Wierdest Computer Hardware problem

[Doug91]

OK to start it off here is my system:
Core 2 Duo E6550
Asus Nvidia 680i (P5N32-E Plus)
2 gb Patriot DDR2 800
Nvidia 6800 XT
THermaltake 500 W


so my PSU is emitting a very high pitched, near ultrasonic whining noise. It makes the noise almost all the time. It is especially loud during times of high power draw (i.e. startup, loading of programs). First I replaced the PSU, that did not solve the problem. Then I tried an older P965 Mobo. This solved the problem, there was no more noise. Then I replaced the Asus motherboard. My computer is still making this damn noise. Wtf could be the source? Is 500 Watts not enough? I didn't think the 680i chipset drew that much power. Any ideas are welcomed.

 

[postmortemIA]

some fan? turn off one by one until noise disappears. it has to be from a moving device- fans or HD.

 

[SpeedEng66]

I have a high pitch hum coming from my vcard when the pc is under alot of load try taking the card out and turn on the system to see if it's gone

 

[Doug91]

The noise is definately coming from the PSU. The wierd thing is, the PSU only makes the noise with the Asus motherboard. When I use an older Biostar 965PT the PSU is fine and makes no noise.

 

[wwswimming]

power supply circuitry sometimes has switching frequencies in
the audible range (for humans).

ditching your preferred MB doesn't sound like a great solution.

like you identified, the combination of power supply & MB
makes the noise happen.

one idea - replace the MB (with one of the same) and get a
higher capacity, more reference quality (like you would use
in an engineering lab) power supply.

 

[imported_Baloo]

500 Watts s is plenty. When buying cheap porwer supplies, higher wattage is better. But better still is a more expensive, better quality, lower wattage PSU, such as those that Antec, Fortran, and Seasonic offer, among others brands. One of those at 400 watts would do. I see yours is Thermaltake, that should be a good product, but user reviews I have read are hit or miss. Might be worthwhile to try a different brand. It's not about the watts one should base theire decision on, but the quality. If you read PSU reviews, few PSU's achieve their rated output when tested - most PSU ratings are exaggerated. Even among the better brands, the tendency exisits to exaggerate for their higher watt rated PSU's.

 

[Doug91]

I will probably buy a better quality and higher wattage PSU soon. I am buying an 8800 GTS, and need a better PSU for that anyway. Do you think the noise is bad? I.e. is it slowly breaking my computer or will it blow up in face?