Computing help
I am looking for some assistance on repairing my computer. I just recently fixed a hard drive issue myself and today about to put the side cover back on I was cleaning some dust inside. Long story short, I thought I disconnected a fan to clean, turns out its attached to the processor, now it has a few broken and bent pins, upon startup the fans go but nothing boots and the monitor doesn't come on.
I F'ed up pretty good, which I am now well aware of.
The cooling fins and fan were attached to the processor so it all came out as one. I tried straightening the pins to no avail.
I'm pretty sure I'm into a new processor now. It is a socket type. I don't know a ton about them or which ones to even look at, not doing anything too crazy with the computer. This one managed everything I needed just fine.
The model # of this one is
AMD Phenom ii
HD96ZTWFK4DGR
Looking up processors in general shows that these aren't cheap.
What is recommended I get, or for the best price. Something with similar specs as this one will manage just fine.
Also, do they come with a new tube of paste when re-Installing for the first time?
Lastly, is it as simple as taking the new one, inserting it carefully, then applying paste, and on top of everything install heat sink and fan, and everything should be back to normal?
In soo mad at myself ATM for this. Had I screwed the cover in place id have a perfectly working great computer, now I'm in for who knows how much.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
I F'ed up pretty good, which I am now well aware of.
The cooling fins and fan were attached to the processor so it all came out as one. I tried straightening the pins to no avail.
I'm pretty sure I'm into a new processor now. It is a socket type. I don't know a ton about them or which ones to even look at, not doing anything too crazy with the computer. This one managed everything I needed just fine.
The model # of this one is
AMD Phenom ii
HD96ZTWFK4DGR
Looking up processors in general shows that these aren't cheap.
What is recommended I get, or for the best price. Something with similar specs as this one will manage just fine.
Also, do they come with a new tube of paste when re-Installing for the first time?
Lastly, is it as simple as taking the new one, inserting it carefully, then applying paste, and on top of everything install heat sink and fan, and everything should be back to normal?
In soo mad at myself ATM for this. Had I screwed the cover in place id have a perfectly working great computer, now I'm in for who knows how much.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Comments
If it was an Intel processor I would say it would be quite likely that I could straighten the pins out, but for an AMD, no way.
Yes I damaged some of the pins, some (about 5 or 6) have broken off completely from being bent back straight. A couple others are bent up pretty good.
I wasn't trying to dust under the processor, I thought the large plastic tab released just the fan so I could remove and clean it, it turns out the fan is attached to the large metal heat sink, and the heat sink is directly above the processor and from the thermal paste has bonded to the sink and removed all of the above when I removed the fan.
The processor itself has a small metal arm (locked and unlocked position) which i was unaware of and tried reinstalling the entire unit all together (fan, heat sink, processor). By doing so, the processer arm wasn't in the unlocked position so it didn't 'fall' back into place, thus causing some damage to the pins.
Regarding the side cover, had I just put it on rather then cleaning the Inside I wouldn't have gotten myself into this mess.
The motherboard should be unaffected. The motherboard is the female version of the processor.
Looking to spend as little as possible as none of this should have happened had I left it alone.
And my AMD processor has like a couple hundred pins on a very small surface, pretty unlikely it could have been fixed.
Would I be able to get a new processor of similar specs and just simply 'drop' it into place....now that I know exactly how they go together, and in the correct steps.
This is of course the million dollar question, and the answer is "maybe?"
IF nothing else broke (like the heatsink mounts / the socket itself / something else) you are looking at around $70 - $100 for a used processor similar to what you had before. Problem is, you are paying good money for old tech (that CPU came out 5 years ago), and even worse its a gamble because you might spend the $100 and still be out of luck when you find out the motherboard is toast.
On the other side, it isn't as easy as just buying a newer processor and dropping that in. Like comp said above, a newer processor means you would need a new motherboard to match. On top of that, when you drop a new motherboard into an existing system, it's going to go for a pretty big shit when you boot it up, ranging from just driver troubleshooting to needing a full re-install. It might even reject your windows licence, as it can think of itself as a new PC. You will also need to evaluate if dropping a bunch of old parts into your shiny new motherboard and processor combo makes sense, which depending on what you have might result in looking at a ram upgrade, new video card, maybe an SSD, etc. This rabbit hole can go deep
Either way, you are kind of boned... but it sounds like a good excuse to upgrade to me!
Let's assume the motherboard isn't affected. What do you mean exactly by a new motherboard to match?
My current processor was AM2 or AM3+ (if that makes sense) I found one at tiger direct (AM3+) AMD processor with very similar specs, quad core, processing speed, memory etc for around $100.
Would dropping this in not just be a done deal? Its compatible in the sense that it's the same socket and pin configuration and with similar specs. Would everything not just 'boot up' as normal.
Like I said, I F'ed up big here by even messing with it in the first place. Don't really want to get into motherboard, graphics card, ram, software etc etc etc. just really want it to how it was 5 hrs ago.
It's actually a pretty solid machine overall and to this day (well, not today) im very pleased with its computing power, speed, storage and efficiency. For what I use it for, it's definitely high end.
That said, if you do find a processor that fits, it might work or it might not... there's no telling what can happen to a motherboards sensitive electronics when a cpu with broken pins is powered up inside of it, and no telling what is wrong with the socket that the cpu was able to just come out with the fan despite being locked in!
Bfill, I wasn't aware of your pc knowledge to this extent.. We have to talk sometime..
Given that, my pc building skills maybe a little dated as I really don't build pc's anymore, just no money in it..
