My GPU fans are making a grinding/vibrating sound. How can I fix this?

[Segundoh]

Build: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/yq4Mzf

My GPU fans are making a horrible grinding noise when I increase the fan speed past a certain threshold. How can I fix this? If this can’t be fixed, I’ll have to return this to Newegg and look for another 6800 XT. I have an ASRock Phantom Gaming RX 6800 XT. Here is an example of the sound starting when my fans go to 100%: https://youtube.com/shorts/UqjJxO8DOOY?feature=share

Here’s an example of the sound that consistently happens. The fan speed is at about 60% in this video:

This vide has me check if any cables are stuck in the fans, and it doesn’t seem like any of them are based on that:

This is definitely coming from my fans since the noise only starts happening if I raise my fan speed above about 60%. I thought it was coil whine at first, but it’s definitely related to the fans, especially since there’s that loud noise that starts as soon as I raise the fan speed.

Could this be caused by improperly seating my GPU? It seems to be working apart from this fan issue and some coil whine, so I’m not sure if that could be causing it. Or is something just wrong with the fans themselves? I’m not really sure though what’s happening, so any assistance would be appreciated to troubleshoot before I have to return this and just get a new one.

In terms of my own troubleshooting, I tried to lift up my GPU to see if GPU sag was causing it to hit the case or something, but that just made a cracking sound for some reason which did not sound good. There is a case cable behind my GPU for one of my case fans; could that be causing these sounds? I don’t think it’s possible for me to move that out of the way though since it’s too short.

 

[nomdeplume]

One potentially helpful decision would be removing the card to perform a visual inspection of the fans. It is possible something inside the card is being agitated at higher speeds or one/all fans are imbalanced. Be very detail oriented and use a bright light to also look for signs of wear to your case fan cable.
The video was of no determinate help to me

If nothing is discoverable and there is obviously a problem. Contact Newegg.

 

[Segundoh]

One potentially helpful decision would be removing the card to perform a visual inspection of the fans. It is possible something inside the card is being agitated at higher speeds or one/all fans are imbalanced. Be very detail oriented and use a bright light to also look for signs of wear to your case fan cable.
The video was of no determinate help to me

If nothing is discoverable and there is obviously a problem. Contact Newegg.

This video might be more helpful. This is someone else’s video and it sounds similar to mine:

https://www.reddit.com/r/EVGA/comments/pmv0yy

And oh okay that makes sense. I’ll take a look at the internals to see what’s up with that. If I do see something wrong, would I be able to fix anything without voiding my warranty?

I looked this up, and I saw some people said stuff about stopping each fan to see which one is the source of the problem. I’m worried I’ll break my fans (even more) by stopping them though or break my parts by hitting them with static electricity. Is this recommended? If it is, how could I do this without damaging anything?

 

[maxfly]

I'd just send it back. I've got the same card and it was by far the most quiet and cool running GPU I've ever owned (water block is on it now). I wouldn't monkey with trying to fix it personally. Something is obviously jacked up.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

Sounds like the fan bearing is shot. They'll make a grinding or rattling noise like that. If youre technically skilled you can buy fans off ebay and just swap the old ones out. if the card is still under warranty however, I would just return the card.

Newegg has been exposed being a bit shady with regards to RMAs in the past so fingers crossed your RMA goes well.

 

[GerKNG]

i'd buy a couple of NF A12x25 a "GPU Fan to 4Pin PWM adapter" and slap them on the card.

 

[P4-630]

If there's no warranty left and can't find another way to fix it, you could remove the shroud and slap 2 120mm fans to the heatsink with the fans connected to motherboard fan headers.

 

[nomdeplume]

This video might be more helpful. This is someone else’s video and it sounds similar to mine:

https://www.reddit.com/r/EVGA/comments/pmv0yy

And oh okay that makes sense. I’ll take a look at the internals to see what’s up with that. If I do see something wrong, would I be able to fix anything without voiding my warranty?

I looked this up, and I saw some people said stuff about stopping each fan to see which one is the source of the problem. I’m worried I’ll break my fans (even more) by stopping them though or break my parts by hitting them with static electricity. Is this recommended? If it is, how could I do this without damaging anything?

Look, as in visual inspection, being all the further I was suggesting at this point. Outside of the computer and unpowered. Where any flaw could be photographed as evidence to start an RMA with.

We need to start determining what is causing the problem. Not breaking things! Or doing mods.

Sounds like the fan bearing is shot. They'll make a grinding or rattling noise like that. If youre technically skilled you can buy fans off ebay and just swap the old ones out. if the card is still under warranty however, I would just return the card.

