Question Weird noise coming out of the motherboard when downloading or loading programs / tabs

[Asryan]

Hi,
I have this weird little noise coming out of my PC, it's not loud but sometimes annoying and I can't figutre out where it comes from : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62GCC0W9CV0
It feels it's more audible when there are some loadings and it sounds like an HDD but.. i don't have any HDD in my rig, only 2 sata SSD and an M2, can it just be my pump? when i speed up or lower the pump the noise feels the same.

I was wondering if it can come from the motherboard capacitors somehow and that's a bit worrying
maximus hero XI

9900k
EK AIO 360
Strix 3090
Thanks

 

[drea.drechsler]

@Asryan : Hard to tell...but it sounds like coil whine. It's more typical on GPU's but not uncommon on motherboard VRM's.

It's caused by the windings in the CPU VRM inductor coils (inside the ferritic shells) vibrating. Unless it's getting loud enough to be bothersome it's not really a problem, just a bit disconcerting.

 

[Asryan]

I never noticed it before a while ago when I changed my AIO but it's definitely not coming from the pump. Maybe i did not noticed it because the previous pump was louder and was covering it?

I've decided to order another board.. i'm really psycho about PC noise actually.. i'll send this one to RMA and sell it when it comes back if ASUS can manage to send it back to me before 2022, I heard their RMA service is not the fastest one ...

but in the meantime you think it's harmless? and normal that it's only doing it when "data" is working i mean when downloading, when i open browers and tabs... ?

 

[drea.drechsler]

.....

but in the meantime you think it's harmless? and normal that it's only doing it when "data" is working i mean when downloading, when i open browers and tabs... ?

It's harmless. It's rapidly changing electrical currents in the coils that make the windings vibrate. It happens all the time in every VRM actually, but it's normally at a frequency way out of range for us to hear it. Most modern VRM's change the switching frequency with workload though, so whenever it resonates with the windings and ferrite shells at a frequency that's in an audible range...we hear it.

You might can affect it if you can get into the BIOS and make slight changes to the VRM...some high-end motherboards let you change VRM switch frequency, for instance. Just a slight change in that might put the whine out of hearing range again. Or maybe a slight change in core voltage settings since that will also affect VRM operating parameters that include frequency.

 

[Asryan]

My vrm switch frequency is on auto in my bios, what should i put you think to fix that?

I never touched this setting i don't really know if i should put like 300 / 500 or 100?

PU Load-line Calibration [Level 5]
Synch ACDC Loadline with VRM Loadline [Disabled]
CPU Current Capability [140%]
CPU VRM Switching Frequency [Auto]
VRM Spread Spectrum [Disabled]
Active Frequency Mode [Disabled]
CPU Power Duty Control [Extreme]
CPU Power Phase Control [Extreme]

 

[drea.drechsler]

My vrm switch frequency is on auto in my bios, what should i put you think to fix that?

I never touched this setting i don't really know if i should put like 300 / 500 or 100?

PU Load-line Calibration [Level 5]
Synch ACDC Loadline with VRM Loadline [Disabled]
CPU Current Capability [140%]
CPU VRM Switching Frequency [Auto]
VRM Spread Spectrum [Disabled]
Active Frequency Mode [Disabled]
CPU Power Duty Control [Extreme]
CPU Power Phase Control [Extreme]

First thing to try is VRM Spread Spectrum...enable that and see how/if it affects the sound you can hear.

Otherwise, I'm not too sure just what to change. I've never worked with such a top-end board so never had any call to fiddle with those kinds of adjustments. But some things you could try, especially if you're not overclocking, is to try changing CPU Power Phase Control and CPU Power Duty Control. The terms used...Phase Control and Duty (cycle) Control...are directly related to the current pulse frequency that's causing windings to vibrate. And the setting they're on, [Extreme], suggests it's intended for extreme overclocking when current demand can be extremely high. I'd lower try something lower and see how it works.

I'd like to avoid changing VRM Frequency at first as it can have considerable effect on VRM efficiency... making it run very hot when it doesn't need to.

And lastly, a few points of advice whenever experimenting with BIOS settings. First is don't change too much at once, or too far at first. Keep track of changes so you can easily back them out later. Save an overclocking profile of your current settings so you can quickly recover it if things go south. Learn where the CMOS Reset pins are, and read up how to use it. Your board may even have a conveniently located button to do a CMOS reset without shorting pins.

 

[Asryan]

i'll try that, my OC is indeed not extreme i'm "only" at 5ghz for 1.29vcore.

 

[Asryan]

I've switched it all to standard but it didn't changed anything.

I haven't touched the vrm switching frequency yet but i have no clue what i should put

 

[Asryan]

Hello,

Little update on the issue..

On the video the fans are off to hear it better : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62GCC0W9CV0

It feels it's more audible when there are some loadings and it sounds like an HDD but.. i don't have any HDD in my rig, only 2 sata SSD and an M2, if open a bunch of google tabs for instance the noise is clear

i've tried with another board (same one) and it's the same, i can hear the wine for instance if I open a lot of chrome tabs, that's so weird.

Could it be ram related?

I tried to put back bios on default, didn't changed anything

So

I'm sure that it's not:

• the gpu
• the fans
• the pump
• bios settings
• RGB off same thing

it can only be motherboard / ram or PSU but it's a seasonic prime platinum and the noise seems to come from the upper side of the card.

it's not the fan or the gpu and it doesn't seem to come from the PSU?

 

[Asryan]

Another little update :

Seems it does it too when i move the mouse, tried to switch usb of it no changes.

Also,

When i'm in the bios there is no noise, only the sound of fans and pump but no whine or whistle, can this indicate something?