PC exploded, please help!

[bosshoss]

As the thread title implies, my PC literally exploded today while at work and I have no idea where to begin and how much collateral damage I might be looking at.

While at work the GF was in another room when she says it sounded like a bomb went off in the PC room.
She ran in to find the case filled with smoke and a nasty burnt rubber smell. I can't see any visible melting or scorching of anything, nor is the smell still present. What could have caused this?? Where should i start looking, or what parts should I start purchasing?

SPECS:
P5B-E
E6300 @ 2.8
8800GTS
4G G-skill DDR2 800
ANTEC Tru Power 500

 

[dagger]

Lol, this wins so much! Have a cookie.

Err... sorry. The part of a computer most likely to explode is the psu. Start looking there.

 

[bosshoss]

Yea and this HAD to happen on my B-Day. 9/11 FTW!

And PS's will generally take other components with them, am I correct in this??
Is 500watts enough to handle that system or should I purchse something bigger?




(please say no please say no please say no)

 

[roadrunner197069]

Your PSU is pretty good ,so it shoulda had good overload protection. I think you will be ok after you get a new PSU.

 

[PsyKhiqZero]

The part most at risk is the mobo. good chance cpu, HDD and roms are still ok. The load pop would most likely be a capacitor. so check your mobo to see if you can find poped ones. if you can't find any then I would go ahead and buy a new psu.

 

[dagger]

Your PSU is pretty good ,so it shoulda had good overload protection. I think you will be ok after you get a new PSU.

From those specs, it's unlikely the 500w psu is actually being overloaded. Besides, not having enough power usually just cause system instability. Not many cases of it exploding.

Probably just a defective unit. Bad apple.

 

[jowunger]

how about some pics of your machine internals?

 

[bosshoss]

It WAS the PS, took my old Antec 430 outta sisses comp and she fired up. Thanks fellas. Ordered this just a few mins ago:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153059

Decent or neh?

 

[mi1ez]

heh heh. I would have asked before ordering, but it looks like a decent one. better luck this time!

 

[yipsl]

Sorry about your Antec. I've had good luck with them. I don't know if the PSU wiki's up to date, but the Antec True Power 500 was rated one tier below the Antec Neo's. I have Neo's in my PC and my wife's, and a True Power in my 8 year old's.

Seasonic makes those and they're generally good. My rule of thumb is the old fashioned heft the PSU to see how heavy it is. That's a way to prove to skeptics without much PC experience that the budget Ultra PSU they want to buy at Fry's is actually not very good compared to Antec, Thermaltake etc.

 

[Onus]

Maybe a cockroach crawled into your PSU and shorted something.
Thermaltake's TR2 is on tier-4 of the old listing at http://www.tomswiki.com/page/Tiered+PSU+Listings?t=anon. It should be ok on your low-stress rig though. Also, it is possible that model is newer than the list.
The heft test mentioned by yipsl is typically valid. One of Oklahoma Wolf's (on jonnyguru) PSU disections will explain why; the heat sinks in cheap PSUs tend to be little better than aluminum foil, and the components that aren't simply missing are usually undersized.

 

[random1283]

It's a good PSU I have one and the Modular cables are great. Also runs quiet and Good build quality. Also jtt283 the TR2-RX are far superior to the old TR2's and the heirachy should be updated.

 

[bobbknight]

I want to see a pic of the large cap that blew up in the PSU.
When the magic smoke is released from our electronic toys sometimes they stop working, esp. if the release was very energetic.
All may be dead, or some, or none. Hope for none.
Replacing the PSU and trying to run the system should not hurt it.
Buy a good one. I buy PCPower and Cooling PSU's.

 

[rodney_ws]

how about some pics of your machine internals?

That's what I was thinking! WE WANT PICTURES!

 

[Onus]

Yes, the PSU list is old. I'm also a fan of modular cables; the added resistance is insignificant.
===============
Yes, pictures, and a jonnyguru-style necropsy!

 

[dagger]

Yes, the PSU list is old. I'm also a fan of modular cables; the added resistance is insignificant.
===============
Yes, pictures, and a jonnyguru-style necropsy!

It's not so much resistance as the arching that may occur due to improper contact, which may cause additional problems like spikes. But yes, the resistance is insignificant.