Why are there strange noises coming from my Corsair H100i V2?

[Elf_Knight]

Hi people
Just a few days ago I got the Corsair H100i V2 for my i5 4690k cause I plan to do some overclocking. I have it installed in the Fractal Design Nano S in the front panel where the dust filter normally is since that was the only way I could get the thing to fit in the case. I might try to move the fans behind the dust filter inside the case but then the pipes might bulge out too much. I have the stock 120mm fans that came with the cooler. It is really quiet except for these strange "wooshing" or "rushing" sounds that come from either the radiator or the pump. Sounds like they are coming from the radiator. I don't know if it is the fans spinning too much or radiator problems. I have the fans set to intake but not sure if I should switch them to exhaust. Also is there enough airflow where they are at? Should I put the radiator/fans as exhaust at the top panel and have two other fans as intake at the front? Do I need to send the cooler back? I haven't seen any drips or leaks, etc.

Many thanks in advance!

 

[The Paladin]

first both fans should be pushing towards the out of your computer [FAN]-->>[radiator]-->> so the inside fan will force air into radiator I guess in theory you could push from outside to inside the case but that would mean a lot of hot air inside your case unless you have a set of fans on top to exhaust all that heat you are going to get less than preferable temps on cpu and gpu. Personally I would put the cpu fans on top and intake in front.. better new air flow and heat pattern through case.
as for the noise, you need to identify if it is the pump itself or just a noisy fan, use a screw driver and place it to touch the pump.. steady hand.. and listen if the pump is making any noises, as for swooshing, that sounds like burst of fan speed up driven by bios temp program, what motherboard are you using ? maybe need to run a optimizer on the fan speeds with temp control

 

[Elf_Knight]

Thanks! I will try that. Chances are it is just a noisy pump. But I am worried that it is air bubbles. Last thing I want to do is RMA it. Since it is closed loop there is no way to tell if there are air bubbles since the tubing is not see-through.

 

[n0ns3ns3]

The sound is probably due to some amount of air within the loop.
If this is the case, the only thing you can do is to RMA it as those loops are not serviceable without voiding warranty.
Regarding the mount.
The best thing (both thermally and acoustically) would be to mount the radiator on the top. You can do it if your RAM heatsinks are not too high.
If they are, you can get on ebay low profile heatsinks. That's what I did to install 240 rad in my Define Nano S.
If you have the high profile RAM, just to test if the annoying sound will disappear, you can mount the rad on the top from inside and the fans on the top from the outside pulling the air through radiator.
Now about some misconceptions about liquid cooling:
1. There is no practical performance difference if your fans are pulling or pushing the air through the rad. But there is a convenience difference, it is much easier to clean the "pull" setup. In "push", you will have to remove the fans to clean the dirt from the rad. And I promise you it will get dirty.
2. With CPU only connected to 240 rad, it's not important if you use it as intake or exhaust. The temperature difference within the case would be within couple of degree.

 

[Elf_Knight]

Thanks for the advice! I mounted my rad at the top of the Nano S and mounted the other fans at the front as intake. I mounted my two AIO fans as exhaust fans underneath the radiator so that the radiator was screwed directly to the top of the mesh. I plugged everything in and rebooted the system. So far there are no strange sounds. I think that the radiator was being starved for air flow because there just wasn't enough space in between the fans and the front panel. Also my intake fans are behind the front panel grill and dust filter though I previously had my AIO fans in between the grill and the front panel. My system is now a lot quieter. It's not totally silent but I don't hear a loud high pitched sound from my fans anymore that used to give me headaches. I just hear a low rumble from the fans. Just a quick temp check from the Corsair Link and everything seems normal as idle. I don't have any benchmark software but I will run the Witcher 3 for half an hour or so and then check the temperatures again since that was the only game that pushed my system to the limit! Any thoughts on good software to check temperatures at peak load? Like a stress test or something? Thank you very much for the advice! If I keep hearing noises I will just RMA it and try to get a new one though I will have to wait until after christmas and new years probably hence my avoidance of RMA-ing it.

 

[Elf_Knight]

I used my PC for normal stuff like web browsing and I didn't hear any unusual noises. Then I fired up the Witcher 3 for about ten minutes. Temperatures were ranging from 30-35 degrees across all 4 cores. But suddenly the noises started again and I am pretty sure it was the fans cause when I took off the case I could hear the fan blades wooshing very loudly kind of like. I think the supplied corsair fans are very loud in general and struggle to keep up with the cooler. Should I try getting different fans and using them instead or would it not make any difference? I don't think it is the pump or radiator making the noise but the fans themselves although I am not sure why.

Many thanks in advance!!

 

[n0ns3ns3]

you can test if it the fans easily by stopping them (either disconnect them from power, or just put some pen in blades to stop them).
I still don't get how you couldn't fit the rad + fans within the case in front.
The reason is that here how my Nano S looks with front mounted rad : https://goo.gl/photos/6sBiPgyTMT7ifNuA6
If you have defective fans, try to RMA them. They are not the best, but decent.
If you can return this unit and instead get https://www.ekwb.com/shop/ek-xlc-predator-240 it will solve all your problems (it performs better, quieter, for longer, customizable, expandable, serviceable, made of high quality components). Just make sure it will fit as it uses thick rad. you need 70mm between the GPU and front mounts.
Regarding fans, at the moment, there is nothing better for rads than Noctua NF-F12 (or NF-P12)

 

[Elf_Knight]

Thanks I will try that! I managed to mount my fans and rad at the top of the case and put some other fans as intake at the front on the inside. So my fans are mounted beneath the rad which is mounted flush with the top of the case. I still have the problem but it only happens sometimes during gaming which is strange. When I do normal stuff it is fine. Maybe its the water rushing around the tubes? Can't really afford the other AIO you linked but I will try to get a refund if it doesn't work. Is it safe to use a rad without the fans?

 

[n0ns3ns3]

1. you need to make it clear if the problem (sound) comes from fans or from the rad/pump
in any case, under load:
* fans spin faster and can make some noise. if they are defective, the noise can be annoying.
* And liquid and rad are getting hot - things tend to expand. may be the pump is also spin up so you can hear the liquid moving in your loop. but that only possible if there are air pockets which are really shouldn't be there.