PC is getting really loud

[wackobird]

Any ideas as to what might make my PC really noisy? I am unsure whether it is the processor or the fan. It's nice and quiet when i boot up, but then within 5 to 10 minutes it starts revving up and its so darn loud that we have to turn up the TV to hear it over the noise of this computer!
People have asked, what the heck are you loading/running that is making it sound like that... I have no idea where to start. It does seem to get louder when I play certain games online. I belong to a gamesite called Pogo that is java driven, and my java is up to date. Depending on what game I load there, it does seem to run a lot louder.
I have dialup access, and it seems to quiet down slightly after I go offline, but the only time its peaceful is when its shut off.
Hubby and I have identical computers, and his dont do this. He's convinced that its the game site where I play, and using Yahoo IM that is doing this. I'm more concerned that my processor might be going bad, or a fan... or something ugly. Performance seems to be slowing down a bit also, and I have over 90% of the hard drive available, so it certainly isnt an issue of running out of room thats causing it to slow.
I do have a bad habit of creating dozens of shortcuts on the desktop, then scooting them into folders when the desktop gets crowded. Would all these shortcuts, rather than adding them to favorites/bookmarks cause the processor to run loudly and more slowly?
Thank you in advance for any ideas.

 

[Rik]

It's s fan without a doubt. New ones are well cheap.

 

[raybay]

When in doubt replace the fan... $12 to $25. Always worth it. But first just clean it with a can of dust-off or other canned air.
But also consider that it may be an audio issue... Describe the sound. Do you have a buzzing sound, or a cyclical humming sound. Or does the sound go away momentarily then come back.
Disconnect speakers first. Then go to your Device Manager and temporarily disable the sound/audio drivers to see if there is a change, or remove your sound card for a few minutes... If related to a sound card, the noise will disappear.
It can also be the power supply, where a few blasts of canned air will change the sound.
A defective modem, NIC, audio card, or video graphics card can create noise if they have chips or circuits that have gone defective.
We have seen an amazing number of noise problems disappear when the various cables inside the case were bound together with some rubber bands or attached to stable parts with some plastic ties. Those little loose wires and cables can vibrate in many different ways, telegraphing noise to everything. If the cables are prevented from easily vibrating or rattling against cases, drives, and other, often noises disappear.

 

[tipstir]

Any ideas as to what might make my PC really noisy? I am unsure whether it is the processor or the fan. It's nice and quiet when i boot up, but then within 5 to 10 minutes it starts revving up and its so darn loud that we have to turn up the TV to hear it over the noise of this computer!
People have asked, what the heck are you loading/running that is making it sound like that... I have no idea where to start. It does seem to get louder when I play certain games online. I belong to a gamesite called Pogo that is java driven, and my java is up to date. Depending on what game I load there, it does seem to run a lot louder.
I have dialup access, and it seems to quiet down slightly after I go offline, but the only time its peaceful is when its shut off.
Hubby and I have identical computers, and his dont do this. He's convinced that its the game site where I play, and using Yahoo IM that is doing this. I'm more concerned that my processor might be going bad, or a fan... or something ugly. Performance seems to be slowing down a bit also, and I have over 90% of the hard drive available, so it certainly isnt an issue of running out of room thats causing it to slow.
I do have a bad habit of creating dozens of shortcuts on the desktop, then scooting them into folders when the desktop gets crowded. Would all these shortcuts, rather than adding them to favorites/bookmarks cause the processor to run loudly and more slowly?
Thank you in advance for any ideas.

Take a look at your PSU Fan and see if dirty or missing any screws. I find cleaning out the dust helps on the inside. Noise means something is loose or something has gone bad. More likely something inside is loose and might be a lot of dust in there. If you smoke, that builds up in the PC a lot you have to get that out.

First thing to do is open the case get a flash light and see what's going on. Listen for the noise to see where it's coming from?

CPU - FAN
PSU - FAN
VDO - FAN
HDD - Spinning
FDD - Floppydisk
CDD - CD Disk
DVD - DVD Disk

 

[Tmagic650]

A computer in a house where there are one or more smokers, is definately going to need more frequent cleaning. This dust is sticky and oily, and it packs hard. Bearings in fans wear out. Before they do, they can make horrorendus noise. CDROMs can get noisy too. I built a system for a friend that smokes both cigars and cigarettes. The system is 2 years old. I have replaced the case and CPU fans twice. My wife's system is identical and we don't smoke. Her fans are fine

 

[raybay]

Never thought to look for that, although it is certainly something to consider, as I have always found smokers to have more unreliable computers and DVD drives.
I do know that people who always have a pot of coffee on, have cooking odors waft throughout the house have dirtier cpu fans.

