Argh! What should I do?!

[rowan]

Ok,

After all of my waiting, I finally got all of the items I needed for building my first computer. I had set aside this weekend for building it, and I excitedly cleared my desk to establish a large clean workspace.

The first thing I did, was to lay out the mobo (Asus K7V 133a) on the anti-static mat. I opened the packaging for the CPU and heatsink (AMD 1 ghz 266 FSB) carefully and prepared to insert the CPU into the ZIF slot. This is when I noticed the first problem...

One of the pins on the bottom of the CPU was completely bent so that it was laying against the CPU horizontally!!!! My heart sank! I thought I was completely screwed until I bent it back to an (almost) upright position and inserted it into the ZIF. It worked! The CPU fell into place, with a little bit of a push on the side of the bent pin, and I locked it in. Then I removed it again and examined the pin. The locking mechanism had straightened it out even more, so it slides in and out with 0 force.

But the day was NOT saved. I put the CPU back into the ZIF, locked it, and positioned the heatsink over it as the instructions indicated. I hooked one of the clasps, and was about to hook the second one when I realized that the locking clasp on the other side was missing!!!!! ARGH!!! It simply was not included in the package. I made a quick trip to Microcenter and tried to find one, but they couldn't help me. I decided to buy a whole new one there, but none were Athlon approved!!!

Needless to say, I'm bummed. However, I'm not posting this simply to express my annoyance and disappointment, but to get some advice.

With a bent pin, can a CPU function optimally? It's virtually straight again, but I'm worried about longevity and optimal performance. Should I send it back along with the heatsink (they came packaged together by AMD) and demand a new one? Or should I keep this CPU despite its obvious damage and have AMD send me a new clasp (or just buy a new heatsink altogether)?

Thanks folks!

r.

[thekingofpain]

Now I see why my local guy (bzboyz willcall) taught me to look at the pins upon pickup---if you accepted delivery as I do (was this a local purchase?) you would reject it immediately as he would suggest, its up to you about the rma...the "clasp" thing has me wondering---you didnt say which "AMD approved" h/s you were issued, odd that the clip wasnt all there tho...

[rowan]

Nope, this was mail order from Newegg. It was not an OEM cpu, but the full retail boxed version. The h/s has an AMD sticker on it, though that really tells us very little. It's just an outsourced generic h/s, I'm sure.

You're right, though. Mailorder is risky to be sure. What do you think about the damage though? Is it something I should just live with, or should I send this thing back?

r.

[Cadfael]

Bent pin = this has to be a case of 'suck it and see', you cannot damege anything by trying... it will 'boot' or it will not post. I know I will get abuse over this... but trust me.

Fan Clip = I assume you have another computer, use the fan from that just to 'suck it and see', but really... cpu fans are ten a penny, don't get suicidal over it http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gifj/k.

[eq.rights]

I vote for returning it. If something goes wrong later, you probably will be out of luck in getting an adjustment. Besides, it should not be bent in manufacture or shipping. Could you be getting a used piece of equipment and paying full price?

[SPEEDO]

They are going to ask you why you didn't send it back with the pin bent, And if you try to bend it back to where it was it will break off for sure.
Take a good look at it with a magnifying glass and see if there are any stress cracks on the pin, If not I wouldn't worry about it!

[Dudster]

Is it a Cooler Master heatsink and fan? When I got mine I thought there was a part missing from the clip but it turned out there wasn't. It just needed a fearsome amount of force to push it down over the notch on the socket. I found this by looking on the Cooler Master website (http://www.coolermaster.com) If yours is unbranded then I don't know what you should do.

I once had to straighten a pin on one of my CPUs but it wasn't anywhere near horizontal. I would try it though (especially since you've already straightened it).

[Pete1]

I feel its not worth the hassle to include CPU with heatsink problem. Bent pins are not uncommon. Go buy yourself a new heatsink and fan so that you can get your system up and running (don't let some vendor hold you back from your first build) and at the same time try and resolve problem with your defective HS with vendor. If you get resolved fine, you can sell your extra HS and fan on Ebay or keep it for a spare.

Note: I'm running socket A with a Coolmaster HS purchased retail for $14.00.

[This message has been edited by Pete1 (edited 08-05-2001).]

[rowan]

Thanks everyone! Dudster, you were right on the money! I checked out the coolermaster website, and although my h/s is NOT a coolermaster, it is identicale to one. So, I just grabbed a screwdriver and pushed down on the latch and BINGO!!! It latched!

Right now, I'm typing this reply on my very first homebuilt system, and let me tell you, it feels very very good. It took me all day to get this far and I still have several bugs to work out (which I will be posting about in the Technical Help Forum), but the machine is on my LAN and able to get out to the WAN without any trouble.

The one question I keep asking myself is this: why didn't I try to build one sooner!!?!?

http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

r.

[Dudster]

Excellent http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif I remember well the joy of finding that there wasn't a part missing from my heatsink.

[LemonHead]

sorry for my idiocy but what does RMA mean?

[robin801]

congrats rowan. i am now using my first built system. i know how you feel. i was kind of sad when i finished. i had so much fun and i shed some tears, but i am now waiting on my parts for my second system.


have fun with your system http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

robin

[This message has been edited by robin801 (edited 08-05-2001).]

[F4_Hunter]

LemonHead, RMA is generally used to describe returning a broken item in exchange for a new one. The acronym RMA means "Return Materials Authorization".

F4

[This message has been edited by F4_Hunter (edited 08-05-2001).]

[rowan]

I feel the same way. now that it's over, I want to build another one!!

The system is very stable, btw. So far, the Asus A7V 133 is a great board, especially with the Asus probe software that lets you monitor the temps and such.

The CPU runs fine @ 1000mhz, so the bent prong was nothing major. I also inspected it for stress fractures and breaks in the metal, but it looked fine to me. The ZIF socket really straightened it out.

On a side note: I certainly won't hesitate in buying OEM components again. Sysopt provides better tech support than 90% of the companies out there anyway. You guys are great!

r.