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Re: HELP!!!!

Allan Hoeltje (06:29 PM 05/22/01) wrote:

 >I am courious how a non-moving part that is snugly plugged into a socket
 >becomes dirty.

It's not dirt or grime, it's oxidation. In this case the oxidation is a 
chemical reaction that's trigger by passing current through two dissimilar 
metals. The reaction is compounded by an environment that's changing 
temperatures which can produce condensation at the point of contact.

A more general example of this is white stuff at the terminals on the 
battery in your car. It's the same principle.


Another thing in this is that "snuggly" is often not as snug as you think 
it is. I really doesn't take a lot of vibration to create trouble.

If you gig, and you carry your rig in the back of your car, the box will 
still vibrate. The sockets could be top-notch, but the mounting of the 
circuit board to the chassis could be such that if the chassis flexes, 
then 
the socket can flex and push the component out.

I have a MXR digital delay that is HORRIBLE at traveling.


I think that there are a lot of gear techs that make a good dollar by 
fixing problems just re-seating chips.


 >Should all electronic gizmos with computer memory be periodically opened
 >up and cleaned?

Actually... yeah. :)

Anything that's got socketed chips, memory, etc. is subject to this. Gold 
plated contacts fitting into gold plated sockets helps a lot though.

Mark