MattRocks wrote on 2026-04-01, 19:18:

Thank you. It feels like not worth repairing (or even using) GeForce6/7/8 cards as their breakage is just.. inevitable.

If you keep the die temperature under control and select GPU revisions that produce less heat, you can mitigate thermal fatigue quite a bit.

The good news is that the video card works! It's currently crushing 3dmark 2000 in a different system with scores over 14,000.

It's in a different system because I'm not sure about the Via motherboard. It might not be stable. Crashed when I tried to put in a USB drive. But maybe it's because it is running a hacked up version of windows XP with a custom shell that wants to vpn into fullswinggolf.com. So it is a golf simulator.

The hard drive is kind of curious. WD WD800JD Caviar SE 80 GB SATA hard drive. That's one of those early SATA 1 drives that has both the legacy 4 pin molex and the sata power connectors.

Congrats on your find! If a 6800GT doesn't POST, is it basically wall art?

MattRocks wrote on 2026-04-01, 20:13:

The Radeons in my collection are holding up better. I have more failures in X1000 era, but I figured that was due to insufficient cooling on the Rialto?

That's another possible failure point as well.

MattRocks wrote on 2026-04-01, 21:37:

Congrats on your find! If a 6800GT doesn't POST, is it basically wall art?

I'd check the capacitors before tossing.

MattRocks wrote on 2026-04-01, 20:13:

TechieDude wrote on 2026-04-01, 20:03:

MattRocks wrote on 2026-04-01, 19:18:

Thank you. It feels like not worth repairing (or even using) GeForce6/7/8 cards as their breakage is just.. inevitable.

Quite a few GeForce FX and Radeon GPUs are also susceptible to it, sadly. But there are also revisions that fixed that problem.

The Radeons in my collection are holding up better. I have more failures in X1000 era, but I figured that was due to insufficient cooling on the Rialto?

I had an X1900PRO AGP that just simply died for no reason, and I think it was a bumpgate defect.

appiah4 wrote on Yesterday, 10:08:

I had an X1900PRO AGP that just simply died for no reason, and I think it was a bumpgate defect.

For any electronics between 1999 to 2006, you have to look at the capacitors first, solder bump fatigue second or later than second.

Solder bump fatigue is mechanical stress created by heating and cooling cycles and will affect larger chips more than smaller chips, and hotter chips more than cooler chips.

X1900 has a 352mm^2 die size and up to 100watts TDP, so sure, seems like a possible candidate as the number of thermal cycles goes up.

6800GT has a 287mm^2 die size and up to 60watts TDP, so seems like it should not be as prone to issues especially because the fan and heat sink stayed clean. And if this card was actually used in a simulator that was left on 24x7, it might have been warm constantly which sound bad at first, but it also means fewer cooling heating cycles, which might have prolonged its life.

I took a bunch of metal waste to a nearby waste collection center and made the mistake of looking in the computer waste container. Hundreds of computers dumped in there with god knows how much or how rare hardware and of course nothing can be taken, not even for money. Government regulations. Guy said he was literally threatened with a pay cut if he lets even a single item leave the yard.
Fuck, I need a beer.

Mandrew wrote on Yesterday, 15:21:

I took a bunch of metal waste to a nearby waste collection center and made the mistake of looking in the computer waste container. Hundreds of computers dumped in there with god knows how much or how rare hardware and of course nothing can be taken, not even for money. Government regulations. Guy said he was literally threatened with a pay cut if he lets even a single item leave the yard.
Fuck, I need a beer.

This is one of those situations where stealing is ethical.

My local recycler has certainly had an item or two mysteriously disappear over the years. Though the last couple of years I havent seen anything interesting. eWaste is increasingly late 2000s early 2010s office PCs. Actual eWaste.

You can thank our lawsuit happy modern world for nothing being able to be taken. No recycler wants to risk being involved when some idiot leaves their tax returns or bank account details on a PC and gets their identity stolen.

douglar wrote on 2026-04-01, 22:07:

MattRocks wrote on 2026-04-01, 21:37:

Congrats on your find! If a 6800GT doesn't POST, is it basically wall art?

I'd check the capacitors before tossing.

Its worth noting a GeForce 6800 is literally the only card I've ever had success in reflowing with a hot air gun.

