sapphire 7870xt coil whine

[michael112]

I just built my computer and after awhile of playing Defiance it started to make coil whine. I tried stopping the fans in my case and the cpu fan. It's coming from the 2nd fan furthest away from the i/o ports. Is this just that it's new and needs to be broken in. It's irritating since i'm using this computer as htpc/gaming console in the living room. Should i return it for a new one? I bought it from CanadaComputers, they do returns for products that are defective for the first 15 days.

 

[JJ1217]

How many frames per second are you getting? Getting high frames per second can cause it.

 

[michael112]

I'm not sure, defiance doesn't have a frame counter. I'm probably getting at least 60 on high. In world of tanks i get between 60-100 though.

 

[JJ1217]

It can take a few days to break in yes, few people have noted coil whine going away after a couple of days of gaming. If you can hear it distinctly in a room, its far too loud and should warrant a return/exchange for a new one.

 

[michael112]

I can only hear it from a few feet away. It's noticeable within 4 feet and anything further it blends into the light hum of the fans in the case.
Here's a video of it.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/a1n1c72v8ejjzti/yNXGY0xADD/coil%20whine
Also is their any way i can do a stress test to fix it? I have until Friday that i can return it directly to the store. I'm just irritated that i spent $300 on something and it makes an annoying noise. when its brand new.

 

[JJ1217]

Run Unigine Valley for a night, making sure the temps settle in an acceptable number. If it isn't fixed by morning I'd return it and get a new one, low coil whine is acceptable, but if its that loud, I would return it.

 

[michael112]

What are acceptable temps? And how can i monitor them?
edit: I have a stock cpu cooler, will it be safe to run it? Sorry i'm new to computers and such.

 

[michael112]

I left it on unigine for an hour, after that it got a little quiter. Is it alright if my gpu is at 70 degrees though?

 

[JJ1217]

Hi, yes its perfectly safe up to around 90 degrees. After that and you can start to degrade life. GPU's are built hardy, as its heat that eventually kills components.

 

[michael112]

Well i i left it on for about 10 hours. The coil whine isn't that loud but it's disappointing to see how silent everything else is and to have to listen to the coil whine.

 

[JJ1217]

Well, if you want to, you can return it. It might not fix it, as coil whine is dependant on alot of factors.. hell your motherboard could cause it because of some compatibility issue with your card. Lots of factors tbh.. try and return it and see.