Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

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Pepe
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Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by Pepe » Sun Apr 07, 2019 10:12 pm

I have a question for the tech experts here.

I'd like to know what's wrong on my KORG Trident's synthesizer section's board. It works great for 40 minutes and then the filter starts to do strange stuff. After cooling off it's working normal again, but for another 40 minutes only. So I'd like to see if there's an IC or whatever which is heating up too much (for whatever reason). A decent infrared camera is pretty expensive, so that's no option for me.

I thought there might be a thing like this: a heat-sensitive discolouring antistatic film. Something that can be laid over a circuit board and nestles up against all the components. Maybe perforated to let the normal heat pass through. Heat-proof up to 200°C or something like that. If you power up your circuit board, the foil will change its colour at all the parts that heat up. Temperatures over 50°C can be seen instantly through a distinct discolouration. The overall film colour will change back to normal when cooling off.

I'd love such a thing! Invent it for me if it isn't on the market yet! :D

Do you have another suggestion?
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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by laurie » Sun Apr 07, 2019 10:37 pm

This is the sort of thing all the techs use for chasing thermal problems... Spray "things" until the device starts working again.

https://www.mgchemicals.com/products/du ... d-134-403a

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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by Pepe » Mon Apr 08, 2019 6:06 am

Oh, this can really be used on powered circuit boards without doing harm! I hadn't thought about cooling spray. Now I'm a bit wiser. But I still like my idea above. :mrgreen:
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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by BenF » Tue Apr 09, 2019 9:22 pm

Anybody remember hypercolour clothing !!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1tXzUG8Az0

:lol:

You can get plug in mini IR cameras for mobile phones but I think they are a couple of hundred quid or so.

I just wanted to say my first place to look would be a dry joint, most heat related failures from my experience turn out to be a through hole solder joint with a hairline crack that expands when hot and stops conducting.
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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by Pepe » Tue Apr 09, 2019 9:46 pm

Those "Hypercolor" t-shirts have been around in the early '90s for a very short time. They looked terrible in sports class! :lol:

I searched for cold solder joints for many times, but I haven't found the culprit yet. Putting new solder on the whole circuit board might do the trick ... :? It's worth a try.
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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by BenF » Tue Apr 09, 2019 10:31 pm

Laying a hypercolour tshirt on it may well result in fire :o


I would focus on the caps as they tend to heat up and cool more than other components especially the ones around the PSU plus they arent as rigid as chips so move around more.
I made some tools to date equipment :-
Boss pedals - Roland stuff - DOD pedals - Ibanez pedals - Pots and speakers

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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by Pepe » Tue Apr 09, 2019 10:43 pm

I won't try such a t-shirt on the board! :mrgreen:

The whole synth is recapped and the PSU is okay. Everything double and triple checked. The fault is somewhere on the programmer board. :|
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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by sclitheroe » Thu Apr 11, 2019 2:02 am

I don't know how warm a synth gets, but I know a broken or cracked circuit board trace on a computer can reveal itself as the machine heats up and cools down. Could it be something like that?

I haven't actually seen a motherboard exhibit that kind of issue in a long time, but it definitely used to happen back in the day.

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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by Pepe » Thu Apr 11, 2019 4:58 am

I'll try it out in the next couple of days. It's a large circuit board, though. I have come across some cold solder joints on all the boards while recapping. Let's see if I can do the final correction to a dot soon.
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Re: Does something like this exist? (tool to detect hot components)

Post by Admin » Mon Nov 18, 2019 10:30 pm

I just had thought of this: What about those laser thermometers? They are precise and inexpensive.

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