Resolved Bad RAM and power supply

Hi,

I am reviving 15 years old Computer, motherboard K7T Turbo version 3. Mobo had ten capacitors, that were blown. A case of so called 'capacitor rot', maybe?
Caps are now replaced, I put it back together, and ran Win ME and some applications for about 5 hours, or so.

After few application hang ups, I ran Memtestx86. On two consecutive runs, it found 2 errors and its operation was halted.

I will get a 'new' RAM stick, it seems to be 'SDRAM PC100/133, 168 Pin, unbuffered', according to Mobo manual I found on the internet, but my question is, should i replace the power supply too?

If the power supply has those same crappy caps as mobo had, it could be faulty, and I am worried, can it then damage the RAM, capacitors, etc?
I have not started the comp again after discovering faulty RAM, and will not do so, unless otherwise advised.

 

I would replace the motherboard too. Seriously 15 year old computer !

 

Hi Evan Omo. Yes, the power supply is still the original. I dont know the model and wattage yet, it has some stickers on the bottom, they are not readable when it is in the computer. I will remove it, and start to look for an replacement.
Thanks for the warning, hopefully other components are OK.

 

I am guessing replacing the motherboard would just defeat the entire purpose of this project - to revive an old computer. You will not find a "new" motherboard that supports that CPU or RAM. So buying used may put you back in the same boat. According the K7T Turbo specs, that board also only has support for EIDE drives - no SATA, and AGP graphics. All older technologies that may be hard to find replacements for.

So a new motherboard would basically just require a whole new computer. Also, a new motherboard (or new computer) would require purchasing a new Windows license too.

I would not trust a 15 year old power either. A faulty power supply can, if unlucky, destroy anything connected to it. Those specs show the motherboard is an ATX Form Factor board (which is good), but I suspect it uses a 20-pin main power connector. Most PSUs today come with a 24-Pin connector. Some 20-pin motherboards have enough space around the connector so those last 4 pins can just hang off the side, but some are too crowded and don't leave enough space. Most 24-pin power supplies allow you to break-away the end 4-pins, but some don't. So be sure to shop around. I also like keeping a PSU Tester handy. You might consider one too.

 

Yes, it is a 15 year old Computer. I collect old Computers, so thats the whole point in this attempt. And this is the 'least old' Computer I 've been trying to fix.

Just checked, there is one K7T Turbo version 3 motherboard for sale at ebay.

 

OK, I need to check if it has 20 or 24-pins. I think there was some space around the connector too, thank you for the info.

A power supply tester would be nice to have, I might purchase one later.
Repair shops surely have them. In this case, I'll remove the PSU and take it to some computer repair shop and ask them to test it, but anyway, I will get a replacement. New, or used & tested PSU.

 

Many repair shops will do a quick test for free (often with one of those checkers). But a thorough, conclusive test takes some time with the supply under a variety of loads and testing with an o'scope or power supply analyzer.

As far as space around the connector, the space has to be on the correct side (or all around). Those connector are keyed to go in only one way so the extra 4 will hang off a specific side depending on the orientation of the socket on the board.

Anyway, good luck.

 

Thanks.
I ordered two 128 Mb sticks of pc-133 CL-3 SDRAM from ebay. The one I had in my comp has a tiny sticker 'pc133-3' so they seem to be the same.

And I took the power supply out of the computer. Its a 250 W, FSP 250-60 gta. It has a 20-pin connector. On the other side of the connector (where there are red wires) there would be enough room for 4 extra pins, on the opposite side there's not.
I'll try to get a quick test done for it, just to know it's condition. And then get a replacement for it.

 

Sounds like a plan. Keep us posted.

 

If you are doing it just for fun then its ok. I wouldn't use a 15 year old computer with legacy Windows for regular use.

 

And because such a legacy computer and operating system are so far behind on security, I would not connect this computer to a network with Internet access either. While certainly Windows Me is not a primary target of badguys, there are still many pieces of malware floating around out there that 95/98/98SE/Me cannot defend against.

If you do get this system running, you might consider installing a modern version of Linux on it. That will really provide for a good learning experience and will be safer too.

 

Hi,

Yes, these old computers that I have, are mostly just for fun, reading e-mail, visiting those few favorite websites, that are viewable with them, reading newsgroups, gopher, etc.
But I occasionally do productive work (writing reports) with my 486 (the one on my specs) and 386. It ads some fun to it.

 

Hi,

Learning to use Linux is something I will definitely do in future. Since MS is moving to a practice of 'Windows as a service' I don't want to have anything to do with it.
But this is just a restoration project, so I'll keep the ME.

I've done some PSU shopping now. I wen't to 3 comp repair shops/stores, but none of them had a PSU tester. In the first one I looked at some new Corsair PSU, it had the 24-pin connector, but those extra pins could have easily been removed. I was in a hurry at the moment (5 mins to closing time) but it looked to me that the PSU in question, if installed to my comp, would have blown the hot cooling air inside the case!, not backwards. And I'm not sure if it had a wire for the floppydrive.

In the second store the technician took off the cover of my old PSU to visually inspect it... and it had two caps that were blown, they looked really bad. No need for further testing. He said that those PSU's were notorious for failing.

I am glad I didn't use and damage the comp anymore after dicovering the faulty RAM. Thanks to all, for warning about it.

From the third place I bought two used 20-pin, 250W PSU's. Technician said that they were taken from fully functional computers, and I just have to take his word for that. I did a visual check for them by opening the case slightly, and looking at the components with a bright flashlight. All seemed OK. I will get a PSU tester later.

So, I chose to install a Bestec ATX-250-12 z rev.C PSU in my comp. With new RAM it booted normally, and I ran the memtest several times, and Norton Utilities 2001 tests.
It seemed to function normally, but if I launched IE or OE, soon the Msgsrv32.exe stopped responding, and the whole system too, and I had to shut it down from a power button.

I did a google search about Msgsrv32.exe, and I noticed it was recommended to reinstall all communication software, since Msgsrv32.exe is related to internet connection. Did that, few times.
I thought reinstalling the OS might be necessary, but I couldnt do that because when I booted with startup disk and launched the setup from the cd-rom, it was halted with the error message, something like, 'o:\fsc\eula.exe - no such file or directory'. The drive letters were somehow messed up.

I looked at the connections of the mobo and my notes that I made when I took it out, I noticed that I had connected the small wire from cd-rom drive to a connector were dvd-drive should have been connected, an vice versa...

I corrected the connections, and also reinstalled the drivers for the motherboard, because when I looked at my driver cd's I noticed that there were some drivers for the MB, and I thought might be good to reinstall them.

On the next boot up after that, Windows said it had found new devices, and was installing drivers for them (something about VIA, chips, etc) and after that, finally, everything has seemed to work normally (fingers crossed) programs dont hung, USB, printer from serial port, audio, etc. is working, no exclamation marks in device manager either, and I am posting here now with that computer.

I'll change my system specs to refer to this comp (for some time at least) since that Win 3.1 comp in my specs is not able to post here anymore (something changed at the website last year).

Thank You, to all who commented and advised.
I will mark this thread resolved.

 

I would not let that get in the way. Service does not mean service in the traditional way. I really just refers to how Windows will be upgraded, and features will be added - that is, through Windows Update.

 

Well, never say never. I think I can watch how that develops, how other users feel about it, and change my opinion later.

 

Well, it is not here yet, so no one knows yet how it will pan out. So IMO, no opinions should be formed - yet.