# Smokin Ultra Durable M/B



## toshar (Aug 12, 2021)

Hi All

Apologize for not being active on the forum and updating posts when I need help. 

System config - AM3+ FX6300, Gigabyte 970a DS3P, HyperX 12 Gigs DDR3, Rx 570 OC, CM Thunder 500w PSU. 

The system was working gorgeously fine but didn't turn up again like two months ago suddenly. No accident and liquid spills noticed so far. 

Issue- No boot beep or display., just blue cabinet lights comes on when I turn on the system, along with moving fan. 

Troubleshoot I did :- 
-Screwed out everything, cleaned everything, regreased CPU GPU PSU fans and die, plonked everything back = didn't boot. Behaved like same as it was before. 
 -Gave it to a know repair guy in Neheru place but he couldn't rectify the problem coz he didn't find spares so he returned the machine after 1 month. 

Gave it to another apple repair guy and he returned the machine again saying he didn;t find spares to check whats wrong. Took 1 month.. 1 month for a repair guy who workes in Neheru place. A**hole he was..
Brought the machine back today, removed everything out again and left all in direct sunlight thinking this may rectify but it didn't.
I installed just 1 RAM and GPU to check if its working now but magic smoke started coming out near CPU heatsink which has 'ULTRA DURABLE' mark mentioned on it.
Tried it again with the diagnostic card installed and found same smoke just after turning the MB on.
Removed the 4 pin cpu power cable and smoke didn't came out.
No display or any boot beep was found in all scenarios.

Now

-Do we really have engineers left in Delhi NCR (probably Neheru Place) who happily accepts a m/b for chip level repair instead of saying "NAYA LELO".. 
-What happens to old stock which was never purchased by customers? SCRAP ? 
-Replacing the PC with new Ryzen is not practical and logical as it will cost anywhere above 20k, the one I was using happily running BF V at 60 FPS at ultra settings so ditching it is just not satisfying.. 
-Please advise and share details from where I can actually get this m/b repaired.
- I can purchase a new m/b if the service guy ensures that the problem is in M/b but not in RAM or GPU.. 

Please help..  using a mediocre 4 gigs laptop meanwhile.. 

PFA for video..  

Thanks


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## toshar (Aug 14, 2021)




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## Desmond (Aug 18, 2021)

That looks like some serious damage. I don't think this is reparable. Perhaps it's time to retire your motherboard.

Old motherboards are generally recycled but rarely if someone has in stock you could get it but chances are slim, I think it would be best if you upgrade to a newer config.


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## ankushv (Aug 19, 2021)

Mosfets look burned , and it may have taken some traces off too . You need to desolder the damaged mosfets and check traces after cleaning damaged area with ipa .

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk


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## quicky008 (Aug 30, 2021)

i think its the result of a botched repair job that was performed by that hack who called himself a technician.


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## toshar (Sep 19, 2021)

@Desmond @ankushv @quicky008 @toxictaz 
Negetive. Its beyond repairs coz of confirmed burnt traces. Cleaning it area made the PCB base visible. Wonder what caused this!. 

Two things :- 

Computer Empire or Neheru place has plenty of basic H81 mobo which can be paired with i5 3rd gen and would cost ~7.5K.
Wait for someone who can advise where to get old/refurbished board.

Few days ago there was an AM3+ socket mobo from some 'Consistent' Brand on Amazon.in with amazon certified for 3.5K. Its out of stock now, I should have got it instead of gigabyte. 

C'mon guys, there must be some... some kind of solution to get this source again in India.. 
Requesting you all to please advise further course of action.


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## topgear (Sep 27, 2021)

toshar said:


> @Desmond @ankushv @quicky008 @toxictaz
> Negetive. Its beyond repairs coz of confirmed burnt traces. Cleaning it area made the PCB base visible. Wonder what caused this!.
> 
> Two things :-
> ...



Try FB marketplace or olx to get a compatible motherboard or try aliexprees.


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## quicky008 (Sep 27, 2021)

isnt aliexpress banned in india?


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## Zangetsu (Sep 27, 2021)

toshar said:


> -Do we really have engineers left in Delhi NCR (probably Neheru Place) who happily accepts a m/b for chip level repair instead of saying "NAYA LELO"..