Return if this is malfunctioning fans (anything/unknown) and not for example a piece of packaging that somehow landed inside the card without doing any damage. IF a fan blade breaks chances of return get much less likely without solid proof of manufacture defect.

 

[Segundoh]

I'd just send it back. I've got the same card and it was by far the most quiet and cool running GPU I've ever owned (water block is on it now). I wouldn't monkey with trying to fix it personally. Something is obviously jacked up.

So, that card should not sound like that at all. That makes sense. It seems like that weird sound that happens when I ramp up the fan speed to 60% to 100% no longer happens; I'm nto sure what I did. I just moved the GPU around in the PCIE slot a bit, and it at least made the issue better. However, I'm still getting rattling sounds though they're quiet enough that I can't hear them unless I put my ear right next to the fans:

With your card, are you not hearing any rattling sounds at all though even if you put my ear next to it? I'm not sure what exactly the threshold is between normal GPU fan sounds like maybe some resonance and abnormal ones; I suppose rattling would definitely be abnormal though. Is resonance normal though? Here's a video of some fan resonance:

Is some fan resonance expected, or should there not be any resonance at all? As of now, this only becomes obvious past 80% which is better than before; it's definitely still annoying though.

Sounds like the fan bearing is shot. They'll make a grinding or rattling noise like that. If youre technically skilled you can buy fans off ebay and just swap the old ones out. if the card is still under warranty however, I would just return the card.

Newegg has been exposed being a bit shady with regards to RMAs in the past so fingers crossed your RMA goes well.

I see. That makes sense. In that videos I sent at the beginning of this post, I can still hear a slight rattling noise even after it was alleviated randomly as mentioned in the first section of this post. Does that all seem normal, or is it not as I asked before? Hopefully Newegg won't make any trouble for me throughout the RMA process.

i'd buy a couple of NF A12x25 a "GPU Fan to 4Pin PWM adapter" and slap them on the card.

That's definitely a great idea too. Since it's under warranty, I think I'd rather return it. Still, I'll definitely do that in the future if my card is ever out of warranty and the fans start making weird sounds. Do the videos I sent at the beginning of the post still seem like weird sounds as I asked in the first section, or do they seem normal? It seems I somehow made the issue better by moving my GPU in the PCIE slot a bit.

If there's no warranty left and can't find another way to fix it, you could remove the shroud and slap 2 120mm fans to the heatsink with the fans connected to motherboard fan headers.

I'm still under warranty, so I can return it. It seems that it somehow fixed itself to an extent just by moving my GPU in the PCIE slot a bit. In the videos I showed in the beginning, the fans are still making some weird sounds. Like I asked in the first section, are these sounds actually normal, or should they noit be happening at all?

Look, as in visual inspection, being all the further I was suggesting at this point. Outside of the computer and unpowered. Where any flaw could be photographed as evidence to start an RMA with.

We need to start determining what is causing the problem. Not breaking things! Or doing mods.



Return if this is malfunctioning fans (anything/unknown) and not for example a piece of packaging that somehow landed inside the card without doing any damage. IF a fan blade breaks chances of return get much less likely without solid proof of manufacture defect.

It seems that a piece of packaging or something might've contributed to the issue. I moved the GPU around a bit in the PCIE slot, and it made the issue better. As can be heard in the videos I sent in the beginning, the fans are still making some weird sounds though they're at least quieter. Are these sounds normal, or are they abnormal? As for a visual inspection, I'm honestly kind of worried to take my GPU out of the motherboard. I should not have bought an Asus motherboard again; I had one before whose PCIE slot was so tight I couldn't get my GPU out. I ended up having to pull it out which ripped the PCIE tab out. I thought I just took it out wrong or something, but nope. I tried to take out my GPU to unseat it, and it took ages. In the end, I pulled it out too hard again. I didn't break anything this time, but it should be this hard to remove a GPU since my motherboards from other manufacturers were a lot easier. I'll try to get someone to help me take it out though when someone is free; that should make it easier, at least.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

I see. That makes sense. In that videos I sent at the beginning of this post, I can still hear a slight rattling noise and some fan resonance even though it randomly got a lot better after I moved the GPU around a bit. Are a soft rattling sound and some fan resonance normal, or should it not be happening at all? I can only really hear it if I put my ear right next to the fans. Hopefully Newegg won't make any trouble for me throughout the RMA process.

Not an expert but excessive play in a bad bearing could be allowing the pitch of the fan to change as it spins which is causing the resonance. Shifting the graphics card might improve things but once a bearing is bad, it will continue to get worse. People have tried dropping a drop of sewing machine oil on their bad fan bearings in the past but at best this is just a bandaid. The rattling eventually comes back.

