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Broken Resistor on Powercolor XT850 PE

Roughneck

Roughneck

Roughneck

Soldato
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when I was putting in the molex power cable into the graphics card today , I accidently broke a small resistor off , it was directly behind where the molex connector went.

it says c68 on the pcb.

the card seems to still work. but Im worried , is it importants. I make be able to get it resolderd at my work but I need to know the oritation of the resistor.

Please any help would be gratefull

enclosed is a picture below with the resistor marked that I broke off

1.JPG
 
sinister_stu said:
Are you sure it was a resistor? You've circled a capacitor in the picture and the identifier "c68" would also suggest that it is a capacitor.
Click to expand...


I dont know but , what the difference?
 
wiki said:
A capacitor is a device that stores energy in the electric field created between a pair of conductors on which electric charges of equal magnitude, but opposite sign, have been placed. A capacitor is occasionally referred to using the older term condenser.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor

wiki said:
A resistor is a two-terminal electrical or electronic component that resists an electric current by producing a voltage drop between its terminals in accordance with Ohm's law.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resistor

Big difference.
Simple terms, Capacitor is like a "battery" and resistor is like a "choking tube" for electrons on a circuit board. (Correct me if I'm wrong, I'm over simplifying it).
 
They're completely different components, and therefore do different things.

A resistor will be easier to solder back on as it won't matter which way round it goes, the pads will also be more accessible so it'll be easier to get to them with a soldering iron.

A capacitor might need to be put back the right way round. Use the Picture you've posted to work this out. It may be a bit trickier to solder this back on as the legs may be underneath the capacitor. You could solder some short leads on to the legs of the capacitor (or on to the board) to make it easier.
 
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Roughneck said:
just played 1 hour of dods and it still works no crashes lockups or anything strange
Click to expand...

If it's a capacitor that has fallen off, and it's located near the power supply, chances are that the capacitor is for decoupling the power supply. This means that it helps when there are spikes or drops in the voltage/current coming from the PSU, it also reduces the noise (usually high frequency noise). Explained simply, it either takes in more current or sends more out to make up for discrepancies. This would explain why it seems to work... I wouldn't advise leaving a decoupling capacitor off for too long, you never know when it'll be needed and it will almost certainly cause the card to break quicker.
 
I would personally give ATI and Power Colour an email explaining you situation and they should tell you what the cap is used for.

MC_Bob
 
it's a capacitor, and the markings on the board will tell you which way its supposed to go. Yes it'll probably bve fine without it, although it is there for a reason.

get it soldered back on. its an easy job.
 
If its the same as the one in the pic, then can you not just put it back on like that one, thick coloured blue on the left towards the heatsink ?
 
that depends if his capacitor has been marked with a blue pen like the one in the picture.

Otherwise, the 'marked' end that signifies the polarity is actually facing the opposite way;)
 
LoadsaMoney said:
If its the same as the one in the pic, then can you not just put it back on like that one, thick coloured blue on the left towards the heatsink ?
Click to expand...

Some boards actually mark the + and - on the board aswell.

MC_Bob
 
the board should have a marking that's the same shape as the base of that cap. Its a square with two cut-off corners. Its not hard to work it out:)
 
james.miller said:
the board should have a marking that's the same shape as the base of that cap. Its a square with two cut-off corners. Its not hard to work it out:)
Click to expand...


yes the cap has the same blue line down one side and brown on the other like in the picture.
 
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