TheAbandonwareGuy wrote on Yesterday, 16:50:

This is one of those situations where stealing is ethical. […]
Show full quote

Mandrew wrote on Yesterday, 15:21:

I took a bunch of metal waste to a nearby waste collection center and made the mistake of looking in the computer waste container. Hundreds of computers dumped in there with god knows how much or how rare hardware and of course nothing can be taken, not even for money. Government regulations. Guy said he was literally threatened with a pay cut if he lets even a single item leave the yard.
Fuck, I need a beer.

This is one of those situations where stealing is ethical.

My local recycler has certainly had an item or two mysteriously disappear over the years. Though the last couple of years I havent seen anything interesting. eWaste is increasingly late 2000s early 2010s office PCs. Actual eWaste.

You can thank our lawsuit happy modern world for nothing being able to be taken. No recycler wants to risk being involved when some idiot leaves their tax returns or bank account details on a PC and gets their identity stolen.

in 2019/2020 I had a good thing going: the nearest Ewaste facility to me was very small, and they had stuff spillout into a front yard that wasn't fenced off. So after hours you could stop by and pick through it, and on weekends people would drop stuff off so you could occasionally score things that hadn't even been inspected. But then they moved to building with more storage where all of this could be placed out of reach.

Mandrew wrote on Yesterday, 15:21:

I took a bunch of metal waste to a nearby waste collection center and made the mistake of looking in the computer waste container. Hundreds of computers dumped in there with god knows how much or how rare hardware and of course nothing can be taken, not even for money. Government regulations. Guy said he was literally threatened with a pay cut if he lets even a single item leave the yard.
Fuck, I need a beer.

In my area, some guys care and and some don't. Not saying I have a score sheet or anything but ....... maybe I've been taking notes.

TheAbandonwareGuy wrote on Yesterday, 16:50:

Though the last couple of years I havent seen anything interesting. eWaste is increasingly late 2000s early 2010s office PCs. Actual eWaste.

Very true. It's getting harder and harder to "strike beige". And it's reflected in the prices on ebay. Stuff before 1997 lasted pretty well and showed up quite often until about 3 years ago. Stuff sold during '99 to '04 frequently had burned out chips and/or bloated caps. That stuff hit the bins 10-15 years ago. And the stuff from '07- '17 ? It's good gear with a long life span, but its not as interesting to me, and it's hitting the bins in a hurry because it's not officially compatible with windows 11.

douglar wrote on 2026-03-08, 02:33:

I found a https://theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/nvidia … rce-680i-lt-sli with a https://theretroweb.com/expansioncards/s/evga … […]
Show full quote

I found a https://theretroweb.com/motherboards/s/nvidia … rce-680i-lt-sli
with a https://theretroweb.com/expansioncards/s/evga … t-super-clocked

But check out these caps!! Looks like they were chewing bubble gum and had an accident

The attachment Photo Mar 07 2026, 7 31 23 PM.jpg is no longer available

This board works, believe it or not. it has 4GB ram and an E8400 “wolfdale” cpu

TheAbandonwareGuy wrote on Yesterday, 16:50:

This is one of those situations where stealing is ethical.

What?.. Seriously?.. People have a right to dispose of their 'garbage' they deem unnecessary and recyclable. What is it with you and this entire attitude of being entitled to other people's stuff?

appiah4 wrote on Today, 06:10:

TheAbandonwareGuy wrote on Yesterday, 16:50:

This is one of those situations where stealing is ethical.

What?.. Seriously?.. People have a right to dispose of their 'garbage' they deem unnecessary and recyclable. What is it with you and this entire attitude of being entitled to other people's stuff?

He means from the e-waste yard.

Usually, they dont even properly process e-waste at such places, which is why big boats of the stuff are coming back from east asia.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/ … w/129459066.cms

Generally, all the e-waste centers even *DO* to the waste, is break it up into smaller bits, rendering it useless for the second and third hand markets. It's simply more valuable *BEFORE* they "process" it.

