Fan options

[CRV]

I have an Asus M51AD-US002S computer. It has an Intel i5-4440, 8GB memory, and a Nvidia GTX 760. The issue is that when I play video games (especially BF4) the fan seems like it's on high speed and sounds like a hair blow dryer at low speed. Is there a recommended fan that I can replace it with, that is powerful and very quiet?

Besides gaming, it is pretty quiet. Other games besides BF4 the fan seems to be on low and medium speeds.

 

[coffeejunkee]

Does the case have any fans? I assume you added the GTX 760 yourself? If so, a fairly high-end card like that needs a well ventilated case, at the very least an intake fan in the front and an outtake fan in the back. Without those the card's fan will have to work overtime and cause a lot of noise.

You could add casefans yourself but you will need to check the motherboard for connectors. Even if it has fanconnectors there's the question if they are controllable. You might also need a separate fancontroller to control fanspeeds.

 

[Deders]

Which fan are you talking about? Is it the stock Intel CPU fan?

 

[jaedaliu]

Based on what you said, it sounds like the video card is the one making most of the noise.

The easiest way to try to decrease the fan speed during gaming is to improve airflow through the case (like coffeejunkee said.) The video card fan most likey is just stirring the heat from the card into the case. If you can get better air flow, the hot air gets pushed out the case, and the video card fan doesn't need to spin as fast.

The other way to decrease video card noise during gaming is to replace the heatsink with an aftermarket system. It's much more costly. Accelero makes the stock replacement, after that maybe consider a swap to water cooling.

so, in conclusion, add some case fans to improve airflow.

 

[CRV]

Does the case have any fans? I assume you added the GTX 760 yourself? If so, a fairly high-end card like that needs a well ventilated case, at the very least an intake fan in the front and an outtake fan in the back. Without those the card's fan will have to work overtime and cause a lot of noise.

You could add casefans yourself but you will need to check the motherboard for connectors. Even if it has fanconnectors there's the question if they are controllable. You might also need a separate fancontroller to control fanspeeds.

Yes the case has the OEM fan that came with the computer. The Nvidia GTX 760 was included in the computer. Wow that seems complex.

 

[CRV]

Which fan are you talking about? Is it the stock Intel CPU fan?

Yes it's the stock fan that is located in the rear of the computer.

 

[CRV]

Just wanted to see if there's any quiet fans out there that I can replace the stock fan with.

 

[Deders]

Yes it's the stock fan that is located in the rear of the computer.

It's definitely that one, and not the one that is attached to the heatsink on the CPU?

Usually the rear fan is a a set speed so it makes the same noise all the time.

The CPU fan is the one that ramps up and down when it gets hotter, unless you have the case fan set to do so somehow.

 

[CRV]

It's definitely that one, and not the one that is attached to the heatsink on the CPU?

Usually the rear fan is a a set speed so it makes the same noise all the time.

The CPU fan is the one that ramps up and down when it gets hotter, unless you have the case fan set to do so somehow.

I will have to open it up and check. Not too familiar with installing and uninstalling all the computer hardware parts, only with hard drives and memory cards.

 

[DSF]

As loud as you're saying it gets, my gut feeling is that it's most likely the video card fan if you have the kind of single-slot video card with a blower that shoots air out the back. That style of cooler can get very loud.

Failing that the next bet would be the CPU fan. It's very unlikely to be the rear case fan - as some people said above, that fan should run at a constant speed.

The best first step to take is to open up the case and determine exactly which fan is getting so noisy.

 

[Deders]

if you gently brush the center of the fan for a short period you can make it slow down and it will help you work out whih is the culprit.

Don't put pressure on it for too long as you can burn the motor out. Also avoid the blades, they can snap off.

 

[coffeejunkee]

Just wanted to see if there's any quiet fans out there that I can replace the stock fan with.

There's a direct relation between a fan's rpm, the amount of air it moves and the noise it produces. There is (quite) some variation between good and bad fans at the same rpm but a 500rpm fan is never going to move as much air as a 1500rpm fan. Conversely a 1500rpm fan is never going to be as quiet as a 500rpm fan.

So yes, you could swap the fan for a quieter one but you also need the airflow. Otherwise the cpu and gpu fan will just have to work harder and create even more noise in total.

What I would do is add either a front or side intake fan and use a splitter like this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812189063 to connect both the old and new fan to the motherboard. But first you need to find out which size fan will fit (92 or 120mm most likely).

Also found this vid of the inside of your case: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4dFHeVwmHk (around 3:50). Looks like an open blower type vidcard. Also, that Asus motherboard will most likely thermally control the casefan.

 

[CRV]

After checking, found out that it's the fan that's on the GPU that is making the noise. Also found out I have 4 fans total.

 

[Deders]

So definitely, like people have said, you need to get cool air to your GPU so it's fan doesn't have to work as hard.

A front intake fan will work wonders if it has a clear passage to the GPU.

 

[CRV]

So definitely, like people have said, you need to get cool air to your GPU so it's fan doesn't have to work as hard.

A front intake fan will work wonders if it has a clear passage to the GPU.

What is a front intake fan and is it one that I can replace or need to add?

 

[DSF]

To be honest with you, there's probably a limit to how quiet you're going to get even if you add an intake fan. BF4 is a demanding game that is likely pushing your card as far as it will go, and even with an intake fan I would expect the card's cooler will still ramp up to levels you find noisy.

A front intake fan isn't a special kind of fan, it just means a fan mounted at the front of the case pointed to that it pulls air in.

 

[jaedaliu]

What is a front intake fan and is it one that I can replace or need to add?

On the inside of your case, you need to look for vent holes for a fan. Typically front case fans are 120mm. I don't know of an easy way to check. Maybe measure? There are only a few standard computer fan sizes.

Anyways, assuming you have mounting holes for fans, they're easy enough to find online or at a computer parts store.

But, keep in mind, as DSF said, when you play a pretty game, your graphics card will work hard, and it will spin the fan faster. The easiest solution is probably to turn up the volume a little bit to drown out the fan noise.

 

[Automaticman]

Looking at pictures of that PC, it looks like the case you have might have provisions for mounting a side intake fan. Look for a perforated grill area on the removable door above the GPU. Adding a fan there will blow cool air directly onto the GPU and can make a noticeable difference.

 

[Automaticman]

One more option you might consider is to replace the case entirely. Many aftermarket cases has FAR better aircooling than OEM cases. This will be a bit more work, but good practice for building a pc (should just be a matter of unscrewing pieces from one case and putting them in the new case).

Here are a few for cases with good airflow. Most of these cases come with several fans preinstalled, but you will likely want to add a side fan in any case.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129021

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129203

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119197

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811139022

The last case (Carbide Air 540) is a bit different in that it is short and wide, separating the power supply and hard drives from the motherboard and GPU. This gives it a really nice clean look inside and a very open path for air.

 

[CRV]

I will have to look into a side fan. In the meantime I will just have to bare with the noise or put on my headset.