Important info for this mod! The output of the 3V3 regulator is not stable enough to work reliable with all Flash-Chips. After doing this mod, I was able to read/write multiple chips. But I came across one, that I could read fine, but the CH341 would "crash" aka. disconnect from USB, as soon as I would try to write to it. As it turned out, I needed to add some capacitance to the output of that 1117 3.3V regulator. In my case, I added a 1µF and another 100nF capacitor right between the 3.3V output and ground (pins 1 and 2 of the regulator). That fixed the issue. I hope, this comment can save some people from wasting a day debugging this ;)
Do you have images of how this modification would look like with the capacitors? I want to modify my ch341a but I have no idea how the modification would look like.
@@mauricioaguaidahernandez4715 Honestly, I described the modification in detail in my initial comment ("I added a 1µF and another 100nF capacitor right between the 3.3V output and ground (pins 1 and 2 of the regulator"). If you cannot interpret this information, you should maybe not try this mod. I could take a picture, but how would I share it?
@@NebukadV Mediafire, i think with an image i can understand would look. Or you can make a video in your channel about your mod with the pinouts. I am understanding that you had added a 1µF and a 100nF capacitor just between the 3.3V output and ground (pins 1 and 2 of the regulator) i.e. 2 capacitors in series of 1uf and 100nF between pin 1 (thats is ADJ pin) and 2 ( V out) of the 1777 regulator. It should be like this video? -> m.th-cam.com/video/ty_0VsCOKjU/w-d-xo.html ?
Do not modify this programmer, it's just fine the way it is. This misinformation was spread about this programmer. It neatly does 3.3 volts and not 5 volts as many claimed. It is now debunked. Do the test yourself, take a flash chip and put it in the zip socket and program, while programming you measure the voltages on the pin. You will now see that 5 volts are not measured anywhere, but 3.3 volts instead. People who understand ohm's law will realize that the wrong measurements were made with no load.
I love the way you explain things so clearly. I had teachers at school that were so intelligent that they just couldn't put themselves in my shoes and had no way of explaining things without getting too technical. I understood everything here. Cheers dude.
I am from electronics background - its the amps that fry the chip not few volts. It should not be modified because it may lack pressure to right to the chip. On chip @5v it only registers 3.8v.
all these mods unnecessary . the programmer will adjust itself to 3.3v when programming .I tried it myself and programmed many chips fine . also Sorin proved it he has a video about this matter . not downvoting your video but it is just unnecessary work .
Thanks so much for the fantastic step by step video good sir! Successfully modded my own with this guide which led to a successful bios chip reprogram (following next video) and brought a dead computer back to life. You are the MAN! Cheers
Hello to all. Actually, there's a much easy way to do this fix; you just have to cut a track on the board and add a plastic jumper on pins labeled '3.3V' and '5V'. I've have successfully flashed a Winbond 25Q64FVSIG which is a 3V chip.
I had a quick look and I think I see the method you're talking about. The 5v rail going to the IC is on a trace on the bottom of the board, several people had mentioned that cutting this trace might be a better method. The chap whose video guide I followed didn't want to do this because he wasn't sure where else it goes - but the only other place it goes is to the 5v jumper pin. So yea, cutting it would then enable you to bridge the 5 and 3.3v headers to avoid soldering. Part of me doesn't like cutting traces, but these things are so cheap that who cares about making the mod 'reversible' anyway.
when you put ic 3.3v the programmer detect automatically and adjust the voltage at 3.3v , i measured it during the process , i modified the programmer exactly what i saw on this video but i back to let it original and it works fine
Hi Antonio! On my CH341a, there are 2 x 5v headers. One is next to a header that says GND, the other is a header that says 3.3v. Which 5v header do I bridge to the 3.3v header? Sorry to ask, i'm just a bit of a noob. I think I know which trace to cut.
Lovely Jubbly. Bought one of these last year to flash the correct BIOS file to a fake GTX 1050 GPU. The first programmer i bought only lasted about a week and went faulty, so i bought another and have just followed your guide here. Brilliant instructions and top notch :)
Thanks to your video. I managed to make a switch to switch between 3.3v and 5v. The reason I made the switch because I saw someone said that some chip cannot turn on with 3.3v. It needs 5v. Awesome video.
Alternatively, you can solder 3.3V zener diodes between SPI data pins and Gnd pin of the zif socket , on the back side of the board. The zener diode limited the peak voltage to 3.3V. Everyone could not solder tiny SMD pins, so zif socket's pins much bigger and soldering too easy instead of SMD IC pins. You need two zener diodes; between MOSI and GND, CLK and GND. I2C pins are open drain type and requires external pull-ups, you don't need the voltage limiting operation for this pins.
There's a cheap 1.8v adapter board that some of the CH341a Mini Programmer have started shipping with. I started to worry about adapting to 1.8v before realizing I already got the adapter in the kit. :)
Thank you very much, in this is what I needed to see, I watched bunch of your videos as well as they are entertaining to learn in a very easy way. Waiting for you to watch you using it and flash bios chips with it, have a great day.
Nice fix, if you measure pin 9 and the capacitor C4 you will see that it is the bypass cap you mention. Might be easier to solder the 3.3v wire there from the 3.3v regulator instead of directly on pin 9.
@@michaelboth6844 Sounds like you have a different board layout/version ? If your version is already feeding 3.3V on pin 9 then you don't need to add any wire to the bypass capacitor or pin 9.
@@LordDarthSidiousss Unfortunately, there is no clear indication of board revision on the programmer itself. Interestingly, the IC itself reads CH341B, not A. The back reads "CH341A MinProgramment", like in French. And on the top side, near the bios chip connector it says "CH341A Pro". I bought it for cheap from a Chinese seller on German eBay. Very confusing.
@@michaelboth6844 I believe you can still mod this version that you have if you go from 3.3V regulator middle pin to C3 and from there also to the lifted pin of the CH341 with a wire ?
