http://www.badcaps.net/forum/showthread.php?t=278
I've said it before, and I say it again: Don't buy MSI!
For reference, this can happen if you switch polarity on capacitors:Badcaps.net wrote:
I have seen this on every MSI 694D Pro 1.0 I've recapped. Between PCI slots 2 and 3, resides C390. The cap value stock is 1000uF 6.3v. Of course upon receiving the board, this cap is vented like many others. I recapped the board, of course replacing C390. I then would connect the board to my jig and burn it in for a while... Within the first 30 minutes or so, C390 would be vented again. I checked to make sure I installed it correctly, and the correct voltage. It was correct, so I assumed I had a dud for a replacement cap (Rubycon's, so this scenario was unlikely). I replaced it again, and tested again... Same result. Within the first 30 minutes, C390 vented again. Through this whole ordeal, the board was working fine.
At this point, I was puzzled... So I flipped the board over and read the voltage on the cap while the board was powered up and running the tests. On C390, I placed the '+' meter lead on the '+' cap lead, same thing with the neg leads. To my surprise, there was a -3.9v on the cap. I had to do a doubletake and make sure I had the leads attached correctly, and they were. There is a negative voltage on the C390 position when reading the cap position according to the polarity marking on the board.
I installed another Rubycon replacement, only this time I installed it backward. Opposite of the board polarity markings, and the board has been running flawlessly for over a week now, no more venting of C390.
Like I said, I've seen this on MANY MSI 694D Pro boards, so it was not an isolated case, or just a 'quirk' with one particular board. I will post some pics soon.
I've said it before, and I say it again: Don't buy MSI!
The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP