TECH NEWS – Due to a manufacturing defect, ASUS motherboards can burn out.

Shortly after Christmas, a few users encountered hardware issues regarding their ASUS ROG Maximum Z690 motherboards, either no longer functioning or outright ending up in flames. As it’s not an isolated incident due to more users encountering the same problems, the manufacturer announced a recall program after an internal investigation. If you have such a motherboard, be careful.

The two images below are from ASUS’ forums, and indeed, that motherboard doesn’t look healthy. Maximumrog57’s mobo doesn’t get past POST, as it throws up an error code 53, confirming something is wrong regarding the memory. And burnt components adjacent to the memory slots confirmed that the subsystem is toast. Others reported either audible pops or burning electronic spells, all with system shutdowns…

Actually Hardcore Overclocking’s Buildzoid has looked into the issue and reported that the motherboard has a specific capacitor that was incorrectly installed. ASUS then confirmed that this is the case, and the company will offer replacements. Here is the company’s statement:

“To our valued ASUS Customers, ASUS is committed to producing the highest quality products, and we take every incident report from our valued customers very seriously. We have recently received incident reports regarding the ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboard. 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. The issue potentially affects units manufactured in 2021 with the part number 90MB18E0-MVAAY0 and serial number starting with MA, MB, or MC.

You can identify your part number by referring to the product packaging. As of December 28, 2021, a few incidents have been reported in North America. Going forward, we are continuing our thorough inspection with our suppliers and customers to identify all possible affected ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboards in the market and will be working with relevant government agencies on a replacement program. Thank you so much to everyone for your patience and support while working through the replacement program. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact ASUS customer service,” ASUS wrote.

You can contact them either via the support website, online chat or via their application. The third image showcases what you have to look at to see if you are affected. Still, we are happy that the company quickly offered replacements for the manufacturing mishaps.

Source: PCGamer