I replaced the OEM fans on my Corsair H100i Pro XT with 2 x Be Quiet! Silent Wings 3 120mm fans. As things started getting warmer after start up, I'd hear this grinding noise, exactly like HDD platters being read. I isolated my HDD, so removed that as a variable because I could still hear the noise every now and then. Google told me it was probably the pump, which got me worried because it was a brand new unit. Because it was intermittent, I wasn't overly concerned (if it did that constantly then yeah, it would be a problem and I'd return it), but while I was investigating a different strange noise coming from the radiator area and I noticed that the noise happens once the fans start running! Both of them make the grinding noise, and then run silently afterwards.
I've always used Be Quiet! fans for my builds, but this is the first time I've used an AIO and had their fans attached to it. I have another 120mm as exhaust and 2 x 140mm as intake (all Be Quiet!) that I kept from my old build - all over 4 years old, and not a whisper. The 2 new ones were bought from OcUK as well, but that grinding noise just makes me think the bearings might be gone. Could they fans have been damaged by the heat from the rad or something?
I've always used Be Quiet! fans for my builds, but this is the first time I've used an AIO and had their fans attached to it. I have another 120mm as exhaust and 2 x 140mm as intake (all Be Quiet!) that I kept from my old build - all over 4 years old, and not a whisper. The 2 new ones were bought from OcUK as well, but that grinding noise just makes me think the bearings might be gone. Could they fans have been damaged by the heat from the rad or something?