My computer buzzes endlessly when i turn it on, but it doesnt show anything on screen

[bradley_alv]

Hello, i have this old Acer Aspire AM3203-E9122 and when i turn it on it buzzesendlessly until i turn it off. I cant do anything since it shows nothing on the screen. i dont know what is causing this, could it be the motherboard or power supply? please help!!!!

 

[rollingbarrels]

It could really be anything, but a problem with buzzing is normally to do with power so I would look at your power supply first. However, before you do that, you can try opening your case and just cleaning up the dust inside (make sure your computer is unplugged and left to sit for several minutes first). Most of the time this is a futile effort, but it is definitely worth trying before spending any money. What power supply does it have? Are there any bits on the motherboard that look visibly broken?

 

[bradley_alv]

It could really be anything, but a problem with buzzing is normally to do with power so I would look at your power supply first. However, before you do that, you can try opening your case and just cleaning up the dust inside (make sure your computer is unplugged and left to sit for several minutes first). Most of the time this is a futile effort, but it is definitely worth trying before spending any money. What power supply does it have? Are there any bits on the motherboard that look visibly broken?

The power supply came with the computer in 2009, it is an "ATX Switching power supply 425W. i honestly havent cleaned it at all, but it was fine before. It just started randomly buzzing a few months ago, before that it was perfectly fine.

 

[rollingbarrels]

Can you identify which part of the system the buzzing is coming from? In my mind, it is likely to be the power supply, but at the same time I cannot be completely sure and I don't want to tell you to replace parts that you don't actually need to. If it still happens after you clean it out, please try and find out where the buzzing is coming from.

 

[bradley_alv]

Can you identify which part of the system the buzzing is coming from? In my mind, it is likely to be the power supply, but at the same time I cannot be completely sure and I don't want to tell you to replace parts that you don't actually need to. If it still happens after you clean it out, please try and find out where the buzzing is coming from.

Its either my power supply or motherboard, i have 4 computers and i used one of my extra power supplies in the buzzing computer and it still kept buzzing, i dont know if its the motherboard or not since when i try to identify it, the sound is all around the case

 

[rollingbarrels]

If you have 4 different systems, then you could try using different components from the buzzing computer with systems that are known to be working. This is sure to help you identify the source of your problem. However, I'd be cautious when doing that with the power supply. If it is the power supply that is faulty, it could potentially damage the components connected to it so I would try everything else first.

 

[Y0GI]

Can you identify which part of the system the buzzing is coming from? In my mind, it is likely to be the power supply, but at the same time I cannot be completely sure and I don't want to tell you to replace parts that you don't actually need to. If it still happens after you clean it out, please try and find out where the buzzing is coming from.

Its either my power supply or motherboard, i have 4 computers and i used one of my extra power supplies in the buzzing computer and it still kept buzzing, i dont know if its the motherboard or not since when i try to identify it, the sound is all around the case

Try taking a small piece of hose, at least 3/8" dia., about 3' long and use it as a "stethoscope". (an old garden hose is perfect for this) Put one end to your ear and move the other end around inside the computer, checking various parts for noise. Be sure to check the fan on the CPU cooler and the case fans, if you have any.

I've never tried it, but a cardboard paper towel roll MIGHT also work for this purpose.

Yogi

 

[bradley_alv]

Can you identify which part of the system the buzzing is coming from? In my mind, it is likely to be the power supply, but at the same time I cannot be completely sure and I don't want to tell you to replace parts that you don't actually need to. If it still happens after you clean it out, please try and find out where the buzzing is coming from.

Its either my power supply or motherboard, i have 4 computers and i used one of my extra power supplies in the buzzing computer and it still kept buzzing, i dont know if its the motherboard or not since when i try to identify it, the sound is all around the case

Try taking a small piece of hose, at least 3/8" dia., about 3' long and use it as a "stethoscope". (an old garden hose is perfect for this) Put one end to your ear and move the other end around inside the computer, checking various parts for noise. Be sure to check the fan on the CPU cooler and the case fans, if you have any.

I've never tried it, but a cardboard paper towel roll MIGHT also work for this purpose.

Yogi

It is coming from my motherboard, what should i do?

 

[rollingbarrels]

Replace your motherboard.

 

[Y0GI]

It is coming from my motherboard, what should i do?

Try to tighten all of the screws that attach the mobo to the case. On a standard ATX mobo there are 9 hold down screws in 3 rows of 3 each. Since yours is an Acer, it is prolly a proprietary MOBO and may have more or less screws, arranged differently.

If that doesn't work, you may have a defective component on the MOBO, which would be difficult to repair.

Did you try the hose? I find it hard to believe that the whole MOBO is making noise. It almost certainly has to be a single component buzzing.

Yogi

 

[bradley_alv]

It is coming from my motherboard, what should i do?

Try to tighten all of the screws that attach the mobo to the case. On a standard ATX mobo there are 9 hold down screws in 3 rows of 3 each. Since yours is an Acer, it is prolly a proprietary MOBO and may have more or less screws, arranged differently.

If that doesn't work, you may have a defective component on the MOBO, which would be difficult to repair.

Did you try the hose? I find it hard to believe that the whole MOBO is making noise. It almost certainly has to be a single component buzzing.

Yogi

The screws are perfectly tightened, and the buzzing sound is REALLY LOUD, i can hear it even when i am like 5-7 metres away

 

[bradley_alv]

UPDATE:

the day the motherboard wouldnt post and buzzed constantly until i turned it off. I had tried to take the video card out and put it into another computer hoping that it would fix the graphic problem on the other computer. After taking the video card out of the buzzing pc, i had put it back. Once i put it back in the slot, the computer buzzed endlessly and wouldnt post. I didnt do anything else to the computer. Honestly, i had recklessly taken the video card out of the motherboard slot. Could that be the reason why the motherboard/psu is buzzing? I had tried to replace the psu with a working one, it hadn't seemed to change anything since it would still buzz. Does this mean my motherboard is broken/dead? If not, then what problem could it be?

Please, any sort of help could fix it! Dont be shy to comment! Thanks, -Bradley

 

[rollingbarrels]

Replace your motherboard/cpu with a working pair, keeping all the other components the same and see it the problem occurs then. If it doesn't then you will know that you need to replace your motherboard as CPUs do not go fault nearly as often as motherboards do. As far as I know, simply removing your video card can not cause any issues as that's how they are meant to be handled, unless you accidentally dropped it into your case or something snapped or something similarly damaging happened..