[SOLVED] Clicking sound

[Katierv511]

My pc has recently returned from an RMA. It had issues with overheating, shutting off and there was a strange clicking sound occurring.
The overheating has been fixed which has in turn resolved the powering down, however, I noticed today the clicking has started again.
It seems to occur most often when the pc has been on for a good few hours/most of the day.

I saw a thread about a similar thing occurring when the pc has gone from no load to a light load and clicking sound has occurred. This happens to me too, however, the other night it was under mostly a heavy load and it started clicking.
Can anyone help me with this? I do not want to have to RMA it again (it’s already been RMA’d twice). It’s only a few months old and I’ve only just gotten it back. Thank you Video

 

[DrummerManSpike]

Sounds like it could be one of the fans, you'd have to figure out where it's coming from. Put your ear up to you power supply, your CPU cooler, your GPU if you have one, and each individual case fan

 

[Katierv511]

Sounds like it could be one of the fans, you'd have to figure out where it's coming from. Put your ear up to you power supply, your CPU cooler, your GPU if you have one, and each individual case fan

Sounds like it’s coming from the PSU to me. The cpu fan has just been replaced so can’t see it being that. and the clicking sound had stopped before the exhaust fan had completely stopped, so doubt it’s that. Only other fans I have in the case is are the GPU and the PSU and both are difficult to see.

 

[digitalgriffin]

Sounds like it’s coming from the PSU to me. The cpu fan has just been replaced so can’t see it being that. and the clicking sound had stopped before the exhaust fan had completely stopped, so doubt it’s that. Only other fans I have in the case is are the GPU and the PSU and both are difficult to see.

I would say it's relatively safe to put your finger to stop case or gpu fans. Most will restart automatically. But don't try to stop a PSU (Power supply unit) fan as there are some high power components behind it. It's best to track it down with your ear. (As others have said)

Fan clicking is usually a sound a bad fan makes. If the fan isn't spinning, it's not cooling down components, and that causes the system to overheat. (Which leads to shutdown)

Your system shutting down also might be a sign your PSU isn't powerful enough. Did you add any hardware post purchase? (ie: Video card) Can you see the make and model of PSU?

 

[Katierv511]

I would say it's relatively safe to put your finger to stop case or gpu fans. Most will restart automatically. But don't try to stop a PSU (Power supply unit) fan as there are some high power components behind it. It's best to track it down with your ear. (As others have said)

Fan clicking is usually a sound a bad fan makes. If the fan isn't spinning, it's not cooling down components, and that causes the system to overheat. (Which leads to shutdown)

Your system shutting down also might be a sign your PSU isn't powerful enough. Did you add any hardware post purchase? (ie: Video card) Can you see the make and model of PSU?

It’s not (touchwood) shutting down now. As far as I know that was due to the cpu overheating. The fan had come off the cpu.
Although I did have an issue earlier today where it shut off, it seemed to be some sort of power surge from the monitor. I always have issues with kettle leads, crackling sounds if it’s not fully inserted and they seem to always fall out if they’re slightly knocked. and I’d caught the kettle lead on my monitor causing it to make a crackling sound and it caused everything to power off. Not sure what that is. Also concerning potentially?

I can’t see the GPU fans as they’re underneath to put my finger on them and I wouldn’t want to get my finger caught and potentially damage the fan.

I’ll post my full spec list
CPU: Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-9400F (2.9GHz) 9MB Cache
Motherboard: ASUS® H310-PLUS R2.0: ATX, DDR4, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM): 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: 6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 Ti
HDD: 2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
SSD: 256GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (1900 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
CPU Cooler: PCS FrostFlow 100 RGB Series High Performance CPU Cooler

 

[Katierv511]

It’s not (touchwood) shutting down now. As far as I know that was due to the cpu overheating. The fan had come off the cpu.
Although I did have an issue earlier today where it shut off, it seemed to be some sort of power surge from the monitor. I always have issues with kettle leads, crackling sounds if it’s not fully inserted and they seem to always fall out if they’re slightly knocked. and I’d caught the kettle lead on my monitor causing it to make a crackling sound and it caused everything to power off. Not sure what that is. Also concerning potentially?

I can’t see the GPU fans as they’re underneath to put my finger on them and I wouldn’t want to get my finger caught and potentially damage the fan.

I’ll post my full spec list
CPU: Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-9400F (2.9GHz) 9MB Cache
Motherboard: ASUS® H310-PLUS R2.0: ATX, DDR4, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM): 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: 6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 Ti
HDD: 2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
SSD: 256GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (1900 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
CPU Cooler: PCS FrostFlow 100 RGB Series High Performance CPU Cooler

forgot to add the most important part in this instance, power supply is a CORSAIR 450W VS SERIES™ VS-450 POWER SUPPLY

 

[digitalgriffin]

It’s not (touchwood) shutting down now. As far as I know that was due to the cpu overheating. The fan had come off the cpu.
Although I did have an issue earlier today where it shut off, it seemed to be some sort of power surge from the monitor. I always have issues with kettle leads, crackling sounds if it’s not fully inserted and they seem to always fall out if they’re slightly knocked. and I’d caught the kettle lead on my monitor causing it to make a crackling sound and it caused everything to power off. Not sure what that is. Also concerning potentially?

I can’t see the GPU fans as they’re underneath to put my finger on them and I wouldn’t want to get my finger caught and potentially damage the fan.

I’ll post my full spec list
CPU: Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-9400F (2.9GHz) 9MB Cache
Motherboard: ASUS® H310-PLUS R2.0: ATX, DDR4, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM): 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: 6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 Ti
HDD: 2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
SSD: 256GB PCS PCIe M.2 SSD (1900 MB/R, 1100 MB/W)
CPU Cooler: PCS FrostFlow 100 RGB Series High Performance CPU Cooler

kettle leads? I haven't heard of that term before. Do you mean power connector?

You can use MSI Afterburner to adjust the fan speed on the NVIDIA graphics card. Turn it up to full speed and see if the clicking returns.

 

[Katierv511]

kettle leads? I haven't heard of that term before. Do you mean power connector?

You can use MSI Afterburner to adjust the fan speed on the NVIDIA graphics card. Turn it up to full speed and see if the clicking returns.

Yeah the power connector. I’ll try that

 

[Katierv511]

Yeah the power connector. I’ll try that

kettle leads? I haven't heard of that term before. Do you mean power connector?

You can use MSI Afterburner to adjust the fan speed on the NVIDIA graphics card. Turn it up to full speed and see if the clicking returns.

I downloaded afterburner as soon as the clicking started and manually turned the gpu fans up. No change in the sound. It has to be the power supply I’m reckoning. What do you suggest?

 

[digitalgriffin]

See if the metal fan grate is hitting the fan or if there's pressure against it. (Especially true if the PSU is at the bottom) If you have something like velcro strips or felt pads used for furniture to pad the bottom corners of the fan around the intake. This will create a small spacer from PSU to the case. This solved a similar problem with my Seasonic PSU which sat at the bottom. Any pressure on the grill created the noise. Adding the sticky velcro strips to the corner solved the problem.

If that doesn't work, you have two options:

1. Return it again (I know it sucks)
2. Purchase a replacement 450/550 Watt PSU which will run you about $100 for a high end high quality one.

Contact JonnyGuru here on Toms. (https://forums.tomshardware.com/members/jonnyguru.111884/) He works for corsair PSU division and I have a lot of respect for him. He can give you better advice as that is his product line. You can ask about it in the PSU forum.

I do not recommend ripping out the PSU and disassembling it. While the fan parts are common on aliexpress, there's a risk of SEVERE electric shock if you don't know how to properly drain the caps.