Testing my troubleshooting skills!
Summary
TLDRIn this video, the host visits Micro Center's Tech Bar in Tustin, California, to participate in a tech challenge. The challenge involves diagnosing and fixing sabotaged PCs. The host goes through the process of identifying and resolving issues such as incorrectly installed fans, unplugged cables, and mismatched RAM. The video emphasizes the importance of proper PC assembly, component compatibility, and the value of tech support services like those offered at Micro Center's Tech Bar.
Takeaways
- 🏢 Visiting a Micro Center Tech Bar can provide assistance with diagnosing, repairing, and maintaining computer systems, regardless of where they were purchased.
- 🛠️ The speaker conducted an impromptu tech challenge where they sabotaged PC systems to test the troubleshooting skills at the Tech Bar.
- 💻 The Height Y70 dual chamber ATX PC case was featured, offering increased component compatibility and thermal performance.
- 🔧 A common issue found was the incorrect installation of components, such as a CPU fan installed backwards or RAM not seated properly.
- 🌈 RGB functionality problems were discovered, often due to incorrect wiring or fan connections.
- 🔌 The importance of checking power connections and cables was emphasized, as some were found unplugged or connected to the wrong headers.
- 💡 A system's BIOS battery was found unplugged, which could result in the loss of settings and configurations.
- 🥵 High CPU temperatures in the BIOS indicated potential issues with thermal paste application or cooler installation.
- 🛠️ The speaker replaced mismatched RAM sticks with the correct ones to enable XMP profiles for optimal performance.
- 🔄 The process of troubleshooting involves checking for obvious physical issues before diving into software or BIOS configurations.
- 🎥 The video aimed to educate viewers on common PC issues and the services available at Micro Center to help resolve them.
Q & A
What is the main purpose of the Tech Bar at Micro Center?
-The main purpose of the Tech Bar at Micro Center is to serve as a service center for computers, where customers can bring their systems for diagnosis, repair, maintenance, and general assistance, regardless of where the computer was purchased or built.
What specific issues did the presenter discover with the first PC system during the Tech Challenge?
-The presenter found several issues with the first PC system: the CPU fan was installed backwards, the GPU was not connected to the power supply, the RAM was not fully seated, the RGB fan cable was connected incorrectly, the CPU fan header was incorrect, the SEOS battery was unplugged, and the GPU fans were unplugged from the bottom of the GPU.
What is the significance of the Cooler Master AIO cooler mentioned in the script?
-The Cooler Master AIO cooler was significant because it was installed incorrectly, with the cooler immediately placed sideways, indicating that there was no thermal paste applied between the CPU and the cooler, which could lead to overheating issues.
Why did the presenter suspect that the thermal paste on the second PC system might be an issue?
-The presenter suspected that the thermal paste might be an issue because the CPU was idling at an unusually high temperature of 54°C in the BIOS on an AIO cooler, which could indicate that the thermal paste was not applied correctly or was missing.
What was the problem with the RAM configuration in the second PC system?
-The problem with the RAM configuration in the second PC system was that there were two different speed RAMs installed, which could lead to the system running at the speed of the slower RAM stick unless XMP (Extreme Memory Profile) was enabled to correct the issue.
What was the unexpected discovery regarding the thermal paste application on the second PC system?
-The unexpected discovery was that there was plastic from the cooler's protective film still attached to the CPU, which could have been the cause of the high temperatures and throttling issues observed during stress testing.
What advice does the presenter give to viewers regarding PC building and maintenance?
-The presenter advises viewers that while they can learn to do PC building and maintenance on their own through his channel and tools like PC Building Simulator, some people may not be comfortable with doing it themselves. In such cases, services like the Tech Bar at Micro Center are available to help with installations, repairs, and maintenance.
How does the presenter demonstrate the importance of checking the orientation of components during PC assembly?
-The presenter demonstrates the importance by pointing out that the CPU cooler was installed sideways, which would have resulted in ineffective cooling, and by mentioning the incorrect installation of the CPU fan, which was pulling air through the heat sink instead of pushing it.
What is the role of the SEOS battery in a PC system?
-The SEOS battery is crucial for maintaining the system's settings when it is powered off. If the battery is missing or disconnected, the settings will reset, potentially leading to system instability or failure to retain configurations.