Found this MSI GE72 6QD Apache Pro laptop. It looks almost unused, it's so clean and no signs of use at all. Someone probably used this as a desktop computer with external monitor, mouse and keyboard. Not really interesting machine. It is too old for modern use, and too new for any retro purpose. Just couldn't leave such nice looking machine behind.

i7-6700HQ, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD + 1TB HDD, GTX 960M.

wierd_w wrote on Today, 06:13:

He means from the e-waste yard. […]
Show full quote

appiah4 wrote on Today, 06:10:

TheAbandonwareGuy wrote on Yesterday, 16:50:

This is one of those situations where stealing is ethical.

What?.. Seriously?.. People have a right to dispose of their 'garbage' they deem unnecessary and recyclable. What is it with you and this entire attitude of being entitled to other people's stuff?

He means from the e-waste yard.

Usually, they dont even properly process e-waste at such places, which is why big boats of the stuff are coming back from east asia.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/ … w/129459066.cms

Generally, all the e-waste centers even *DO* to the waste, is break it up into smaller bits, rendering it useless for the second and third hand markets. It's simply more valuable *BEFORE* they "process" it.

That is beside the point. Their junk may be treasure for you, but you can not judge them for wanting to send it to a landfill to reduce what they think is basically clutter and pollution. The owner has decided that it needs to be destroyed/recycled whatever; who is anyone to question what they do with their own property to the point of legitimizing theft? This is borderline sociopathic entitlement.

appiah4 wrote on Today, 11:19:

wierd_w wrote on Today, 06:13:

He means from the e-waste yard. […]
Show full quote

appiah4 wrote on Today, 06:10:

What?.. Seriously?.. People have a right to dispose of their 'garbage' they deem unnecessary and recyclable. What is it with you and this entire attitude of being entitled to other people's stuff?

He means from the e-waste yard.

Usually, they dont even properly process e-waste at such places, which is why big boats of the stuff are coming back from east asia.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/ … w/129459066.cms

Generally, all the e-waste centers even *DO* to the waste, is break it up into smaller bits, rendering it useless for the second and third hand markets. It's simply more valuable *BEFORE* they "process" it.

That is beside the point. Their junk may be treasure for you, but you can not judge them for wanting to send it to a landfill to reduce what they think is basically clutter and pollution. The owner has decided that it needs to be destroyed/recycled whatever; who is anyone to question what they do with their own property to the point of legitimizing theft? This is borderline sociopathic entitlement.

I agree. Every public benefit (libraries, museums, etc.) play by the rules of the open market.

appiah4 wrote on Today, 11:19:

That is beside the point. Their junk may be treasure for you, but you can not judge them for wanting to send it to a landfill to reduce what they think is basically clutter and pollution. The owner has decided that it needs to be destroyed/recycled whatever; who is anyone to question what they do with their own property to the point of legitimizing theft? This is borderline sociopathic entitlement.

IANAL but ..

In the United States, while there are some municipalities that have anti-scavaging laws, generally speaking discarded items placed at the curb for trash pickup are considered public domain in most places. It's not theft. It's free lance recycling.

Items delivered to an e-waste facility stop being property of the trash maker and belong to the e-waste facility. If the operator at the e-waste facility lets you take an item, it is legal for you to take it, even if the original user wanted it destroyed. That's an issue between the e-waste facility and the trash maker, not an issue between you and the law.

It becomes much more of a grey area if you try to claim unsecured items lying on or near the property of the e-waste facility. At that point, things go from questionable to illegal, depending where the item is located, what signage is posted, and if a reasonable person would consider it "abandoned".

appiah4 wrote on Today, 11:19:

That is beside the point. Their junk may be treasure for you, but you can not judge them for wanting to send it to a landfill to reduce what they think is basically clutter and pollution. The owner has decided that it needs to be destroyed/recycled whatever; who is anyone to question what they do with their own property to the point of legitimizing theft? This is borderline sociopathic entitlement.

What? Usually people just want to get rid off stuff they don't need and is taking space. Most of the time they couldn't care less if somebody scavenges it, and if it goes to use, that's also a way to reduce pollution.

douglar wrote on Yesterday, 17:37:

Very true. It's getting harder and harder to "strike beige". And it's reflected in the prices on ebay.

Btw, how much prices on eBay have gone up during the last five years? Some prices like 486 motherboards seem pretty crazy there. Here retro stuff is still relatively cheap on local second hand marketplaces (eg. www.tori.fi ), but there's only a limited selection available.