Two questions about power supply replacement

[Mark Adams]

I lost a PSU in a system that I built about a year ago. The stock PSU
came with the case and is some cheap "450 watt" Asian brand (Okia?).
This is a P4 powered system based on an Asus P4GE-MX mobo. The PSU was
making some fan noise over the past couple of weeks.

At any rate, I started a download yesterday afternoon. When I came home
a couple of hours later, the system was powered off and would not power
back on. I'm assuming it is in fact the PSU and have ordered a replacement.

Questions: If the PSU fried itself because a fan locked up, what are the
odds it took other components with it (CPU, mobo, etc.)?

Also, I would like some opinion on the replacement I purchased quite
hastily:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103935

Thanks for looking.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
Animals can be driven crazy by putting too many in too small a pen.
Homo sapiens is the only animal that voluntarily does this to himself.
-- Lazarus Long

 

[Mike T.]

I lost a PSU in a system that I built about a year ago. The stock PSU came
with the case and is some cheap "450 watt" Asian brand (Okia?). This is a
P4 powered system based on an Asus P4GE-MX mobo. The PSU was making some
fan noise over the past couple of weeks.

At any rate, I started a download yesterday afternoon. When I came home a
couple of hours later, the system was powered off and would not power back
on.

That is a good sign. A better-designed power supply will shut off (and
never turn on again) if it experiences a failure. A poorly designed power
supply might continue supplying power, even as the voltage rails are way out
of spec, and that is how other components get damaged. In EXTREME cases, a
power supply failure can cause massive sparks, and can start fires. (yes,
I've seen it)

Also, I would like some opinion on the replacement I purchased quite
hastily:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103935

That doesn't look too bad. If your system can be brought back to life with
a new power supply, the one you ordered should do nicely.

Unfortunately, you won't know what else is damaged (if anything) until after
the new power supply is installed. But as I stated before, it is a good
thing that you found the system completely off and that it wouldn't turn on
again. Just curious . . . how does it smell??? -Dave

 

[Guest]

I lost a PSU in a system that I built about a year ago. The stock PSU
came with the case and is some cheap "450 watt" Asian brand (Okia?).
This is a P4 powered system based on an Asus P4GE-MX mobo. The PSU was
making some fan noise over the past couple of weeks.

At any rate, I started a download yesterday afternoon. When I came home
a couple of hours later, the system was powered off and would not power
back on. I'm assuming it is in fact the PSU and have ordered a replacement.

Questions: If the PSU fried itself because a fan locked up, what are the
odds it took other components with it (CPU, mobo, etc.)?

Also, I would like some opinion on the replacement I purchased quite
hastily:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103935

The replacement looks fine to me. Note that it has over-voltage trips on
all the main power rails.

Connect a minimal load to the existing power supply (I keep an old,
deceased, hard drive for the purpose) and attempt to start it up by
shorting the start line pin to a ground pin on the mobo connector. If it
starts then the odds are that the mobo has gone to that great mobo
heaven in the sky...

IME, it is fairly rare for a power supply to die and take out the mobo
with it. The power supply is a switched mode supply that relies on the
main switching devices working to produce *any* output. If they die -
the output collapses and cannot harm anything.

It is possible that one of the analogue regulators could have overheated
- but they all have over-temperature shutdown built in. So, if the psu
has failed, it is more likely that one of the switching elements has
failed. Which won't have damaged the mobo.

 

[Mark Adams]

That is a good sign. A better-designed power supply will shut off (and
never turn on again) if it experiences a failure. A poorly designed power
supply might continue supplying power, even as the voltage rails are way out
of spec, and that is how other components get damaged. In EXTREME cases, a
power supply failure can cause massive sparks, and can start fires. (yes,
I've seen it)




That doesn't look too bad. If your system can be brought back to life with
a new power supply, the one you ordered should do nicely.

Unfortunately, you won't know what else is damaged (if anything) until after
the new power supply is installed. But as I stated before, it is a good
thing that you found the system completely off and that it wouldn't turn on
again. Just curious . . . how does it smell??? -Dave

Thanks Dave. I've got a bit of a cold right now and it's hard to get my
face close enough to the PSU as it is still mounted in the case, but I
can't smell anything out of the ordinary around it.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
A committee takes root and grows, it flowers, wilts and dies, scattering
the seed from which other committees will bloom.
-- Parkinson

 

[Mark Adams]

The replacement looks fine to me. Note that it has over-voltage trips on
all the main power rails.

Connect a minimal load to the existing power supply (I keep an old,
deceased, hard drive for the purpose) and attempt to start it up by
shorting the start line pin to a ground pin on the mobo connector. If it
starts then the odds are that the mobo has gone to that great mobo
heaven in the sky...

