Fans keep spinning after shutdown

[Michiel85]

Hi people,

I've been installing a new system the last couple of days and I can't seem to get it working properly. One of the troubles, is that all case fans and the CPU cooler fan keep spinning after completely shutting down the pc. I've read in various post in different fora that my motherboard is malfunctioning and I should demand a replacement.

My system consists of this:
Motherboard: Asrock 970 Extreme 4
CPU: AMD FX-8350
RAM: 2x DDR3 DIMM 8 GB from Kingston
Graphics card: nVidia GeForce 660 Ti

i'm very curious for your reactions and thanks in advance.

Michiel

 

[BrandonYoung]

Weird, never heard of this happening, I would blame the motherboard. What other issues are you facing?

 

[theunliked]

Its definitely the motherboard playing up. Return to seller.

 

[Cristi72]

Hello,

It is indeed a weird thing, but I woudn't blame the motherboard; most likely your Windows can't fully close its processes (try to shut down the system while in Safe Mode, see if the problem persists). The fans needs the +12V to work, and the PSU in its Stand-by mode can only supply +5V, so your PSU is still working.

 

[theunliked]

Hello,

It is indeed a weird thing, but I woudn't blame the motherboard; most likely your Windows can't fully close its processes (try to shut down the system while in Safe Mode, see if the problem persists). The fans needs the +12V to work, and the PSU in its Stand-by mode can only supply +5V, so your PSU is still working.

He said the PC shutdown completely. I'm pretty sure it's the mobo.

 

[sam1275tom]

Try to enter BIOS, then press power button to see what happens, thus avoid OS problem.

 

[Michiel85]

Hello,

It is indeed a weird thing, but I woudn't blame the motherboard; most likely your Windows can't fully close its processes (try to shut down the system while in Safe Mode, see if the problem persists). The fans needs the +12V to work, and the PSU in its Stand-by mode can only supply +5V, so your PSU is still working.

It's indeed pretty weird. Rebooting in safe mode and shutting down doens't resolve the problem. Sorry for the late reply, I was on weekend

 

[Michiel85]

Try to enter BIOS, then press power button to see what happens, thus avoid OS problem.

it's still spinning... i think i'll have to go with a broken mobo :/

 

[BrandonYoung]

So if you unplug the pc completely, then plug it back in without booting the computer, do the fins start spinning?

 

[Michiel85]

So if you unplug the pc completely, then plug it back in without booting the computer, do the fins start spinning?

No, then they're silent.

 

[theunliked]

So if you unplug the pc completely, then plug it back in without booting the computer, do the fins start spinning?

No, then they're silent.

Have you tried resetting the CMOS?

 

[Michiel85]

So if you unplug the pc completely, then plug it back in without booting the computer, do the fins start spinning?

No, then they're silent.

Have you tried resetting the CMOS?

it's a brand new mobo... that shouldn't be the problem, right? I took the mobo back to the store and I was given a new one (same model) and the problem remains. It has to be a (BIOS) setting...

 

[BrandonYoung]

Are your fans plugged into the motherboard, or are they plugged into 4pin Molex connections? (I'll assume motherboard as this is the norm currently), In which, I would assume a motherboard issue. But the motherboard drives the PSU, which drives the motherboard, if that makes sense.

 

[Michiel85]

Are your fans plugged into the motherboard, or are they plugged into 4pin Molex connections? (I'll assume motherboard as this is the norm currently), In which, I would assume a motherboard issue. But the motherboard drives the PSU, which drives the motherboard, if that makes sense.

That's correct, they're plugged directly into the motherboard.
I've been reading about the different voltages your hardware needs and my father-in-law mentioned that too. Next step is trying a new PSU, although I have no idea what specifications it would need.

 

[Michiel85]

Hello,

It is indeed a weird thing, but I woudn't blame the motherboard; most likely your Windows can't fully close its processes (try to shut down the system while in Safe Mode, see if the problem persists). The fans needs the +12V to work, and the PSU in its Stand-by mode can only supply +5V, so your PSU is still working.

I think you are closest to the solution, since all other options failed... Do you know what I should look for in a new PSU?

 

[Cristi72]

Hello,

It is indeed a weird thing, but I woudn't blame the motherboard; most likely your Windows can't fully close its processes (try to shut down the system while in Safe Mode, see if the problem persists). The fans needs the +12V to work, and the PSU in its Stand-by mode can only supply +5V, so your PSU is still working.

I think you are closest to the solution, since all other options failed... Do you know what I should look for in a new PSU?

How old is your PSU and what make/model? Check the voltages in BIOS (+12V, +5V, +3,3V).

Your system will draw up to 400W at nominal CPU/GPU clocks; if you're not overclocking, a good 500-550W PSU will be OK: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094 (or XFX, ANTEC, Rosewill Capstone, depending on what you'll find in your area)

If you will overclock, go for a 600W PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151096

More info: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-1804779/power-supply-unit-tier-list.html ; you'll want at least a Tier 3 PSU (or Tier 2, if you'll overclock). Please do not consider a refurbished PSU; while their prices are very good, they are usually hit-and-miss.

