PSU fan has stopped working.....fan suggestions please

Jamin280672 · 24 May 2019 at 14:51

As the title suggests, the fan in my PSU no longer spins, I can see it trying to start but then it just clicks, stops and tries to start again, its a Leadtek Super flower platinum 1000w PSU, im looking for advice on a completely slient fan to replace it with as the PSU is out of warranty now, Im quite capable of opening up the PSU and changing the fan, I dont really care what connection the new fan has on it as I can always just cut the original plug off the old fan, and solder it to the new fan,

Im looking for suggestions on a completely silent 120mm x 25mm fan even at full speed as I wont have any speed control over it.

EsaT · 24 May 2019 at 15:26

Is that under idle/low load?
There are quite a few PSUs with semi-passive cooling and Leadex Platinum has that:
https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/SuperFlower/SF-1000F14MP/6.html
https://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/5...-1000-80-plus-platinum-psu-review/index2.html

ANDARIAL · 24 May 2019 at 16:11

How about one of these to control the fan speed?
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/zalman-fan-mate-2-fan-controller-oa-000-za.html
Assuming you get a 3 pin or mod the cable maybe

or maybe get a pwm fan with a long lead or extend one and control via the mobo bio?
or this even
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/noctua-na-fc1-fan-controller-fg-05l-nc.html

Jamin280672 · 24 May 2019 at 18:39

Well I ordered a 120mm Fan, I was even preparing to buy a new PSU, I ordered a Noctua NF-S12B Redux, max speed of 700rpm so would be perfectly quiet, however as it wont be here until tomorrow at the earliest, I thought id get the PSU out and have a look, took it apart, cleaned it all out with a paint brush and vacuumed it out, hey presto, its working again.

@EsaT This PSU has a switch on the back, 1 option is to run all the time at a low speed and the other option is eco mode, only comes on when it needs too.

Thanks for the help guys.

EsaT · 24 May 2019 at 19:08

Jamin280672 said:
Well I ordered a 120mm Fan, I was even preparing to buy a new PSU, I ordered a Noctua NF-S12B Redux, max speed of 700rpm so would be perfectly quiet

And the worst possible fan to put into PSU.
PSU has lots of airflow impedance and NF-S12 is seriously pressure impotent and at such low speed it won't produce even that tiny pressure.

Even if new fan is more similar in design/capable to pressure it would be better to have about same speed.

This Arctic fan would be heck lot better and likely good fit with speed.
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/arctic-cooling-p12-black-case-fan-120mm-fg-04g-ar.html

drakulton · 24 May 2019 at 22:36

If you're going to open the PSU up, it's well worth removing the larger heatsinks attached to the board/components an apply a decent thermal compound. Beware of capacitors as they can give you a nasty shock!
There's no way of knowing the actual temperature difference, but you know that every little helps. Coupled with a quality high rpm/static pressure fan and the PSU will be quieter, cooler and possible last longer.
I've done this on a handful of noisy PSUs and it's well worth the trouble.

azazl187 · 24 May 2019 at 22:47

I see you are capable but just buy a new psu

drakulton · 24 May 2019 at 23:38

azazl187 said:
I see you are capable but just buy a new psu

Where's the fun in that?

Plec · 25 May 2019 at 01:22

azazl187 said:
I see you are capable but just buy a new psu

Why? (this isn't a condescending, 'why?' BTW - genuinely curious)

Although, i wouldn't recommend the practice to the uninitiated - purely for safety/and the unknown cretin factor - it really is a straightforward process.

Plus, some modern quality PSUs only have a 5 year guarantee (I know @EsaT - suspicious

) - and if the fan stops working or, more commonly, the sensor craps out causing the fan to run at full tilt you're stuck with a noisy, but still very capable unit. Swapping out the fan for a 'suitable' quiet replacement, and giving it a thorough air pressure clean only takes ~60 minutes - depending on PSU. Total cost of ~£20 - and you're good to go - saving of £60+ depending on unit (once price of fan has been offset) and as much as £150+ (Superflower/be quiet - nuts price for 5 year guarantee). *I don't do this on cheap PSUs...

Again, I wouldn't recommend it to the uninitiated - but the ends can certainly justify the means if you know what you're doing, and sometimes an all round quieter unit than you had before the fault.

drakulton · 25 May 2019 at 08:22

You could go really mad and put an LED/RGB/ARGB fan in the PSU, and depending on the PSU orientation you have an under-lit case (looks cool on a glass topped computer desk) or have the fan lighting up the inside of the case. Obviously the RGB control wires will have to be routed outside of the PSU enclosure to connect to the mobo or RGB controller. There are plenty of videos on youtube showing the finished results although most are not the safest tutorials to follow.

Jamin280672 · 25 May 2019 at 11:20

azazl187 said:
I see you are capable but just buy a new psu

Its a £200 PSU thats working fine apart from the fan (now fixed) why waste £200 on a new PSU when I can just buy a £10 fan and replace it myself, even if I had to route the fan cable out of the PSU and to a motherboard header I would still choose that option over a new PSU.

Its perfectly safe job to do yourself as long as you're not an idiot, theres plenty of precautions you can take, like wearing rubber gloves, (i use surgical latex gloves, I have a whole box for mixing ejuices where nicotine is concerned) also after shutting down the PC remove the kettle lead from the PSU and hit the power button on the case a few times to drain the caps in the PSU.

azazl187 · 25 May 2019 at 18:58

Jamin280672 said:
Its a £200 PSU thats working fine apart from the fan (now fixed) why waste £200 on a new PSU when I can just buy a £10 fan and replace it myself, even if I had to route the fan cable out of the PSU and to a motherboard header I would still choose that option over a new PSU.

Its perfectly safe job to do yourself as long as you're not an idiot, theres plenty of precautions you can take, like wearing rubber gloves, (i use surgical latex gloves, I have a whole box for mixing ejuices where nicotine is concerned) also after shutting down the PC remove the kettle lead from the PSU and hit the power button on the case a few times to drain the caps in the PSU.

Fair enough. It does make me wonder if this fan will also die quite quickly as it may have not been the old fan alone that made it fail.

Good luck with this one

Jamin280672 · 25 May 2019 at 19:55

azazl187 said:
Fair enough. It does make me wonder if this fan will also die quite quickly as it may have not been the old fan alone that made it fail.

Good luck with this one

Its still the old one in there, just took it all apart and cleaned everything up, the PSU is years old and has never had a thorough clean, so thought whilst im waiting for the new fan to arrive I may as well give it a try, hey presto, it worked, i'll be using the new fan as a simple exhaust fan at the back of my case for now when it arrives.

Tealc · 31 May 2019 at 22:45

I used an Enermax Magma fan to replace a noisy PSU fan and it's still running perfectly some 8+ years later. The outgoing fan was 3000rpm and the ingoing I think 1500rpm ish. The Magma has a stupid long MTBF and is designed for warmer conditions.

MartinPrince · 31 May 2019 at 22:54

Jamin280672 said:
Its still the old one in there, just took it all apart and cleaned everything up, the PSU is years old and has never had a thorough clean, so thought whilst im waiting for the new fan to arrive I may as well give it a try, hey presto, it worked, i'll be using the new fan as a simple exhaust fan at the back of my case for now when it arrives.

Glad you got it sorted. Surprising what a good spring (summer) clean can accomplish!