Before I get to the heart of the matter, I do not subscribe to coincidence or chance that my power supply units keep failing in the same manor. I have had 2 different supplies, both being different wattage and manufacturer, and both have failed. Here they are...
1. Eagle Voltage X 600w (lasted 1 year and 2 months)
2. Diablotek 400w (lasted 2 weeks)(was in a previous system for 6 months)
Now, they are both completely different supplies and wattage as you can see. So why is it, that after opening them up, it is the same exact component that has failed on both? When i say exact, I mean EXACT. No other component or damage is visible in either unit, and there is virtually no dust.
By now the gears are turning, so allow me to also post up the system specs these units are powering...
Mobo: Asus MA488 EVO (ATX 24 pin / AM3)
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition OC'd to 3.7gh 3rd core unlocked
RAM: Corsair (something) 2 x 2gig sticks ddr3
GPU: Galaxy 9800GT 1gig ddr2
HDD 1: Hitachi Deskstar 1tb SATA HDD 2: Maxtor 120g IDE DVD/CD: LGdvd+RW SATA
Wireless: Belkin G
Case: Xion II with 3 case fans, clear side panel
Now under PC Wizard, the amount of wattage being pulled by my system is 167 watts at idle. It peaks to about 280 when using it for gaming, and somewhere in the middle during normal app use.
Now the component that keeps failing is a circular black piece that is located to the side of the fuse. It is in the same position of both supplies and same shape and size, so I can only summarize that it is the exact same component. Does anyone know what this piece regulates or does, and why it would fail on 2 different power supplies.
Oh btw, the PC sits under a desk, and there is 7.5 inches between the back of the PC and the nearest wall. Side with the clear case piece is facing a completely open space. Plenty of ventilation for the system and it's parts. GO!!!!
it is a surge suppressor if circular in shape & thin with 2 leads to the board. are you using a surge protected power bar or is pc connected directly to the wall plug? was there a thunderstorm going on around the time the psu's blew?
Yeah the pc is running off a surge protector. Its a really good one too. There was no storms at all and it only finally blew after it had powered down. Id say about a good 15 seconds after the pc shutoff,.thats when you could see sparks or in my case little bursts of light coming from behind the pc supply unit.
My suggestion would be to use better name branded psu and use someting in the 700w and above range. The psus you have been using are of poor quality. ALso, get rid of that maxtor hdd. Thats also pulling down your system performance. I never use anything in newer systems but sata or greater for the best performance.
I cannot just get rid of the maxtor drive. I have 2 ide backups used in RAID configuration to handle certain important data backup.
As for the power supply, I had heard that Diablotek was a good manufacturer of PSU's. I am currently looking at the OCZ line of power supplies, might go with a 550w modular Fatal1ty series. Have to remember, that money is real tight right now, and I absolutely have to get either my main rig or my server rig back up and running....otherwise I would just drop the cash for 2 real good PSU's from Antec or Corsair. All my posts are from my kids laptops or my phone....lol.