What is the significance of the RGB fan cable being connected incorrectly?
-The RGB fan cable being connected incorrectly resulted in the fan not displaying RGB lighting, which might not be a critical issue for system performance but affects the aesthetic and could be a source of confusion or concern for the user.
What did the presenter do to address the high temperatures on the second PC system?
-The presenter removed the Cooler Master AIO cooler, cleaned off the old thermal paste, and reapplied it correctly to address the high temperatures and throttling issues on the second PC system.
Outlines
🌟 Tech Challenge at Micro Center's Tech Bar
The video begins with the host, Jense, at Micro Center in Tustin, California, introducing a tech challenge where he must identify and fix issues in sabotaged PCs at the store's Tech Bar. The Tech Bar is described as a service center for computers, offering diagnostics, repairs, installations, and maintenance. Jense explains the challenge involves discovering and correcting problems that the Tech Bar staff have intentionally created in some systems, mimicking both common builder mistakes and unusual issues. The video then transitions to a detailed review of the Height Y70 dual chamber ATX PC case, highlighting its design, compatibility, thermal performance, and aesthetic features.
💻 Diagnosing Sabotaged Systems at the Tech Bar
In this segment, Jense dives into the process of diagnosing and fixing the sabotaged systems. He describes the first system's issues, including a backward-mounted CPU fan, an unplugged GPU power cable, and an incorrectly seated RAM. Jense also discusses the importance of the EPS connector for power and the potential absence of the CMOS battery. As he works through the system, he uncovers and corrects various issues, such as the misplugged fan headers and the unplugged CMOS battery. Jense emphasizes the value of the Tech Bar's services, especially for those uncomfortable with handling computer hardware themselves.
🔧 Advanced Troubleshooting and Thermal Concerns
The third paragraph focuses on advanced troubleshooting as Jense moves on to a second system with an Intel platform and a Cooler Master AIO cooler. He quickly identifies a single-channel RAM configuration and incorrect fan headers. Despite the system appearing to function initially, Jense suspects thermal paste issues due to high CPU temperatures in the BIOS. Upon inspection, he discovers a clean CPU and realizes the thermal paste was applied correctly. However, he finds plastic still on the cooler, which was causing the overheating. Jense uses this opportunity to advise viewers on the importance of checking cooler installations and the value of the Tech Bar's expertise.
🛠️ Final Thoughts and Micro Center's Tech Bar Services
In the final paragraph, Jense wraps up his experience at the Tech Bar, reflecting on the challenges faced and the lessons learned. He discusses the discovery of mismatched RAM sticks and the importance of proper thermal paste application. Jense also highlights the high temperatures reached by the CPU and the potential misplacement of the cooler's brackets. After resolving the issues, he reiterates the value of the Tech Bar for those who need assistance with their computer systems. Jense concludes by encouraging viewers to visit the Tech Bar for support and shares his positive experience with the services provided.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Tech Bar
💡Sabotage
💡PC Components
💡Thermal Performance
💡RGB
💡BIOS
💡VGA Signal
💡RAM
💡Cooler Master AIO
💡XMP
💡Stress Test
Highlights
The Tech Bar at Micro Center acts as a service center for computers, diagnosing and fixing issues, even for systems not purchased at the store.
The Y70 dual chamber ATX PC case offers increased component compatibility and thermal performance, with a clear window into the heart of your PC.
The Y70 case has expanded four-slot vertical GPU support and includes a 4.0 PCIe Riser cable for accommodating large graphics cards.
Up to 3, 120 mm fans can be mounted below the GPU in the Y70 case for direct cooling, and up to 360 mm AIOs can be mounted on the top and side for improved airflow.
The challenge at the Tech Bar involved sabotaging PCs and seeing if the presenter could identify and fix the issues, similar to a Linus Tech challenge.
The presenter discovered that a fan was installed backward, which could negatively impact cooling efficiency.
RGB functionality was not working on one of the fans due to being plugged into itself, a simple fix was to correct the fan's connection.
The presenter found that the RAM was not seated all the way, which could prevent the system from booting properly.
The GPU was not plugged in, which is a critical oversight that would prevent any display output.
The CMOS battery was found unplugged, which could lead to system settings being lost upon power loss.
