Asus is recalling selected ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboards for Intel Alder Lake (test). The manufacturer confirms that the affected boards can fail as a result of a capacitor that is soldered upside down. So far, reports of defective mainboards are said to have only come from North America.
A suspicion is confirmed
A few days ago, the first users of a ROG Maximus Z690 Hero reported bugs. With the error code “53” (no memory installed) your computer could no longer be started. Apparently overheated MOSFETs were found near the debug code display on the affected boards, but not on all of them.
When comparing the photos published by affected customers, YouTuber Buildzoid noticed that all defective boards (even those without an obvious defect) had one thing in common compared to the previously non-defective ones: the polarized capacitor soldered right next to the MOSFETs was mounted in exactly the opposite way. Buildzoid suspected that this was the cause of the outages.
Asus has now confirmed this on Facebook: The faulty assembly of a capacitor in the memory power supply on a production line is responsible for the problem.
In our ongoing investigation, we have preliminarily identified a potential reversed memory capacitor issue in the production process from one of the production lines that may cause debug error code 53, no post, or motherboard components damage.
Mainboards are fitted with components using so-called placement machines. The components are usually supplied “off the roll”. The packaging information (example Vishay) specifies the orientation of the component within the roll, which can sometimes be different for other manufacturers if you switch to another qualified component on the parts list.
These products are affected
Asus is certain that it has identified the affected mainboards. They should have part number 90MB18E0-MVAAY0 and a serial number beginning with MA, MB, or MC. Both information can be found on the mainboard box and not on the circuit board. Owners of such a board are encouraged to contact Asus support.
Update 05.01.2022 16:41
In the meantime, Asus Germany has also spoken out and explained: “Models delivered to Europe are not affected by this error.” The manufacturer had already communicated this to system integrators at the turn of the year.
However, the manufacturer is still in contact with system integrators and dealers in order to be able to rule out the possibility that the affected boards will find their way to European retailers via detours.
Update 19.08.2022 20:28
Nine months after Asus first confirmed the problem of incorrectly equipped ROG Maximus Z690 Heroes and after the exchange program was limited to the USA, the topic had become quiet, Asus is now recalling all affected products via the US Consumer Product Safety Commission. Customers owning a ROG Maximus Z690 with part number 90MB18E0-MVAAY0 and a serial number beginning with MA, MB, or MC are also encouraged to remove the motherboard from service immediately. Asus estimates an additional 10,000 units will be affected by the recall.
Part and serial number of an affected Asus ROG Maximus Z690 Hero (image: Asus)Trigger for switching from voluntary information and exchange program for the tough recall should be the ten cases of circuit boards melted as a result of a defect mentioned by Asus, there would be a risk of fire and personal injury. However, the manufacturer is not aware of any cases of injuries to date.
Many thanks to ComputerBase reader Müritzer for pointing out this update.