Power supply sounded like a gun shot!

[mlah384]

I have a cheapo case that came with some generic power supply that I've been using on a computer next to me. It's been running fine for a couple of years and suddenly while i was working at my desk I heard this pop sound that was loud as a gun shot. Scared the crap out of me... heh... Then I smelled a really thick electrical burn smell, so i ducked under the desk real fast and unplugged it in case it was still arcing or something. Smoke was everywhere. My question is, will a Power Supply blowing that violently also blow out the motherboard, drives, etc?

 

[Gillbot]

It can, the only way to test is get another PSU and see if it'll start back up.

 

[VirtualLarry]

This is why we advise not to use el-cheapo PSUs, especially those that come with cases.

 

[CurseTheSky]

Most of the time (that I've witnessed, anyway) the gun-shot sound is from a capacitor literally exploding. When they blow, they sometimes shoot the outer casing violently, and it can do some serious damage. We had a small cap (probably something like 1000uF, 10v) that someone hooked up reverse polarity to a 15v source. It left a star in a nearby car's windshield.

Some of my fondest memories are still from my high school's electronics shop.

Anyway, as others said, DO NOT use cheap power supplies. Even if it came with the case and you're just trying to cut costs, why put your components - and more importantly, yourself - at risk? If it fries a motherboard, well, damn; that sucks. If it catches your house on fire, that's another story entirely.

 

[sandorski]

hehe, yup. My Bro and I were working on a PC that kept crashing. Tried and tried to get it going, then suddenly our ears were ringing from the POP of the PS. We watched as a cloud of smoke poofed out. Turns out the CD Drive we installed into the small case was shorting out stuff on the Mobo. Replaced PS, moved the CD Drive to another drive bay, booted up fine.

 

[Modelworks]

Caps popping can be really loud if the current is high or if they are the older caps from when they were not safety vented. You can tell the difference by looking at the top , if it has a pattern on it like a cross, it is safety vented and will blow without too much damage. the earlier ones were completely sealed cans that would take itself and several other components with them !

 

[mlah384]

What's wild too is that this thing was just sitting there idle... I hadn't used it for a few days... and out of no where... POW!... was really an interesting way to wake up while concentrating at your desk for hours on end...