@@LordDarthSidiousss That´s what I did. Pin 28 was 5V after all, so I lifted it and soldered a wire to the regulator. I did the wire on Pin 9 as well, but I don´t know if that had any benefit. If you look at the schematic shown by Graham, Pin 9 is labeled "V3", so I guess having 3.3V there is expected?
Looking at the schematic you could just cut the trace that feeds the vcc and install a jumper to pin 6 and 7 instead of lifting the vcc off the pad. Just make sure to cut the right side of the trace. Then just finish the 3v connection.
@@user-cw3nb8rc9e looking up the Datasheet for this if the chip is supplied with 3.3v you will have to supply 3.3v to the v3 pin number 9. To me it was easier to cut a trace use a standard jumper between 6 and 7 and solder a small wire to the 3.3v voltage regulator and pin 9
I'd say microsoldering isn't yet a field you've superbly mastered. Not a bad thing at all, don't get me wrong. Can't wait to have you sharing future jobs to see that improving. Regarding the two irons with a single power supply. The main downside I see is that you can't work with both simultaneously. I've found very late in my electronics hobby that using two irons to remove parts and particularly SMD components, is just brilliant. I'd suggest giving it a try if you haven't tested that. Are you using a standard vinyl cable? That would concern me a bit. I got the TL100 with the transformer having a silicone cable and that's life-saving for me, after several burned iron cables over the years. The red USB-C silicone cable that Pinecil has in its store looks fantastic too.
It is not necessary to desolder pin 28. There is a track on the underside to the left of the C which must be cut. A jumper then be set between 3.3 and 5V. Now connect the voltage regulator in the middle to C3, which connects pin 9 direct to 3.3V.
You can get pre-made adapters just as cheap as the CH341 itself, which piggy-back the ZIF socket and come with their own ZIF in which you connect your clip/breakout board and ultimately the IC :) I also suggest pulling strands out of stranded wire to make really thin jumpers (whenever they don't pose the risk of touching anything they shouldn't, since they're obviously not going to be insulated)
I like pulling small transformers out of old electronics (satellite and cable receiver boxes, dvd players, etc.) and then unwrap the enameled wire and use that for jumpers. You'd be surprised how much wire one transformer can hold. Most transformers probably hold enough wire to last a lifetime of jumping pads. Instead of pre-cutting the piece of jump wire, I use a longer piece than necessary, and then instead of pre-scratching the surface to remove the enamel, I just use the tip of the iron to scrape it, that and the heat usually gets rid of the enamel. And then just run the wire where you need, then solder the wire down where it meets the pad, then either clip off the spare wire or if it's thin enough just rock it back and forth until it breaks where it sticks out of the solder joint.
Nice job Adamant IT. I think a bit of solder mask on the pad instead of the caption tape would be more secure for you as this tape may have gone after a time. Great work after all!!!
To finesse lifting a gull wing pin use a a sliver cut from as thin a stainless steel shim as you can find, heat the joint and slide the shim between pin and pad. Solder won't adhere to SS which is also a relatively poor heat conductor and together will being thin and low mass will minimally cool the joint during operation. Burnishing the cut edge of the shim will help prevent it from hanging up on the pin or land as it is slid between them.
This jumper is not necessary actually as the programmer runs 3.3v and has a 3.3v & 5v Jumper on the side so what the jumper actually does is that if you put a jumper, it overrides the 3.3v and makes it 5v remove the jumper and its back to 3.3v. It is located on the side where your CLK, CS, MOSI, MIOS, GND,3.3V & 5V pins are, just put a jumper on 3.3v & 5v to get 5v.
Tip 1) Get yourself some wire wrap/Kynar wire and lose the enameled wire. Tip 2) Still have your enameled wire? "Strip" it by burning off the enamel with your soldering iron. Sanding or scraping your wire will only make it weaker. And you are going to solder it anyway.
I never seem to have any luck burning off the enamel. I've tried it several times in several ways and it just doesn't strip. I've no doubt it works because I've seen people doing it, but yea, never works for me, so I end up scraping.
@@Adamant_IT The way that I do it is to create a healthy-sized blob of molten solder and run the end of the wire through it. I don't heat the wire, I heat the solder. This way the heat is going to get to all of the wire and the enamel should come off easily.
Correct me if I’m wrong.. (And I have been wrong before…) Yes it’s 5v but there’s less than .5 amp..+- You’re not going to burn anything with almost no current… Check it and let me know..🍻
Right?? watching his videos makes me wanna buy more stuff (soldering iron, hot air station, the little chip programmers etc. Lol however I spend enough money on my other hobbies 😂😂 just need more time and money and I can do them all!!
All good! Done exactly as you said in this video and I'm now getting 3.3V on the data lines! Just need to work out how to use the 1.8V adapter I have now...
What is the point of this tutorial? I have the same programmer and I haven't modified it at all. To rewrite the memories, I use adapters and it's ok (with jumper set to 1-2) What you don't say is that: jumper on 2-3 is for the ISP interface. I use it successfully as USBisp and in Arduino IDE.
Is there any ch341a programmer that is sold preconfigured to 3.3 volts? I do not have any soldering experience and would prefer to just buy one premodded.
@@Adamant_IT Thanks for the reply. I am considering buying to one to mod the bios of my 2021 Razer Blade Advanced to unlock the overclocking menu on bios.
I used to work in the semiconductor equipment manufacturing industry. If you're assuming that there is some sort of negotiation or automatic voltage detection going on, then I think you are mistaken. The reason that you're measuring 3.3v on the pins (with the chip that you're trying) is that the flash ICs have internal ESD (electrostatic discharge) protection diodes built in, which are included in the design to suppress very short term (e.g. microsecond) voltage surges by clamping I/O pin voltage levels to the IC's supply voltage. This only works if the current supplied by the CH341a on it's signal lines exceeds the current draw of the flash chip. The unmodified design relies on this hack, but it's outside of the spec of the chips, and there's no way I would rely on it. On low power flash chips the flash chips VCC will float up to 5v, and you will fry the chip. On any chip, you risk frying the ESD diodes, and then the chip is also gone. If you look at the manufacturer datasheets for the flash ICs, they always have an "absolute maximum" voltage for signal pins, and for 3.3v flash chips it's usually about 4v. Not 5.1v.