Thermal paste was found to be missing or improperly applied on the CPU cooler, leading to high temperatures and potential throttling.
The presenter emphasized the importance of checking all connections and components when troubleshooting PC issues.
Micro Center's Tech Bar offers general maintenance services like virus scans, virus removal, and data recovery.
The presenter used a PC Building Simulator to demonstrate the correct way to apply thermal paste, emphasizing the importance of proper application for effective cooling.
The video concludes with the presenter sharing his experience and encouraging viewers to utilize Micro Center's Tech Bar for their PC needs.
Transcripts
hey what's going on everyone jense here
and we're here at Micro Center in Tustin
California you guys know that's our home
Microcenter store uh we're here actually
featuring The Tech bar today and I got
kind of a fun challenge here where uh
we're going to see whether or not they
can sabotage some PCS and I can figure
out what's wrong with them as sort of
like a little impromptu Tech Challenge
uh but first
logo the height y70 dual chamber ATX PC
case provides users The Familiar look
and feel of the y60 with an increased
component compatibility and thermal
performance with four unique colorways
and a beautifully crafted three-piece
panoramic glass the y70 provides a clear
window into the heart of your PC it's
expanded four- slot vertical GPU support
with an included 4.0 pcie Riser cable
provides ample room for the largest
graphics cards while additional space
between the edge of the card and the
glass provides improved air flow up to 3
120 mm fans can be mounted below the GPU
to provide a direct path of cooling
while up to 360 mm aios can be mounted
to both the top and side y70 also
provides up to 180 mm of clearance for
air coolers to learn more about the
height y70 visit the sponsored Link in
the description below so the cool thing
about the tech bar if you guys aren't
aware think of it as like um kind of
like a service center for your computer
it doesn't matter if it's one that you
bought here or your own that you built
at home if you're having problems with
your system you can bring it here to
help diagnose it uh get it fixed or
repaired make sure everything's running
correctly let's say you came into the
store and you bought some components and
you wanted to have those installed cuz
maybe you're not familiar with how to do
it you can also do that here as well um
you can also get general maintenance
done here virus scans virus removal data
recovery all sorts of stuff can be done
right here at the tech bar um but to
kind of put some of what they go through
kind of to the test like I said I had
them secretly sabotage a couple of their
power spec systems uh and then kind of
keep track of what they did and see
whether or not I can go in there and
actually figure out all of the problems
um I told them to just do everything
from Maybe Might something might be
considered what a new Builder might
accidentally do when putting together a
system all the way to maybe things that
are not just they're just intentionally
not right that may not even necessarily
go looking for because it's so so
unorthodox on the kind of problems we'd
come across so with that said let's go
ahead and head into the tech bar behind
the scenes and their like work area and
let's see what they've got ready for us
okay so here I am in the back area of
the tech bar this is where all like the
repairs and upgrades and services are
performed so I thought it'd be fun like
I kind of already alluded to that it'd
be fun to have them sabotage some of
their open box systems here to see
whether or not I could figure out what's
wrong with them sort of like what we did
with the Linus tech tech challenge with
Steve if you will so I kind of gave them
free reain do whatever you want to the
systems I didn't I think they're above
and beyond what a typical system that
would come in for services like but I
just thought that this would be kind of
a fun idea so I don't know anything
about what's wrong with them I was told
they kind of went ham with them but that
all the parts in there work so no part
swap should be necessary I'm hoping
because there's no parts here to test
with but I have no idea what's wrong
with these so we're going to kind of go
through these one at a time I already
see one thing on this system here that's
sort of bugging me and that is the fact
that the cooler fan is backward WS it's
pulling air through so if you look right
here you can see this deep cool fan is
pulling air through that way and you
never want a single fan to be pulling
air through a heat sink cuz it could
pull in through the sides you want it to
be pushing air through so that's one
thing I'm going to be changing on there
but past that I don't know so let's go
ahead and just turn it on and see what
we got that's got to be the first thing
before I go unplug in and moving things
around everything appears to be plugged
in so far in terms of power and stuff
let's see the eight pin looked like nope
we're good
power s on oh that's a good
start okay well the Fan's not
turning so this fan is not turning but
