Fix GPU Fan Noises (Buzzing, Beeps, Clicks, Grinds, Whining)

Why is your GPU making a Buzzing Noise?

A GPU making a buzzing noise could be caused by coilwhine. Coilwhine is what happens when an electronic component vibrates as power runs through an electrical cable. It occurs in almost all electronic devices, usually at a very low volume that is inaudible to humans.

In the case of modern gaming PCs, coil whine is generated when the video card is under load and causes the chips to vibrate. Some possible causes of coil whine:

• Games with high frame rates
• Games with high graphic detail
• Photo or video editing software
• Running many video streams

Coil whine is not a serious concern, as your system isn’t losing any performance or longevity.

Before determining that the problem is coil whine, be sure to locate exactly where the noise is coming from.

 

How do you fix a GPU making a Buzzing Noise?

A GPU making a buzzing noise may be caused by coil whine. This is when the video card is under stress and causes the chips to vibrate, producing the sound.

 

How to Fix Coil Whine in a GPU:

1. Locate the specific coil. The coil will look like a solid grey battery.
2. Put a wooden pencil or wooden skewer stick on the exposed component and test if any of them are causing it by feeling the vibrations directly or putting your ear close and listening.
3. After locating the specific coil, add a small amount of silicone or sealant to muffle the sound.
4. If you are unable to find the specific coil, it requires disassembling the card and adding buffer to slow down the oscillations.

If the noise is still too loud to be tolerated, return the GPU and get a new one.

 

How to fix buzzing noise caused by the fan

1. Open the case to check the fans.
2. Ensure the fans aren’t bent and hitting anything while spinning.
3. If fans are hitting loose cables, properly secure the cables in place.

 

Why is your GPU making a Clicking Noise?

A GPU making a clicking noise could be caused by coil whine. Coil whine can make a few different distinct noises. This is caused by the video card being under load and causing the chips to vibrate and produce the clicking noise.

Besides coil whine, another common issue that causes the clicking noise is the fans. The fans may be hitting a loose cable, or the GPU heatsink itself while spinning.

Otherwise, the fan bracket may be improperly mounted, making contact with the GPU heatsink and producing the clicking noise.

 

How to fix a GPU making a Clicking Noise?

A GPU making a clicking noise could be caused by coil whine. Here are some steps to fix this issue:

1. Open the case and check the fans.
2. Make sure the fans aren’t bent or hitting a loose cable.
3. If the fan bracket is improperly mounted, it could cause a clicking noise against the heatsink.
4. To fix this, place a small piece of heat resistant material that is thick enough to fit between the bracket and the heatsink.

 

Why is your GPU making a Whining Noise?

A whining noise from your GPU could be caused by coil whine. This is especially prominent during very high frame rate situations. Coil whine happens when power runs through the coil and vibrates.

This occurs in all electronic devices, but usually at a frequency and volume too low to hear, especially inside a case.

The worst coil whine noise occurs when games are at loading screens, or in between scenes because the output of frame rates increases significantly. This means more GPU usage therefore more vibrations and coil whine.

 

How to fix a GPU making a Whining Noise?

A GPU making a whining noise is potentially caused by coil whine. Follow these steps to fix it:

1. Locate the specific coil, which usually looks like a round grey blob.
2. Place a wooden pencil or wooden skewer stick on the exposed component to feel the vibrations directly.
3. If you have no access to wooden items, put your ear close to listen to the vibrations.
4. After locating the specific coil causing the noise, add a small amount of sealant or silicone on it to dampen the sound.
5. If you can’t find the specific coil, take apart the card and add a buffer to slow down the oscillations.

 

Further Tips

1. Moving the computer further away.
2. Open the case and use canned air to blow out dust from the fans.
3. Reseat everything inside the case and ensure everything’s in its place with no loose cables.
4. Throttle computer performance to limit framerate or reducing speed of fans.
5. Soundproof your computer case.
6. Replace the PSU with one of high quality.

If the noise is still too loud to be tolerated, return the GPU and get a new one.

 

Why is your GPU making a Grinding Noise?

A grinding noise usually means that the fan’s bearingsare failing, especially if they are run high often. A computer has several fans to cool its internals, therefore it is important to identify which fan is making the grinding noise.

