Help identifying fried component on Asus laptop motherboard - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: VarmVaffel
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 23, 2015, 12:35:09 pm
content: Hi everyone!I have a motherboard on my hand manufactured by Asus, and it has a missing fried component. I'm guessing it's something like a diode or fuse or something, but I'm not sure.Picture of the fried motherboard:I found a picture online of the same motherboard, only earlier revision (mine is rev. 3.0):Could anyone help me identify this component?

author: orbiter
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 23, 2015, 12:42:21 pm
content: From the original manufacturer's picture it looks like a capacitor.

author: VarmVaffel
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 23, 2015, 06:22:50 pm
content: Quote from: orbiter on February 23, 2015, 12:42:21 pmAlright thanks, guess I'll have to estimate the value of it then. Can I do any ballpark here based on the size?

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 23, 2015, 07:09:06 pm
content: Probably inductor, not capacitor. Seem to be dark color, what is usually specific for inductors and varistors. But don't seem to be completely black too, so maybe it is because of lighting. Check if the one pin is connected to the GND, if yes, likely it is capacitor, otherwise inductor.

author: VarmVaffel
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 23, 2015, 07:46:58 pm
content: Quote from: wraper on February 23, 2015, 07:09:06 pmThanks for the tips! One pin does indeed seem like it's connected to some sort of ground (not the main chassis ground though), so I guess the bet is still on a cap.

author: wraper
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 23, 2015, 08:33:45 pm
content: There cannot be two separate grounds on the motherboard. Likely this is some power rail. Likely it burned because of the overload caused by some other fault.

author: khaahk
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: February 23, 2015, 09:57:09 pm
content: http://ftp.chinafix.com.cn/data/attachment/forum/201306/24/2325320vx0zzz0046p4m4q.jpgFrom this picture it looks like an inductor.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 23, 2015, 10:23:28 pm
content: Looks like a ferrite bead to me.

author: amyk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 24, 2015, 06:29:15 pm
content: There's a file floating around on the Internet named "K43SV boardview", which contains a layout of the PCB - upon which you can find that your component of interest is L4601, so it is an inductor. I have not been able to find the schematic for K43SV (it's NOT a Quanta SW9, contrary to what some postings have said - the component designators are completely different; plus, Asus tends to design these themselves) but you could probably figure out its purpose by tracing out the circuit around it, match that with similar laptop models (for which there are schematics available), then determine the value used there. There's also a "K43SV repair guide" pdf you can find, which hints at there being a schematic...

author: VarmVaffel
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: March 02, 2015, 12:53:36 pm
content: Quote from: amyk on February 24, 2015, 06:29:15 pmThank you so much man, amazing help! I will post back here if I figure out the component values, but I was thinking of just buying a sample book of inductors anyway.