I enjoyed that. Was there a reason why the data lines were at 5V originally? If so, is it worth adding a switch? Or is the thing so cheap that you just have two?
Really dumb design flaw. Lots of people scratching their heads over this one. If the CH341a chip couldn't run on 3.3v it would be a much harder issue to solve, but given that the chip is happy at 3.3v, it's a bit of an unknown.
Watching the chip's datasheet there's a 0,1v over the maximum ratings for the original use of 5v VCC and this is slightly bad unless the datasheet is not right, someone with scope can probe the effective DI pin if it exceeds 4,4v
Er, I wanted if I could ask you something since I hardly know anything regarding electricity. I connected the CH341A from my PC to another PC's motherboard to flash a BIOS onto the chip. For some odd reason, I don't know why, I turned on the other PC while the CH341A was still connected to it from my main PC. As soon as I hit the power button on the other PC, my main PC rebooted. Later on I also discovered that the sound doesn't work on my main PC anymore. Could it somehow be that one I turned on the other PC while CH341A was connected to its BIOS chip it somehow sent a surge back to my PC and killed my onboard soundcard? It did afterall manage to cause my PC to reboot. Thanks!
For some reason, I did this, I get 3.3v, but it won’t recognize any chips I connect it to. I have a second one I’ll do this too and see if it’s the same result.
I don't think you have to do this because soon as chip connect with software voltage automatically dropped to 3.3v so you don't have to mod the programmer now
Great cheap programmer, but they should fix this problem after years... The only problem is that it can't detect all the 1.8V chips even with the adapter board. AM4 mobos and Nvidia 10 20 30 series cards have 1.8V SPI eeprom chips. (Maybe some chinese software is better than Flashrom, I didn't try them.) You should get the 1.8V adapter and programming clip kit, it's almost the same price.
Great Video.. Thanks. This is probably like asking how long is a bit of string but I have one of these USB programmers which I managed to damage when it came into contact with the metal PC casing. Now the power LED flashes briefly then goes out. I've changed the regulator chip but that hasn't fixed it. Is there a particular component(s) on the board that is(are) more vulnerable to a short?
Do you know how to connect a SOIC 8-Pin Test Clip and DIP adapter to a raspberry pi 3 b+ so that it can be used to fix BIOS? I have this board but I want to learn how to do it with just the raspberry pi and the clip and dip adapter and some jumper cables and that's it.
Thank you for this « mod ». I am looking forward to the next video as flashing bios chips has too little great content on youtube. I am actually waiting for more than one year to accomplish a project where I have to flash a bios chip but still could not do it yet. Great content.
Adamant IT Thank you, I just have a dumb question. I have watched someone on this Ch341a who added and soldered a wire on pin 9 and soldered it on pin 28 of course after he lift it (pin 28) and connected to the volt regulator like you did but without having a second wire on the volt regulator I mean there was only 1 wire soldered on volt regulator coming only from pin 28. Question is is it still the same? Thank you.
Hello Sir, I want to unlock the dev mod of my chromebook. I am trying to find a way how to flash the bios. it is Winbond WSON8 6x5mm. I am newbie, what do you recommender to flash it? does this flash programer ch341a works? would the 5v be dangereous for the chip?
Picked up one of theses cheaply, came with a bios "clip" to save removing bios chips from the board, then soldering back on etc after However when the "chip" is connected the power to the CH3 seems to drop off and disconnects from the PC, is there a fix for this other than hot air remove chip etc?
BIOS reset should solve that. You'll need to take the bottom cover off and disconnect the RTC battery for a minute. It will likely be a small shrink-wrapped coin cell with a short two-pin wire connecting it to the board. An MSI I'm working on at the moment has the coin cell itself taped under the mobo, but the wire itself sneaks around to the top side, so it's possible to disconnect it without removing the mobo. It will look something like this: ae01.alicdn.com/kf/H5c6efbe47b434e7cb75428787836a7002/Original-CR2032-BIOS-battery-FOR-MSI-GT70-GT60-GT680-GT683-GT780-GE60-GE70-GE620-CX60-CX70.jpg_Q90.jpg_.webp
Yes, there is such a way. But it is still necessary to raise 28 pins and feed it with 3.3 volts. After going back to 5 volts you can put a jumper on the two pins that are next to the zip panel. One of them has 3.3 volts, the other has 5 volts. So close them, then 5 volts will appear on pin 28. After removing the jumper, you will return to 3.3 volts of power. Everything is simple.
I'd like to see a demonstration of the unmodified version actually causing some harm. Are there any known BIOS chips that die with this thing? I just used a bios programmer at work for the first time and it happened to be this exact one, unmodified. So I ordered one for myself too. Now I'm wondering how crucial this mod is.
There is no problem with this programmer. Only lot of stupid people around the internet. If you connect the programmer with plugged bios chip, voltage will change from 5V to 3.3V automatically.
It doesn't work for CH341B. For CH341A only. Because when the 9th pin of the microcircuit is in contact with the 1117 in the recording mode, there will be freezes and scraps of the programmer from the PC. For CH341A there is also bad advice here to connect the 9th pin and 1117 with a piece of wire. because when you apply 5 volts to pin 28, your microchip will fail. It is not necessary to install a wire, but a removable jumper. if you need to switch to 5 volts, you will remove the jumper and use this jumper to short the 3.3 and 5 volt pins that are next to the zip panel.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH MY CHIP WOULD SAY IC NOT RESPONDING, NOW THE ERROR CHANGED, IT SHOWS ITS BUSY READING BUT IT WONT FINISH , THE ASP SOFTWARE FREEZES WHEN I PRESS DETECT OR READ , COULD YOU KNOW HOW TO FIX IT'
I ordered this programmer, and today I have noticed that the chip is not the CH341A, it is the CH341B, can I know what the difference is or if they have the same problem as in this video?
i did this mod back when i sucked at soldering. broke off a pin on the ic, so i had to scrape the plastic and solder to the lead frame 😆 still works tho
Wrong! The data lines are 3.3V when using the device. The voltage on the data lines WITHOUT connection is about 5V but as soon as you connect it to a chip and start communicating the voltage in fact IS 3.3V. So the modification is not only stupid it is also totally useless and even harmfull!