 

How to fix a GPU making a Grinding Noise?

Identify which fan is making the noise before attempting to repair them. Here are some steps to fix the GPU fan:

1. Open the computer case and locate the fan making the noise.
2. Remove the fan and pull the sticker back. There should be a hole with a plug.
3. Pull the plug out and place a small drop of household lubricant oil or light machine oil in it to lube the fan bearings.
4. If the fan still makes a grinding noise, replace the fan entirely.

 

Why is your GPU making a Beeping Noise?

A GPU making a beeping noise may mean that the card isn’t properly seated. However, this isn’t the only reason. The beeping noise could mean one of a few things:

• There’s an issue with the motherboard graphics card slot.
• The supplemental PCI-E power isn’t connected properly to the graphics card.
• There’s an issue with the graphics card itself.

 

How to fix the beeping noise from a GPU?

A beeping noise from a GPU could be caused by many reasons. Follow these steps to fix the beeping noise:

1. Reset BIOS through booting the computer into BIOS (usually by pressing Del or F1, F2, or F12). Inside the BIOS, there’s an option to select default settings. Press the corresponding key then press F10 to save and exit.
2. Reset CMOS by unplugging the computer, then push and hold the power button for 20 seconds. Open up the case and locate the battery, which looks like a large round watch battery by the lower right side of the motherboard, usually under the GPU. Carefully remove the battery and wait 10 minutes then put it all back together.
3. Unplug fans plugged into the motherboard and rewire or replace them.
4. If there are GPU driver shutdowns, there may be a problem with the drivers. They could be corrupted or conflicting with another process. Clean install the drivers.
5. If the beeping noise persists, it’s likely that the motherboard doesn’t support the card, which requires a replacement card.

 

Some other fixes which may help:

• Remove and reinsert the graphics card, making sure that the card is seated properly in its slot.
• Check that the power supply is large enough for the graphics card.
• Ensure all connections and power wires are firmly plugged in.
• Reseat the RAM sticks.

 

GPU beep codes Explained

Upon startup, computers perform a Power-On Self Test, referred to as a POST. If problems are found, error codes are displayed on the screen. However, if nothing shows up on the screen, the computer might make beeping noises to indicate errors.

Most of the time these errors indicate hardware problems. Many BIOS-es will have different beep codes even though they’re from the same manufacturer because most motherboard manufacturers will reprogram codes to reflect their own customizations.

 

GPU makes 1 long beep, 2 short beeps

1 long beep and 2 short beeps during startup is the typical error code for a GPU or monitor problem.

 

How to fix the GPU:

1. Remove and then reinsert the graphics card, ensuring that it is correctly seated in its slot.
2. Make sure the pins in the slots aren’t bent.
3. Check that all connections and power cables are firmly connected.
4. If the beeping noise continues, replace the graphics card.

 

(GPU) graphics card beeps 3 times

3 beeps during startup most likely means that there is a memory error. There may be issues with the RAM sticks.

 

How to fix the GPU:

1. Ensure that the contacts on the memory and socket are clean.
2. Use RAM sticks from the same manufacturer with the same part number and speed.
3. Check for faulty memory modules by testing the memory in a known running system.
4. Replace the video card, as the motherboard may be incompatible with it.

 

(GPU) graphics card beeps 4 times

4 beeps upon startup may be caused by hardware failure with an expansion card or a problem with the motherboard itself. The motherboard timer may have failed due to system overclocking, while the expansion card may be a RAM error or a bad RAM stick.This could also be due to a power supply issue.

 

How to fix the GPU:

1. Check BIOS settings, reset the BIOS or ensure that the clock multiplier is at the CPU default speed.
2. Reseat the RAM sticks or any other expansion cards, and if that doesn’t work, replace them.
3. Check that the power supply is sufficient or not overloaded.
4. Replace the motherboard if necessary.

 

(GPU) graphics card beeps 5 times

5 long beeps, or 2 long beeps and 3 short beeps means that there is no VGA card.