 

[maxfly]

I no longer have the heatsink on mine but it was dead silent up to about 60%, even after that it wasn't the usual ear splitting loud that you normally get from gpu fans. Just air being pushed rather than bearing noise.

 

[Segundoh]

Not an expert but excessive play in a bad bearing could be allowing the pitch of the fan to change as it spins which is causing the resonance. Shifting the graphics card might improve things but once a bearing is bad, it will continue to get worse. People have tried dropping a drop of sewing machine oil on their bad fan bearings in the past but at best this is just a bandaid. The rattling eventually comes back.

That makes sense. I just got this GPU 2 weeks ago, so it's definitely a bad sign if it's already making these kinds of noises after 2 weeks... it'll just get even worse later then. Maybe I would expect bearings to go bad after a few years but definitely not 2 weeks after buying my GPU. I'll be sure to just return that then.

I no longer have the heatsink on mine but it was dead silent up to about 60%, even after that it wasn't the usual ear splitting loud that you normally get from gpu fans. Just air being pushed rather than bearing noise.

I see. Mine are pretty silent too up to 60% although they're not quite dead silent. It still isn't too loud after that point apart from the rattling sounds and the resonance sounds which are definitely issues on their own.

 

[nomdeplume]

Loud cracking noises and previous experiences are aligning to make me believe you should exercise great caution. Unless you RMA the motherboard with card installed any idea of returning it is going to require removal. This sounds like you have a good case for returning the product.

My example with packing material was meant as a hypothetical introducing a foreign object as one of the many potential causes.

 

[Segundoh]

Loud cracking noises and previous experiences are aligning to make me believe you should exercise great caution. Unless you RMA the motherboard with card installed any idea of returning it is going to require removal. This sounds like you have a good case for returning the product.

My example with packing material was meant as a hypothetical introducing a foreign object as one of the many potential causes.

Sorry by loud cracking noises, do you mean my fan noises or the cracking noise that happened when I moved my GPU a bit? If you’re talking about the latter case, I agree that’s definitely a bad sign. How careful should I be? I suppose I have a good case for returning my motherboard too although that’s outside of the Amazon return window but not the RMA window. I definitely have a good case for returning my GPU for sure.

And I see, so some foreign object could’ve gotten inside it. Maybe jostling it a bit got some of these things to fall out. I can try to move it more, but I don’t want to risk it. I think I’ll take it out once to RMA it and then put another one… hopefully the second one doesn’t have any of these issues.

 

[nomdeplume]

You damaging your motherboard is the exact opposite of manufacturer defect.

Best of luck however you choose to pursue any of these compounding issues. You should always be very careful and very gentle when handling computer components whether they are receiving/storing power or not.

 

[Segundoh]

You damaging your motherboard is the exact opposite of manufacturer defect.

Best of luck however you choose to pursue any of these compounding issues. You should always be very careful and very gentle when handling computer components whether they are receiving/storing power or not.

Yeah that’s true. So, is that cracking noise that happened when I moved my GPU not normal? It still seems to be working fine, but I suppose it shouldn’t be making that kind of sound just by moving it a little bit. Ill handle my GPU more gently and carefully when I remove it then to RMA it.

The GPU was so stuck in there that I had to push the tab down with one hand while removing the GPU which is why I took it out with too much force; I definitely didn’t have that issue with non-Asus motherboards, so I either got unlucky with both of my Asus motherboards or their motherboards are just like that. Anyway, I’ll get someone to help me push down the tab while I take out the GPU so that doesn’t happen again.

edit: also, I realized I misspoke there. I meant to say the grinding sound is quiet but the resonance sound is still very loud.

also, is it possible that any of this could be caused by a structurally unsound motherboard or case, or do these grinding and resonance sounds seem like the fans for sure? I’m worried I damaged my PCIE slot when I removed my GPU to reseat it since it was stuck in there so tightly I had to push down on the tab with one hand while removing the GPU with the other. Is there a way to see what’s causing it? If it’s actually the mobo or the case and not the GPU, then there’s no point in replacing my GPU.

 

[Segundoh]

You damaging your motherboard is the exact opposite of manufacturer defect.

Best of luck however you choose to pursue any of these compounding issues. You should always be very careful and very gentle when handling computer components whether they are receiving/storing power or not.