That's the truth as even the Engineer cannot give you guarantee how long the repaired MB will work.  I had the mobo issue in the past and it was Gigbyte. Took it to the Gigabyte official RMA center where they charge for out of warranty repairs. I was ready to pay but the engineer after testing told me to buy a new one.


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## topgear (Sep 28, 2021)

quicky008 said:


> isnt aliexpress banned in india?



Desktop browser works just fine on BSNL 3G connection


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## toshar (Jan 7, 2022)

@bubusam13  Please go through the thread


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## toshar (May 10, 2022)

Hi All 

WRT to this thread, I am unable to find AM3+ motherboard with 970 or 990 chipset. 
The available option I have is to ditch AMD and buy used intel 4th gen processor + mobo. Can keep my HyperX DDR3 this way. 

Have searched few fb market place and found i5 4590 and i7 4770/90 for ₹2800 and ₹7500 respectivly to replace my FX6300.
New Biostar H81 mobo extra for ₹5800. (Neheru place is nearby to my place)

I know both chips are superior to FX6300 but confused which one to get. 

Will I will be getting noticable extra performance from i7's 4 core 8 threads? As i5 is almost 1/3 price of i7. 

I have RX570 GPU, 16 gigs hyperX D3 ram and Lg ultra wide monitor (21:9) as of now and use my the machine mostly for movies, internet surfing. Yet to play GTA4,5, COD IW onwards, BF V, etc. 

I will be relocating soon so dont want to spend Ryzen money for now. 
Please advice, i5 or i7. 

PFA for cpu price list.


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## topgear (May 10, 2022)

get i5 but seriously spending around 5.8K on a H81 motherboard makes no sense. You can also find one at much cheaper at FB market place.


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## Nerevarine (May 10, 2022)

Yes get the i5 as its a transition processor, you will replace it with ryzen anyway


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## pkkumarcool (May 10, 2022)

Mine old pc also got motherboard problem technicians say just to replace it I dont know why there is no repair option available here.


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## toshar (May 11, 2022)

Okay.. 
So the available i5s are either T or S variants, somewhat inferior. 

i7 3770 + H61 m/b = ₹9k
i7 4770 + H81 m/b = ₹10500

The guy has persnally suggested to buy 3rd gen coz of similar performance in games wrt price differnce but H61s doesnt come with Sata 6gbps and Usb 3.0 ports. 
Now what!


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## quicky008 (May 12, 2022)

i7 4th gen looks like a better choice-its a bit more updated and also supports the avx2 instruction set that the 3rd gen does not.Btw are you getting a new h81 mobo or a 2nd hand mobo?

However be advised that the i7s are known to run a bit hot as compared to i5s/i3s etc ,hence you may have to invest in an aftermarket cooler to keep the temps of the cpu within acceptable limits.


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## topgear (May 13, 2022)

toshar said:


> Okay..
> So the available i5s are either T or S variants, somewhat inferior.
> 
> i7 3770 + H61 m/b = ₹9k
> ...



I still run the second combo  get the 4th gen.


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## toshar (May 13, 2022)

pkkumarcool said:


> I dont know why there is no repair option available here.


I met with an engineer with chip-level repair knowledge who accepted my motherboard for repair but then said the traces are burnt to three layers and any repair wont last long considering the heat generated in powering a FX processor so better to get a new one. What Mobo you have? AM3+?



quicky008 said:


> supports the avx2 instruction set that the 3rd gen does not.Btw are you getting a new h81 mobo or a 2nd hand mobo?
> 
> However be advised that the i7s are known to run a bit hot as compared to i5s/i3s etc ,hence you may have to invest in an aftermarket cooler to keep the temps of the cpu within acceptable limits.


Okay. I will finalize i7 4770 considering newer then 3rd gen, both of them will be way faster then Fx 6300 anyways but TBH I literally had no complaints with the AMD.
These motherboards and processors are used and pulled out from. Err.. I don't know. Seller is providing 1 month warranty on processor and 1 Year on Mobo (Either Giga or Asus). Sounds good enough. 
I have CM Hyper 212X to keep i7 cool.

One more thing I want to confirm. I have never used SSD before but gonna get one now primarily for Windows drive and found  SATA SSD < M.2 < NVMe in terms of speed so If I buy NVMe of 128 GB of x brand then where to plonk it or what else would be best for me. 

