NUC i7 Died, What To Do?

Support
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In the middle of steaming a song, my 2018 Intel NUC i7 died. Won’t power on, no lights, no fan, no ROCK. :frowning:

I’m trying to decide what to do…

I can buy a new i7 NUC. The upside of that is that I could probably just drop my existing RAM and HD into it and be good to go, assuming they are not damaged. The downside is that it will cost me $500 which is the same as I paid back in 2018. It pains me to pay that much for such old tech.

Are there better choices? If I get a newer i10 NUC, would I be able to reuse the RAM and HD from my old NUC?

I’m assuming that getting an out of warranty NUC repaired is probably not worth the effort/expense. True?

Note that I have a backup of my library and my music files, so having to reformat the HD would not be a disaster, but I’d like to avoid it.

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If you’ve got a multi meter, you could verify if it’s just the power supply that’s toast…

In regards to RAM reuse, compare NUC boards’ spec sheets to find out…

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Even a 12v 3a powerbrick should fire it up…

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I got out my multi-meter and it does appear to be the power supply. Thanks for mentioning that. I had assumed it was not the power supply based on a Google search for similar issues, but always smart to check the basics first!

I’m a novice with the multi-meter, but this is correct, right? Set it to ACV, red to inside the plug tip and black to the outer plug tip. Reading less than 1V.

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The NUC takes 19V/3.43A. Would it be safe to test it with a 19.5V/4.62A powerbrick?

Edit: nvm… the plug does not fit

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I went ahead and ordered a new power supply ($18) and should have it on Saturday. Hopefully that will solve the problem.

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Yes, this should be ok.

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Erm, don’t have a NUC, but I’d guess it says DC on the power supply, so measure in DCV mode!
Polarity does not matter, it would measure either+19V or -19V, or whatever voltage the supply supplies…

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The print is so tiny, I could not tell. Got a magnifying glass (it is really tiny!) and see that it is DC. Will re-test. Thank you.

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Well bad news for me. The power supply is fine. It is the NUC itself. So back to my original questions about replacing it or upgrading it…

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Should I get a newer NUC or replace my old one? I’m not sure which of the newer NUCs can run ROCK, if any.

If I get a newer one, can I just drop in my hard drive from the old NUC and boot ROCK or will I need to reinstall?

Lastly, is it worth trying to get a NUC from 2018 repaired? I know that Intel doesn’t do repairs, they just replace parts and they probably won’t have stock for old hardware. So who would I get to do the repair?

@support

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Hi @Nick ,

Do you see any lights on the NUC internals or do you prefer not to open the unit? If there are any lights on the motherboard, you can try a CMOS battery reset procedure, that has sometimes brought boards back to life, long shot but worth a try if technical. Instructions and video below:

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/articles/000025368/processors.html

(Motherboard/CMOS shown at 5:55)

There is a list of compatible ROCK units here:

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Thank you @noris. I will open it up and do the CMOS reset after work today. Also, appreciate the link you provided to supported NUC models.

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The CMOS reset did the trick. My Roon Rock is back up and running!

Thank you everyone for your help.

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Glad to hear that the CMOS reset trick worked, @Nick!
Happy Listening! :slight_smile: :musical_note:

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This is the best most helpful thread I have ever seen on the Internet. Nice job Fellas!

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Must say I have never had a computer fail to show any signs of life on a cmos issue but then stranger things have happened…will put this one in y things to try pigeon hole

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There was a single green led on the motherboard that was lit, but I could not see it until I opened the case.

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