Yeah, it's a shame that Adamant IT fell for this bit of misinformation. Just goes to show that one needs to always be vigilant and not blindly accept everything that you hear from others.
Yes and No. Direct answer: Over-voltage will cause damage to the chip, it will often malfunction and not read/write properly whilst being over-volted. However, it will likely survive, so accidents usually don't end in a dead chip. Roundabout answer: As others have pointed out, these data lines will actually get current-limited during use, causing the voltage to sag. So constant over-volting doesn't really do the damage here. However, Voltage Breakdown is also an issue, where constant 'zaps' of 5v before the current sags will damage the chip. The chances of killing the chip are very low - but that's not the point, you shouldn't take risks when A) you can modify the programmer to not put out 5v in the first place, or B) you buy the CH341a v1.6 or higher, which has a voltage selector switch. This black-PCB version of the CH341a is obsolete, there are better cheap programmers available these days.
@@Adamant_IT One more question please. I saw from another YT and post, they connect the pin 28 to Capacitor in C4 first before from C4 to the 3.3V in the mosfet. Then they did not connect pin 9 to the Mosfet Drain. Is that a better option or just the same? I am trying to add a simple switch to switch between 5V and 3.3V. Also, upon further inspection, my flasher chip is CH341B. Is it the same as yours (CH341A)? Btw, I tested the flasher without modifying on a mechanical keyboard bios and it made the bios less responsive. It took like 6 seconds before windows can recognize it, while before it was snappy. Upon connecting the flasher to the USB for the first time using bios clamp, it turn the keyboard on. I quicky read the bios and turn it off after saving to file. I was trying to copy the bios from healthy pcb to a dead one. Since then, the healthy one seems somehow crippled.
Hey. Not sure if you still read these comments. Can you tell me why you have to tie pin 28 to GND. Why could you not leave it lifted and untied. Would it not just be open. After all. We are basically disconnecting the 5v rail from the IC. Also the CH341a itself requires 5v to operate does it not? So if Pin 28 is tied to GND how does it source 5v. It must actually run of 3.3v as well?
Important info for this mod!
The output of the 3V3 regulator is not stable enough to work reliable with all Flash-Chips.
After doing this mod, I was able to read/write multiple chips. But I came across one, that I could read fine, but the CH341 would "crash" aka. disconnect from USB, as soon as I would try to write to it.
As it turned out, I needed to add some capacitance to the output of that 1117 3.3V regulator. In my case, I added a 1µF and another 100nF capacitor right between the 3.3V output and ground (pins 1 and 2 of the regulator). That fixed the issue.
I hope, this comment can save some people from wasting a day debugging this ;)
very nice. thanks.
Do you have images of how this modification would look like with the capacitors?
I want to modify my ch341a but I have no idea how the modification would look like.
@@mauricioaguaidahernandez4715 Honestly, I described the modification in detail in my initial comment ("I added a 1µF and another 100nF capacitor right between the 3.3V output and ground (pins 1 and 2 of the regulator"). If you cannot interpret this information, you should maybe not try this mod.
I could take a picture, but how would I share it?
@@NebukadV Mediafire, i think with an image i can understand would look. Or you can make a video in your channel about your mod with the pinouts. I am understanding that you had added a 1µF and a 100nF capacitor just between the 3.3V output and ground (pins 1 and 2 of the regulator) i.e. 2 capacitors in series of 1uf and 100nF between pin 1 (thats is ADJ pin) and 2 ( V out) of the 1777 regulator. It should be like this video? -> m.th-cam.com/video/ty_0VsCOKjU/w-d-xo.html ?
I had the same problem, i added 1000uf 6.3v cap on top of the regulator to the output and ground.
Now it works really well
"i find it easier to cut the wire to length"
*proceeds to yell at the wire for being too fiddly*
lmao 🤣 that's graham
Do not modify this programmer, it's just fine the way it is.
This misinformation was spread about this programmer. It neatly does 3.3 volts and not 5 volts as many claimed. It is now debunked. Do the test yourself, take a flash chip and put it in the zip socket and program, while programming you measure the voltages on the pin. You will now see that 5 volts are not measured anywhere, but 3.3 volts instead. People who understand ohm's law will realize that the wrong measurements were made with no load.
I love the way you explain things so clearly. I had teachers at school that were so intelligent that they just couldn't put themselves in my shoes and had no way of explaining things without getting too technical. I understood everything here. Cheers dude.
True you wouldnt even notice you finished the whole video. He explains.everything pretty well that you would have to google.
This is honestly the type of video that I like. Technical, detailed and educational...
also fake news, giving you a stupid ideas
He doesn't probe for voltage during a flash. It has been demonstrated and proven that these volt mods are pointless.
I am from electronics background - its the amps that fry the chip not few volts. It should not be modified because it may lack pressure to right to the chip. On chip @5v it only registers 3.8v.
all these mods unnecessary . the programmer will adjust itself to 3.3v when programming .I tried it myself and programmed many chips fine . also Sorin proved it he has a video about this matter . not downvoting your video but it is just unnecessary work .
Yeah, the 5v+ only hold up on 100th of a milliamp. Even says in the IC Datasheet. So very unnecessary and even worsens reliability
Thanks so much for the fantastic step by step video good sir!
Successfully modded my own with this guide which led to a successful bios chip reprogram (following next video) and brought a dead computer back to life. You are the MAN!
Cheers
not required!
Hello to all. Actually, there's a much easy way to do this fix; you just have to cut a track on the board and add a plastic jumper on pins labeled '3.3V' and '5V'. I've have successfully flashed a Winbond 25Q64FVSIG which is a 3V chip.