the RGB is plugged in this fan is
turning but the RGB is not plugged in on
that one so we can check that in in a
second that's not something that's going
to be detrimental to making the system
boot
though we need to see whether or not we
actually get a post we have a red light
not sure no still going through
posts well it looks like it went through
all the posts and succeeded but we don't
have an image so let's
see we have a hard drive light flashing
too if it shut there so it was posted I
don't know why we're not getting an
image so who knows if this GPU is even
plugged
in so now we're going to take a look at
the back now usually a tech working on a
computer would have some information
customer States it's like just rolled in
right customer states have slight
vibration the a arm is Rusted off right
kind of a thing
but I have no idea what any of the
issues are with this system or what the
problems could have potentially been
so this is all just blind now I'm trying
to figure out why that RGB was not on
that top fan but that's kind of not a
problem if we're not
posting So Not only was the Super zip
tide tight the VGA as you can see was
not even plugged in so that's why we
weren't getting any VGA signal I'm
wondering too if maybe EPS was one of
these not plugged in as well well could
be looks like neither EPS well I know if
EPS wasn't plugged in I don't think we
would actually get power at all like
power button wouldn't do anything they
tried to hide it by having that all
bundled Down super tight so they made me
have to actually pull the power
supply I'll worry about the heat sink
fan later cuz it's not that huge of a
deal like it's still getting cooling
passively through the tower okay now the
lights are going through much quicker on
their
test oh wait
I'll push the ram all the way back in
now cuz it wasn't
there so so far we found unplugged power
or GPU cable for the power supply fan is
unplugged in backwards RGB is not
working on that fan I don't know if
that's intentional or unintentional and
the ram was not seated all the way there
we go got blue light okay so at least
we're going to post now I'm not even
going to worry about the BIOS and XMP
and all that until I figure out what's
happening with that fans there like as
far as I can tell they that RGB should
be working
but I hate daisy chain fans cuz it
becomes very difficult to trace them
like especially when they're all like
tangled up like this and then taped
together regardless I need to take care
of the CPU fan
first where do I want to plug that one
in then because they have something
plugged in the CPU fan right now that's
not the CPU fan so I'm going to switch
CPU fan to there it's not a lot of
headers on this motherboard for fans
that's part of the problem okay so I
flip this fan around um it's a little
crooked I guess I could make it a little
straighter it's off a couple but that's
an easy fix there was another fan one of
the front case fans was plugged into the
CPU header so I unplugged that one I'm
going to move it back to a chassis
header and leave the CPU fan plugged
into the CPU header that way it can go
up and down with speeds with uh pwm load
and I'm going to fix this fan cuz it's
not bugging me all right so I figured
out why the RGB wasn't working now
infinite power you just had it plugged
into itself and you taped it even with
the tape you didn't give me a knife no
no no I got to do this the the worst way
possible all right give me the damn
knife oh no wa I got
it so since I knew the GPU fan Orum me
the CPU fan is working I'm going to take
this guy off of here plug him into here
okay okay you don't get extra points for
causing your own problems I would have
so many
points okay I think we're good let's see
no I said that for a reason dude yeah I
know what look at
the ha nice I would have noticed it so
he's adamant that I run stress
tests I have a feeling there might be
some thermal paste missing from this
cooler or one of the coolers or
something this is adamit that I run
stress test okay here we go so our
platform I can finally see it's a 5600
x3d wow this actually is not a slch of a
system here uh on a b550 MC motherboard
32 gigs of RAM so both our ra gigs our
both our gigs both our sticks of ram are
showing they're not at XMP but that's
okay everything's probably been reset so
that'd be easy enough
uh let's go
to XMP profile there we go we'll just
enable that all right so I'm in the OS
it's actually Windows 10 they were like
you might want to check your bios again
so I don't know I'm going to see what I
can see here first committed to slats Ed
two four so both dims are are there I
was curious like maybe one of these was
like a a weird unmatched something or
another so but it seems to be all match
at 3200 what's our GPU it's an RTX 46
that's a 46
wow that's so tiny I guess I'm just so
used to the other ones
now I don't know I can't if the seos
battery might be under the GPU I have a
feeling they removed the seos battery
and what would end up happening at that
point is when you shut it
down it should still stay powered up
with settings cuz it's plugged into the
power supply if that were the case but I
have a
