VOGONS


First post, by BLockOUT

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Hey there.

I have two voodoo5, one is AGP and the other one is PCI.
I bought them years ago when the prices were not so crazy, and people was not really aware of a collection wave going on.
Last time i checked on ebay i was shocked. And i see more and more people looking to have one of these even without the box.

i was looking at this site, because i plan on keeping my investment in the best possible way, and i found this website.
https://techtangents.net/2020/09/27/voodoo-5- … 8%86-3-5-skill/

and i got interested in the digikey link because they accept paypal, but sadly the capacitors listed are always out of stock: https://www.digikey.com/short/zwt1h5

2 capacitors are just not available and one does not even show a date.

I was wondering if someone here in this forum that really knows about electronics if you can help me identify and tell me a manufacture part# replacement that is actually in stock in order to exchange those 2 caps that are not available. If you can please share a link for the 10uf and for the 470uf. Because i really don´t want to make any mistakes on choosing a replacement part#

so i can buy 2 kits and work on the cards with my desoldering tweezers.

can anyone help me?

Reply 1 of 6, by ChrisK

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Hi,

just some words for the soldering work in general:
You shouldn't do this if you don't have at least some experience with this kind of work. It may look quite easy but desoldering SMD caps can be very annoying if you don't have the right tools and can visually ruin your boards by damaging some traces, solder mask or even the pads by too much heat. Getting these caps of the PCB requires some amout of heating power (and at best some pre-heating device) due to the connection to potential large power planes.
The fact that you mentioned desoldering tweezers let's me guess that you don't do that kind of work every day. Just a guess...

Regarding the caps I would generally propose to go with 105°C types. These on the list seem to comply with that although they are partly rated for 2000 hours only which is the lowest end.
At Digikey you can filter for similar parts from the product pages and also let you show just those who are in stock.
Here is what I would come up with:

10uF/16V - alternatives list:
https://www.digikey.com/en/products/filter/al … luBoU7cgs6YR2gA

recommendation: (not on the list above but readily available with some larger capacity, which shouldn't really hurt)
https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/pa … C220UAR/1700983
or
https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/pa … MBVASiALoC%2BQA

470uF/16V - alternatives list:
https://www.digikey.com/en/products/filter/al … yPD0K9uSW9CJnQA

recommendation:
https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/un … 1MJA0G/10486631

The third one is available at the moment as you already stated.

Please note that I neither checked the original recommendation for replacement parts at the mentioned vogons thread nor do I know the exact original part's values on the Voodoo cards. I just started with the Digikey shopping cart link provided in your post. Also I'm not sure if these (really expensive) polymer caps are really needed as these weren't on the marked back then when 3dfx was alive.
If (still I don't know the original part's specs!) "normal" aluminum electrolytic capacitors are allowed one could start selection with this:
https://www.digikey.com/en/products/filter/al … 8OEKezkSz0ETsoA

Hope that helps.
Best regards.

Reply 2 of 6, by adalbert

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ChrisK wrote on 2021-12-15, 13:42:

Also I'm not sure if these (really expensive) polymer caps are really needed as these weren't on the marked back then when 3dfx was alive.

Polymer caps did exist back then (Sanyo OS-CON), and Voodoo 5 seems to be using them for the two biggest capacitors:

oscon.jpg
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I don't think there is a need to replace these two caps if they don't show any symptoms of damage, as the polymer used in such capacitors shouldn't be prone to degradation.

Repair/electronic stuff videos: https://www.youtube.com/c/adalbertfix
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Reply 3 of 6, by BLockOUT

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thanks for the list! now im sure on what to buy

i know the smd caps are kind of difficult to take out and if you force you can break a trace.
my idea is to put just a little flux on each side, put more new solder with my soldering iron on each capacitor side

and then use a cheap tweezer zd-409 very slowly to take it out

Reply 4 of 6, by snufkin

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PCBONEZ made a good post in the thread with a few suggestions about removing the capacitors: Re: Voodoo 5 5500 AGP Compatibility Problem

I've got a sort of horrified attraction with the last method, but I can see how it could work without causing damage.

That whole thread from around half way down page 1 is probably relevant, identifying the make and spec of the capacitors. It does look to me like it's just the small electrolytics that have leaked and started to do terrible things to the PCB. If yours show any sign of leakage then you may want to give the board a good clean, including under component like the big capacitors and the regulator chip where any damage may be hidden.

Reply 5 of 6, by ChrisK

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adalbert wrote on 2021-12-15, 14:59:

Polymer caps did exist back then (Sanyo OS-CON), and Voodoo 5 seems to be using them for the two biggest capacitors:
oscon.jpg

I don't think there is a need to replace these two caps if they don't show any symptoms of damage, as the polymer used in such capacitors shouldn't be prone to degradation.

OK, did think the Voodoo 5 came out before/around 2000 and the OS-CONs appearing on the market not before 2010. Also did not think they would be used on consumer tech because of their high price.
Still not seeing much relevance for most applications for them. At least I have never made any design using them. But ok, depends on application and market.

adalbert wrote on 2021-12-15, 14:59:

I don't think there is a need to replace these two caps if they don't show any symptoms of damage, as the polymer used in such capacitors shouldn't be prone to degradation.

Full ACK.

I would suggest further to take another less valuable PCB first and practice replacing SMD caps to get a feeling for it 😀

[Edit:]
After reviewing the videos of user PCBONEZ I recognize number two as my personal way to do it. Just add some solder, preferrably some non-lead free, to the pads to aid the heat transfer then heat up one pad and lift the cap a bit. Then repeat on the other side and so on until it is removed. Then clean the pads with solder wick and IPA, then solder the new caps. Observe the correct polarization!
I would NOT recommend options one and three as the risk to damage the pads would be way too high, imho.

Reply 6 of 6, by Justin1091

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Just did this for the second time couple of months ago and I like to use pliers to twist the capacitors off, like PCBONEZ suggested with option 3. They are glued to the v5 (at least in my case) and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't remove them using solder. Do try on a spare board first! And make sure you press down on the board when twisting the capacitor.

The large ones can be removed easier though, without the twist method even iirc.