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Argonath RPG Community => Hardware/Software support => Resolved issues => Topic started by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 12:48:06 am

Title: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 12:48:06 am
Don't know what it was, big pop, stinks of burning, power supply most likely?
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Traser on December 11, 2015, 12:49:50 am
Don't know what it was, big pop, stinks of burning, power supply most likely?

The wiring to your Fan from the motherboard? or the powersuply to your motherboard? check it, just open your case and look for some molten plastic or something on your top or bottom of your motherboard.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Luke on December 11, 2015, 12:55:26 am
It does sound like your power supply, when I had a little poopy unbranded one, it made a constant fire smell and would warm up to silly temperatures, id swap it for another and see..
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 01:06:42 am
Well here's the power supply it has now:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B009S5DU14/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1449791444&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=power+supply+a-500br&dpPl=1&dpID=5147RuE1jKL&ref=plSrch

(http://i.imgur.com/3bQLox5h.jpg)

Might just buy the same PSU TBH, not sure how to swap them over though, ty for the help guys
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Alarba on December 11, 2015, 02:28:50 am
For future reference : http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

(Your current PSU is listed under TIER 5)
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 02:33:24 am
Uh, I don't know what the tiers mean, I think I'm going to end up buying the same one I have now as I can't afford anything more expensive, I just need to know if it will come with the wires ready to plug straight it, since it's the same as I have in the computer already, thanks!
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: [NP]Reznov. on December 11, 2015, 02:41:42 am
It happened to me last year while playing GTA IV, it was the power supply
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Devin on December 11, 2015, 12:46:11 pm
More than likely blown a capacitor, generally repairable but you may as well replace the whole power supply since it's the easier route since you won't know what caused it to blow.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 02:46:19 pm
Thanks for the info, but my question still remains - if I buy the same PSU will it come with the same wiring ready to be plugged straight it? I've never changed a PSU before, though if the wiring is the same I assume it's very simple. Thanks!
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Devin on December 11, 2015, 02:54:52 pm
Any new PSU should have all of the same if not a couple more cables, so yes it will just be plug and play into the old cable locations.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 02:58:36 pm
Any new PSU should have all of the same if not a couple more cables, so yes it will just be plug and play into the old cable locations.
Ok thanks alot, I'll order another one now! :)
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Devin on December 11, 2015, 03:06:44 pm
Just don't buy the same piece of sh... power supply..
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Rusty on December 11, 2015, 03:07:04 pm
No wonder it blew up on you the PSU you have is cheap shit.  I'd opt for better branded one.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 03:09:18 pm
Just don't buy the same piece of sh... power supply..
No wonder it blew up on you the PSU you have is cheap shit.  I'd opt for better branded one.
No monies for them fancy ones, besides this computers been running the same PSU everyday since mid 2012 with no problems, can't be that bad right? :rolleyes:
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Devin on December 11, 2015, 03:11:35 pm
It's a cheap chinese piece of shit that will end up blowing up again, you will be lucky if it blowing up didn't damage any other hardware components.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Rusty on December 11, 2015, 03:13:07 pm
You checked the link Alarba posted?  PSU you have is to be avoided your lucky it didn't damage your whole system or even cause harm to yourself.  It's your choice though but I certainly wouldn't buy the exact same one.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 03:15:38 pm
Err noo, I don't know what other PSU to buy... And now I'm starting to wonder if I should even bother fixing this computer if there's a chance other things might be damaged, I don't have money to waste... :neutral2:
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Devin on December 11, 2015, 03:18:17 pm
Buy a decent power supply, if other components were damaged then build a new PC with the new PSU you just purchased. As simple as that.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Rusty on December 11, 2015, 03:18:48 pm
Well you don't know if your system was damaged anyway since you cant turn it on at the moment(?).  It's a gamble buying a new PSU and then finding out other components were damaged too.  Wasted money.

If you check the link Alarba posted it lists all PSU in tiers with one being great and five being the bargain bin trash. 

Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 03:25:10 pm
I think I'll have to look at the Tier 4 ones, hopefully they're cheap enough, I do have an old computer with a PSU in I could swap over just to test if everything is working, it also looks like cheap Chinese crap but I'm not sure, don't know if it's the right wattage either...
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Salmonella on December 11, 2015, 03:26:08 pm
The thing is, these kind of powersupplies aren't all that bad in design, they're just simple and inefficient. The reason this happened is because of the extremely low quality capacitors used in the making of this powersupply. You can buy the same one again, but chances are this will happen again. Generally the lifespan on these capacitors is only three years, so I'd go with something better for now. I'm guessing your current one didn't deliver that much wattage so why not go for a quality brand? They're not all that expensive, you can't be -that- poor.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 03:30:37 pm
I'm jobless and about to scrap my car, yes I'm -that- poor. :rolleyes:

Honestly if the same PSU that just blew up could last another year I'd be happy, it's only £17, hopefully I'll have a job some time soon and I'll build another, better, computer with some more up market components, for now though I need to stick to whatever is cheapest, thanks.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Salmonella on December 11, 2015, 03:37:29 pm
Yeah it probably will last you a year
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 04:03:45 pm
Ok thanks, still debating what to do but I think I might buy the same PSU as a temporary fix, will build a new computer then in a few months, I don't see the point in paying good money right now for something else if other things on the computer might be fried, which I hope isn't the case as I have so much stuff I need on this computer, hoping I can get it back on so I can back stuff up on a hard drive...
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Ivan_MC on December 11, 2015, 04:10:25 pm
Why don't you take the PC to someone who can tell you if it is broken or not and if not just buy a PSU, if yes then ask him to get u everything from ur HDD on some external drive or w/e.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 04:20:31 pm
Why don't you take the PC to someone who can tell you if it is broken or not and if not just buy a PSU, if yes then ask him to get u everything from ur HDD on some external drive or w/e.
I know it's the PSU for sure, I removed it last night after something popped and it was the part which stank of burning, besides as soon as it blew the computer turned off, all that was left on was the power buttons light flashing, then that went off and it wouldn't turn on at all, and if it doesn't turn on at all, what else could it be? Surely if it wasn't the PSU and something else blew up it would still sort of 'start up', not sure on that though.

Anyway I've ordered the cheap crappy Chinese one that the computers worked with since 2012, sure it's 'tier 5' but it will act as a temporary fix until I can afford to build a new PC, I hope it gives me enough time to back stuff up if the computer isn't totally fried, thanks all for the help, I'll let you know as to wether it works when I get the new PSU.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Ivan_MC on December 11, 2015, 04:23:45 pm
I know that it is the PSU but my point was to ask a guy to check for you if the PSU damaged other parts in the PC just to save you from pointless buying a new PSU if other things are broken.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 11, 2015, 08:57:00 pm
I know that it is the PSU but my point was to ask a guy to check for you if the PSU damaged other parts in the PC just to save you from pointless buying a new PSU if other things are broken.
Oh ok thanks, a bit late for that anyway, I've already ordered the PSU now and I guess I'll find out next weed when it arrives wether anything else is broken, crossing my fingers though.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Ivan_MC on December 11, 2015, 09:09:18 pm
Oh ok thanks, a bit late for that anyway, I've already ordered the PSU now and I guess I'll find out next weed when it arrives wether anything else is broken, crossing my fingers though.
Busted.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: TheRock on December 12, 2015, 12:14:19 am
I would in no way buy a cheap PSU, and reason is simple as it can blow up anything else if not fry the whole computer.. If it was due cheap capacitor then fine to replace it.. But what if some other component caused this?
Anyway, as the reason is money.. Make sure to replace it as soon as you can later.. :)
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Devin on December 12, 2015, 12:19:10 am
It wouldn't be advisable to tell someone with limited electronics knowledge (as he said he has never replaced a PSU before) to replace a capacitor, especially not one in a power supply.
Throw it away, buy one that is quality and be safe from issues in the long run.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 12, 2015, 12:23:09 am
I'll be building a new computer as soon as I get the cash, will buy a better PSU for that one and use my current PC as a big hard drive. :rolleyes:
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Teddy on December 12, 2015, 12:29:49 am
Long story short, don't let the sheep play in your PC
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 12, 2015, 12:32:09 am
Long story short, don't let the sheep play in your PC
It looked like a sheep had been in there tbh.

