check is ripple, as this is what the capacitors are supposed to block and what they don't block when they fail. It is this high level of ripple which causes problems in the PC and also damages components. The best tool for checking ripple is an oscilloscope. In fact you need to do this if you want to verify proper operation of any PSU. Simply looking at capacitors is not enough but it is the quickest way to establish if they are obviously failed or not. |
Agent_24 (57) | ||
| 1169114 | 2011-02-02 02:55:00 | ^ cheers for that agent, after googling faulty PSU symptoms & faulty memory symptoms, I'm thinking it may be more memory related. plan of attack so far: 1/ check capacitors close to CPU & on graphics card, if no luck with that on to next step. 2/ Uninstall & reload graphics card drivers. 3/ Back up all files, obtain all original program files and reinstall (or reinstall/fix) windows XP. 4/ Run memtest86 again, if error shows again remove one stick of memory run again to determine which stick is faulty (or switch around to determine which memory socket is at fault). 5/ replace (& upgrade) graphics card. I've ordered the steps like I have to try the least invasive options first, mainly to save a trip to the technician until absolutely needed. Please feel free to add to or modify the steps if you see something I don't. Cheers |
sooby (15023) | ||
| 1169115 | 2011-02-02 02:59:00 | PSU is not advised except to the specialist maybe, A+ Technicians are taught not open the PSU or a Monitor. Given the hassle and the age of the computer, I would backup your stuff and reinstall. The thing is if you look at the age of your computer, even replacing RAM might not be efficient, they might ask for more $$. You might be better of just replacing all the guts of the PC keep the HD and maybe even the PSU if are you happy with that. If you are pretty happy with the current system, you could just get a motherboard with builtin graphics. |
Nomad (952) | ||
| 1169116 | 2011-02-02 03:30:00 | PSU is not advised except to the specialist maybe, A+ Technicians are taught not open the PSU or a Monitor . And everyone gets kept in the dark . . . There is nothing wrong with opening a PSU or monitor if you take the right precautions, and don't do anything stupid . I have opened many, repaired a couple and never hurt myself . In a PSU only the primary filter capacitors could hurt you and in most cases they have bleeder resistors across them thus they discharge quickly - even before you have time to get the PSU out of the computer . If you have a PSU which doesn't have this then discharging them yourself with a resistor works just as well . (do not use a screwdriver etc!) If you are worried and have a multimeter then you can easily determine if they are still charged or not . Of course as I said earlier, for inspection of the PSU you hardly even need to worry about the state of charge as you won't be going near the capacitor terminals . For a CRT monitor the same PSU precautions apply but of course you must be careful with the EHT connector to the picture tube, and make sure you discharge that also before going anywhere near it . |
Agent_24 (57) | ||
| 1169117 | 2011-02-02 03:36:00 | actually I was looking back thru an old thread I made here about BSOD errors and found a post Agent_24 made about going to www.badcaps.net to help identify bad capacitors. Guess I'll check them all again thoroughly, as I didn't check they were leaking at the base where they connect to the mobo.... Also, the graphics card is mounted upside down & hard to get to - whats the best way to inspect it? pull it out entirely? |
sooby (15023) | ||
| 1169118 | 2011-02-02 03:43:00 | Yes you'll probably need to pull it out. That reminds me of something, too. My other PC was freezing sometimes, I noticed if I moved the VGA cable slightly I could make it freeze. I pulled the video card out, cleaned the contacts and put it back in, hasn't frozen since. Might be worth looking into, if there is nothing visually wrong with it. But still, I keep forgetting that you said you had an error in Memtest last time you checked. Can't really ignore that. I think you need to put number 4 on your list a bit higher up the priority. This is why I suspect PSU or Motherboard capacitors, they could cause memory errors even if the RAM itself is not faulty. |
Agent_24 (57) | ||
| 1169119 | 2011-02-02 03:46:00 | cheers - its worth a shot! did you mean where the VGA cable terminates at the mobo or somewhere else? |
sooby (15023) | ||
| 1169120 | 2011-02-02 03:49:00 | Where it terminates at the video card, I am not talking about on-board graphics. | Agent_24 (57) | ||
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