Clock Capacitor
Clock Capacitor
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Nichicon 1F 2.7V Super Capacitor
It's recommended to remove the clock capacitor from 1.0-1.4 motherboards and leave it off the board. These motherboards will work fine without it. The clock capacitor only provides memory to the time circuit for about a half hour after the console is unplugged, so it is not really necessary for this cap to remain installed.
These super capacitors can leak from the bottom when they age beyond their service life. If left unchecked, the leaked electrolytic fluid can cause trace rot, power-on issues, and severe board damage. In worst case scenarios, the corrosion damage can even lead to the board catching on fire, permanently damaging the motherboard beyond use.
If you choose to install a new clock cap on a 1.0-1.4 motherboard instead of leaving it removed, inspect the board first. The original black clock caps often leave heavy corrosion behind, and quite often the damage is too severe to successfully install a new clock cap on the board.
Late model 1.4 and 1.6 motherboards use the gold clock caps. Many sites and forums will say the gold caps are better quality and don't need replacement. That is only half true. The other half is outdated information. They are better quality, but they still fail and leak. On late model 1.4 motherboards, it's still recommended to remove the gold clock cap and leave it off the board. The 1.6 motherboard is different and will not boot without a clock cap installed or a proper clock-cap bypass/modification..
The 1.6 has its clock cap in a much more sensitive area of the motherboard, and leaked electrolytic fluid can cause much more damage than it will on other revisions. The damage can be nearly irreparable.
It's HIGHLY recommended to replace the clock cap on 1.6/1.6b motherboards with a new one, even if the original gold cap looks okay. They often hide leakage underneath and you won't know that its gone bad until you remove it. It's never worth the effort to put an old original OEM cap back on the board after going through the work to remove and check it.
