I have an nVidia geForce 4Ti 128Mb Graphics Card that was originally sold by Apple as a BTO option for the quicksilver series of desktops about 10 years ago. A capacitor in the top left portion of the board (position C1405/C1406) was inadvertently broken off during cleaning. The capacitor is a 1/4" diam dual pin aluminum canister with the code 232 330 6E on the top. Looking at the other geforce 4 titanium boards shows a pretty similar appearance of components, so I would assume that this is likely to be common on all the boards for that series. I need to get a replacement capacitor, but do not know what the strength or rating is - does anyone know? THe legs appear to be too short to be able to be soldered back.
How about soldering some wires to the capacitor and then soldering the wires to the card. (be sure to keep the polarity correct)
Thanks for replying - the problem is that the legs/leads are really too short - like broken off above the plastic base. A friend suggested the code might mean 232pf at 3.3v but I cannot find any translation anywhere. I did read one post (elsewhere) that suggested the card would work OK with the part missing, but I don't want to risk my monitor.
I bet it's 232mf. Just guessing though. As long as you get one with the same or higher voltage you should be ok.
Yes - 232 microfarads sounds better than picofarads. I know a bit about the theory, but can you tell me why the voltage is not significant? I would have thought that like resistance, function is a product of both. I realize that so long as it blocks a low/high signal and smooths the output it should be OK.
They just need to be rated higher than the voltage they will be working with so that they won't short out or overheat.
I think I have worked out the code now - it is 330mf at 6.3V - still don't know what the 232 means, and since most computer logic boards run at either 5V or 12V, I don't know why 6.3V is used either. Now I just have to source a suitable one. Anyone have any ideas where to get one? (I live in the midwest USA) A lot of the places want minimum orders of a 100 or more.
Try digikey. Electronic Components Distributor | DigiKey Corp. | US Home Page Often you can just plug in the part numbers and it will come out.
A belated thank you to all for the helpful advice. I have the replacement part now, having ordered it from Digikey.
