Squealing sound at load: PSU or mobo?

[Centauri]

I've never encountered this before, but when I let my system run at full tilt I get this high pitched squealing sound. It's not constant either as it changes a bit in pitch and occasionally goes away but only for a second.

Running my ear around the system, I'm honestly not sure whether it's the PSU, the mobo or... the CPU? It's definitely not any of the fans, already checked.

My system, as I have it volted, only consumes 150w at GPU and CPU max load. My PSU is a 500w unit so I have a hard time believing that it can't handle what I'm doing.

Any suggestions to track this down?

 

[red454]

Sounds (no pun intended) like a capacitor slowly going out. Look closely - do you see any that have a bulge on the top? Any liquid oozing out? If you have never seen one, do a Google Image search on "capacitor failure".

You should be able to see all the capacitors on the motherboard - you may have to remove the graphics card or CPU cooler. The PSU is a different story. Some you can see inside, others you can't. You can take the cover off, but if you don't know what you are doing, you probably shouldn't. And make sure everything is powered down before you start poking around. I was probing for voltages on a power supply (plugged in and under load) and toasted it, complete with flames and smoke.

 

[max347]

I've heard that sound from graphics cards and power supplies

 

[sobe88]

Does it make the noise on loading/intro screens where the FPS would show 999+? Very possibly just the PSU making coil whine

 

[Tsavo]

I've never encountered this before, but when I let my system run at full tilt I get this high pitched squealing sound. It's not constant either as it changes a bit in pitch and occasionally goes away but only for a second.

Running my ear around the system, I'm honestly not sure whether it's the PSU, the mobo or... the CPU? It's definitely not any of the fans, already checked.

My system, as I have it volted, only consumes 150w at GPU and CPU max load. My PSU is a 500w unit so I have a hard time believing that it can't handle what I'm doing.

Any suggestions to track this down?

That would be the coils in your PSU.

Also, it's not an issue with the PSU not being able to handle the load or not, some of them are just noisy. My i5-750 ran fine with a Corsair TX-650 v1 with an ATI 4850, but was squealing bloody murder in video games with a GTX 460.

Don't worry, nothing is going to pop or explode or burn down your neighborhood.

I quieted the TX-650 with some hot glue on the coils.

You can RMA the PSU if that option is available, or;
Put hot glue or hi-temp silicone (best option) on the coils in your PSU (voids warranty) or;
Replace the PSU.

 

[Tsavo]

I found a reply to this on an old post I made in regards to the type of silicone to use:

Well, any high-temp, neutral cure electro-insulating silicone sealant/caulk will do just fine. Dow Corning 738 or 748, for example. Doesn't have to be either of those, but make sure it's not acidic (preferably it should be alkoxy cure), and that it can withstand > 130°C if possible.