(http://i.imgur.com/zGqhflU.jpg)
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Erion. on December 12, 2015, 12:34:06 am
WHAT THE FUCK DID I JUST SAW, lol do you know how to open your PC case and clean inside?
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 12, 2015, 12:36:26 am
WHAT THE FUCK DID I JUST SAW, lol do you know how to open your PC case and clean inside?
That's not actually my PC, it was dusty inside, but not that dusty. :D
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Luke on December 12, 2015, 01:49:46 am
Just checking this you have the same power supply I had, did the same thing.  :lol:
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 12, 2015, 01:57:33 am
Just checking this you have the same power supply I had, did the same thing.  :lol:
Good to know, considering I just ordered another exactly the same. :(
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: brian1996 on December 12, 2015, 02:23:19 am
You should never cheap out on the PSU, ignorance can cause huge problems with fire burning down yo house being the worst case scenario.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqThn3C-zg4
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 12, 2015, 02:36:55 am
You should never cheap out on the PSU, ignorance can cause huge problems with fire burning down yo house being the worst case scenario.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqThn3C-zg4
"Don't buy your cheap branded PSU's, buy a Cooler Master PSU!!!! Not just because they sponsored me and paid me cash, but because I love Cooler Master, wow Cooler Master is great."
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: brian1996 on December 12, 2015, 03:23:32 am
"Don't buy your cheap branded PSU's, buy a Cooler Master PSU!!!! Not just because they sponsored me and paid me cash, but because I love Cooler Master, wow Cooler Master is great."
Lol, I prefer Corsair tho'. But anyway look at brands like Cooler Master, Corsair, Seasonic, EVGA and Silverstone (just to name a few) as they have been on the market for quite some time.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: TheRock on December 12, 2015, 02:30:27 pm
It wouldn't be advisable to tell someone with limited electronics knowledge (as he said he has never replaced a PSU before) to replace a capacitor, especially not one in a power supply.
Throw it away, buy one that is quality and be safe from issues in the long run.

None advised him of replacing capacitors, I said it was fine to replace it (the PSU) if it was a capacitor issue of the PSU and no other components had issue..
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Luke on December 12, 2015, 02:36:54 pm
I have a corsair 750w cost me £50 and for a power supply I felt that was a bump and half.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Salmonella on December 12, 2015, 03:16:11 pm
Replacing capacitors isn't actually all that hard, should be a nice project to learn how to solder but I don't think it's the right solution for Mikal considering he probably doesn't have a soldering iron. :D

A cheap thing like this isn't really worth repairing either.

As for PSU brands, CoolerMaster isn't bad but isn't the best either, you're paying for a brandname. Personally of the mainstream brands I think some of the Corsair series are the best you can get. They have Seasonic parts inside. Seasonic on its turn is an industry standard for professional purposes.

I bought the Corsair TX850 for 60 euros second hand in 2011. I still have it and because newer components generally take less power than for example a GTX295 (which was -the- card back in the day) it can still keep up nicely. I'm looking to replace it for a modular power supply some time just to be sure though, given that it's been on pretty much half a day every day for 5 years.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 12, 2015, 03:24:17 pm
but I don't think it's the right solution for Mikal considering he probably doesn't have a soldering iron. :D
Actually I've done quiet a bit of soldering, from LED lights to melting huge holes through plastic. :rolleyes:

I wouldn't go playing with capacitors and such on a PSU though, sounds a bit too technical for me.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Salmonella on December 12, 2015, 03:28:51 pm
Actually it's extremely easy. You just take the thing apart and note the values of the capacitors, then you take them out and put new ones in their place. The only thing you can fuck up is the polarity, but if you just take the time that can't happen.