I ended up returning my ASRock Phantom Gaming 6800 XT and got a Sapphire Pulse 6800 XT instead since the Pulse was a bit cheaper. I'm not hearing those grinding and rattling sounds, at least, so I guess it's luckily not my mobo. However, I am getting a high-pitched squealing sound now as shown in this videos:

I thought it was coil whine since it sounds like that. I do get coil whine in games, but I'm just running at idle in this video, so it shouldn't be coil whine in this case. Additionally, the sound goes away as soon as I turn off my GPU fans, so it definitely seems to be caused by the GPU fans. Frankly, maybe this isn't defective; maybe it's just the relatively cheap fans on these low to mid range 6800 XT models. If it's normal for these models and not a sign that my GPU fans are actually bad, then I'll deal with it at this point since 2 out of 2 midtier 6800XT models had weird fan noises. My fans seem to be working just fine as of now since they generally keep my GPU temp below 75 degrees C and my junction temp below 100 degrees C. I saw the junction temp go up to 100-106 degrees C for a second or two, but this was when I was OCing and I resolved this by ramping up my fan speed to 100%. However, do these sounds indicate that my fans will break very quickly or something? Will these sounds get worse over time?

Not an expert but excessive play in a bad bearing could be allowing the pitch of the fan to change as it spins which is causing the resonance. Shifting the graphics card might improve things but once a bearing is bad, it will continue to get worse. People have tried dropping a drop of sewing machine oil on their bad fan bearings in the past but at best this is just a bandaid. The rattling eventually comes back.

I forgot to ask this before. Is it actually bad for the GPU fans if the bearings are bad, or is it just an annoyance in terms of how loud they are? I bought a Sapphire Pulse 6800 XT instead of the ASRock one, and I'm having different noises now; since they aren't grinding and rattling noises, I hope they're normal. I talked about this more above in my reply to nomdeplume.

I'd just send it back. I've got the same card and it was by far the most quiet and cool running GPU I've ever owned (water block is on it now). I wouldn't monkey with trying to fix it personally. Something is obviously jacked up.

Does your Phantom Gaming make high-pitched squealing noises like the noises in the video I included in the section in this post with my reply to nomdeplume? I returned it and got a Sapphire Pulse 6800 XT instead since that was a bit cheaper, so it may be differnet for a different model though. At least it's not making grinding and rattling noises anymore, so I hope this kinda stuff is normal.

 

[maxfly]

I ended up returning my ASRock Phantom Gaming 6800 XT and got a Sapphire Pulse 6800 XT instead since the Pulse was a bit cheaper. I'm not hearing those grinding and rattling sounds, at least, so I guess it's luckily not my mobo. However, I am getting a high-pitched squealing sound now as shown in this videos: https://drive.google.com/file/d/19CzUe437akxT7to9oHAMsAWjoonl5Y1g/view?usp=share_link

I thought it was coil whine since it sounds like that. I do get coil whine in games, but I'm just running at idle in this video, so it shouldn't be coil whine in this case. Additionally, the sound goes away as soon as I turn off my GPU fans, so it definitely seems to be caused by the GPU fans. Frankly, maybe this isn't defective; maybe it's just the relatively cheap fans on these low to mid range 6800 XT models. If it's normal for these models and not a sign that my GPU fans are actually bad, then I'll deal with it at this point since 2 out of 2 midtier 6800XT models had weird fan noises. My fans seem to be working just fine as of now since they generally keep my GPU temp below 75 degrees C and my junction temp below 100 degrees C. I saw the junction temp go up to 100-106 degrees C for a second or two, but this was when I was OCing and I resolved this by ramping up my fan speed to 100%. However, do these sounds indicate that my fans will break very quickly or something? Will these sounds get worse over time?


I forgot to ask this before. Is it actually bad for the GPU fans if the bearings are bad, or is it just an annoyance in terms of how loud they are? I bought a Sapphire Pulse 6800 XT instead of the ASRock one, and I'm having different noises now; since they aren't grinding and rattling noises, I hope they're normal. I talked about this more above in my reply to nomdeplume.

Does your Phantom Gaming make high-pitched squealing noises like the noises in the video I included in the section in this post with my reply to nomdeplume? I returned it and got a Sapphire Pulse 6800 XT instead since that was a bit cheaper, so it may be differnet for a different model though. At least it's not making grinding and rattling noises anymore, so I hope this kinda stuff is normal.

No, not at all. It doesn't make any noise.

 

[Segundoh]

No, not at all. It doesn't make any noise.