This is the mobo I will be getting probably - GA-H81M-S1 (rev. 1.0) Overview | Motherboard - GIGABYTE Global


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## topgear (May 13, 2022)

toshar said:


> I met with an engineer with chip-level repair knowledge who accepted my motherboard for repair but then said the traces are burnt to three layers and any repair wont last long considering the heat generated in powering a FX processor so better to get a new one. What Mobo you have? AM3+?
> 
> 
> Okay. I will finalize i7 4770 considering newer then 3rd gen, both of them will be way faster then Fx 6300 anyways but TBH I literally had no complaints with the AMD.
> ...



don't get the NVME ssd as there's no slot to mount it on H81. Better get a sata SSD and you shall see noticeable improvement in boot, shutdown and overall system response time.


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## toshar (May 13, 2022)

topgear said:


> there's no slot to mount it on H81


Yeah! I noticed and today only I came to know about M.2 slot existence. Well, I also found "M.2 to PCIe x1" adaptor where one can insert the drive (these are not drives, these are small chips. Drives are big. And Heavy. And feels like you have got something inside the cab) into and then that adaptor in PCIe slot. Sounds good.
Will check with the computer empire prior purchase if its possible without crashes else SATA SSD. Thanks


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## pkkumarcool (May 13, 2022)

toshar said:


> SATA SSD < M.2 < NVMe


M.2 is form factore doesnt relate to ssd speeds.


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## topgear (May 14, 2022)

toshar said:


> Yeah! I noticed and today only I came to know about M.2 slot existence. Well, I also found "M.2 to PCIe x1" adaptor where one can insert the drive (these are not drives, these are small chips. Drives are big. And Heavy. And feels like you have got something inside the cab) into and then that adaptor in PCIe slot. Sounds good.
> Will check with the computer empire prior purchase if its possible without crashes else SATA SSD. Thanks



Sata SSDs are not heavy .. actually they are pleasant to hold on. You don't even have to mount with screws if you want to on the cabinet. Just place them any where on the cabinet and connect sata power and data cable. Done.

BTW, If you can negotiate the price of the i7+h81 combo. The price should not be more than 8k.


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## toshar (May 16, 2022)

topgear said:


> BTW, If you can negotiate the price of the i7+h81 combo. The price should not be more than 8k.


The deal is done now for 10k and I have purchased the motherboard along with processor with 1 year waranty. Let it be.. since I was not getting AM3+ board replacement. 

I checked the mobo and Processor with Furmark CPU burner running overnight and max temp I observed was ~68-71 with CM HyperX 212. Seems good. 
Physical touch to the heatsink was not like even 50 degrees but SMD chokes near the CPU socket was very hot to touch. I wonder why there is not heatsink over these chokes on H81 bottom end motherboard. 

Since the board doesn't have any M.2 slots, I will be buying Basic 128gb SATA SSD drive for windows and I lost the CPU Cooler Standoffs nuts so have to use some jugaadh like cable ties in order to keep the cooler on place with some retain force on CPU die.  All in all, I have a working desktop now.  







Gonna put some heatsinks above them.


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## topgear (May 17, 2022)

Don't run furmark like applications overnight and unnecessarily stress the processor . Anyway, those are some nice temps but that jugadd thing can become loose at some point of time so it would be better for you to look for those stand offs / screws or get a new cooler after sometime.


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## toshar (May 22, 2022)

I am getting confused here. Something on my motherboard is getting very hot underload WRT to the intel platform. 

For reference, the CPU is i7 4770 | 22nm |  4 Cores-8 Threads | Base Freq. 3.40 GHz, Turbo Freq. 3.90 GHz | TDP - 84W | Socket- LGA 1150 | T_Case- 72.72°C |
MotherBoard - Gigabyte GA GA-H81M-S (rev. 1.0)
RAM - Kingston HyperX DDR3
CPU Cooler - Cooler Master Hyper 212x
Cabinet - Some Corsair Cabinet, 2x 120mm Intake Fans, 1x 120mm Exhaust Fan Overhead right above Horizontally install CPU heatsink. 

