Fixing things is fun... BOOM

[Steve]

Yesterday my dad rang me and said his PC wouldn't turn on. I'm in Hull for another... six days so I knew I had to take a look at it sharpish, so today I popped round.

Absolutely no life so I gave the PSU a sniff and although I don't make a habit of sniffing PSUs had a feeling it had gone. The fuse in the plug had blown so I replaced it, then before turning the PSU on again unplugged a few essential internal components to be safe.

When I turned it on at the mains (so running on 5V stand-by) I heard a sizzle and shortly afterwards was the KABOOM. Made my dad jump... but I was expecting it.

The real fun came when we were looking for a local PC parts shop that had recently moved. We popped into PC World on the way for a laugh. £30 for a PSU with a 'peak power' of 300W. We promptly left.

We got to where we were looking for and I asked what types of PSU they sold and who made them... then the words of terror were spoken.

The majority of our stock is Q-Tec

I whimpered, audibly. I don't think the guy behind the counter actually understood why. I said I had an aversion to the PSUs but that it didn't concern him.

In the end we bought another equally cheap and crap PSU (might not even be as good as a Q-Tec) but it was rated well above what my dad's PC will ever use, so I considered it safe enough.

Now it's all working again, but it seems as though those damn Q-Tec's just won't disappear. When will people learn?

[autopilot]

Originally Posted by Steve

those damn Q-Tec's just won't disappear. When will people learn?

They seem to be the staple of the 'local' computer shops. Along with those naaaasty cases you only ever see in those types of place.

[Steve]

Maybe we should start a campaign? Actually no I see a few lawsuits if we do that...