I had a quick look and I think I see the method you're talking about. The 5v rail going to the IC is on a trace on the bottom of the board, several people had mentioned that cutting this trace might be a better method. The chap whose video guide I followed didn't want to do this because he wasn't sure where else it goes - but the only other place it goes is to the 5v jumper pin. So yea, cutting it would then enable you to bridge the 5 and 3.3v headers to avoid soldering.
Part of me doesn't like cutting traces, but these things are so cheap that who cares about making the mod 'reversible' anyway.
when you put ic 3.3v the programmer detect automatically and adjust the voltage at 3.3v , i measured it during the process , i modified the programmer exactly what i saw on this video but i back to let it original and it works fine
Hi Antonio! On my CH341a, there are 2 x 5v headers. One is next to a header that says GND, the other is a header that says 3.3v.
Which 5v header do I bridge to the 3.3v header?
Sorry to ask, i'm just a bit of a noob. I think I know which trace to cut.
Hi Gamecat! I have posted it on my channel. Check it out!
@@racejay cheers Antonio!
Lovely Jubbly. Bought one of these last year to flash the correct BIOS file to a fake GTX 1050 GPU. The first programmer i bought only lasted about a week and went faulty, so i bought another and have just followed your guide here. Brilliant instructions and top notch :)
Thanks to your video. I managed to make a switch to switch between 3.3v and 5v. The reason I made the switch because I saw someone said that some chip cannot turn on with 3.3v. It needs 5v. Awesome video.
Alternatively, you can solder 3.3V zener diodes between SPI data pins and Gnd pin of the zif socket , on the back side of the board. The zener diode limited the peak voltage to 3.3V. Everyone could not solder tiny SMD pins, so zif socket's pins much bigger and soldering too easy instead of SMD IC pins.
You need two zener diodes; between MOSI and GND, CLK and GND.
I2C pins are open drain type and requires external pull-ups, you don't need the voltage limiting operation for this pins.
There's a cheap 1.8v adapter board that some of the CH341a Mini Programmer have started shipping with. I started to worry about adapting to 1.8v before realizing I already got the adapter in the kit. :)
@@V0S1N0 he isn't talking about the adapters to 1.8V
Thank you very much, in this is what I needed to see, I watched bunch of your videos as well as they are entertaining to learn in a very easy way. Waiting for you to watch you using it and flash bios chips with it, have a great day.
You saved my life while repairing a bricked laptop.
but what if i want to write 24c? isnt it need 5v?
Ch341a pin no 28 is vcc 4.5v Minimum to 5.3v Maximum support in this line… i don’t know why you put 3.3v in vcc
Nice fix, if you measure pin 9 and the capacitor C4 you will see that it is the bypass cap you mention. Might be easier to solder the 3.3v wire there from the 3.3v regulator instead of directly on pin 9.
What´s the use of the wire? Pin 9 is fed 3.3V on my CH341 anyway. And on my device there is no continuity to capacitor C4, but to C3.
@@michaelboth6844 Sounds like you have a different board layout/version ? If your version is already feeding 3.3V on pin 9 then you don't need to add any wire to the bypass capacitor or pin 9.
@@LordDarthSidiousss Unfortunately, there is no clear indication of board revision on the programmer itself. Interestingly, the IC itself reads CH341B, not A. The back reads "CH341A MinProgramment", like in French. And on the top side, near the bios chip connector it says "CH341A Pro". I bought it for cheap from a Chinese seller on German eBay. Very confusing.
@@michaelboth6844 I believe you can still mod this version that you have if you go from 3.3V regulator middle pin to C3 and from there also to the lifted pin of the CH341 with a wire ?
@@LordDarthSidiousss That´s what I did. Pin 28 was 5V after all, so I lifted it and soldered a wire to the regulator. I did the wire on Pin 9 as well, but I don´t know if that had any benefit. If you look at the schematic shown by Graham, Pin 9 is labeled "V3", so I guess having 3.3V there is expected?
Looking at the schematic you could just cut the trace that feeds the vcc and install a jumper to pin 6 and 7 instead of lifting the vcc off the pad. Just make sure to cut the right side of the trace. Then just finish the 3v connection.
Could you please explain more in detail? With your method, do you still need to play with soldering wires?
@@user-cw3nb8rc9e you still have to solder one wire
@@max0r4axor What about supplying this programmer with 3.3V? It would not produce 5V then, but might work?
@@user-cw3nb8rc9e looking up the Datasheet for this if the chip is supplied with 3.3v you will have to supply 3.3v to the v3 pin number 9. To me it was easier to cut a trace use a standard jumper between 6 and 7 and solder a small wire to the 3.3v voltage regulator and pin 9
@@max0r4axor Good tip. Where is "6 and 7" Is it the GND and 5V at the end of the pin row with jumper?
Kudos for crediting the source!
I'd say microsoldering isn't yet a field you've superbly mastered. Not a bad thing at all, don't get me wrong. Can't wait to have you sharing future jobs to see that improving.
Regarding the two irons with a single power supply. The main downside I see is that you can't work with both simultaneously. I've found very late in my electronics hobby that using two irons to remove parts and particularly SMD components, is just brilliant. I'd suggest giving it a try if you haven't tested that.
Are you using a standard vinyl cable? That would concern me a bit. I got the TL100 with the transformer having a silicone cable and that's life-saving for me, after several burned iron cables over the years. The red USB-C silicone cable that Pinecil has in its store looks fantastic too.
It is not necessary to desolder pin 28. There is a track on the underside to the left of the C which must be cut. A jumper then be set between 3.3 and 5V. Now connect the voltage regulator in the middle to C3, which connects pin 9 direct to 3.3V.
I learn so much from your videos😁 thank you 😁 great channel 👍
Looking forward on videos running both your main flasher and this!
Well done, also good that you have split your videos as not everyone likes the two guys format.
You can get pre-made adapters just as cheap as the CH341 itself, which piggy-back the ZIF socket and come with their own ZIF in which you connect your clip/breakout board and ultimately the IC :) I also suggest pulling strands out of stranded wire to make really thin jumpers (whenever they don't pose the risk of touching anything they shouldn't, since they're obviously not going to be insulated)
I like pulling small transformers out of old electronics (satellite and cable receiver boxes, dvd players, etc.) and then unwrap the enameled wire and use that for jumpers. You'd be surprised how much wire one transformer can hold. Most transformers probably hold enough wire to last a lifetime of jumping pads.