 

How to fix the GPU:

1. Remove and reinsert the video card, ensuring that it is properly seated in its slot.
2. Check that all connections and power cables are firmly connected.
3. Make sure the power supply is sufficient for the video card.
4. If the issue persists, replace the video card.

 

How To Stop a Graphics card from making high pitched noises?

Graphics card making a high-pitched noise could be caused by the graphics card not receiving enough power. This isn’t a serious concern, as it isn’t harmful to the card and doesn’t affect the computer’s performance.

 

How to fix:

1. Ensure that all necessary connections and power cables are firmly connected.
2. Make sure the power supply is sufficient for the graphics card.
3. Get the appropriate connector for the graphics card to supply power.
4. Check that the motherboard supports the graphics card.

 

Laptop GPU fan making noise

Laptop fans make noise for various reasons. In a hot environment, the fans will need to spin faster to dissipate heat, generating more noise. Playing graphic intensive games or rendering high quality video also causes fans to run fast.

If your fans start making unusual noises such as rattling or buzzing, it’s likely that the fans are failing and need to be replaced.

 

How to fix laptop fans:

1. Open the laptop case and locate the fan making the noise.
2. Remove the fan and unscrew the plastic or metallic covering. Pull gently straight up on the spindle along its rotation axis.
3. Remove the spindle and put a small drop of household lubricant oil or light machine oil in the hole to lube the fan bearings, then reassemble the fan.
4. Cleans the fans with compressed air and replace the thermal paste.
5. If the fan still makes a grinding or buzzing noise, replace the fan entirely.

Fan speed can also be lowered manually through software to control the level of noise.

 

Why does my GPU make a Whining Sound Under Load?

A GPU making a whining sound when under load is likely because of coil whine. Coil whine is produced when the graphics card is under significant load, causing it to vibrate and make the sound.

 

Some other tips that might help:

• Enable a framerate limiter.
• Move your computer further away.
• Soundproof the computer case.
• Reseat everything inside the case and make sure everything is properly seated with no loose cables.

If the sound is too loud to be tolerated, replace the GPU.

 

GPU whining at high FPS

A GPU whining when playing games with a high frame rate could be caused by coil whine. Coil whine becomes more prevalent the higher the FPS and is caused by vibrating coils in the card.

 

How to fix GPU:

1. Locate the specific coil, which usually looks like a round grey battery.
2. Put a wooden pencil or wooden skewer stick on the exposed component to feel the vibrations directly.
3. If you do not have any wooden items, put your ear close to listen to the vibrations.
4. After locating the specific coil causing the noise, add a small amount of sealant or silicone on it to dampen the sound.
5. If you can’t find the specific coil, take apart the card and add a buffer to slow down the oscillations.

 

Some other tips that might help:

• Enable a frame rate limiter to throttle performance.
• Move your computer further away.
• Soundproof the computer case.
• Change the PSU.
• Reseat everything inside the case and make sure everything is properly seated with no loose cables.

If the sound is still too loud to be tolerated, replace the GPU.

 

Why does a GPU make noise when scrolling?

A GPU making noise when scrolling may be caused by coil whine. Coil whine produces different types of sounds and can happen when the graphic card is under load.

When you scroll through a website or anything that requires it, the GPU load varies and causes the coils to vibrate. Coil whine isn’t harmful to the computer, as it doesn’t affect its performance.

 

Some other tips that might help:

• Move your computer further away.
• Soundproof the computer case.
• Change the PSU to a high quality one.

 

Why is your GPU making noise when playing games?

A GPU making noise when playing games is likely caused by coil whine. When playing games with high FPS, the GPU is under significant load which will make the sound louder.

Coil whine noise is at its worst when games are at loading screens, or in between scenes because the output of frame rates increases significantly. Coil whine doesn’t damage the computer in any way and doesn’t affect its performance.

 

The fans could also be causing the noise. Here’s how to check:

1. Open the case and inspect the condition of the fans.
2. Check to see if the fans aren’t bent and making contact with other surfaces while spinning.
3. If fans are hitting loose cables, properly secure the cables in place.
4. Clean the fans with compressed air.

 

Some other tips that might help:

• Enable a frame rate limiter to cap the performance.
• Move your computer further away.
• Soundproof the computer case.
• Change the PSU to a high quality one.