Noisy OCZ GameXStream PSU
Bookmark this page:
 Yahoo!
 Google
 Windows Live
 del.icio.us
 digg
 Netscape
|
|
||||||||||||||||
|
Posted by Gary Brown on April 26, 2008, 1:41 am
Please log in for more thread options A newly installed OCZ GameXStream 700W power supply is annoying noisy, much noisier than the basic 450W Cooler Max it replaced. It is quiet enough at startup but the fan quickly gets to what seems full speed. Most of the reviews on NewEgg laud it for quietness but a few had the same noise problem I do. Those that replaced the unit thinking it was defective found the same noise problem with the replacement. Do some systems just provoke this noise? In my case, the CPU is just below the power supply. Exhaust is only a bit warm. Configuration: MB: A7N8X V2 Deluxe CPU: AMD 2800+ single core, 32b Mem: 1GB (1 x 512MB, 2 x 256MB) HDD: 1 250GB, 1 400GB, 1 160GB 1 x CD/RW, 1 x DVD/RW Full Tower Thanks, Gary | ||||||||||||||||
|
Posted by kony on April 26, 2008, 3:33 am
Please log in for more thread options If it's working properly the fan speed is a function of the temp the internal sensor, senses. If the case doesn't have a fairly unobstructed, open rear exhaust fan area and ample front intake area, it will tend to reduce PSU exhaust rate and increase intake air temp, resulting in higher temp inside. If the sensor is mounted against a heatsink there may also be some variability in manufacturing, exactly where and how well the heat is transferred from the 'sink inside. Similarly a higher room ambient temp will result in higher PSU internal temp. Beyond the case and it's potential modifications, another option is to void the warranty by opening the PSU and seeing if you can locate and relocate the fan sensor - if it's the latter issue, if the former it would not be advised to countermine the intended cooling as it may decrease lifespan. The last alternative is to reverse engineer the fan control circuit and change some values to result in lower speed, replace the fan with one having lower default RPM, or place an inline current or voltage limiter on the fan's power leads. One other thing to keep in mind. Your system places a significantly higher load on 5V rail due to the A7N8X motherboard, while many place a higher load on 12V rail instead. The result can be that your 12V rail voltage level inside the PSU is higher than in a (newer) different system and this results in higher voltage if/when all else is equal in your system versus someone else's. We can only assume the manufacturer has made no changes to the PSU design - it is possible they had encountered more RMAs than they'd like and decided to increase fan speed/response to heat. It is even possible that random variations in resistors used in the fan control circuit cause a higher bias in the circuit and a little higher fan speed (though this seems like it would typically be less of an increase than most people would notice). Surely there are other factors I can't think of at the moment as well, which of these things is the primary cause is up to you to determine, though it could be a combination, each contributing a little bit. | ||||||||||||||||
|
Posted by Paul on April 26, 2008, 8:23 am
Please log in for more thread options Gary Brown wrote:
> Hi,
> > A newly installed OCZ GameXStream 700W power supply > is annoying noisy, much noisier than the basic 450W > Cooler Max it replaced. It is quiet enough at startup but > the fan quickly gets to what seems full speed. > > Most of the reviews on NewEgg laud it for quietness but > a few had the same noise problem I do. Those that > replaced the unit thinking it was defective found the same > noise problem with the replacement. Do some systems > just provoke this noise? In my case, the CPU is just below > the power supply. Exhaust is only a bit warm. > > Configuration: > > MB: A7N8X V2 Deluxe > CPU: AMD 2800+ single core, 32b > Mem: 1GB (1 x 512MB, 2 x 256MB) > HDD: 1 250GB, 1 400GB, 1 160GB > 1 x CD/RW, 1 x DVD/RW > Full Tower > > Thanks, > Gary > > My guess would be, the A7N8X uses +5V for processor