if they're actually NOS and not desoldered why wouldn't the markings still be pristene ^^

at least it has a real datecode

brownk wrote on 2020-04-24, 00:50:

CS4232-KQEP.jpg I'm looking for few samples of Crystal CS4232-KQ Audio Controller, and have stumbled upon a seller who sent me a […]
Show full quote

CS4232-KQEP.jpg
I'm looking for few samples of Crystal CS4232-KQ Audio Controller, and have stumbled upon a seller who sent me a photo of their stock upon my request.
I'm not an expert in evaluating how genuine a chip could be, but this... I mean the bright white stencil boldly standing out after all these years... perplexes me so much.
What's the chance of this being 100% genuine?

Fakes usually clone more expensive chips.

imi wrote on 2020-04-24, 00:57:

if they're actually NOS and not desoldered why wouldn't the markings still be pristene ^^

at least it has a real datecode

So, it passes your evaluation. I'll take the "real datecode" part. 👍

gdjacobs wrote on 2020-04-24, 01:04:

Fakes usually clone more expensive chips.

That actually makes sense. Then, this seller asks $12 a piece while Yamaha YMF262 costs around $8.

I just cannot hide that the more I'm looking at the photo, the more I become suspicious.

Do you see the white blurry rectangle on its right half?

Probably just a reflection, especially since I am guessing they are taking the pic through a plastic film that is keeping the chip sealed in the strip it is/was part of.

Looks like sticker residue to me

brownk wrote on 2020-04-24, 01:14:

So, it passes your evaluation. I'll take the "real datecode" part. :+1: […]
Show full quote

imi wrote on 2020-04-24, 00:57:

if they're actually NOS and not desoldered why wouldn't the markings still be pristene ^^

at least it has a real datecode

So, it passes your evaluation. I'll take the "real datecode" part. 👍

gdjacobs wrote on 2020-04-24, 01:04:

Fakes usually clone more expensive chips.

That actually makes sense. Then, this seller asks $12 a piece while Yamaha YMF262 costs around $8.

Those DSP24 and LS212 illegal OPL3 clones had a fair size market in clone boards because of the costs and restrictions surrounding the YMF262 (and 289 to a lesser extent). The C-Media ISA chips went under a few names as well. I suspect Crystal Semi's chips were already cost competitive enough that they just weren't worth faking. If a board manufacturer really wanted to squeeze pennies, they could always buy CS4235 chips as they were dumped on the market.

Try rubbing it with a cotton swab drenched in isopropyl alcohol, if you get black paint coming off it's 100% fake.

gdjacobs wrote on 2020-04-24, 01:04:

Fakes usually clone more expensive chips.

Unfortunately not. They clone whatever can be sold in high quantities.

appiah4 wrote on 2020-04-24, 05:54:

Try rubbing it with a cotton swab drenched in isopropyl alcohol, if you get black paint coming off it's 100% fake.

That's a sure way to figure it out. 😀 In fact, once the chip is in my hand, there are few more ways to check if it's real. It's probably just me, but I get this strong itchy when it comes to bet few bucks on a questionable piece of plastic. 😖 I just don't want to be at a receiving end of a dud.

derSammler wrote on 2020-04-24, 09:37:

Unfortunately not. They clone whatever can be sold in high quantities.

I'm more in the same school. It seems they just magically grow whatever they can. I indeed asked every seller I came across a photo proof, and this is, by far, the most credible one I've received.

Never trust seller photos, especially anything coming out of China. They usually have a legitimate chip as the sale photo or requested photo, then send out the fakes when you purchase. Happened to me when trying to build a Cirrus Logic VGA card for my 8088. I received a blank trainer chip that had no internal electrical connections whatsoever, and the printing on the chip rubbed off with alcohol.

wiretap wrote on 2020-04-24, 13:43:

Never trust seller photos, especially anything coming out of China. They usually have a legitimate chip as the sale photo or requested photo, then send out the fakes when you purchase. Happened to me when trying to build a Cirrus Logic VGA card for my 8088. I received a blank trainer chip that had no electrical connections whatsoever.

What a perfect piece of plastic that was. After combing through all these Alibaba sellers, I think I'll leave them as my last resort.

Meanwhile, US/UK sellers provide different stories. I can tell for sure most of them show genuine photos of their stock, but many are wrong chips. But, at least, I get what I see. 😀

all yamaha chips I got from china were remarked ^^

I bought a lot of GAL chips from china once, and since it was leftover stock apparently still in the original packaging the image was exactly what I got 😀

a lot of the yamaha chips from europe are the same remarked ones as from china, I guess they just source them there as well.

imi wrote on 2020-04-24, 14:19:

all yamaha chips I got from china were remarked ^^

I bought a lot of GAL chips from china once, and since it was leftover stock apparently still in the original packaging the image was exactly what I got 😀

a lot of the yamaha chips from europe are the same remarked ones as from china, I guess they just source them there as well.

No, I bought 10 OPL2s from Aliexpress last year and all 10 were genuine with date markings from between 89 and 95.. I still have 3 or 4 of them at hand.

I didn't say that it's impossible to get original ones, just that I haven't ^^

Sorry my bad 😁

derSammler wrote on 2020-04-24, 09:37:

gdjacobs wrote on 2020-04-24, 01:04:

Fakes usually clone more expensive chips.

Unfortunately not. They clone whatever can be sold in high quantities.

Of course, but they're not going to sell as many fakes if they're not cheaper than the genuine articles.