So one thing I've noticed over the many years I've been a computer geek is that for some odd, God forsaken reason, PSU manufacturers must deliberately want to annoy us. Perhaps even freak us the eff out.
I have had several PSU's now, from different brands, such as Thermaltake, and even generic brands that come dirt cheap on Ebay, or with a name brand computer like a Dell, HP, and so forth, where out of seemingly nowhere you'll hear a strange rattle, or buzzing sound. If you know nothing about computers, you may think something very serious might be going wrong with your computer; like maybe your hard drive is dying . Even if you do know a lot about computers, that may also be your initial guess until you open 'er up and take a look under the hood.
The Cause:
PSU's have a nasty habit of the fan inside of it, suddenly starting to rub up against the grill covering it. As the fan spins a little bit of one or more blades hits the metal of the fan grill causing a sort of metallic power tool sound. One way to quick test if this is your problem is to grab a pair of needle-nose pliers and carefully grab a part of the metal grill and gently pull it away from the fan while it's spinning; if the buzzing stops, there's your problem. You can also try gently pressing down on the grill to purposely cause it to buzz more. You'll be able to tell quickly by the sounds if it's the same issue. I'm not sure whether it's the bearings inside, or something similar loosening up over time or what, but for the sake of this discussion, it's from my own experiences harmless, and a relatively easy (and free(!) thank God) fix.
Here's all you have to do:
TL:DR;
The fan blades are hitting the fan grill; move the fan grill from the inside of the case to the outside of the case. Problem solved!
I have done this to several PSU's now and it always works perfect. Let me know if this solved your problem as well! I love hearing happy endings.
Birmingham, Alabama
Divorced
...I love hearing happy endings.
Cuz SDC is all about them "happy endings" ....
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Quirky sysadmin. Geek. Gamer. Comic fangirl.