Random Clicking from PC

[ckooken]

So about a week ago I would occasionally hear a clicking sound coming from my computer. It is not constant, more like the clicking sound you might randomly hear your TV make. I kind of feel paranoid that it may be my HD, Video card, or Heatsink. About a week ago the PC got bumped into when it was turned off and partially fell over. I checked the inside though and everything appears to be okay. Have had zero issues with running games.
I also did several tests on my HD, Prime95 and just running a few intensive games on my Vid card.

I can't seem to pinpoint the issue. It seems completly random. One thing I do notice is that it does seem to happen when I am playing a game and it has warmed up a bit, doesn't typically happen when idling. To recap, it is not constant, but random. Maybe happening a few times every hour or so.

Could it just be a simple thing like the Case warming up and expanding? (It is partially metal and plastic)

 

[Suzuki@1473780084@1473780163]

Could be many things, what are your specs?

 

[Eximo]

Hmm. Does it sound like when you turn a car off? It could just be thermal expansion/contraction of the side panels or something.

Video cards can move around a little bit as well, so you might try re-seating it.

 

[ckooken]

Rosewill Blackhawk Case
Intel 860 OC @ 3.4ghz
Coolmaster Hyper T4
EVGA GTX 970
8GB Corsair DDR3
Corsair TX750

Can't recall my exact Hard Drive, but just have a single 350GB Western Digital. It's about 4 years old now. Like I said it is not a constant clicking, doesn't sound like a wire rubbing up against a fan. Can't really force the sound on demand. That is why I figured it might just be the case occasionally warping slightly when warming up.

 

[ckooken]

Hmm. Does it sound like when you turn a car off? It could just be thermal expansion/contraction of the side panels or something.

Video cards can move around a little bit as well, so you might try re-seating it.

Yes, sort of. This is what I think it might be. I was just curious if this is a normal thing some PCs do. Never ran into the issue before. The best I can describe it as is the random Click you hear from a TV.

 

[Suzuki@1473780084@1473780163]

Some hard drive sounds are normal and safe, but some aren't. Clicking every once in a while is safe, and so is the "scratch" sound it makes when loading up a game for instance. Without hearing which is which, it's very hard to tell you if your hard drive is failing/damaged.

 

[ckooken]

Some hard drive sounds are normal and safe, but some aren't. Clicking every once in a while is safe, and so is the "scratch" sound it makes when loading up a game for instance. Without hearing which is which, it's very hard to tell you if your hard drive is failing/damaged.

Yeah I've heard the quiet "hum" or "scratch" that my HD makes when booting up a game. The noise I am experiencing though happens at completly random times though, even a few times when just at idle. I believe though it may just be a case of thermal expansion. I'll double check though to make sure everything is fully seated, and open the case to listen for anything coming from the HD.

EDIT: I should also note that my CPU and GPU range only about 45-55c under load, so it appears nothing is getting to hot to cause any damage to the insides.

 

[Suzuki@1473780084@1473780163]

If your computer is running odds are it's not thermal expansion, that normally happens after you turn it completely off, same way a TV does it after 15-30 minutes after you turned it off. The click a hard drive can make is not the same as the sound thermal expansion makes, and if it was your hard drive things like copying files would take forever, even an image would which is a good sign of it failing. I think (hope) that it's not something else going on, but with all electronics, they get really hot and then cool, never heard it while something was running though.

 

[richard694000]

Ive had fans make clicking sounds depending on how warm the pc was running.

 

[Suzuki@1473780084@1473780163]

Interesting, you would think that heat and expand and then cool and contract which then makes a small click/pop. Even a video would of been very helpful here diagnosing your problem, if it is a problem.

 

[ckooken]

If your computer is running odds are it's not thermal expansion, that normally happens after you turn it completely off, same way a TV does it after 15-30 minutes after you turned it off. The click a hard drive can make is not the same as the sound thermal expansion makes, and if it was your hard drive things like copying files would take forever, even an image would which is a good sign of it failing. I think (hope) that it's not something else going on, but with all electronics, they get really hot and then cool, never heard it while something was running though.

I see, yeah the Hard Drive appears to not have any issues. I ran a few tests on it, and everything came back as fine. I've been using it for the past week without issue. The sound is not constant, like I said. So I am fairly stumped by it as well. It is just barely loud enough for me to notice it over the machine running.

The first reason why I thought maybe it might be a hard drive issue was that I originally heard it during loading screens. Not every loading screen, but usually the very first loading screen when I would play Skyrim. Usually only the first loading screen, then after that nothing.

I still believe this might be the issue, but you never know. This is because I usually only hear it once, or not at all, when playing a game. Then I only sometimes hear it again after I exit out of the game and the system has time to cool down.

Interesting, you would think that heat and expand and then cool and contract which then makes a small click/pop. Even a video would of been very helpful here diagnosing your problem, if it is a problem.

I could try when I have the time, the thing is it seems to be so random that it is hard to capture a sound of it. Hopefully it is not a problem, I'll update this thread if it grows any worse. It has not so far over the course of a week.

 

[Suzuki@1473780084@1473780163]

I see, I got confused because you said Idling so I assumed it was happening while idling, thanks for clearing that up. As for the sound, well it's a click and your machine is still running, I wouldn't be worried at all- especially after all the tests you ran on it.

 

[ckooken]

I see, I got confused because you said Idling so I assumed it was happening while idling, thanks for clearing that up. As for the sound, well it's a click and your machine is still running, I wouldn't be worried at all- especially after all the tests you ran on it.

Oh no, sorry for the mix up. I guess I sort of just wanted a second opinion on this. I would have figured it would have gotten worse if it was anything serious, but it hasn't. Just a minor annoyance.

Update: I actually was able to "sort of" replicate the sound by putting a bit of pressure on the case. Seems the side panel and front panels are just slightly warped. By pressing on them I get that same "pop/click" sound.