Smelly Q

elmagicochrisgelmagicochrisg
in Help Wanted!
Hey guys,



A few days ago I bought a Panasonic Q. It's the model that also takes US games when the power button's pushed for a few seconds.



Yesterday I tested it. First 30 seconds the fan went completely nuts, but after that it settled down. Still loud, but bearable.



Tested it with both US games and the one Japanese game I have, and it works like a charm.



However, something that made me feel quite uncomfortable was the smell emanating from it. I could smell it just sitting in front of it.



It has a very distinct electronic smell. Even now that it's been off for a few hours you can still smell it through the fan grill.



I opened the side panel - power button side - but at first sight couldn't see anything wrong.



No discharge or anything. Maybe just one cap that stood out because it had a yellow kind of glue on its base.



Can't seem to find how to upload pictures, so here's a link to it on Photobucket:



http://i984.photobucket.com/albums/ae323/elmagicochrisg/IMG_0643_zpsseeocmen.jpg



So my question is, is this smell normal? Do other Q owners have this? And is that yellow glue normal?...



Any help is welcome...

Comments

  • MrPete1985MrPete1985
    I cannot see the picture because I am at work and photo bucket is blocked. It sounds like one of the caps may have burst and that may not be glue but the electrolytic fluid from the capacitor.



    If you could attach the picture to your post I would be able to see it



    Click on the edit button and click the button that says "Attach File(s)" and upload the picture that way to attach it to the post
  • elmagicochrisgelmagicochrisg
    Done. I think 2.81MB was just too big. Had to resize it.



    I'm sure that is in fact glue on the big cap. I'm just not sure if it started out yellow, or if the electrolyte juice might've discolored it.



    Top of the cap is perfectly flat. No residue on the board next to the yellow glue.
  • MrPete1985MrPete1985
    Looks like the cap is leaking from the bottom and discoloring the glue, I would replace the cap
  • elmagicochrisgelmagicochrisg
    Thanks for taking the time Pete. I appreciate it...  ^^



    So we can rule out the glue was originally yellow then in your opinion?...



    Could anyone who has a Q do me a favor and smell the fan grill, both in on and off mode?...



    That way we can rule out Panasonic just used smelly boards that haven't been gassed out properly.



    EDIT Just googled 'yellow hot glue' and apparently it does exist. Back to square one I guess.
  • dewisp02dewisp02
    Totally normal for caps to have glue on them. The discoloration Pete mentioned is not normal, but hard to tell what it is in the pic you uploaded. Better pics of the entire pcb would help. Electronic smells can be from damaged diodes, resistors, and regulators. Notice any discoloration in the pcb color near any components? This would be an indication of that component getting too hot and most likely running out of spec or on its last leg.
  • elmagicochrisgelmagicochrisg
    Yeah, that's the thing. I kinda dread taking this one apart. Don't get me wrong, I've opened up about everything I've ever bought and have done numerous mods. But this one looks like a real pain to take apart. Chinese 3D puzzle level expert. The mod - I can see the chip and some wires - doesn't help make the disassembly any easier either. So before I do that, I'd like to maybe have 2 or 3 owners sniff their Panny first so I know it's not a common thing. Some electronics are more smelly than others afteral...



    Still not too sure about the glue. Search Google Images for 'yellow hot glue' or 'blonde hot glue' and you'll know what I mean. The color looks pretty similar tbh.



    Hey, there's worse ways to make an entrance right?... "Sniff your Panny for me. Do it. Do it naow."



    ><
  • elmagicochrisgelmagicochrisg
    Whoa, I think I found the problem. And it's both a relief and nasty at the same time.



    Have a look at this pic...







    I took another look inside, and while I was looking at the copper heatsink and thinking maybe I was just smelling the copper I noticed something. You see that black gunk in the heatsink's corner? That's actually the plastic of the power connector!...



    The heatsink is literally resting on the power connector's plastic and slowly melting it!...



    The Hell am I supposed to do now? Redesign the damned thing?... LMAO
  • elmagicochrisgelmagicochrisg
    Just in case anyone wonders, I would still like some confirmation on my findings. So it would be nice if a few people could check if they have the same happening to their Q's.



    Also, any ideas on what I can put between the heatsink and the power supply connector to stop the heat transfer?...
  • elmagicochrisgelmagicochrisg
    So nobody here has a Panasonic Q and is willing to unscrew 6 simple screws to check this? Do I really have to take this somewhere else?...



    I mean, the thing might have a serious design flaw, and a dangerous one at that. Surely this must concern a few people. No?...
  • AlexElectricAlexElectric
    If it were a design flaw causing melting components this likely would have been found by now and a recall issued? Sorry if stupid question but has something become bent causing them to make contact?
  • elmagicochrisgelmagicochrisg
    Originally posted by: AlexElectric



    If it were a design flaw causing melting components this likely would have been found by now and a recall issued? Sorry if stupid question but has something become bent causing them to make contact?



    It's not a stupid question, and one would indeed think that would've been the case.



    However, I just had another look and it really doesn't look like anything got bent. All the boards are flush as far as I can tell.



    Hence why I would like to see other pictures to either confirm my findings, or to show me where things went wrong in mine.

     
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