As Bfill says, the danger is, and we have no way of knowing for sure, that when the processor was forced out it may have done damage to the spring contacts inside the socket itself. They are not meant to be pulled apart like that, that's why the locking mechanism is there. The damage may have been done either when the processor was pulled out or when you tried to put it back in with the lock still in place.
Even if for sure it wasn't damaged, I think your chances are slim of making it work yourself. If you get us the make/model/release # of the board we can figure out what processors it supports but not much beyond that.
re your question about using an AM3+ processor in an AM3 board, don't think you can do that. See the post below from Tom's Hardware (used to be my favorite place for questions re custom builds)
Will an AM3 processor work in an AM3+ Motherboard? - Gaming - Motherboards
h-alvorix rs880 uatx
It was not a custom build, but a store bought...x years ago.
I thought i seen on my current processes spec page that it was compatible With those following socket types. AM2+ AM3 something or other.
Here is a pretty detailed page on its layout and specs.
Says it supports AM3 only I think I read. That means I won't work with AM3+ I'm guessing.
Nice work ID'ing the motherboard. You are correct, looks like this one is AM3 only... which sucks since I just dug through an old box of attic junk and found an Athlon X2 chip to send you... but it turned out to be an AM2 so no good unfortunately.
At this point I would buy the absolute cheapest AM3 processor you can find... I'm talking like a $20 one... and see if it boots. Just go into it knowing that there's a pretty good chance that your MB is facked... and if it works you can always buy a faster processor down the road.
Well thanks comp, pretty cool to hear coming from the resident expert. Started out on a C64 at age 2 and have been the tech support guy ever since!
Ya know, for it's time the C64 was indeed the bomb as far as gaming computers went. That thing was around before they figured out copy protection! A friend of mine had literally two suitcases full of 5.25" disks full of games.
It was by far an improvement over the C16 or the TI99.
First computer game I ever played was Zork I on my friend's IBM XT. Despite being text based, it was a pretty awesome game.
Amber screen. Lol.
AMD Athlon II x 2 2 7 GHz Dual Core Processor ADX215OCK22GQ AM2 AM3 711050715713 | eBay
Also, assuming this works, I could of coarse pick a better one out and it shouldn't have any issues, my question is, are these types of items (bought from a brick and mortar) returnable? Or are they always final sale?
If these types of items can generally be returned for a refund (assuming my board is toast) I could just go buy a $100 one and if it works, great, if not I could get my money back.
the one you linked looks perfect, for 10 bucks I'd give it a go for sure. Free thermal paste too, you are practically free-rolling
hope it works, good luck!
Typically not, especially if it's already been installed into a board.. fyi, delivery from China is typically much faster than coming from the US..
I've always had bad luck when buying super cheap items with free shipping when it comes from china. Takes a min of 30 days to arrive. Don't want to wait that long....now if the board is no good I'll be waiting probably longer though.
Let's hope I run good on this one and hopefully it'll only be a $100 lesson once it's said and done.
I'm negotiating one on eBay ATM that is in Toronto trying for $20 shipped. It's AM3, single core, bare bones unit I would assume. This would be my quickest option.
for sure don't run it without the thermal paste. maybe see if the seller of the proc has any extra he can throw in?
Edit: the guy off ebay I'm buying it from is just selling his used CPU so I'll have to source this paste elsewhere.
Most pc stores will still sell thermal paste I think, likely $5 or 6 per tube. I know we still stock it and sell like 3 or 4 per year...
It works almost as good.
But why bother saving a few cents.
I have an old 1 Gig Hz Athalon cpu, motherboard and memory you can have for free if come pick it up.
To be honest if I was buying a new motherboard and processor, I'd by a Z170 Motherboard and Skylake processor.
Sure wouldn't do this with an AMD processor, might have got away with it back in 386/Celeron days but now..??
This is the standard "saran-wrap-in-place-of-condom" question. While some toothpastes may provide the correct type of thermal conductivity, "toothpaste" is too big a category to answer the question accurately. Worse, unless you want to make it a fun science project, nobody is going to be testing different types of toothpastes for thermal conductivity.
That said, the answer is probably "yes." Toothpaste is definitely better than nothing, because air (i.e., nothing) is a terrible heat conductor. That said, there are other properties to consider. From Wikipedia
•How well it fills the gaps and conforms to the component's uneven surfaces and the heat sink
•How well it adheres to those surfaces
•How well it maintains its consistency over the required temperature range
•How well it resists drying out or flaking over time
•How well it insulates electrically
•Whether it degrades with oxidation or breaks down over time
Thanks a lot man! Really loving all the support here from everyone.
I just bought a tube at the local computer store and now just awaiting the CPU.
Hopefully it all boots up no issues then I can try and source a better one, or the same one that was prev in there.
If it doesn't I may take you up on your offer on the board and CPU. Although I'll be in a world of hurt if it doesn't work. I try and research as much as I can about these things but building a new board, memory, CPU and all the accessories that go With it is probably well beyond my knowledge. Hoping for the best.
It's a....
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1438978981.060621.jpg
Computer turns on, boots up my home screen. No damage appears to be done thank god!!
Now aside from being a bit on the slow side (single core, low speed CPU installed) it appears to be good. Loading programs or Firefox take a few moments, a bit different coming from a quad core with much higher speeds.
I can't thank you guys enough for your input, advice and support.
I'm now back up and running and quickly made good form by blowing about $100 4 tabling in under 2 hrs! And couldn't be happier about it.
One last question I guess, now that I know the system works, for best performance, am I best off sourcing that exact same CPU part number as to what was in there? I seen a few on eBay for around $80 or so but will probably take a month to get to me.