IME, it is fairly rare for a power supply to die and take out the mobo
with it. The power supply is a switched mode supply that relies on the
main switching devices working to produce *any* output. If they die -
the output collapses and cannot harm anything.

It is possible that one of the analogue regulators could have overheated
- but they all have over-temperature shutdown built in. So, if the psu
has failed, it is more likely that one of the switching elements has
failed. Which won't have damaged the mobo.

Thank you kindly. I appreciate the wisdom.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
QOTD:
"What I like most about myself is that I'm so understanding
when I mess things up."

 

[philo]

I lost a PSU in a system that I built about a year ago. The stock PSU
came with the case and is some cheap "450 watt" Asian brand (Okia?).
This is a P4 powered system based on an Asus P4GE-MX mobo. The PSU was
making some fan noise over the past couple of weeks.

At any rate, I started a download yesterday afternoon. When I came home
a couple of hours later, the system was powered off and would not power
back on. I'm assuming it is in fact the PSU and have ordered a replacement.

Questions: If the PSU fried itself because a fan locked up, what are the
odds it took other components with it (CPU, mobo, etc.)?

Also, I would like some opinion on the replacement I purchased quite
hastily:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103935

Thanks for looking.

If your powersupply died...chances are pretty good there was no other
damage.

The supply you are thinking about getting from newegg should be just fine

 

[Mark Adams]

If your powersupply died...chances are pretty good there was no other
damage.

The supply you are thinking about getting from newegg should be just fine

Thanks Philo. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
Fortune's real live weird band names #659:

Spastic Colon

 

[philo]

Thanks Philo. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I'm sure you will be OK

I've found out that though it's not good to skimp on any component...

The powersupply and RAM are two never to skimp on !

 

[larry moe 'n curly]

I lost a PSU in a system that I built about a year ago. The stock PSU
came with the case and is some cheap "450 watt" Asian brand (Okia?).
This is a P4 powered system based on an Asus P4GE-MX mobo. The PSU was
making some fan noise over the past couple of weeks.

At any rate, I started a download yesterday afternoon. When I came home
a couple of hours later, the system was powered off and would not power
back on. I'm assuming it is in fact the PSU and have ordered a replacement.

Questions: If the PSU fried itself because a fan locked up, what are the
odds it took other components with it (CPU, mobo, etc.)?

Ultra said that their main manufacturer, Wintech, mentioned that if one
of their PSUs overheated it would fail in a way that wouldn't damage
the mobo and stuff. OTOH I've read that when cheap PSUs fail they
sometimes put out brief voltage surges that can't be stopped by the
overvoltage protection because they occur too quickly.

Also, I would like some opinion on the replacement I purchased quite
hastily:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103935

Great choice. BTW Antec is sometimes sold locally with a big rebate
that makes the final price just $5-30 ($15 last Friday at Fry's for
either a 350W with case or 500W by itself). Another very good
manufacturer is Fortron-Source, which is sold under several brands,
including Sparkle, Hi-Q, and PowerQ, yet is very cheap from Newegg or
Directron.

 

[Kent_Diego]

....

Great choice. BTW Antec is sometimes sold locally with a big rebate
that makes the final price just $5-30 ($15 last Friday at Fry's for
either a 350W with case or 500W by itself). Another very good
manufacturer is Fortron-Source, which is sold under several brands,
including Sparkle, Hi-Q, and PowerQ, yet is very cheap from Newegg or
Directron.

I got the Frys one day special on the Antec SP-500 for $55 and the $40
rebate making it $15. This is one of the best supplies I have ever seen. It
weighs 2-3 times as much as a el-cheapo $15 480 Watt supply. With full set
of modular sleaved cables. Antec is the one to get.

-Kent

 

[Mark Adams]

I'm sure you will be OK

I've found out that though it's not good to skimp on any component...

The powersupply and RAM are two never to skimp on !

Agreed. This is my son's computer and he wanted something fancy. I got
this case on closeout for about $40 and it has a big honking window in
the side, a lighted fan mounted in the window, a couple of light tubes
in the case and a bunch of fancy plastic on the bezel.

I figured the (450 Watt) PSU was worth about $4 and considered replacing
it when I bought the thing, but I decided to take my chances. Sure
enough, here I am about a year later....

The rest of the components are much higher quality. I'm keeping my
fingers crossed that they are all working.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
Blore's Razor:
Given a choice between two theories, take the one which is funnier.

 

[Mark Adams]

Mark Adams wrote:


Great choice. BTW Antec is sometimes sold locally with a big rebate
that makes the final price just $5-30 ($15 last Friday at Fry's for
either a 350W with case or 500W by itself). Another very good
manufacturer is Fortron-Source, which is sold under several brands,
including Sparkle, Hi-Q, and PowerQ, yet is very cheap from Newegg or
Directron.

