I despise any type of fan noise
Not as much as me!!!
My first love in electronics was audiophile quality audio reproduction (repairing and listening). Record pops and tape hiss were bad enough but fan noise on top of that? No way! Totally unacceptable.
I live in a hot climate area, so I generally disable zero RPM modes.
This really makes no sense to me.
Assuming one does their homework and buys a quality PSU from a quality maker, why not believe the designers know what they are doing?
We are not talking about a totally passive (no fan) PSU as are often used in HTPCs to achieve total silence (at least from the PSU). There is still a fan in these PSUs. And they don't kick in based only on power/current draw. Those fans also spin up (and/or spin faster) when they crossover preset thermal thresholds too. I see no reason not to assume the engineers and designers have set those trigger thresholds at points that will protect the PSUs. Surely they want their products to last at least through the warranty periods.
Now if we are talking about a cheap fan from some generic, no-name maker, all bets are off. But why buy such a PSU in the first place? The PSU is arguably the most important electronic component in our systems since EVERYTHING inside the computer case depends on good, clean, stable power.
I am wondering if it died because it operated without the aid of the cooling fan.
Nah! It died because the stars were aligned against you. Until Man can create perfection 100% of the time, there will always be units that fail prematurely.
I checked and found not a spec of dust inside PSU
But that really does not tell us anything because we know nothing about the computer case this PSU was mounted in. Nor do we know anything about the environment of the room the computer was operated in.
Is it a quality computer case with decent air filters? Is case cooling
properly set up with a slight over (positive) pressure to ensure incoming air is only coming through filters (if there are filters)? Is the room climate controlled (through a HVAC filter) or are windows left open much of the year? Do you live in a dusty desert, or lush jungle? Are there rugrats and pets shedding dander and running around stirring up dust?
As noted in my signature, "
Heat is the bane of all electronics!" And that certainly is true. But that, in no way, means "all" heat is evil or damaging and must be avoided at all costs. In fact, electronics in general, works best (in terms or stability, performance, and longevity) when operating comfortably within a designated operating range. This is why in extremely cold environment (satellites in space and arctic locations as examples) heaters are used, when necessary, to boost the operating environment temperature.
Also, different components have very different heat tolerance abilities. Power supplies, in general, generate a significant amount of heat. For that reason, the components selected to build those supplies have been selected because they are able to tolerate those expected heat levels.
So while it is critically important to ensure our electronics are never exposed to excessive heat, it is not necessary to get it as cold as possible. There is no reason, for example, to expect a CPU to be more stable, perform better, or last longer if maintained the majority of the time at 20°C instead of 50°C. Now if it spends most of its time up around 90°C and it has a maximum T-junction spec of 100°, that CPU is likely to fail prematurely. Hence the phrase "comfortably within" above.
Are there exceptions to everything I just said? Of course. But exceptions don't make the rule.
Roast me.
