Booted computer and smelled something weird -- missing gold plate on PSU?

[phasseshifter]

the bord has a very badly well now broken burnt track..um i am leaving it at that ...except one last word that if the second unit p-supp did not run at all the sensing circuit ..the power good saw a problem..then the new supp may be ok..i am not in front of your machine....

 

[phasseshifter]

still mind ponders how shudders this occured..was the board live when you put it together..

 

[ButterRum]

Is my CPU ok?

Does anyone notice on the left that feint discoloration that is orange/brown-ish? I swear I've seen this before when I first got the CPU....

I think a mobo replacement is all I need. I think I might have installed a stick of RAM backwards by accident when I first powered it on, and that's what burnt the mobo....I can't quite remember but I'm now remembering having to turn the RAM a different side after troubleshooting.

No, the board was not live when I put everything in. Nothing was powered on. PSU wasn't even plugged into the wall.

 

[Ketchup]

Look at it this way - power would have caused something like that, so whether it was the power supply itself or something from the wall, replacing the power supply was a good safety precaution.

As far as coming through the PS to the board, I have seen this happen. A good surge protector (and remember these degrade over time) or a battery backup should do well to prevent a future occurrence.

 

[bigboxes]

the moarall of the story..u live and learn..it is unfotuate though...if it works dont fix it..if its under warrenty...dont take it apart...wisdom from exp...quite often learnt harshly....

Whatever. Lame advice. There should be no reason you can't take apart your PC and rebuild it, if only to clean it or move it to another case. Shiz happens and that sounds like what happened to the OP. No lesson to learn here. Just be supportive in helping the OP figure out what happened and how to fix it.

 

[phasseshifter]

ok it looks like you have heat compound on the pins of your chip the pic is very glarey..if u have an ultrasonic bath clean it with shellite or something..some alcohol base cleaner or get some propellent in a spray can..that gunk on the bottom of your cpu...i cannot tell what it is exactly..but if it is white chances is it`s not conductive if its silver or goldish color it may well be...also in your opening post pls regale me as to your description of this word you used....parted....

 

[ButterRum]

ok it looks like you have heat compound on the pins of your chip the pic is very glarey..if u have an ultrasonic bath clean it with shellite or something..some alcohol base cleaner or get some propellent in a spray can..that gunk on the bottom of your cpu...i cannot tell what it is exactly..but if it is white chances is it`s not conductive if its silver or goldish color it may well be...

The thing on the right is just the flash from the camera.

The orange-brownish thing on the left is what I'm talking about...yeah, I think it's just heat compound. I googled this and others were talking about it, and I'm pretty sure I had it when I first got the processor. I was just worried that the discoloration came from the blown mobo/PSU.

 

[phasseshifter]

there i a lot of grey area in this case ...i think we need to start from scratch in the damage/rebuild of this persons machine...new mobo required..and as for ram you said you may have put a tick in back wards..depending on weather it made with the contacts of the ram socket will depend on it`s working order..the track on the board is closser to the ram slots.. but it is a circuit board and the track in question is a very heavy or ..um can carry high current...never-less it may pay to start here.. clean the cpu...obtain a 8 gig stick of ram..we cannot tell from here if in fact your ram is bad..apart from looking on the chips on the sticks looking for creavesses in them or burnt marks....as for your video card..i`m thinking.can you have it tested..possible .with the edition of a new mobo i dont know what you will buy...

 

[Bubbaleone]

Man, I feel bad for you because the mobo is toast and you won't know about your other hardware until you get a new board. If it might help, see if you can find an inexpensive used board, that meets the minimums for your cpu and gpu, and then test with that first, instead of toasting your new replacement board. It's not plesant when one discovers they'll not only be buying two cpus and gpus, but that they'll also be buying a third mobo. But make that decision based on how much you've already spent and whether your toasted mobo cost you enough to be worth paying for a cheap test board first.

.

 

[phasseshifter]

can u obtain a direct replacement mobo this will save your windows install..windows will just think you did a bios update..you may have to re validate it ..but i dont think so..there is always a chance.. aside from that as i pre asked....well considering my status here i dont think there should be more than one cook in the kitchen i will check this post if you require me to respond ask ..

