Search
Sign in with
Sign up | Sign in

OMG FIRE SMOKE EXPLODING POWER SUPPLIES!!!

Last response: in Components
Share

So,
I built a PC for a customer in Canada.

Phenom 9950 X4
8GB OCZ GOLD 1066
ASUS M3A76-CM
EVGA 9800GTX+
Dual WD 500GB in Raid 0
22X LG DVDRW
650W PSU
Logisys Area 51 Case
Vista HP 64 (installed and updated)

OC to 3.0(millionth time doing this)
Burns in for 72hrs everything golden.

Ships waaaay up north, customer opens package unplugs his old computer plugs ours in. Turns on and it prompts for a boot device(it already had vista installed....), proceeds to insert windows DVD, begins loading and starts smoking shuts down. So he takes the power supply from his old pc (550W) and hooks it up then...

"Okay we have a dead short somewhere, but I don't know where. The second I flipped the switch on the power supply on. The good one from my current P.C, without even switching the computer on I blew the power supply. I mean there was no delay, the moment power was supplied = sparks and fire in the power supply. I've looked through the wiring for anything that looks like it could be grounding out to the chassis, but all the wiring looks fine." :pt1cable: 

What the hell could be going on here? PSU was set at 110v just like normal, he's using an UPS surge protector that worked fine on his old pc... I'm just baffled. HELP!!

More about : omg fire smoke exploding power supplies

Register or log in to remove
Power supply Master

What are the brands of the 550 and 650 watt PSU?

I suspect that the 550 is a crappy PSU that was being overloaded by the computer.

I can take any of my PSU's (one Corsair and two Antecs) and ground a 5 or 12 volt line, and the protection circuits inside will detect the overload (a short is simply the ultimate overload :)  ) and electronically shut the PSU down.

That's one of the very critical differences between a good PSU and a crappy one. And that is why you see most of the regulars advocate the use of known good brands and models.

Could be something got shook around during shipping and caused a short somewhere. But typically good quality psu's have short circuit protection and shut off, not fry. So, could be just from crappy psu's, a short, or both. But it's too late to tell. Something else probably got fried as well when the psu blew. Only thing you can do is to tear down the system and look for burned parts and rebuild it with a good quality psu. So, as you've likely been told in the past, Don't use cheap quality psu's!
Related ressources
Ask the community

Orangegator is probably right. Something shook loose during shipment. Could a small screw or metal shaving that fell into the power supply and shorted out the main power bus inside the supply. Normally the outputs will handle shorts fine but the internal power rails are not protected.

spike101x said:
Yeah that doesnt explain at ALL why the 2nd power supply blew up


Yeah, it does. But from reading your last two posts, the only answer it looks like you'll believe is that "it was magic", or "it was a gremlin". So, take your pick.
Power supply Expert

jsc said:
What are the brands of the 550 and 650 watt PSU?

I suspect that the 550 is a crappy PSU that was being overloaded by the computer.

I can take any of my PSU's (one Corsair and two Antecs) and ground a 5 or 12 volt line, and the protection circuits inside will detect the overload (a short is simply the ultimate overload :)  ) and electronically shut the PSU down.

That's one of the very critical differences between a good PSU and a crappy one. And that is why you see most of the regulars advocate the use of known good brands and models.

+1. QFT. Well said.
Power supply Master

The second PSU probably came out of a less powerful computer that did not load the PSU as heavily as the new one. Or when the first PSU failed, it fried something in the motherboard or video card, and that took the second down. or it was bad magic.

As CPU's and video cards start pulling more power, the quality of the PSU becomes more important.
Register or log in to remove
 
Ask the community
Read discussions in other Components categories
!