feeling there may not be a seos battery
in here yeah I have no doubt you guys
are probably talking about bios uh Coss
battery but you have to turn power
supply off if that's going to be the
case because it stays persistent the
motherboard stays powered through the
power supply until you turn off that
power switch when you turn off the power
switch if there's no battery installed
then the seos settings will reset so I
could have turned the system off a 100
times until I turn off that power supply
it would have stay kept the settings uh
stored in there but it's not going to be
guaranteed that it's going to
immediately reset it settings if you
turn the system off let's say you get a
power outage or you unplug it or
something your dog unplugs it your C
batter is bad it sits there overnight
all the Caps are going to drain and then
the settings will completely uh return
to what they were okay so it is a seos
battery that's just
unplugged okay so I found the seos
pattery it's one of those weird ones
where they have it like glued in
sideways so you can see it right here
that's the seos battery glued in there
but it's in this little harness but the
harness was unplowed so what should have
happened and I wouldn't have caught
this only because of the fact that once
the system's plugged in and it doesn't
lose power long enough it would not have
reset it settings so that would have
been a missed
item mostly due to the length of time
I'm sitting here with the system and
then there's one other thing I want to
check for I'm going to do a full
shutdown yeah I don't feel like these
GPU fans ever turn even a zero RPM fan
when you first turn on the power the
computer the fan should spin up and
usually that's just for dust moves dust
and kind of does a full post on the on
the GPU as well
well but those are not
turning I have a
feeling on the bottom side those fan
plugs might have been accessible and
they unplugged them I have a feeling of
that told you it was going to be
accessible you know the only reason I
even thought about this is because of
the fact that I just noticed that the
fans were not spinning up on initial
startup and we just repaired one of
these harnesses on E evj GPU that had a
bad fan harness so I just was like betu
is accessible okay let's see if I can
remember all of the issues uh number one
was the CPU fan was installed backwards
number two the GPU in the order I kind
of found them the GPU harness was
unplugged the ram was not seated all the
way on the right side XMP was not
enabled nothing else was really messed
with in the uh bios that I could tell
the front fan was turning but had no RGB
because it was like plugged into itself
so I fixed that CPU fan was not plugged
in the CPU header it was UN unplugged
entirely so I pluged that back in the
CPU header and plug the chassis fan back
in the chassis header that was one right
okay you were looking for that I would
have the headers in the right order okay
um let's see the GPU fan or actually
before that the Coss harness was
unplugged for the seos battery and then
the GPU fans were unplugged from the
bottom of the GPU and I think that's all
of them all right now the first one's
done is it really 11:00 okay so all
right system number two we're probably
not going to do number three I think
because how long it's taking already for
the first one but uh this one I've been
warned
might take a little more time so let's
just see what we got here first of all I
like to do an
initial kind of a once
over all right I don't like how the RAM
sticks are next to each other a single
Channel that's an easy one what is this
platform anyway it's Intel platform well
one of the problems I see is it's a
Cooler Master AIO cuz no one has enough
time to say the whole name
I see a couple of CPU or a couple fan
headers that are off right here so you
see these two right here there two fan
headers that are off that's a DC fan
that's a pwm fan that's probably the
splitter for the AO I don't even know if
those are the correct ports but I'm just
going to go ahead
and break it probably this is why they
just unplugged them halfway they knew
that my fat fingers were going to fit
down in there okay that's visually all I
can see so far so I'm not even going to
open the back yet typically I like to
just see if it'll post
which it more than likely won't cuz this
is the whole point of this challenge
which means I'm doing this for no reason
at all
and yep that's what I
figured uh power switch is plugged into
the power
LED so that's this guy right here on the
bottom see Power s SW that's plugged in
all the way to the left that would be
power LED and it's kind of hard to see
in
there yay I was like wait a minute weird
fake
it happens with Intel systems this is a
higher-end platform you can tell by this
motherboard I should have switched the
ram already but I'm not too concerned
with that I just want to see if we at
least get an image we do
okay
done just kidding it's a pump turning
yes the pump is turning I can feel the
vibration fans are turning yep
yep that's turning those are turning the
right direction see on the surface right
now oh yeah these fans were turning I
just saw them slow down so the GPU fans