Instead of pre-cutting the piece of jump wire, I use a longer piece than necessary, and then instead of pre-scratching the surface to remove the enamel, I just use the tip of the iron to scrape it, that and the heat usually gets rid of the enamel. And then just run the wire where you need, then solder the wire down where it meets the pad, then either clip off the spare wire or if it's thin enough just rock it back and forth until it breaks where it sticks out of the solder joint.
Thanks for including your sources. Too many people don't. Much appreciated.
Nice job Adamant IT. I think a bit of solder mask on the pad instead of the caption tape would be more secure for you as this tape may have gone after a time. Great work after all!!!
I'm not sure if this would be necessary when the current is less than 1 milliamp.
This mod is unnecessary. videos that this mod is needed is spreading disinformation.
The jumper wire could stop doing that when you use the pincer to hold it :)? thanks for the showdown
To finesse lifting a gull wing pin use a a sliver cut from as thin a stainless steel shim as you can find, heat the joint and slide the shim between pin and pad. Solder won't adhere to SS which is also a relatively poor heat conductor and together will being thin and low mass will minimally cool the joint during operation. Burnishing the cut edge of the shim will help prevent it from hanging up on the pin or land as it is slid between them.
This jumper is not necessary actually as the programmer runs 3.3v and has a 3.3v & 5v Jumper on the side so what the jumper actually does is that if you put a jumper, it overrides the 3.3v and makes it 5v remove the jumper and its back to 3.3v. It is located on the side where your CLK, CS, MOSI, MIOS, GND,3.3V & 5V pins are, just put a jumper on 3.3v & 5v to get 5v.
Merci mon ami, following your clear instructions I saved my mobo following your clear instructions.
... and your English is perfect for me 🙂
You can apply soldering mask with UV light for tighten the jumper wires
Tip 1) Get yourself some wire wrap/Kynar wire and lose the enameled wire.
Tip 2) Still have your enameled wire? "Strip" it by burning off the enamel with your soldering iron. Sanding or scraping your wire will only make it weaker. And you are going to solder it anyway.
I never seem to have any luck burning off the enamel. I've tried it several times in several ways and it just doesn't strip. I've no doubt it works because I've seen people doing it, but yea, never works for me, so I end up scraping.
@@Adamant_IT The way that I do it is to create a healthy-sized blob of molten solder and run the end of the wire through it. I don't heat the wire, I heat the solder. This way the heat is going to get to all of the wire and the enamel should come off easily.
Correct me if I’m wrong..
(And I have been wrong before…)
Yes it’s 5v but there’s less than .5 amp..+-
You’re not going to burn anything with almost no current…
Check it and let me know..🍻
Hail to the “ bush mechanic “, (should be your slogan). Skills and thanks for a short and concise vid.
Thank you man, saved my chips. No wonder why some of my chips got damage and probably some with a % of corrupt data.
I do this but it not working , when i want erase the chip , it's disconnect by itself, what's wrong?
Ive read you should add capacitors to the 3.3v rail
Not gonna lie i could get used to two videos a week.
Right?? watching his videos makes me wanna buy more stuff (soldering iron, hot air station, the little chip programmers etc. Lol
however I spend enough money on my other hobbies 😂😂
just need more time and money and I can do them all!!
If I can keep it up! I've got lots in the pipeline at the moment, but two videos a week largely pivots on having enough material.
Clearly explained and well videod showing clearly what needs to be done - I'm off to modify mine now so wish me luck!...
All good! Done exactly as you said in this video and I'm now getting 3.3V on the data lines! Just need to work out how to use the 1.8V adapter I have now...
Can I use the 3.3V on my bios chip 25Q256JWEQ which is for MSI B550m mortar wifi? Or do i have to use 1.8v?
What is the point of this tutorial? I have the same programmer and I haven't modified it at all. To rewrite the memories, I use adapters and it's ok (with jumper set to 1-2) What you don't say is that: jumper on 2-3 is for the ISP interface. I use it successfully as USBisp and in Arduino IDE.
Is there any ch341a programmer that is sold preconfigured to 3.3 volts? I do not have any soldering experience and would prefer to just buy one premodded.
Yes, look for the version 1.6 or higher, with the green PCB, it has a voltage selector switch on it.
@@Adamant_IT Thanks for the reply. I am considering buying to one to mod the bios of my 2021 Razer Blade Advanced to unlock the overclocking menu on bios.
Awesome, I have one of these and I was looking forward to this one.
Just bought one of these, going to have to do this mod xD, cheers for the info, great work :).
muchisimas gracias por el gran aporte ,grandes exitos para ti
You don't need to scrape the enamel off the wire. Applying soldering iron + fluxed solder burns it off. Try it.
I always just grab a lighter and hit the end of the wire with the flame for a couple of seconds...you can see when it is gone.
There is no problem to fix,once you put the chip inside you`ll get 3.3
yeah, they have no idea
I used to work in the semiconductor equipment manufacturing industry. If you're assuming that there is some sort of negotiation or automatic voltage detection going on, then I think you are mistaken. The reason that you're measuring 3.3v on the pins (with the chip that you're trying) is that the flash ICs have internal ESD (electrostatic discharge) protection diodes built in, which are included in the design to suppress very short term (e.g. microsecond) voltage surges by clamping I/O pin voltage levels to the IC's supply voltage. This only works if the current supplied by the CH341a on it's signal lines exceeds the current draw of the flash chip. The unmodified design relies on this hack, but it's outside of the spec of the chips, and there's no way I would rely on it. On low power flash chips the flash chips VCC will float up to 5v, and you will fry the chip. On any chip, you risk frying the ESD diodes, and then the chip is also gone. If you look at the manufacturer datasheets for the flash ICs, they always have an "absolute maximum" voltage for signal pins, and for 3.3v flash chips it's usually about 4v. Not 5.1v.
