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High pitched sound while GPU is under load.

jaredudu

jaredudu

Joined
Mar 21, 2009
Messages
246 (0.04/day)
Location
New York
System Specs
Processor Intel 2500k @ 4.5ghz
Motherboard ASrock P67 Pro 3
Cooling CM 212+
Memory 8GB Mushkin DDR3 1600mhz
Video Card(s) GTX 970
Storage Crucial M4, Caviar Black
Display(s) SyncMaster 2443BWX
Case Deep Silence 2
Audio Device(s) Onkyo Wavio SE-200PCI LTD
Power Supply Coolermaster V700
Mouse Steel-series Sensei Raw
Keyboard Ducky with Cherry MX Brown
Well , it's been like this since I can remember and I never really gave it a 2nd thought until now, but is it normal for my computer to make a high pitched noise while their is gpu load?

Computer specs over there <<
 
Yes.
It's normal. Some cards (and motherboards) just do that.
 
Most graphics cards make a high pitch whine when they are at load.
Seems like when you run a program that puts your card at high load the whine gets loader.
For example ..3DMARK06 or Vantage.
Under normal use you dont really hear it.
The more Draw on the card for performance the higher the whine will be.
Nothing to worry about its normal for graphics cards now days.
 
Usually the high frequency whine you might hear are capacitors.. Power supplies are the most common thing I've seen to make that noise, but yea, anything with capacitors on it can do it. I remember trying to point out the noise to coworkers in a little pc shop I used to work in. They'd look at me like I'm crazy because apparently a lot of people have trouble hearing high frequencies like that, lol.
 
Yeah, my 4870x2 does the same thing when I start Crysis Warhead.
 
Unfortunately it is considered normal. It won't do any damage, but it is rather annoying
 
mordant80 said:
Usually the high frequency whine you might hear are capacitors.
Click to expand...
I have yet to hear any whine coming from a capacitor. Many, many inductors do ring, though.
 
largon said:
I have yet to hear any whine coming from a capacitor. Many, many inductors do ring, though.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that, I've always just heard about capacitor whine.. which does exist.. This quote is from wikipedia concerning noisy caps, "the varying electric field between the capacitor plates exerts a physical force, moving them as a speaker." But decided to research it a little bit and yea, inductors seem to be a more common source of high pitch noises in PC components.
 
If I were to buy something, install it, and it made a high pitch whine, thats a surefire sign a capacitor is probably about to blow and it would get immediately removed and RMAd without question by the place I got it from.

I once had a PSU that made a whine noise, it of course eventually died as the whine was a weak capacitor that eventually leaked, and blew up.

Moral of story: High pitch whine noises in a PC are usually bad.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Yeah, my Sapphire 4890 does it as well. I was scared at first, but it seems to be kinda common. Although I don't see how its acceptable to release products like that. Annoys the crap outta me sometimes.
 
I was just sort of surprised when I got this card as my 3850 did not do it at all. But then again it did run alot cooler and efficiently :)
 
mordant80 said:
Usually the high frequency whine you might hear are capacitors.. Power supplies are the most common thing I've seen to make that noise, but yea, anything with capacitors on it can do it. I remember trying to point out the noise to coworkers in a little pc shop I used to work in. They'd look at me like I'm crazy because apparently a lot of people have trouble hearing high frequencies like that, lol.
Click to expand...


Well it can be a few things. Like a coil or even a transformer ( which might be overloaded or just getting weak ) going bad. If i found a capacitors making those kinda sounds it be sent back ASAP.

Although transformers normally have a hum or buzz to them.


Ketxxx said:
Over in the US hearing a high pitch whine may be considered normal, but speaking from the other side of the pond, if I were to buy something, install it, and it made a high pitch whine, thats a surefire sign a capacitor is probably about to blow and it would get immediately removed and RMAd without question by the place I got it from.

I once had a PSU that made a whine noise, it of course eventually died as the whine was a weak capacitor that eventually leaked, and blew up.

Moral of story: High pitch whine noises in a PC are usually bad.
Click to expand...

Yeah im with you on that no chance some thing making that kind of sound is staying in my PC either lol.
 
Hah, funny stuff look at that. A mod gives me a infraction for something, I check replies here to find the infraction probably wasn't for what was stated at all, but rather because I cmpared what appears to be the norm in the US (getting hardware that makes high pitch noises like a cap is about to blow up) and how if someone gets hardware like that in the UK they can RMA it without concern as its not normal over here. This thread page is now print screened while I decide if I take the infraction more seriously due to some kind of warped bias or weather I let the baby have his bottle.
 
Nvidia were more frequent, now ATI didnt know, my 4870X2 was silent, my GTX295 is quite annoying hehe
 
Ketxxx said:
Hah, funny stuff look at that. A mod gives me a infraction for something, I check replies here to find the infraction probably wasn't for what was stated at all, but rather because I cmpared what appears to be the norm in the US (getting hardware that makes high pitch noises like a cap is about to blow up) and how if someone gets hardware like that in the UK they can RMA it without concern as its not normal over here. This thread page is now print screened while I decide if I take the infraction more seriously due to some kind of warped bias or weather I let the baby have his bottle.
Click to expand...

I get my posts edited or deleted all the time for no apparent reason. I know how you feel :(
 
TBH it doesn't bother me. If somebody thinks they are "important" in a virtual world, just makes me glad I'm not them. Don't want to think how sad said individuals real life is. Just pisses me off that people have a warped bias, especially over something where nothing wrong was said, their just being little whiny shits for no reason. Anyway, back on topic :p Feel free to drop me a PM if you want to have a good old fashion rant jaredudu :D
 
I vote we make the answer to this question a sticky.
 
I do believe that not everyone can hear such frequencies, a friend of mine stuck his ear next to my GTX285 and i ran ATI tool on it, the whine was so audible to me and yet he hears nothing.. everyone else in my family can hear the whine.
 
It's a small speaker on the end of the card, in the case of my 8800GT, its there so if you forget to plug in the aux power and you turn on the computer it makes a very loud noise like an alarm. Loud enough to make you switch it off straight away and plug the power in, I know from experience ;)

It also emits a low pitch whining noise as the load on the card changes. Plug your finger over it and it disappears.. I can't hear it with the standard enclosed HSF unit as it blocks the hole, but an after market HSF such as the HR-03GT doesn't cover it so the noise is not baffled and it is quite loud.

Same thing on my HD4870 I guess > R.I.P.
 
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