Hum under load?

[CompuTamer]

Bleh, i seem to have more problems than anyone else here...

whenever i run Prime on my computer, it hums... it sounds like the power supply, but it may be the mobo too... Never fails, vCore doesn't drop much, and it'll run for a good bit... (only really tried for 10minutes, then i stopped when i realized the hum wasn't going away). Does anyone know what could cause that hum?

EDIT: There is also an accompanying high pitched squeal when i run small FFT. Large FFT doesn't cause that though.

 

[Evilsizer]

well it could be a choke from the psu squealing or off the motherboard, when you run small FFT's. not sure but the hum could be from the psu. i would start to take apart the pc one piece at a time. first take out the psu and sit it on top of the case then power up the rig and see what happens. then start small FFT's and see if you can pin down the squeal.

 

[nzaneb]

EDIT: There is also an accompanying high pitched squeal when i run small FFT. Large FFT doesn't cause that though.

Small FFT focuses mostly on the CPU, while Large factors in some RAM. Evilsizer's method is going to allow you to pinpoint the noise easier than when everything is in the same resonating case... so I'm going to endorse that method. But if I had to fancy a guess... I'm leaning towards a capacitor on that Intel board

 

[CompuTamer]

Is it something that i should be worried about? The computer's running fine... just kinda strange

 

[nzaneb]

Is it something that i should be worried about? The computer's running fine... just kinda strange

Coil Whine is normal, a capacitor squealing could be a sign that it's failing.

 

[Evilsizer]

Coil Whine is normal, a capacitor squealing could be a sign that it's failing.

both to someone untrained can sound the same. if his psu is new i highly doubt it would be cap squealing. though i have to admit in all my time, cap failing has never had/followed with squealing. always has been visual checkup of the caps to see if they are bulging.

 

[CompuTamer]

Okay, so i pulled the PSU out, and it is what's humming. Opened it up and looked at the caps in it, and on the mobo, and none of them are bulging at all.

One thing i did notice though, is that the squeal is actually coming from the CPU itself. It's there when it's running large FFTs, just not near as loud. (I have to put my head inside the case to hear it). So maybe it's just core noise?

 

[antipesto93]

possibly the coilst on the motherboard?

 

[Zuzzz]

Any kind of a hum like that is usually related to AC not being filtered properly(A.C hum). Be it the board or the PSU. If you are hearing it near the CPU chances are great its either a coil or cap on the board. Without meters etc to check it chances are you wont nail it down till something fails. Try swapping out the PSU and see if it goes away. The PSU would be my first guess as it is the main component to clean and filter the electricity to the board. If the PSU is not doing its job correctly and the AC ripple is being passed to the board it(the PSU) CAN damage said board. This would also help to explain why you hear it on the board near the CPU. The power circuitry on motherboards is meant to refine the properly filtered DC coming from the PSU. If the DC from the PSU is not filtered properly this is the sort of thing that can happen and you will hear it. So my long story short, replace the PSU and see if it fixes it.

Z