power. On my system, Vcore uses 16 amps and my video card uses 5 amps (only under highest gaming conditions). On the 5V at 30A rail, that is a little over 2/3rds of the capacity, and we're not counting drives yet. On the other hand, the massive 12V capacity is hardly being used at all. The 3.3/5V has a combined power limit of 155W. If that was a thermal limit, it could be that the 3.3/5V part of the design, is getting hot, and causing the fan to run at a higher speed. But because the 12V has next to no load, the actual air stream is cool. It all depends on whether the fan speed is set by heatsink temperature or air stream temperature, as to whether it is appropriate for the fan to speed up. I would try the power supply on a more modern system, one with massive 12V loading, and next to no 3.3/5V, and see if the loading pattern causes a lower fan speed. Paul | ||||||||||||||||
|
Posted by larry moe 'n curly on April 26, 2008, 1:03 pm
Please log in for more thread options
Gary Brown wrote: >
> A newly installed OCZ GameXStream 700W power supply > is annoying noisy, much noisier than the basic 450W > Cooler Max it replaced. It is quiet enough at startup but > the fan quickly gets to what seems full speed. > > Most of the reviews on NewEgg laud it for quietness but > a few had the same noise problem I do. It probably just has a loud fan. The GameXstream is made by Fortron- Source, whose PSUs aren't known for quiet. Both of my 500W Antec Basiqs, which are also made by Fortron (Epsilon series?), each have an 80mm fan that's annoying even when the PSU is cool and only 6.0V is being fed to it. | ||||||||||||||||
|
Posted by kony on April 26, 2008, 8:01 pm
Please log in for more thread options On Sat, 26 Apr 2008 10:03:12 -0700 (PDT), "larry moe 'n
>
>Gary Brown wrote: >>
>> A newly installed OCZ GameXStream 700W power supply >> is annoying noisy, much noisier than the basic 450W >> Cooler Max it replaced. It is quiet enough at startup but >> the fan quickly gets to what seems full speed. >> >> Most of the reviews on NewEgg laud it for quietness but >> a few had the same noise problem I do. >
>It probably just has a loud fan. The GameXstream is made by Fortron- >Source, whose PSUs aren't known for quiet. Both of my 500W Antec >Basiqs, which are also made by Fortron (Epsilon series?), each have an >80mm fan that's annoying even when the PSU is cool and only 6.0V is >being fed to it. Ok, but comparing higher RPM/noise of 80mm rear fan to 120mm bottom fan is apples and oranges. | ||||||||||||||||
| Similar Threads | Posted |
| Noisy OCZ GameXStream PSU | April 26, 2008, 1:41 am |
| Noisy PC | July 3, 2005, 8:00 pm |
| Noisy CPU fan | January 16, 2006, 2:47 pm |
| Re: Noisy CPU fan | January 16, 2006, 6:41 pm |
| Noisy PSU: possible to "fix"? | September 7, 2006, 12:00 am |
| Noisy fan | February 8, 2007, 6:45 am |
| Re: Very Noisy Fan | November 23, 2008, 10:25 am |
| Re: Very Noisy Fan | November 23, 2008, 11:33 am |
| noisy fans | July 13, 2005, 7:52 pm |
| dell PSU fan noisy | November 10, 2005, 6:46 am |
| Noisy northbridge fan | June 7, 2006, 12:04 pm |
| I hate those noisy fans! | August 1, 2005, 3:37 pm |
| Noisy video card | October 14, 2005, 6:14 am |
| DVD-ROM drive noisy all of a sudden | November 13, 2005, 6:39 pm |
| Noisy Power Supply fan | December 7, 2006, 11:55 pm |
>
>A newly installed OCZ GameXStream 700W power supply
>is annoying noisy, much noisier than the basic 450W
>Cooler Max it replaced. It is quiet enough at startup but
>the fan quickly gets to what seems full speed.
>
>Most of the reviews on NewEgg laud it for quietness but
>a few had the same noise problem I do. Those that
>replaced the unit thinking it was defective found the same
>noise problem with the replacement. Do some systems
>just provoke this noise? In my case, the CPU is just below
>the power supply. Exhaust is only a bit warm.
>
>Configuration:
>
> MB: A7N8X V2 Deluxe
> CPU: AMD 2800+ single core, 32b
> Mem: 1GB (1 x 512MB, 2 x 256MB)
> HDD: 1 250GB, 1 400GB, 1 160GB
> 1 x CD/RW, 1 x DVD/RW
> Full Tower
>
>Thanks,
>Gary