 

[Ketchup]

can u obtain a direct replacement mobo this will save your windows install..windows will just think you did a bios update..you may have to re validate it ..but i dont think so..there is always a chance.. aside from that as i pre asked....well considering my status here i dont think there should be more than one cook in the kitchen i will check this post if you require me to respond ask ..

As long as he stays with a chipset in the same family, Windows won't have a problem with it.

 

[phasseshifter]

that browning area on your cpu`s fibre board should all be green if in fact it has browned..u can be almost certain that it has been over clocked and or both poor heat sinking/cooling for some time..but the machine was fine till you had taken it apart for cleaning...???..also you have 2 ram chips may pay to get one the same..for re testing as like a 4gb stick..if in fact your old ram is only one chip bad you will still have 2 to run..you could just take the cpu/ram to a computer shop for testing................in the mean while go over your machine and look for any lose unconnected wires...look at the standoff`s for the mobo..had you removed them as well..if so what may have occured is you put one in the wrong spot..shorting out the board..if so check while you have your mobo see if the standoffs match up correctly..if you get a different mobo.. they may need to be refitted to match your new one take heed to this point........check all power connectors..make shore there are no connectors where they should not be...as for what killed the board..it is possable that the first power suppy threw a rail high due to a fault in the supply..i cannot be shure on this fact...also butterum.i wrote you down so if you come back with a new post for the rebuild i will notice you there..if u do that is...

 

[ButterRum]

As long as he stays with a chipset in the same family, Windows won't have a problem with it.

So I need an H61 chipset motherboard for a replacement? Would this work? http://www.amazon.com/Biostar-Intel-...dp/B00D9J962C/


This is the broken board I have: http://www.amazon.com/MSI-Computer-M.../dp/B008VFL6L8

Also does anyone know the RMA policies of Gigabyte or Biostar? I do not like that MSI will send you a refurbished product and not a new one. So do the other two companies send new products or refurbs?

 

[phasseshifter]

biostar..questionable for me ..gigabyte should be no problem..oh buy a brand new board refurbs are just that..but if your worried about your ram and cpu working status..better to blow up a cheap refurbish..basically it has been tested and well moderately cleaned and that is about that..warranty wise ..it`s not worth its weight in gold ..if i get something second hand if it has a month warranty..i think about the cash spent on it ..and go from there ..although i think i would go with giga because drivers will be more available ..giga is not the over clockers choice...

 

[ButterRum]

A local shop has the Biostar mobo in stock for $45. Their next one up is like $70. No thank you when I can order a better one on Amazon for $45. I would like to get my desktop working tomorrow but I guess I can wait Tuesday for Amazon's 1 day shipping. I just want my desktop working.

Also I'd prefer a board with HDMI because I don't have a DVI/VGA plug. But HDMI boards are more expensive even though I got my MSI board for $50 with an HDMI port last year. The model I have is out of stock.

 

[phasseshifter]

so your choice is the biostar..ok is it the board you have already posted a link for or a different one....

 

[ButterRum]

so your choice is the biostar..ok is it the board you have already posted a link for or a different one....

I'm thinking about waiting for Amazon instead....better return policy. I could get the Biostar mobo on Amazon for $36...it's only temporary until MSI replaces my broken board with a refurb.

The board I have already is an MSI H61 E33/W8: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008VFL6L8 But it's out of stock.

 

[phasseshifter]

well ...if you get a sata 3 ssd or hdd it will be a problem...as for the mobo it`s your decision both boards have only sata 2 ..it may pay to get a pcie 1 .. sata 3 card as it will improve your system...they are not expensive..........back to an old point it still alludes me as to what was the cause of this..did you check the positioning of the mobo stand off`s..was it incorrect ram placement..or simply the supply had thrown a rail....mind boggles....?? was there deb-re under the mobo ....?? ..i cannot put my finger at one of this singular ..

