I received a Voodoo 3 3000 PCI card today.
I was told it does not work.
From a visual inspection it looks like a Capacitor was never installed so this card probably never worked from the factory.
I compared it with a photo from the internet.
Can some one tell what voltage capacitor will work in this card ?
The capacitor reads ( 10 , 16s , 904 or 9G4 )
10uF, 16V. But there's no need to install it, as it is not used.
derSammler wrote on 2020-01-24, 21:28:10uF, 16V. But there's no need to install it, as it is not used.
How do you know this ?
I doubt that cap is the problem. Highly unlikely that they shipped it out with a component missing and no testing.
Also, that is a Voodoo 3 2000 PCI. The 3000s always have a larger silver heatsink (though, very rarely they have larger ones that are painted black too). This is a 3000 PCI with SDRAM:
http://www.3dfx.ch/gallery/v/3dfx_collectors/ … _front.jpg.html
Notice, no cap in that position either.
I would bet that either it is something very simple (contacts need cleaned) or there is damage to either a trace or to an SMD component. The chip can cook itself and die as well, so that's another possibility, though not as common. One thing I have noticed with voodoo 3 cards that are just "dead" with no clear reason, is that the tiniest bit of pressure applied to the middle of the card will create an audible cracking\creaking sound. I've never heard this sound from a working card. If I had to guess, some of the BGA solder joints have broken behind the 3dfx chip. I have a few I plan to take a hot air gun to at some point to test my theory. 😮
EDIT: Also, it is somewhat possible that the capacitors need replaced, though I have admittedly never replaced intact-looking caps on a V3 to fix one, and I have handled dozens of them in recent years. If one is broken off and it is supposed to be there, then it needs replaced. That fixes the problem 90% of the time.
Now for some blitting from the back buffer.
Yeah, It has no video output.
So I am going to add the missing capacitor and see if that fixes it.
the ram spec of 7ns also tells you that this is not a 3000
Intel486dx33 wrote on 2020-01-24, 22:34:Yeah, It has no video output.
So I am going to add the missing capacitor and see if that fixes it.
I really don't think that's going to do anything. I would look at everything else that was mentioned first. Clearly broken off components are worth replacing. Ones that were never there are not.
I mentioned replacing capacitors, as in, all of them, if they have gone out of spec to the point of making the card non functional. This is unlikely but possible. Adding another cap where there wasn't one originally will just increase the chances of accidental damage.
Now for some blitting from the back buffer.
Well, I added the capacitor but it did nothing.
Any Ideas ?
Squirt some liquid flux around/under the BGA voodoo chip and reflow it with a hot air pencil.
wiretap wrote on 2020-01-25, 02:09:Squirt some liquid flux around/under the BGA voodoo chip and reflow it with a hot air pencil.
Well, that would be my last resort. But I need to know how to test the power first.
I can test the diodes and resistors and capacitors and traces with a multimeter.
Intel486dx33 wrote on 2020-01-25, 00:25:Well, I added the capacitor but it did nothing.
Any Ideas ?
Did you try the things suggested earlier?
First off, I'd remove the cap you added because this layout of the board likely wasn't meant to have one there, which is why it was left off.
Check for any damage to the tiny surface mount ceramic caps and resistors. Look for any scratches and follow them to see if they lead to a damaged trace or damaged component.
Clean the PCI contacts vigorously with a pencil eraser and check them for any gouges or deep scratches. Don't be afraid to reinsert the card a dozen times (even inserting with more or less force, or unevenly...) just in case it is a contact issue. These are more common with AGP cards but it can happen with PCI too, even if the connector looks fine at first glance.
Check for any loose surface mount components. I usually use a finger so I can feel if any move or have sharp\broken edges that I couldn't see. I've caught a lot of cracked ceramic caps this way.
Dust the surface of the card with a soft brush, front and back to be sure that any unseen conductive debris is removed (I've seen this fix a dead card probably 20% of the time... which is crazy if you think about how easy a fix this is).
If none of this works, try applying some pressure to the heatsink (even just pinch the card in your fingers) while powering the system on to see if makes any difference... try it a few times. Do the same with the RAM chips.
These are all the non-invasive things I do to diagnose a dead card. None of it is technical, but I "fix" a lot of stuff this way.
After this I would maybe test the voltage regulator if you know how to do that (I personally don't know a lot about this, so I'd have to do a bit of research before I started probing around while the card was powered).
Last resort would be reflowing the chip or replacing all of the caps.
Now for some blitting from the back buffer.
Here is another photo of the same card with-out the capacitor. So maybe it was not needed.
the heatsink on your card seems to be at a slight angle, maybe it got bumped hard enough to break a solder joint under the chip?
Intel486dx33 wrote on 2020-01-25, 22:06:Here is another photo of the same card with-out the capacitor. So maybe it was not needed.
I feel like you're trolling us or something. 👽
Now for some blitting from the back buffer.
Intel486dx33 wrote on 2020-01-24, 21:53:How do you know this ?
The value or that it is not used? The value is easy, as these are mostly standard and you can tell from size. Also, you can even read it on the picture if you know the most commonly used combinations.
And it's clearly not used on that card, because it belongs to the section that is not populated. It's part of the TV-out circuitry.