 

[Tmagic650]

Yes Raybay,
I have replaced a lot of CD and DVD ROMs from smokers computers too. This added cleaning goes for VCRs as well

 

[wackobird]

Thank you all for the advice and my apologies for not responding sooner. We had a family emergency that needed top priority. I've cleaned the inside and all that responded were right on the money about the noise reducing quite a bit by doing a bit of simple maintenance.
There are 3 smokers in this house, and the poor computer ends up acting as the air cleaner... ugh! I will call around to see where I can get fans replaced as quickly as possible. (Hopefully, I can find someone who can do this without telling me I have to leave my PC for 2-4 weeks... )
I'm still inclined to think this has something to do with possible processes though... right now, for instance, it is really revving up... sounds like its getting ready for take-off. When I check the processes that are running, the highest number in the CPU column (98) belongs to System Idle Process, which baffles me. I'm also seeing a process running that appears to be a Prefetch for Microsoft Works. I know this is the wrong forum for running processes, but just curious on those issues.

 

[Tmagic650]

"I'm still inclined to think this has something to do with possible processes though... right now, for instance, it is really revving up... sounds like its getting ready for take-off. When I check the processes that are running, the highest number in the CPU column (98) belongs to System Idle Process, which baffles me. I'm also seeing a process running that appears to be a Prefetch for Microsoft Works. I know this is the wrong forum for running processes, but just curious on those issues."

This noise is probably coming from the CPU fan or the CDROM. You could change both if you want along with the case fans. How old is the CD?

 

[wackobird]

I rarely use the cd or dvd drives... the unit will be 2 years old in April. I'm guessing those fans run even when not using those drives?

I play an embarrassing amount of games online at pogo.com, which really gets the noise level going also, depending on the game I'm playing at the time. The gaming site is java driven and my java is up to date, but that may be a thread for another forum too.

 

[Tmagic650]

It has to be the CPU fan then... Replace this fan and you will notice a big reduction in noise

 

[nismo91]

when i boot up my ex-p4, CPU fan about 3000rpm
10 - 30 minutes after become 5000rpm
noisy alot
and now when come to c2d boot up 900rpm
1 hour / busy 2000rpm
much quiter than be4

 

[Tmagic650]

5000 RPM is loud! I have installed a 2500 RPM on a P4 system and it runs a little warmer but you can barely hear any fan noise...

wackobird can really use one of these 2500 RPM babies

 

[wackobird]

ok, so how does one know how fast the fans are, or what heat is coming off the pc?


:haha: some days its harder to be blonde than others.....

 

[Tmagic650]

Aren't we talking about extreme noise here? You can check for heat and fan speed all you want, and the noise will remain. Have someone that knows computers change the CPU Heatsink and fan. You will be glad you did

 

[nismo91]

5000 RPM is loud! I have installed a 2500 RPM on a P4 system and it runs a little warmer but you can barely hear any fan noise...

wackobird can really use one of these 2500 RPM babies

5300 rpm is not loud, its VERY2 LOUD, even i still could hear the noisy fan when playing music....
Just try to run your car at 5300 rpm and hear the noise made loll..

 

[Tmagic650]

No truer words were ever spoken nismo91

My wife's system is driving me crazy. Her power supply fan is loud. One of these days I'll replace the sucker!

 

[wackobird]

My apologies to all for not posting sooner. I had a major family emergency that came up. I've contacted a few computer repair places and will take it hopefully this week to have fans/heatsinks replaced. I sincerely appreciate all that took time to reply and give me recommendations.

 

[flinch76]

Could any of you please reccomend a good silent 120mm case fan as might is so loud that even when I shout at it to be quiet! I can't hear myself saying it!!

The system board only has a 3 pin connection, I purchased a Antec smartcool 120mm fan but I couldn't find any where to connect it's 3pin (different 3 pin type to mine) or 4 pin connectors

My BIOS doesn't seem to have any tempreature/fan speed settings feature on it so are there any that use there own thermal sensors?

Budget is £30

Any ideas guys?

Cheers.

 

[Tmagic650]

Do a websearch in your area of the World for case fans, and pay attention to the db rating... the lower the number the quieter the fan. Most of the 4-pin connectors can fit on the 3-pin motherboard fan connectors or you can buy a fan with a 4-pin molex adapter