But yeah it's really not worth it considering it's just a piece of shit PSU. It's nice to do on a Corsair or something that was once expensive and which warranty has expired.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Janar on December 12, 2015, 04:54:32 pm
Personally, power supply is one place where I don't save up too much. I'm not risking buying a cheap PSU, which might kill my PC (rather expensive one) just one day.
Corsair RM series might be in your budget, AX probably too far (and stick way from CX series. Just don't buy it). EVGA is definitely a high-quality one.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Luke on December 12, 2015, 08:41:32 pm
To be honest, look at it this way.

You pay for all brilliant parts for a high-end system but let it down with a tesco-value PSU, in which that PSU can turn around and fuck you in the ass in the future, if it does indeed blow, it will take 95% of the components with it. A power supply is not something you should not worry about because "a cheaper one does the same job" you pay for the hardware to know that it is reliable and hand on heart I was in the same boat as you, then mine started smelling like fire, same one you have. I was on TS with Trane and some others at the time, and I tell you what I hit that cable quicker then anything, because it can pretty much fry everything, I've seen people with fried GPU's, Motherboards. Not being funny also cheap and cheerful power supplies don't have limiters also, meaning that the power sent to components is not limited per component so it can also "overpower" components on your PC causing them to fry. Don't be silly be smart. A power supply is not something you want to mess with, because spending the extra £20-30 now, will save you having to spend £400-500 in the future to replace fried components.

Just a little experience.  :lol:
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Salmonella on December 12, 2015, 09:19:10 pm
Friend of mine had a Corsair AX860i, one of the most expensive PSUs on the market that failed him after a year and he didn't do any crazy stuff with it or anything. Not all expensive PSUs are necessarily great, and even the good ones can sometimes fail.

This is true for all ''high end'' PC components. ''gamergrade, extreme, military grade'', it's all marketing. ''High quality Japanese capacitors!'' makes me laugh too. It's all stuff they get from mass-purchases and given the unstable nature of capacitors in general, it's impossible to really guarantee a certain lifespan.

That's just one example of why that stuff really means nothing.

Also, blue or red heatsinks don't cool any better than non-painted ones.  :D
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: brian1996 on December 13, 2015, 01:45:36 am
Friend of mine had a Corsair AX860i, one of the most expensive PSUs on the market that failed him after a year and he didn't do any crazy stuff with it or anything.
There's a reason why those PSUs (in this case that exact model which I have too) come with a warranty of 7 years. They are so confident in their hardware that they hand out such long warranties, ofcourse there's always that 1% that doesn't meet quality standards and your friend just happend to draw the short straw, it was a 1 out of 100 fluke.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Salmonella on December 13, 2015, 02:49:00 am
There's a reason why those PSUs (in this case that exact model which I have too) come with a warranty of 7 years. They are so confident in their hardware that they hand out such long warranties, ofcourse there's always that 1% that doesn't meet quality standards and your friend just happend to draw the short straw, it was a 1 out of 100 fluke.

Except Corsair was a total bitch about the warranty. It took 3 months to review alone. 1% still seems too much for me for something priced at that. Nothing can justify such a short lifespan.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 18, 2015, 10:22:17 pm
Just changed my PSU over to the new one now, computer seems normal except for the fact that it's EXTREMELY SLOW, don't know wether it was always like that and I just never noticed, I have been on an 'office computer' lately which was empty and so ran a bit faster, deleting a ton of old shite will speed it up right?
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Erion. on December 18, 2015, 10:38:16 pm
Yeah, if you have windows 7 i can help you to speed it up with few things.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: brian1996 on December 18, 2015, 11:32:33 pm
Just changed my PSU over to the new one now, computer seems normal except for the fact that it's EXTREMELY SLOW, don't know wether it was always like that and I just never noticed, I have been on an 'office computer' lately which was empty and so ran a bit faster, deleting a ton of old shite will speed it up right?
I'm pretty sure some of your components got screwed. What are the specs anyway?
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 18, 2015, 11:46:48 pm
I'm pretty sure some of your components got screwed. What are the specs anyway?
Nah, it's running perfect now that it's warm, and I've cleaned ALOT of stuff off of it.