 

[ButterRum]

well ...if you get a sata 3 ssd or hdd it will be a problem...as for the mobo it`s your decision both boards have only sata 2 ..it may pay to get a pcie 1 .. sata 3 card as it will improve your system...they are not expensive..........back to an old point it still alludes me as to what was the cause of this..did you check the positioning of the mobo stand off`s..was it incorrect ram placement..or simply the supply had thrown a rail....mind boggles....?? was there deb-re under the mobo ....?? ..i cannot put my finger at one of this singular ..

I have no idea...it might have been the RAM.

Umm, I have a CD Drive and a SATA 3 HDD... will they work with SATA 2 ports? I don't care if my temporary board has only SATA 2 as it is just temporary until I get my refurb back.

 

[Ketchup]

well ...if you get a sata 3 ssd or hdd it will be a problem...as for the mobo it`s your decision both boards have only sata 2 ..it may pay to get a pcie 1 .. sata 3 card as it will improve your system...they are not expensive..........back to an old point it still alludes me as to what was the cause of this..did you check the positioning of the mobo stand off`s..was it incorrect ram placement..or simply the supply had thrown a rail....mind boggles....?? was there deb-re under the mobo ....?? ..i cannot put my finger at one of this singular ..

This isn't quite accurate phasseshifter, since we don't know what kind of hard drive ButterRum has. The difference between SATA 2 and SATA 3 would only be noticeable on an SSD, and even then a huge difference wouldn't be noticed.

Let's make sure we are getting our facts straight before telling the OP what to do here.

ButterRum, I personally don't like MSI. Others have no problems with them, but I have had a couple give me grief. I do like Amazon, and we can probably find you something that will work.

Based on what you have looked at so far, I think these two look good:
http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Durab.../dp/B00CB2B3WE
http://www.amazon.com/Asus-H61M-F-Mi.../dp/B00HWQUHZ8

Edit: apologies, hit the wrong post to edit.

 

[ButterRum]

Would prefer getting a board with an HDMI input.

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4390#sp

The board says it supports 2033 MHZ overclocked. My RAM goes up to 1600 MHZ. Would I not be able to OC it to 1600 MHz with the board from the link above?

 

[Ketchup]

Would prefer getting a board with an HDMI input.

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4390#sp

The board says it supports 2033 MHZ overclocked. My RAM goes up to 1600 MHZ. Would I not be able to OC it to 1600 MHz with the board from the link above?

It would handle your RAM at its default setting just fine. Keep in mind the big thing for these CPUs is having RAM in dual channel. The speed of the RAM has very little impact on performance.

 

[ButterRum]

The Asus board you linked to is cheaper, but I read that the SATA ports are too close to the PCIE, so you won't be able to fit a big graphics card in it. I have an r9 270.......

This is so annoying. If I could get a motherboard with HDMI, PCIE 3.0, and 1600 MHz ram for under $50, I'd be happy. But apparently this is hard to find.

I want an HDMI input for the motherboard in case I need to boot the system without the GPU first.... (I only have an HDMI cable.)

Do all boards support Intel Turbo Boost technology? I noticed that some boards have it listed as a feature.

 

[phasseshifter]

go with the gigabyte..it has what you want except usb3 ports..the sata ports are out of the way of the pcie socket..it has hdmi and d-sub outputs

 

[Ketchup]

The Asus board you linked to is cheaper, but I read that the SATA ports are too close to the PCIE, so you won't be able to fit a big graphics card in it. I have an r9 270.......

This is so annoying. If I could get a motherboard with HDMI, PCIE 3.0, and 1600 MHz ram for under $50, I'd be happy. But apparently this is hard to find.

I want an HDMI input for the motherboard in case I need to boot the system without the GPU first.... (I only have an HDMI cable.)

Do all boards support Intel Turbo Boost technology? I noticed that some boards have it listed as a feature.

Mainly because they are last gen. Want a new CPU while we are looking? lol

But seriously, let me see if I can find anything else. Is your case limiting you to Micro ATX, or can you go full ATX?

Update: The Gigabytes look to be the best for your price point, and have HDMI. I did find an Asus board that has SATA 6 port, but it is $65.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131970
The chipset on this is the B75, which would work with your existing Windows install, just may need to update chipset drivers. Sometime Windows wants you to reactivate, but again, this shouldn't be a big ordeal.