Setup - 

As per SPEEDFAN monitoring utility, some TEMP3 sensor is getting hot under load.
The load I applied here is CPU Burner (Furmark)  running at 8 Threads (Default) and Battlefield V on Ultra settings.
Monitoring is done through Speedfan and MSI Afterburned OSD telemetry

Concern :- 

As mentioned above, ONLY Temp3 is 38°C on idle and 85ish °C on full load by CPU burner. WHAT IS TEMP3? Is this the actual cumulative temperature of CPU or what as all other sensors seem good and cool under load and in ideal conditions?
In-Game (I have only installed Battlefield V) again this is the same sensor getting hot. So I enabled all CPU OSD and the load is not even 100% to justify the rise as the game is only using 35-45% of CPU..
There is also much variation in each CPU usage like all cores are not equally active in running game whereas older FX6300 use to provide balance output from all 6 cores.
IF it is the CPU that is getting hot (there is raise in CPU fan RPM also) there should also be enough power draw but its below 30watts instead of say 75 watts or even 80 if turbo freq. is active.
The cabinet body near exhaust fan is only slight warm instead of HOT when touched by bare hands considering 80°C outputs from CPU heatsink. Before with FX 6300 under game load, temps use to be around 65°C-70°C which made the cabinet very-very hot to touch. One can feel the radiation from FX platform but this is intel is not suppose to run that hot.
Whats wrong here?  Screenshot for reference.


Idel with 8 chrome tabs.





Under game load. Note the usage variation amove each core of the processor. Thats is 76°C with 38% usage at 28 watts only. turbo is on hence Freq. is 3.67 GHz. 






Under CPU burner load. Why the hell there are so many spikes under load.  Is it CPU throtteling? 






Please help in here. Thanks


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## quicky008 (May 23, 2022)

readings provided by these sensors may not be accurate.I have seen readings of upto 100 C in HW monitor while attempting to check temps in a zebronics g41 mainboard,even though it was working perfectly fine and didn't manifest any symptoms of overheating. Use other utilities like HWinfo etc and check if you get such unusual readings in those or not.


your cpu is most likely throttling under high temps and thats why you are witnessing these weird spikes in windows performance monitor.Are you using stock intel cooler?IF yes discard it and get a decent aftermarket cooler as recommended by other members in earlier posts .


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## topgear (May 25, 2022)

toshar said:


> I am getting confused here. Something on my motherboard is getting very hot underload WRT to the intel platform.
> 
> For reference, the CPU is i7 4770 | 22nm |  4 Cores-8 Threads | Base Freq. 3.40 GHz, Turbo Freq. 3.90 GHz | TDP - 84W | Socket- LGA 1150 | T_Case- 72.72°C |
> MotherBoard - Gigabyte GA GA-H81M-S (rev. 1.0)
> ...



This is the reason :

"  I lost the CPU Cooler Standoffs nuts so have to use some jugaadh like cable ties in order to keep the cooler on place with some retain force on CPU die "

either get a new cooler or find those cpu cooler stand offs / screws. Your processor is throttling because of of increased temp. Use Hwinfo for more accurate temp readings.


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## quicky008 (May 25, 2022)

just get a new cooler-you can even reuse it if you decide to upgrade your setup later.


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## toshar (Jun 17, 2022)

topgear said:


> This is the reason :





quicky008 said:


> just get a new cooler-you can even reuse it if you decide to upgrade your setup later.



CPU throttling issue rectified. The problem was with the cable ties which got stretched and retained the shape in response to the surrounding heat produced by the processor. The heatsink might have toppled cost of weak cantilever support eventually loosing complete contact with the processor die.

Solution :- Took me 2 weeks to search on internet (There are many around the world with lost standoffs) for the standoffs dimension and thread diameter and the only option I had to either get Cooler Master AM4 kit (just for the standoffs) or get them made by 3D printer (Not a lifelong sollution). Eventually I found a RC hobbyists dealing in UAV stuff and they use several standoffs and spacer to mount PCBs on frames. Got 4x 15mm female-female standoffs + M3 8mm bolts and washers for INR 193.  Much cheaper sollution. 

Results - Stable performance, No spikes under full load. Max temps reached ~59°C only with Deepcool G40 thermal paste. (Previously it was 40 rupee cheap paste).


Before - The Jugaadh which worked for couple of days. 





15mm StandOffs with Allen M3 Screws. Made custom insulators using shrink tubes. They failed so replaces them with old ATM cutouts. 





Complete Installation





Temperatures under load





Thanks to all for suggestions and support.


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## avichandana20000 (Jul 7, 2022)

get a higher capacity SSD to get more DWPD


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