Hello all,
On a whim, I purchased a dead 980 TI SC to play with. With the card installed in a computer, it would trip the computer's PSU. With the 6 + 8 pin power rails disconnected, the computer would turn on, and the card would display a message saying to turn off the computer and plug in the PCI-E power connectors. So a short on on of the rails. Maybe not totally dead.
I guessed that one of the MOSFETs was bad. After removing a few, I tested for the short and it was gone. I ordered replacement MOSFETs (SIC789) and replaced them. Low and behold, the computer posted and I got my desktop. I installed a driver without a hitch. Temps looked stable. I crossed my fingers and ran a mild stress test. Immediately, I lost the display signal and smelled burning electronics. Darn! I pulled the card and immediately found the burned chip. Unfortunately there's only one of them it seems, and because it's burned I can't read what it is. I am writing to see if anyone knows what the chip is or how I can figure it out. In an attempt to figure it out I've zoomed into all the 980 TI PCB images I can find, but no luck on reading it. From a video it seems like it's a voltage controller/regulator for the VRAM. See attached image.
I realize the card is probably not worth a ton of effort and very well could burn up additional chips once I re-power it, but it's been fun fixing it anyways and I'd hate to give up now.