What if I remove the zero ohm resistor from the main 5V source and just use a couple diodes to drop the voltage to around 3.8V?
3.3v is the requirement Boss
I enjoyed that. Was there a reason why the data lines were at 5V originally? If so, is it worth adding a switch? Or is the thing so cheap that you just have two?
Really dumb design flaw. Lots of people scratching their heads over this one. If the CH341a chip couldn't run on 3.3v it would be a much harder issue to solve, but given that the chip is happy at 3.3v, it's a bit of an unknown.
Watching the chip's datasheet there's a 0,1v over the maximum ratings for the original use of 5v VCC and this is slightly bad unless the datasheet is not right, someone with scope can probe the effective DI pin if it exceeds 4,4v
Er, I wanted if I could ask you something since I hardly know anything regarding electricity. I connected the CH341A from my PC to another PC's motherboard to flash a BIOS onto the chip. For some odd reason, I don't know why, I turned on the other PC while the CH341A was still connected to it from my main PC. As soon as I hit the power button on the other PC, my main PC rebooted. Later on I also discovered that the sound doesn't work on my main PC anymore. Could it somehow be that one I turned on the other PC while CH341A was connected to its BIOS chip it somehow sent a surge back to my PC and killed my onboard soundcard? It did afterall manage to cause my PC to reboot. Thanks!
will it work for eeprom that uses 1.8v voltage?
For some reason, I did this, I get 3.3v, but it won’t recognize any chips I connect it to.
I have a second one I’ll do this too and see if it’s the same result.
I don't think you have to do this because soon as chip connect with software
voltage automatically dropped to 3.3v so you don't have to mod the programmer now
Correct. Lot of stupid things and people around the internet.
Yes, but not when it is connected only during the operation read/write/verify, the voltage on CLK pin drops to about 1V
Great cheap programmer, but they should fix this problem after years... The only problem is that it can't detect all the 1.8V chips even with the adapter board. AM4 mobos and Nvidia 10 20 30 series cards have 1.8V SPI eeprom chips. (Maybe some chinese software is better than Flashrom, I didn't try them.)
You should get the 1.8V adapter and programming clip kit, it's almost the same price.
You can find pin 9 on the capacitor under the 1117 LDO, it makes the mod look professional :)
Correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't the 1.8v adapter board still use 5v (3.3 after mod) unless you desolder the chip and use the adapter's pads?
@@DannyWilliamH good question!!!
Very helpfull video. Solved my "verification error" problem by this modification, thank u so much.
@Adamant_IT - What camera or microscope do you use to zoom in? Thanks,
very interesting Graham, keep it up please
FYI Apparently this mod is not necessary. Here's another video about it
th-cam.com/video/J8-Sh7DjiXw/w-d-xo.html
I thought the socket could supply 5v too so will a 5V chip program with data lines at 3.3V or do we have to swop the chip supply back?
Love your style! Great video
Great Video.. Thanks. This is probably like asking how long is a bit of string but I have one of these USB programmers which I managed to damage when it came into contact with the metal PC casing. Now the power LED flashes briefly then goes out. I've changed the regulator chip but that hasn't fixed it. Is there a particular component(s) on the board that is(are) more vulnerable to a short?
con this programmer (ch341a ) read the 93cxx eeproms ??
I have a Medion laptop, and can't find anywhere a bios file to fix my laptop, the model is Medion x25-MD 62837
Great stuff Adam .think i'll have to curb my coffee intake before attempting that fix.
how about ch341b chip?
I just swapped my 8 tb bios to new board, great vid , thought i lost all my data,
Do you know how to connect a SOIC 8-Pin Test Clip and DIP adapter to a raspberry pi 3 b+ so that it can be used to fix BIOS? I have this board but I want to learn how to do it with just the raspberry pi and the clip and dip adapter and some jumper cables and that's it.
Thank you for this « mod ». I am looking forward to the next video as flashing bios chips has too little great content on youtube. I am actually waiting for more than one year to accomplish a project where I have to flash a bios chip but still could not do it yet. Great content.
Is it possibile bypass t2?
Good question!
Adamant IT Thank you, I just have a dumb question.
I have watched someone on this Ch341a who added and soldered a wire on pin 9 and soldered it on pin 28 of course after he lift it (pin 28) and connected to the volt regulator like you did but without having a second wire on the volt regulator I mean there was only 1 wire soldered on volt regulator coming only from pin 28.
Question is is it still the same? Thank you.
Yea the anchor pin and the middle pin of the reg are both outputs, you can use either.
@@Adamant_IT thank you
i did this, but the data line measuring 3.1 volt, altough the ch341a vcc is 3.3 volt
Hello Sir, I want to unlock the dev mod of my chromebook. I am trying to find a way how to flash the bios. it is Winbond WSON8 6x5mm. I am newbie, what do you recommender to flash it? does this flash programer ch341a works? would the 5v be dangereous for the chip?
is the 1.8 adapter works with 5v or should i mod the ch341 to 3.3v ? @Adamant IT
1.8v adaptor is fine 👍
I've tested this and 1.8v adaptors will regulate the data lines down to 1.8 as well.
@@Adamant_IT Thank you so much
Hello, does this do the 95xxx..?, thanks
Can the Ch341a be used to program an ATtiny13V microcontroller?
Picked up one of theses cheaply, came with a bios "clip" to save removing bios chips from the board, then soldering back on etc after
However when the "chip" is connected the power to the CH3 seems to drop off and disconnects from the PC, is there a fix for this other than hot air remove chip etc?
I performed this step by step. Now my ch341a cant be recognized by Windows. It didnt have a problem connecting before the mod. Any ideas?
Hey friend I bricked my laptop trying to undervoltage. I have a msi gs76. I can't even access bios @ all or windows. Would you have any advice?
