HELP!! PSU is smelling burnt!!

[Androck99]

I posted in Gen. Hardware but nobody responded...kinda important that I get my question answered as quickly as possible to avoid any extra damage. I was just playing some Madden a little while ago and my comp hiccuped and restarted. It tried to start up but I heard the drives spin up and back down a couple of times before the BIOS beep and then proceeded to boot normally. Not wanting to risk my system, I shut it down and opened up the ps to see if it blew a cap or something but didn't really see anything wrong. It was kinda dusty but looked normal. I put it back together and it seems to be working fine now but it kinda smells like burning plastic. What's going on? Would it be working normally(as far as I can tell) if it were fried?

 

[FlowerMan]

Burning plastic smell? Put you nose to the exhaust fan of the PS to determine if that's where its coming from exactly. Next, check all the molex connectors, maybe something got loose and shorted, resulting in melted plastic. Check your video card for signs of burns, CPU, etc... I is likely that your PS is the culprit, but make sure. It'd be a shame to see it die and fry everything its connected to

 

[Androck99]

It's definately from the PSU but I didn't see anything that looked burnt...could it just be the fan or something? Would it be working still if it was fried?

 

[Androck99]

Well, it's been on for about half an hour and the smell isn't getting stronger but I don't want to push it...I'm going to let my system rest. I'll check this post tomorrow and would really appriciate any input.

Thanks,
Andy

 

[yellowvespa]

The fact that the computer "hiccuped and restarted" indicates you do have a real problem. I would pull the PS and put it in another room for 20 minutes or so and then start sniffing. The reason is to let it air out .. the PS draws air from inside the case so you should isolate for a while before you start sniffing to better find the source of the smell. Case in one room and PS in another ... shouldn't be too hard to figure out what smells. Good luck.

 

[FlowerMan]

What kind of PS is that? Model? If its still on warranty, you can get it replaced.

 

[HappyPuppy]

If your PSU smells burnt, even if it seems to be working properly, change it. It isn't worth taking the chance on a fire that might burn your house down and kill some people, or even worse, damage some of the hardware in your computer.

 

[Androck99]

It's a Linksworld or something like that but I've had it for over 2 years so no more warranty...I figured that I need to change it but was hoping to get around that...

When I change my PS, how much power do you guys figure I need if I'm running a Celery II 600@900, TNT2, CD drive, burner, 2 ghetto 5400 rpm HDs, Promise 66 card, SBLive, TV tuner card and a NIC?

 

[FlowerMan]

Go with a 300W. Why get anything less? Get a 400+W Enermax or Antec if you want to upgrade to an AMD setup within the next year or so

 

[PuterGuy]

If you are sure that it is the power supply i would go with a 300 W to replace it. Before you go spending money though, make sure it isnt a leaky capacitor or a shorted inductor or anything like that. If the problem interfered with the operation of the computer then i would make sure it definatly is the power supply.

 

[techweenie]

A very similair thing happened to one of our sales guys. He was going to ditch the whole pc, before I suggested that he let me take a look at it. I should have just shut my mouth an kept it. The PSU blew a cap. $30.00 later, he was back in working order.