Antec for $15 -- now you tell me. I considered shopping around,
but I want to get this thing back online before we leave for vacation on
the 3rd. I didn't mind paying about $50 for the unit I bought, but I'm
also a sucker for a good deal.

I don't think I've ever heard of Fortron-Source or the others, but I've
never had to replace a power supply before. Homebrew is all about
learning but I wanted to buy a product I had some confidence in. I've
heard/read good stuff about Antec.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
Fortune's real live weird band names #745:

The Vegas Cocks

 

[larry moe 'n curly]

I got the Frys one day special on the Antec SP-500 for $55 and the $40
rebate making it $15. This is one of the best supplies I have ever seen. It
weighs 2-3 times as much as a el-cheapo $15 480 Watt supply. With full set
of modular sleaved cables. Antec is the one to get.

This is the first time I've bought a PSU with detachable cables, and
I'm probably the only person who doesn't like them. Also there aren't
enough sockets on the PSU to accommodate all the included cables,
meaning I'll probably lose some.

At first I thought that this SmartPower was made by Fortron-Source
because the heatsinks looked like theirs rather than the ones found in
other SmartPowers, but I guess it was made by Channel Well Technology
after all, not that that's a bad thing.

I still haven't exceeded $15 for a PSU in the past four years, yet I
never bought junk, except for a MaxPower that was free (along with its
case), but even it was able to meet its rated power and withstand
shorts.

BTW, if you look at the submission address on the rebate form, notice
that it says "SP500 $50 MIR". When I phoned the rebate company, they
said it was for $50, not $40 as mentioned several places elsewhere on
the form. Cross fingers.

 

[larry moe 'n curly]

larry moe 'n curly wrote:

Antec for $15 -- now you tell me. I considered shopping around,
but I want to get this thing back online before we leave for vacation on
the 3rd. I didn't mind paying about $50 for the unit I bought, but I'm
also a sucker for a good deal.

Yeah, but the price you paid is still very good for a top-quality 500W
PSU, and it's cheap insurance against damage to your computer.

I don't think I've ever heard of Fortron-Source or the others, but I've
never had to replace a power supply before. Homebrew is all about
learning but I wanted to buy a product I had some confidence in. I've
heard/read good stuff about Antec.

Fortron-Source probably sells more PSUs than Antec or even the main
suppliers to Antec, Channel Well (SmartPower, TruePower) and Seasonic
(Neo), but they're not among the favorites of most modders because
cosmetically they're kind of bland. OTOH who cares about the cosmetics
of something that's meant to be hidden inside a computer case (clear
windows = extra noise on TV & radio + fire hazard from the acrylic
plastic)?

 

[Mark Adams]

I lost a PSU in a system that I built about a year ago. The stock PSU
came with the case and is some cheap "450 watt" Asian brand (Okia?).
This is a P4 powered system based on an Asus P4GE-MX mobo. The PSU was
making some fan noise over the past couple of weeks.

At any rate, I started a download yesterday afternoon. When I came home
a couple of hours later, the system was powered off and would not power
back on. I'm assuming it is in fact the PSU and have ordered a replacement.

Questions: If the PSU fried itself because a fan locked up, what are the
odds it took other components with it (CPU, mobo, etc.)?

Also, I would like some opinion on the replacement I purchased quite
hastily:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103935

Thanks for looking.

Just wanted to mention that I got the unit and installed it in about 15
minutes. It seems really nice. Shipping weight was 6 lbs, slipped right
into the case and mated up nicely. It has a 24-ping connector for the
mobo that allows the extra 4 pins to detach. I hadn't seen that before,
thought it was cool. It also had 4 SATA had drive connectors.

Very quiet and seems capable of putting up a good honest 400 Watts based
on the Asus mobo monitor.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
Real computer scientists like having a computer on their desk, else how
could they read their mail?

 

[csgwoods]

Antec for $15 -- now you tell me. I considered shopping around,
but I want to get this thing back online before we leave for vacation on
the 3rd. I didn't mind paying about $50 for the unit I bought, but I'm
also a sucker for a good deal.

I don't think I've ever heard of Fortron-Source or the others, but I've
never had to replace a power supply before. Homebrew is all about
learning but I wanted to buy a product I had some confidence in. I've
heard/read good stuff about Antec.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
Fortune's real live weird band names #745:

The Vegas Cocks

Yes, it was for real. I was in this band...

 

[Mark Adams]

Yes, it was for real. I was in this band...

No. Gett'outta'town.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com -*- Mandriva User# 263042

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
RFC 882 put the dot in .com, not Sun Microsystems
-- Seen on Slashdot

 

[Norm De Plume]

Mark Adams wrote:

Very quiet and seems capable of putting up a good honest 400 Watts based
on the Asus mobo monitor.

How much are you extrapolating to arrive at that conclusion?