Can you change stock fans in a PSU?

[slayer202]

Can you swap out the fan that come stock with PSUs? Would it even matter?

I ask because I have a corsair 550vx and when I game, it gets very loud. Not sure if this is even a fan issue, or anything adjustable, I have no idea, I don't know anything about power supplies. Any info is appreciated

 

[Jeff7]

What kind of noise? Is it a "wind-rushing" noise, or is it more of a grinding or groaning sound?
If it's while you're gaming, it sounds like it might be the PSU automatically throttling up the fan speed to counter the increase in loading from the videocard.



I've done fan replacements numerous times over the years - lots of power supply manufacturers love to save costs on the fan by using ones with cheap sleeve bearings, instead of ball bearings, or something like Panaflo's "hydro-wave" bearing, which seems to be some kind of high-end reliable sleeve bearing.

However: The guts of a power supply pose a shock hazard, even once powered off. They've got lots of filter caps, and usually there are at least 2 large capacitors that'll be charged with line voltage power. Some supplies have bleeder resistors to slowly dissipate this charge.

And if you do replace the fan, you must ensure that it's got airflow greater than or equal to the original one, otherwise the supply could easily overheat.

 

[slayer202]

I think there is some grinding to it, but I'm not 100% sure how to describe it. It definitely is speeding up to counter increased power/heat, but its really loud, out of the ordinary I would assume, but again, not 100% sure

I have read about power still in there even when off, though I'm going to see what corsair says before I attempt anything like that

 

[Zap]

Are you positive it is from the PSU fan? GPU and CPU fans are also (usually) temperature controlled, plus if the PSU fan is ramping up so much as to become the noisiest part of your system, then either your system (esp. PSU) is too clogged with dust or you are at the limits of your PSU.

 

[slayer202]

I cleaned out the entire case, including PSU this morning and that didn't help anything. I know it's not a case or gpu fan but I didn't think about the cpu fan. I don't think that's it either though, the sound seems to be coming from the PSU. I don't think I'm stressing the PSU too much either. I'll take a closer look to try and rule out the cpu fan completely

 

[theAnimal]

I don't think I'm stressing the PSU too much either.

What are your specs?

 

[slayer202]

corsair vx550

gigabyte DS3L
Q6600
4gb ddr2 800 ram
xfx 6870 black edition
SSD
2x SATA hds
cd/dvd rw

 

[slayer202]

Is there a way to monitor either the cpu or PSU fan? It's tough to really tell which is acting up even with the case open. Or any way to test which is causing the problem

edit: ok I found something to test the cpu and 100% load and getting it heated made the fan speed up, but that isn't it, so I'm sure it's the power supply

 

[BoomerD]

CAN you change the fan? Perhaps...IF you're good with a soldering iron and can find an appropriate fan. The PSU fans are usually considerably better quality than the average case fan...you're not gonna be able to throw a Yate Loon in there and get good results. Do some reading on the PSU reviews over at JonnyGuru.com to find out what the better brands/models of PSU fans are...then start your search for a replacement.

SHOULD you replace the fan? Not likely...unless you're knowledgeable about such things. Again, this isn't like swapping out a case fan.

Is the PSU still under warranty?

 

[Jeff7]

Quick/easy way to tell if it's the PSU fan:
Stick something nonconductive, preferably plastic, through the grille to stop the fan from spinning momentarily, and listen for the noise change. (Only stop it very briefly - and don't blame me if it breaks the blade. Though I've never once broken a fan blade in that manner.)

Or sometimes I could even just put my hand against the power supply and was able to feel the sound/vibration that was being made.

 

[slayer202]

apparently not using vsync may be causing the problem...the hell if I know why...

 

[pete1229]

I had the same problem with a PSU, was very loud from power up to shut down. I replaced it with a Rocketfish 500wat psu from Bestbuy. Night and day, now the loudest thing in my case is the HDD spinning. Never though of replacing the PSU fan in original as it was hard wired. I have seen PSU's with modular power connectors which would make replacement easy. I'm not sure if corsair has this type of build or not.

 

[zagood]

It's probably coil whine. Corsair covers it under their warranty replacement policy. Read this thread first though:

http://forum.corsair.com/v3/showthread.php?t=85166