 

[Michiel85]

Hello,

It is indeed a weird thing, but I woudn't blame the motherboard; most likely your Windows can't fully close its processes (try to shut down the system while in Safe Mode, see if the problem persists). The fans needs the +12V to work, and the PSU in its Stand-by mode can only supply +5V, so your PSU is still working.

I think you are closest to the solution, since all other options failed... Do you know what I should look for in a new PSU?

How old is your PSU and what make/model? Check the voltages in BIOS (+12V, +5V, +3,3V).

Your system will draw up to 400W at nominal CPU/GPU clocks; if you're not overclocking, a good 500-550W PSU will be OK: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094 (or XFX, ANTEC, Rosewill Capstone, depending on what you'll find in your area)

If you will overclock, go for a 600W PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151096

More info: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-1804779/power-supply-unit-tier-list.html ; you'll want at least a Tier 3 PSU (or Tier 2, if you'll overclock). Please do not consider a refurbished PSU; while their prices are very good, they are usually hit-and-miss.

I hope you have all the info with this. I have no idea how old my psu. It was working just fine in my old pc.

 

[Cristi72]

I hope you have all the info with this. I have no idea how old my psu. It was working just fine in my old pc.

When new, your PSU was a Tier 2 PSU, an ANTEC manufactured by Seasonic; despite its dated architecture (over 5 years old), it should be OK (it could supply up to 650W for all +12V rails combined). In order to damage such PSU in normal conditions (ruling out overloading the outputs or having power grid problems, such as power surges or brownouts), you should have a SLI/CF setup and run the system in 24/7 stints (what were the specs for your former system?).

To rule out the Windows installation: disconnect the HDD/SSD/DVD, power on the PC and, when the "Reboot and select the proper boot device" message appears on screen, push the POWER button from the case in order to shutdown the system. Are fans still spinning?

Disconnect the PSU from mains, take out the PSU from the case, carefully take out the PSU cover and visually check the interior for blown-up capacitors, damaged wires or accumulated dust. WARNING: Don't do this if you never dismantled a PSU before!

Detach/reattach the modular power cables from the PSU, checking for contact problems on both PSU and cable plugs (do so with the PSU disconnected from mains).

Check the voltages in BIOS.

Disable any stand-by features from BIOS. Also, disable hibernation and stand-by from Windows. Set the POWER button to shut down the system when pushed.

Disconnect all USB devices prior shutdown.

 

[Michiel85]

(what were the specs for your former system?).

An old Asus P5K-E motherboard; 2x 4GB Ram; same GeForce GTX 660 Ti graphicscard and an Intel Core Duo CPU

To rule out the Windows installation: disconnect the HDD/SSD/DVD, power on the PC and, when the "Reboot and select the proper boot device" message appears on screen, push the POWER button from the case in order to shutdown the system. Are fans still spinning?

No change, they're still spinning. I did a clean install of Windows 7 on an new Samsung SDD. However, my version of Windows 7 is 32-bit. Could this be a problem?

Disconnect the PSU from mains, take out the PSU from the case, carefully take out the PSU cover and visually check the interior for blown-up capacitors, damaged wires or accumulated dust.

I have no idea of what is normal or abnormal, so I included some pictures in the hope you can see something out of the ordinary.
http://www.imagebam.com/image/41eb6a376718788
http://www.imagebam.com/image/9cb706376718796
http://www.imagebam.com/image/781762376718806
http://www.imagebam.com/image/fa022f376718813
http://www.imagebam.com/image/19c65a376718822
http://www.imagebam.com/image/2fd6a7376718824"

Detach/reattach the modular power cables from the PSU, checking for contact problems on both PSU and cable plugs (do so with the PSU disconnected from mains).

I reconnected and rechecked everything at least five times.

Check the voltages in BIOS.

Vcore: + 1,238V
12V: +12,038V
5V: 5,136V
3,30V: 3,312

Looks okay...

Disable any stand-by features from BIOS. Also, disable hibernation and stand-by from Windows. Set the POWER button to shut down the system when pushed.

Done, no change. I could have overlooked something in BIOS, I'm not so familiar with UEFI yet, this is the first time I have AMD equipment. There are a zillion options and it's pretty hard to pinpoint the right setting. Cool 'n Quiet is disabled, but as I said, no change.
Could the suggestions of 'soundguruman' in this thread be useful?
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/68748-63-wake-longer-sleep

This looks like a very energy-draining setting

Disconnect all USB devices prior shutdown.

Again no change

I also changed the sound setting in windows to 'no sounds', like suggested in the same thread, but that didn't help either.

 

[Michiel85]

I hope you have all the info with this. I have no idea how old my psu. It was working just fine in my old pc.

When new, your PSU was a Tier 2 PSU, an ANTEC manufactured by Seasonic; despite its dated architecture (over 5 years old), it should be OK (it could supply up to 650W for all +12V rails combined). In order to damage such PSU in normal conditions (ruling out overloading the outputs or having power grid problems, such as power surges or brownouts), you should have a SLI/CF setup and run the system in 24/7 stints (what were the specs for your former system?).

