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Just found out my new $180 hotswap PCB was dead after I finished the whole build.
Spent three hours putting everything together, lubing switches, the works. Powered it on and got nothing. No LEDs, no response. I was ready to start desoldering everything, but on a whim I checked the USB-C port with a multimeter. The 5V rail was fine, but the 3.3V regulator was showing a dead short. Turns out a tiny bit of metal debris from the case filing must have gotten lodged in there during assembly. A careful poke with some tweezers and a blast of compressed air fixed it. Saved me a full teardown. Anyone have a good pre-build PCB check routine they swear by?
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avery_nelson1mo ago
No, but I check for debris with a magnifying glass before powering anything on now.
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spencer_bell1mo ago
Buddy of mine found a dead spider inside his PC once.
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emma_hart1mo ago
Oh wow, a whole dead spider in there? That's kind of wild honestly. I mean, I've found dust bunnies and the occasional pet hair clump, but a full on spider carcass is a whole different level of gross. Your buddy must have been pretty creeped out opening that case up. I'd probably need to shake out my whole PC case with a can of compressed air after finding something like that.
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