Replacing motherboard socket. Possible?

[2is]

Here's the situation. I've got two LGA775 boards. A pretty nice ASUS with decent power delivery and a nicely featured BIOS with overclocking options. Sadly, it has bent pins in the socket.

I've got another LGA775 board pulled from a retail computer that has an undamaged socket, but obviously no overclocking options. Obviously what I'd like to do is somehow replace the damaged socket in the ASUS with the undamaged socket.

I'd also like to add, this is just a project I'd like to try, none of this hardware is important to me and should I trash them both, it would be no consequence, so please no suggestions of buying a new board.

With that said, what do you think would be the best method of removal of the socket? I've got several tools at my disposal. Blow torches, heat guns, ovens, etc. I can think of plenty of ways to remove the socket, but i'm not sure what would be the most successful method. Successful being removal of the socket while not damaging the board, (on the ASUS) and on the other boad, removal of the socket and not damaging the socket.

Suggestions?

 

[Tsavo]

Just going to hazard a guess that what you want to do will be neigh on impossible without really specialized tools.

 

[2is]

Most likely, yes.

 

[Tsavo]

How bent are the pins? Can't hurt to give it a whirl fixing them rather than going all Superman and trying a socket swap.

 

[2is]

How bent are the pins? Can't hurt to give it a whirl fixing them rather than going all Superman and trying a socket swap.

Yeah, tried that and broke a pin

 

[dawp]

heat gun would be easiest but you have to be careful not to burn the board. then you would have to clean out the solder before inserting the replacement socket.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

There's a reason that soldering is done by super-robots now.

YGPM.

 

[Compman55]

Can you cut off a pin from a scrap old CPU you have laying around, like an old P4? Then apply a thin amount of solder and fuse it to the broken pins? It is super hard, but I have only done this to a CPU, never to a socket.

Another option only with practice is to cut a very thin metal air template so that the heat gun can melt the area of solder on the backside of the MB and not damage the rest of the board. With the hot air you will pull the old socket out. With the MB in its up position you would then need to heat the bottom again and drop the new socket into place. How you would hand touch up the solder is going to be very hard.

My thoughts are the time required to keep the heat on the board is going to be too long. BGA chip replacement is easy as the time heat is applied is very minimal. To do a socket it is going to be hard, but a fun try.

 

[2is]

I do have some old Athlon 64's who's pins I can harvest, though I'm not sure if I have a soldering tip small enough for that delicate a job, nor do I think I have a had steady enough to accomplish it.

The heat gun/heat shield idea sounds like it has the best chance for success. By that I mean an extremely low probability.

 

[MrDudeMan]

Sorry to be a downer, but there is likely no way you will be able to do this with any amount of success.

1) Removing the socket without a specific heat profile is likely to melt plastic parts.
2) Soldering it onto the board without the same profile is a recipe for weak solder joints.
3) Unevenly heating the socket, which you are certain to do by hand, will cause impedance mismatches. Good luck getting I/Os to work with 20% more inductance.
4) I could go on and on and on.

I own the equipment required to make this type of repair and I can tell you it's a waste of time if you only have access to the tools in your op. Your best bet is to try to bend the pins with dental equipment.

 

[Kenmitch]

Which pin is broken? Some are repetative I think.

 

[IntelEnthusiast]

On our site we have some stuff about that talks about how to straighten out a bent pin but to replae a broken pin in an LGA socket I would say that is something that is going to be impossible out of a board manufacturer.

 

[Compman55]

On the same hand, I was initially angry to hear of this design change from pins being on the CPU and rather on the MB. But the truth is boards are cheaper than a CPU these days. Not to mention almost all non retail CPU's I have pruchased were always damaged. It made no difference what vendor either.

So although a bummer, would you rather have it be a $700 CPU?

 

[bryanl]

Hot air at the right temperature is the only method likely to succeed, and a BGA stencil and the right solder are needed. I would not attempt it except to learn how to do it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tcp4_GSL0FU

A less elaborate hot air soldering station will work, such as some selling for under $100.

 

[2is]

Cool video, I don't know about that music though. I was about to make love to my motherboard