I see. It looks like it's not an issue with low-end 6800XTs then, and this isn't normal either. At this point, if this is a fan issue, it has to be a problem with my motherboard's PCIE slot or my case being damaged or unstable or something, I guess... I think it's very unlikely I got 2 GPUs in a row with fan issues, though maybe I did just get unlucky. There are some cables that are on top of the GPU or behind the GPU, but I don't see any cables that are actually caught in the fans. Could those cables cause weird sounds? I don't see how they would affect anything since they're both very small case fan cables, but maybe they are somehow causing issues. Also, can coil whine be affected by GPU fans at all, or are they completely different things? Here's a better video too:

 

[FreedomEclipse]

Is it actually bad for the GPU fans if the bearings are bad,

Bad bearings normally end up in complete failure of the fan further on down the line... Your answer depends on how much you value your hardware to let it cook

 

[Segundoh]

Bad bearings normally end up in complete failure of the fan further on down the line... Your answer depends on how much you value your hardware to let it cook

That makes sense. Would you say this high-pitched squealing sound thing is a case of bad bearings or is it something else? Maybe this is honestly normal, and I'm just paranoid cause of my ASRock fan issues. This is clearly much better than the rattling and grinding shit I was hearing before though, at least. I also have tinnitus, so the high-pitched sound might just be my tinnitus and not my fans lmao. I'll have to ask my friends and family if they hear anything.

Also, I tried to stop each fan one by one. I'm not sure if you'll be able to hear that high-pitched sound from this video. It's different from the coil whine clicking sound. I hope I didn't damage anything since I pressed down on some of them a bit too hard:

I still heard this issue even after I stopped each fan one by one. As soon as I turned off the fans, it went away again. Afterwards, I tried to stop 2 fans at once, and the sound got quieter. I stopped all 3 at once and then the sound went away. Is this just the sound of the fans vibrating the case or something then, or is something wrong with the fans themselves? I'm very confused about this. I'm not sure why it gets worse when more fans are on and gets better when fewer fans are on.

Did it look like I damaged the fans or anything based on how I stopped them? I don't think I touched the fan blades and only touched the center, but I might've touched the blades by accident. Is it probably okay as long as the fan blade hasn't come off yet, or is there a chance it could break later on or something?

 

[nomdeplume]

If it's new and defective and arrived from the same source this way multiple times. Get your money back and try shopping elsewhere ??

 

[Segundoh]

If it's new and defective and arrived from the same source this way multiple times. Get your money back and try shopping elsewhere ??

Yeah, that's a good idea at this point. That's why I tried going for Sapphire instead of ASRock since Sapphire is a more reputable brand. I bought both from Newegg and I made sure they were not third-party sellers and were actually sold through Newegg; maybe I missed it in this case though but hopefully not. Not sure what other sellers I can even go through since Newegg has all the best deals and there isn't a Micro Center near me. Well, I could manage if the deal's good enough, but it wouldn't be ideal. I guess I'll wait for something from Amazon or B&H or something.

Also, I'm not sure if I'm actually hearing a squealing sound or if it's just my tinnitus. Maybe this is all normal, so I don't want to return this just to get another one with the exact same "issue." I guess the only way to see is to try it out though.

 

[nomdeplume]

It was just a suggestion. Could be everyone from the seller backwards is in the clear and its the delivery service who keeps doing damage. Or just bad luck getting annoyingly subpar gpu.

 

[FreedomEclipse]

That makes sense. Would you say this high-pitched squealing sound thing is a case of bad bearings or is it something else? Maybe this is honestly normal, and I'm just paranoid cause of my ASRock fan issues. This is clearly much better than the rattling and grinding shit I was hearing before though, at least. I also have tinnitus, so the high-pitched sound might just be my tinnitus and not my fans lmao. I'll have to ask my friends and family if they hear anything.

Also, I tried to stop each fan one by one. I'm not sure if you'll be able to hear that high-pitched sound from this video. It's different from the coil whine clicking sound. I hope I didn't damage anything since I pressed down on some of them a bit too hard:

I still heard this issue even after I stopped each fan one by one. As soon as I turned off the fans, it went away again. Afterwards, I tried to stop 2 fans at once, and the sound got quieter. I stopped all 3 at once and then the sound went away. Is this just the sound of the fans vibrating the case or something then, or is something wrong with the fans themselves? I'm very confused about this. I'm not sure why it gets worse when more fans are on and gets better when fewer fans are on.

Did it look like I damaged the fans or anything based on how I stopped them? I don't think I touched the fan blades and only touched the center, but I might've touched the blades by accident. Is it probably okay as long as the fan blade hasn't come off yet, or is there a chance it could break later on or something?

this sounds perfectly normal. fans will have their own pitch and the faster the fan spins the louder/higher more audible the sound of it.

Its a lot more noticable with smaller fans on a graphics card because they have to spin at a much higher RPM then regular case fans (120-140mm etc) to shift a similar amount of air