BIOS reset should solve that. You'll need to take the bottom cover off and disconnect the RTC battery for a minute. It will likely be a small shrink-wrapped coin cell with a short two-pin wire connecting it to the board. An MSI I'm working on at the moment has the coin cell itself taped under the mobo, but the wire itself sneaks around to the top side, so it's possible to disconnect it without removing the mobo. It will look something like this: ae01.alicdn.com/kf/H5c6efbe47b434e7cb75428787836a7002/Original-CR2032-BIOS-battery-FOR-MSI-GT70-GT60-GT680-GT683-GT780-GE60-GE70-GE620-CX60-CX70.jpg_Q90.jpg_.webp
Is there any way to add a switch to easily switch back and forth to 3.3V and 5V?
Yes, there is such a way. But it is still necessary to raise 28 pins and feed it with 3.3 volts. After going back to 5 volts you can put a jumper on the two pins that are next to the zip panel. One of them has 3.3 volts, the other has 5 volts. So close them, then 5 volts will appear on pin 28. After removing the jumper, you will return to 3.3 volts of power. Everything is simple.
I like this channel
Nice video Adamant keep going 🤠🍷
What flux do you use? I can't find a proper fix that will get cleaned with alcohol. Thanks for you videos!!
I'd like to see a demonstration of the unmodified version actually causing some harm. Are there any known BIOS chips that die with this thing? I just used a bios programmer at work for the first time and it happened to be this exact one, unmodified. So I ordered one for myself too. Now I'm wondering how crucial this mod is.
it isn't. Theres no current to it: th-cam.com/video/J8-Sh7DjiXw/w-d-xo.html
There is no problem with this programmer. Only lot of stupid people around the internet. If you connect the programmer with plugged bios chip, voltage will change from 5V to 3.3V automatically.
I have a question. Is it possible to program an ITE super io chip with this programmer ?
It doesn't work for CH341B. For CH341A only. Because when the 9th pin of the microcircuit is in contact with the 1117 in the recording mode, there will be freezes and scraps of the programmer from the PC.
For CH341A there is also bad advice here to connect the 9th pin and 1117 with a piece of wire. because when you apply 5 volts to pin 28, your microchip will fail. It is not necessary to install a wire, but a removable jumper. if you need to switch to 5 volts, you will remove the jumper and use this jumper to short the 3.3 and 5 volt pins that are next to the zip panel.
th-cam.com/video/_MNZ6DtvAUA/w-d-xo.html
THANK YOU VERY MUCH MY CHIP WOULD SAY IC NOT RESPONDING, NOW THE ERROR CHANGED, IT SHOWS ITS BUSY READING BUT IT WONT FINISH , THE ASP SOFTWARE FREEZES WHEN I PRESS DETECT OR READ , COULD YOU KNOW HOW TO FIX IT'
I need the driver for this, every time I find one it is either a dead link or the site says error... haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...
Will it program 1gb bios chip??
Do you need to mod the voltage to use the 1.8v adapter?
I ordered this programmer, and today I have noticed that the chip is not the CH341A, it is the CH341B, can I know what the difference is or if they have the same problem as in this video?
i did this mod back when i sucked at soldering. broke off a pin on the ic, so i had to scrape the plastic and solder to the lead frame 😆 still works tho
Brother this mini programmer work on 1.8v bios chip or need with 1.8 volt adapter
+
The data lines don't go up to 5v when you connect the chip. You don't need to modify this.
And now this device Just 3.3 v working?
Not more 5v?? How can i make again 5v ?
Thank you.... I have the same iron. I love it
Wrong! The data lines are 3.3V when using the device. The voltage on the data lines WITHOUT connection is about 5V but as soon as you connect it to a chip and start communicating the voltage in fact IS 3.3V. So the modification is not only stupid it is also totally useless and even harmfull!
Yeah, it's a shame that Adamant IT fell for this bit of misinformation. Just goes to show that one needs to always be vigilant and not blindly accept everything that you hear from others.
Can you tell me if 5v in data line pin will cause any harm to the bios chip?
Yes and No.
Direct answer: Over-voltage will cause damage to the chip, it will often malfunction and not read/write properly whilst being over-volted. However, it will likely survive, so accidents usually don't end in a dead chip.
Roundabout answer: As others have pointed out, these data lines will actually get current-limited during use, causing the voltage to sag. So constant over-volting doesn't really do the damage here. However, Voltage Breakdown is also an issue, where constant 'zaps' of 5v before the current sags will damage the chip. The chances of killing the chip are very low - but that's not the point, you shouldn't take risks when A) you can modify the programmer to not put out 5v in the first place, or B) you buy the CH341a v1.6 or higher, which has a voltage selector switch.
This black-PCB version of the CH341a is obsolete, there are better cheap programmers available these days.
@@Adamant_IT One more question please. I saw from another YT and post, they connect the pin 28 to Capacitor in C4 first before from C4 to the 3.3V in the mosfet. Then they did not connect pin 9 to the Mosfet Drain. Is that a better option or just the same? I am trying to add a simple switch to switch between 5V and 3.3V. Also, upon further inspection, my flasher chip is CH341B. Is it the same as yours (CH341A)?
Btw, I tested the flasher without modifying on a mechanical keyboard bios and it made the bios less responsive. It took like 6 seconds before windows can recognize it, while before it was snappy. Upon connecting the flasher to the USB for the first time using bios clamp, it turn the keyboard on. I quicky read the bios and turn it off after saving to file. I was trying to copy the bios from healthy pcb to a dead one. Since then, the healthy one seems somehow crippled.
NICE TUTORIAL SIR😍😍😍
Hey. Not sure if you still read these comments. Can you tell me why you have to tie pin 28 to GND. Why could you not leave it lifted and untied. Would it not just be open. After all. We are basically disconnecting the 5v rail from the IC. Also the CH341a itself requires 5v to operate does it not? So if Pin 28 is tied to GND how does it source 5v. It must actually run of 3.3v as well?
We're connecting it to the 3.3v rail, which then powers the CH341a chip
@@Adamant_IT Appreciate the reply. So in the original configuration it runs off 5v and the data lines also have the potential to push 5. ?
Thank you so much 👍now I can program my eeprom 👍👍👍👍