To rule out the Windows installation: disconnect the HDD/SSD/DVD, power on the PC and, when the "Reboot and select the proper boot device" message appears on screen, push the POWER button from the case in order to shutdown the system. Are fans still spinning?

Disconnect the PSU from mains, take out the PSU from the case, carefully take out the PSU cover and visually check the interior for blown-up capacitors, damaged wires or accumulated dust. WARNING: Don't do this if you never dismantled a PSU before!

Detach/reattach the modular power cables from the PSU, checking for contact problems on both PSU and cable plugs (do so with the PSU disconnected from mains).

Check the voltages in BIOS.

Disable any stand-by features from BIOS. Also, disable hibernation and stand-by from Windows. Set the POWER button to shut down the system when pushed.

Disconnect all USB devices prior shutdown.

I just tried excluding all I could. Disconnected HDD, SSD with windows 7, graphics card and all USB-devices. Shutting the thing down with a 5 sec push on the power button doesn't work, the fans still spin (and all devices would've been working if connected).

I'm on the look-out for a test PSU now. If this doens't sort the problem, I can only be BIOS/UEFI... which I know very little about. I'll have to take it to a computer shop then, I guess...

 

[Cristi72]

I'm on the look-out for a test PSU now. If this doens't sort the problem, I can only be BIOS/UEFI... which I know very little about. I'll have to take it to a computer shop then, I guess...

Your PSU looks spotless (no visible damage) and apparently works as it should (voltages are OK). Your new system will go up to 400W at full speed (500W tops with CPU/GPU overclock), while your old system was topping to 300W (no O/C), so enough power, unless the CPU/mobo combination causes some very fast power spikes and trips the PSU' overcurrent protection (just for testing: you can disable 2 of the CPU cores from BIOS, reducing the CPU power consumption).

Try to power the GPU from the second PCI-e power cable (use the PSU' last socket, the 8-pin one), to be sure the CPU and the GPU are not using the same +12V rail (the PSU is advertised as having 4 rails, but actually it has only 2 rails, each being further splitted into two additional rails, so with all +12V rails loaded it can supply only 54 Amps, instead of the advertised 22A + 22A + 25A + 25A = 94 Amps).

You could test the system without the GPU: unplug the PSU from mains, take the GPU out, reconnect the PSU, turn the system ON and then after several seconds turn it OFF by using the POWER button, see if it changes anything..

You can also try another GPU and see if behaves differently. Of course, if you don't have a friend which can borrow you another GPU, a PSU change will be less expensive; try to find a single rail (50-60 Amps) or dual rail (30 + 30 Amps) PSU.

EDIT: I found some infos about the voltages on this specific PSU model:
http://www.kitguru.net/components/power-supplies/zardon/antec-truepower-new-650w-review/4/
The value from your PSU, +12,038V, is indicating a power consumption of over 550W from the +12V rail, which is highly unlikely; maybe your PSU is to blame after all, slightly derating its characteristics over time (the voltage value is directly linked to the power draw: when the power draw rises, the voltage drops). You have read the values from BIOS or from Windows?

EDIT 2: What code appears on the 2-digit Dr Debug display upon the turn-off sequence?

 

[Michiel85]

You could test the system without the GPU: unplug the PSU from mains, take the GPU out, reconnect the PSU, turn the system ON and then after several seconds turn it OFF by using the POWER button, see if it changes anything..

You can also try another GPU and see if behaves differently. Of course, if you don't have a friend which can borrow you another GPU, a PSU change will be less expensive; try to find a single rail (50-60 Amps) or dual rail (30 + 30 Amps) PSU.

I already booted with all extra hardware disconnected, so your suggestion wouldn't work, right?

EDIT: I found some infos about the voltages on this specific PSU model:
http://www.kitguru.net/components/power-supplies/zardon/antec-truepower-new-650w-review/4/
The value from your PSU, +12,038V, is indicating a power consumption of over 550W from the +12V rail, which is highly unlikely; maybe your PSU is to blame after all, slightly derating its characteristics over time (the voltage value is directly linked to the power draw: when the power draw rises, the voltage drops). You have read the values from BIOS or from Windows?

Those we're voltages from BIOS. I'm getting a test PSU from a friend one of these days. A PSU of two years old. I'm gonna get back to you then. Hopefully with the solution my PSU needs replacement.

 

[Armando Reyes]

Hi people,

I've been installing a new system the last couple of days and I can't seem to get it working properly. One of the troubles, is that all case fans and the CPU cooler fan keep spinning after completely shutting down the pc. I've read in various post in different fora that my motherboard is malfunctioning and I should demand a replacement.

My system consists of this:
Motherboard: Asrock 970 Extreme 4
CPU: AMD FX-8350
RAM: 2x DDR3 DIMM 8 GB from Kingston
Graphics card: nVidia GeForce 660 Ti

i'm very curious for your reactions and thanks in advance.

Michiel

 

[Armando Reyes]

if you have yet to fix it try holding down the shift key while doing a shutdown usually does the trick

 

[benko]

Had the same problem yesterday installing a new system. I had to set power loading to enable in the bios power management tab. This was done on a gigabyte board.