PSU Making Chirping Cricket Sound

Dicehunter · 7 Sep 2021 at 19:50

Currently have a Corsair RMi 1000 watt, No after market cables, And it's making an audible chirping sound, It always has done but I thought it could be cause for concern, Does it when idle and at load.

Sound - https://soundcloud.com/user-799490454

Jonnygrunge · 8 Sep 2021 at 00:22

Does it 'tick' or 'chirp' when PC is shutdown? With the PC running it could be the fan bearings...
I have worked quite extensively with Switch Mode PSU's in Industry, and in my experience this usually indicates low resistance on one of the secondary rails, this could be caused by something connected, for instance motherboard causing the lower resistance, and not necessarily the PSU itself.
I would look into it though, because it usually ends up with the PSU going bang in the night....

Dicehunter · 8 Sep 2021 at 00:23

Jonnygrunge said:
Does it 'tick' or 'chirp' when PC is shutdown? With the PC running it could be the fan bearings...
I have worked quite extensively with Switch Mode PSU's in Industry, and in my experience this usually indicates low resistance on one of the secondary rails, this could be caused by something connected, for instance motherboard causing the lower resistance.
I would look into it though, because it usually ends up with the PSU going bang in the night....

I can confirm it is not the fan, It's not even moving, I'm replacing it anyway as I don't want to risk something going pop, I've had very bad luck with Corsairs RMi series sadly

theforce · 8 Sep 2021 at 00:34

On the product page, it states that the model has an 0rpm fan mode so the fan shouldn't be working when the PC is idle. So if that is not the fan producing that noise l would RMA the PSU.

Jonnygrunge · 8 Sep 2021 at 00:45

I cannot recommend ASUS Thor (Seasonic) PSUs enough!

Dicehunter · 8 Sep 2021 at 01:00

theforce said:
On the product page, it states that the model has an 0rpm fan mode so the fan shouldn't be working when the PC is idle. So if that is not the fan producing that noise l would RMA the PSU.

Sadly an RMA is out of the question as I got it from the rainforest and that account is now gone due to being compromised so RMA is a no go.

Jonnygrunge said:
I cannot recommend ASUS Thor (Seasonic) PSUs enough!

You read my mind as I was contemplating getting the Thor 850w platinum

LeMson · 8 Sep 2021 at 01:17

hit it until it stops

Rroff · 8 Sep 2021 at 01:25

Dicehunter said:
I can confirm it is not the fan, It's not even moving

You can get chirping noises when a fan gets a blip of power which isn't sufficient to actually make it move (or move much).

Dicehunter · 8 Sep 2021 at 02:18

Rroff said:
You can get chirping noises when a fan gets a blip of power which isn't sufficient to actually make it move (or move much).

It's definitely coil whine, Pointed a mic at the PSU and it comes from 1 of the corners.

Just annoying as I quite like Corsairs RMi line due to the ability to monitor wattage use, Volts and temps.

Having read around more it seems the RMi series is very prone to chirping sounds, Probably why most places don't sell them anymore.

neur0maniak · 8 Sep 2021 at 04:03

LeMson said:
hit it until it stops

Gets my vote.

Dicehunter said:
Pointed a mic at the PSU and it comes from 1 of the corners.

I hope you're keeping the mic at a distance, or the mic may just be picking up inaudible EM fields (mics use coils too)

Dicehunter · 8 Sep 2021 at 06:48

neur0maniak said:
I hope you're keeping the mic at a distance, or the mic may just be picking up inaudible EM fields (mics use coils too)

I've also had the PSU outside the case and had my ear an inch away from it, It's a headache inducing high pitched sound that can be heard from across the room, I used the mic to try and pinpoint but only got a general area.

It used to be a lot quieter but now it's VERY audible.