Motherboard repair company?

[IlChengis]

Gentlemen,
I have an older ASUS P6T Deluxe that might need to be repaired.

The machine suddenly quit POSTing. As I continue trying to locate spare components to troubleshoot the issue, I figured it might be a good idea to start looking for a reputable Motherboard repair facility (preferably US-based).

Do you guys have experience with one in particular that you would recommend?

Assuming I find a spare CPU, RAM and GPU (already tried another PSU), I'd like to be able to ship the Mobo out to these people to have them go over it with a fine comb, and replace any caps/other components that fail their tests.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

I suppose it's possible, but it's hard to imagine it would be cost-effective to repair it.

Maybe you are OK with spending more than the board was ever worth to fix it.

Looking around my house, I can't see any electronic component with a value of under $200 or maybe $300 that I would fix if it broke. I don't like it, but that's where we are.

Leaving aside the issue of the competence of the repair company--you're just taking that on faith. Tough to do without personal experience with that company.

 

[IlChengis]

Hey bud, thanks for chiming in.

There are a multitude of companies out there that offer motherboard reballing/repair. It's often done for flat fees between $40-60. I was just checking to see if anyone had had experience with one in particular.

This particular mobo has solid state caps, which - if I understand correctly - can't be inspected visually as easily as regular caps. In other words, they don't swell like the other caps, so it's more difficult to tell if one is bad.

I would love to repair this mobo, since I had a nice little RAID setup and it was running quite nicely. Yes, I have backups, so it's not the end of the world, but if I can find a way to repair this unit or find another one for sale, I wouldn't mind going that route, since the system was working very well.

 

[billyb0b]

Hey bud, thanks for chiming in.

There are a multitude of companies out there that offer motherboard reballing/repair. It's often done for flat fees between $40-60. I was just checking to see if anyone had had experience with one in particular.

This particular mobo has solid state caps, which - if I understand correctly - can't be inspected visually as easily as regular caps. In other words, they don't swell like the other caps, so it's more difficult to tell if one is bad.

I would love to repair this mobo, since I had a nice little RAID setup and it was running quite nicely. Yes, I have backups, so it's not the end of the world, but if I can find a way to repair this unit or find another one for sale, I wouldn't mind going that route, since the system was working very well.

please post link to these "multitude of companies"

 

[flexy]

I can't see any electronic component with a value of under $200 or maybe $300 that I would fix if it broke. I don't like it, but that's where we are.

Of course that's a matter of

a) do I know WHAT exactly is broken?
b) can I actually fix it?

Once I had my system not booting, several days with a dead system...not knowing whether it's the mobo, the PSU or the CPU (like the OP)...until I came across a post on a forum about my exact (otherwise very high quality) Thermaltake PSU and a picture of a bulging cap. It looked exactly like a cap in mine.
Seeing my system boot again after I replaced w/ a $0.25 cap from ebay...was AWESOME...not so much because I saved money to buy a new PSU...but because I really did not know WHAT exactly as defective. (I was actually already about to buy another board....the result would've been I got a new board and the system still not booting because it was the darn PSU : )

As for the OP: He said he already checked with a spare PSU. Then it's somewhat likely that a voltage regulator on the board "blew"...just guessing here. But of course it could be other things as well.
However, I can not for the life of it see that a company charges only $40-$60 to find what's wrong and then repair the board.

The problem in such situation really first is to know WHAT exactly is broken, the board, CPU, PSU etc...
If you are at some point sure IT IS the board...best bet would be to scour hardware forums etc. maybe someone sells this board?

 

[Fallen Kell]

Well, that is just it, reballing isn't nearly the same thing as repairing. A reball doesn't fix a shorted/blown capacitor, failed resistor, etc., it doesn't even guaranty that all the components on the board will still be connected after the reball. A reball is just sticking the board in a controlled oven and hoping that everything stays attached... An actual repair of a motherboard involves having custom test rigs for each and every component, which means a custom setup for each and every motherboard. There is a reason you don't see any company that does this, because it is too expensive and requires too much investment for too little of a return.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

It's troubling, to think of the stuff we buy. My old stereo system lasted 20 years. It either goes to Good-Will, or the recycler. The receiver was nice. I gave it to my brother instead. He put it in his closet.

Computers. My first IBM-compat PC I think I kept running for 10 years, but I'd bought a 386 system four years after purchasing the first. My last "super-duper" Q6600 -- lasted five years. Spare motherboard -- became I server I'm using.

People exchange cell-phones as often as once yearly. With the pace of change, the turnover may accelerate.

So if you invest sweat in a DIY custom computer case, maybe you can re-use it. Maybe -- same with the water-cooling or heatpipe apparatus. Disk drives have extended re-use: but I have maybe ten good ones sitting in storage.

I say -- if the motherboard is under warranty, get it repaired. If not -- well -- the county recycling facility. Of course, if it's some onboard feature that can be disabled in BIOS, there are the PCI and PCI-E slots . . . .

 

[AznAnarchy99]

Hey bud, thanks for chiming in.

There are a multitude of companies out there that offer motherboard reballing/repair. It's often done for flat fees between $40-60. I was just checking to see if anyone had had experience with one in particular.

I'd be interested in checking out these companies too. Out of curiosity.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I'd be interested in checking out these companies too. Out of curiosity.

You know -- I think I understand the OP. It is possible to become very fond of a machine built by the user.

I freakin' . . . LOVE . . . my Sandy Bridge. If anything should happen to the mobo, I've discovered that the "good" Z77 boards are becoming scarce . .

Whattyagonnado?

 

[denis280]

I freakin' . . . LOVE . . . my Sandy Bridge

so do i. no seriously Op your better off geting a new board.

 

[IlChengis]

Guys,
Thanks for the responses.

Some logic board components can be replaced without too much trouble. This is done on computer hardware, TVs, appliances... even automotive ECUs.

Here's an example of reballing/repair services on eBay.

I've actually emailed a few of those guys and it's a procedure that is - although not highly popular - very much done. One in particular told me to check his eBay store, purchase the basic $27 logic board repair service and send the Mobo to him. He said he'd go over it, test caps and other components and email me back with results and options.

Once again, I am willing to explore these possibilities because I had two SSDs running in RAID-0. I could go through the trouble of locating another identical Mobo, or a similar model with the same onboard RAID controller... but I figured I'd explore this option first. That's all.

 

[denis280]

this option first. That's all.

your really in love with that board.but i respect your opinion.but keep us posted on this.