Windows 7 Home Premium, 64-bit
AMD FX(tm)-4100 Quad Core Processor 4.00GHz
GTX 650 GPU
16GB RAM

Does anyone have any idea what's taking up so much memory? I've done a clean, checked in 'Programs' tab and the biggest thing I have installed is something called "Microsoft Visual Studio Community 2015" at 5GB, don't even know what it is but that's the biggest thing installed, not sure where the rest of the memory is going, I don't have that much pictures, videos or music either.

(http://i.imgur.com/EylYWhr.png)
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Janar on December 20, 2015, 10:59:27 pm
Microsoft Visual Studio Community 2015 is a collection of development tools, mainly for building new Windows applications. If you haven't used it, feel free to uninstall it.

For getting a slight overview of the component status, try doing some benchmarks on CPU, RAM and GPU. Should it be lower than other same devices (check others' results), it could be something got damaged by the PSU failure.

As for HDD usage, you gotta take a look at your files etc. Could be duplicates of some folders or other old stuff eating up space.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 20, 2015, 11:06:29 pm
Thanks Janar, think I have Microsoft Visual Studio from using Unity and Unreal Engine, as for the HDD usage, found a windows.old folder, that seems to be the memory hog. :rolleyes:
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Janar on December 20, 2015, 11:08:12 pm
You probably did upgrade to Windows 10, hence the Windows.old folder. Just delete it, it's a leftover from previous Windows installation.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 20, 2015, 11:11:06 pm
You probably did upgrade to Windows 10, hence the Windows.old folder. Just delete it, it's a leftover from previous Windows installation.
Haha, haven't upgraded to Windows 10, I hear it sucks, I guess it's from one of the times I reinstalled Windows 7.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Janar on December 20, 2015, 11:13:13 pm
Haha, haven't upgraded to Windows 10, I hear it sucks, I guess it's from one of the times I reinstalled Windows 7.

Most likely that. Either way, you can remove it.
On a side note - I have been using Windows 10 on all my PCs, love it.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Salmonella on December 20, 2015, 11:55:05 pm
Wouldn't get Windows 10, it's still unstable. Get 8.1 instead.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Devin on December 21, 2015, 12:07:14 am
Wouldn't get Windows 10, it's still unstable. Get 8.1 instead.

Funny you would say that, I have been making use of Windows 10 since release and I have yet to run into any problems nor have I had any stability issues.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Mikal on December 21, 2015, 12:14:12 am
Windows 7 4 life :janek:
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: AK47 on December 21, 2015, 12:42:49 am
Funny you would say that, I have been making use of Windows 10 since release and I have yet to run into any problems nor have I had any stability issues.

I have to agree!
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Ramo_Hawk on December 21, 2015, 01:26:08 am
Windows 7 4 life :janek:

Yep, I've been using 7 ever since.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Salmonella on December 21, 2015, 01:31:56 am
Funny you would say that, I have been making use of Windows 10 since release and I have yet to run into any problems nor have I had any stability issues.

I guess it depends on how you use the OS and what your hardware is. There was a big issue with SLI that took weeks to get patched. Then there's the white screen of death bug that occured with a lot of different kinds of symptoms a friend of mine's PC had.

I haven't tried it myself, and 10 has some improvements but I felt like it didn't warrant the upgrade considering all the problems I've seen others have with it.
Title: Re: Something just exploded
Post by: Janar on December 21, 2015, 11:42:18 am
Let's keep this on-topic, shall we? I know I probably started, but let's end it here.
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