I’m fairly competent with a computer; I’ve installed hardware and software successfully, and I’m not scared of breaking anything.
Right now I suspect I’m having a hardware issue, and here’s why:
My computer has recently taken to shutting itself off about 15 minutes after startup. It then refuses to be turned back on for another 15-20 minutes. If I try, it just shuts itself immediately back off before I even see anything on the monitor. When I do get it to turn back on, it’s really loud at first, it gradually gets quieter and the whirring gets slower and slower, until finally it sounds like it’s getting TOO slow, then I get the blue screen and it’s dead.
It seems to me like a cooling issue. However, I don’t know how to figure out whether it’s the power supply fan or the CPU fan, short of going out and buying both and seeing which one fixes the problem. I don’t want to do that, and I also don’t want to pay someone some astronomical fee to find the problem if there’s a chance I could do it myself.
Is there anything I can do? Or should I just take it a pro?
I does indeed sound like a cooling issue. Just open the case and run it like that so you can see exactly where the problem is. It could be that a fan isn’t clipped down correctly or something.
The CPU fan you big silly. You can inspect the way that it is clipped to the motherboard if that is the fan with the problem. Those are cheap to replace anyway.
Before opening the box, put your hand behind the power supply fan (on the back) and you will feel the air moving. Keep it there and see if that stops before the thing shuts down.
Of course, if you don’t feel the wind a’blowin’ at all, then the power supply is kaput. It is not that hard to replace, but be sure to get one powerful enough.
If that seems OK, then open the box, and you can see if the CPU and other little fans are moving when you first turn it on. If not, then there’s the problem.
Replacing them is not quite as easy, but can be done. If that’s the case, post again here and somebody will take you through the procedure.
This sounds very much like fan bearing chatter; in some cases, fans start noisily then start working perfectly OK when the bearings expand a bit; in other cases, they start off noisy and get quieter, but because they’re slowing down and not cooling properly.
You won’t necessarily be able to detect the fan slowing down with the naked eye; this would be a case of differentiating between really fast and blurry, against not so fast, but still blurry.
Something with a fan on it will be too hot to touch comfortably after the shutdown; that’s the thing that needs a new fan (why not get a bigger one, while you’re at it, and make sure you clean out any fluff and dust that is packed between the heatsink fins if you’re re-using the heatsink.
You probably don’t want to keep testing this to shutdown though, as eventually something will overheat destructively.
OK, so how do I tell whether something’s wrong with the fan bearing by looking at the fan? If that is the problem, what do I do about it? Buy a new fan, or adjust the old one?
Also, where’s the heatsink and what’s it look like? Why would I need a new one if the fan bearing’s off?
The heatsink fan is not repairable except in the short term some lubricant might help.
The fan is generally integral with the heatsink and the pair cost so little it isn’t worth arguing about repairing it.
Get the best one for the processor, and try and get a quiet one while you are on with it, some of them are quite noisy. Also get a ball-bearing fan, they last longer.
Have a look in Tom’s Hardware for guidelines, or possibly Overclockers.
You won’t be able to see a problem with a bearing, but the fan won’t be working properly.
Heatsinks are metal pieces with lots of fins like this. Some have a fan attached directly to them. Heatsinks sit on a processor and take the excess heat (the second worst enemy of a computer) and disapates it. You do need a thermal grease of some sort (I like Arctic Silver) to ensure a good seal between the processor and the heatsink.
This is true to a point, If you have an older AMD CPU (Duran, XP, etc) then it will viod the warranty. However the newer 64 CPUs have a heat spreader on the CPU (so you can’t see the chip itself, its encased in a silver metal box) and since the artic silver isn’t on the CPU itself it doesn’t void the warranty anymore.
However, if you get the Artic silver on the motherboard or on the CPU socket, it could void the motherboard warranty. So if you use Artic Silver, be VERY careful. Might be better to use a non-metallic grease like Shin Etsu just to avoid the problem all together.
This is just incorrect; in the case of many modern systems, the motherboard incorporates thermal protection and the machine will shutdown if a critical temperature is reached; even on older hardware, an overheating CPU (or other component, such as Nortbridge or GPU chips can manifest a range of different symptoms, including lockups, but also including instability and spontaneous restart/shutdown.
Did you build the computer yourself? I mean, rather than buying a Dell or whatever or buying a shop brand from a local shop?
If it’s a name brand, you may be stuck; just warning you.
It sounds like a cooling problem, and it’s most likely a fan. Of course, I can’t tell you which one, but from the symptoms, I’d say it was your Northbridge or CPU fan. Most modern CPUs and chipsets need lots o’ power, which means they run real hot and need cooling. CPUs usually have fans, but in order to save money most of the fans are real chintzy IMHO. The Northbridge or other chipset may or may not have a fan, but I recommend one.
It could also be a power supply fan. My experience is that power supply fans are pretty robust, but hey, anything can happen.
Now, why does your computer shut off? If your computer was built in the last 4-5 years, it almost certainly has a sensor that tracks the temperature of your CPU and chipset. The motherboard will automatically shut down the computer if the temperature gets too high. A pain, to be sure, but better than having your CPU melt!
Open the case and turn the computer on. You should be able to see and hear which if any fans are failing. Replace the failing one. If you want a really reliable, ultra-quiet, ultra-cooling fan, look at the Zalman line or go to the Quiet PC web site.
I’ve built my own computers since 1993. In that time, I’ve dealt with all sorts of hardware-related problems. Based on that, I advise everyone out there: if it’s making noise, do something now.
ok! for the 5 of you that were following, I did actually diagnose my problem last night (with the help of a more computer-y friend, but I could’ve done it myself), and it was indeed the CPU fan. pretty obviously running slow, and just to double check, my friend got into BIOS and checked the actual temperature of the CPU; it was something like 82 degrees CELSIUS, which seems pretty fuckin’ hot to me.
so, now that I’ve saved money on the diagnosis (yay! thanks guys ), I am ready to spend some on the fixing.
anyone have a suggestion for a good, not-extravagantly-expensive fan that will fit an Athlon 1800+ Socket A chipset? any to avoid?
also, do I really really need a new heatsink? what’ll happen if I leave the one I’ve got? (if, IYO, I really do need one, suggestions for those’d be good too.)
(P.S., 633squadron, it’s self-assembled. namebrands are for dumb people.)
Main problem with retaining the heatsink is that another fan may not fit, also, you may have difficulties obtaining a fan on it’s own and if you can it will most likely not be significantly cheaper than a heatsink/fan combination.
I’ve used a few Arctic and Glacial Tech heatsinks/fans, never had a problem with them and the machines run pretty much 24/7 but they are not particularly quiet although there are more expensive models that run quieter.
They run at about £10~15 here, probably about the same in $US.
And just to prove me wrong on the prices, here are some at Newegg, don’t know why I didn’t think of them before.
These are not for your Athlon, though. They should be cheaper, but make sure you get the right one, the wrong one would be worse than useless.
Might be an idea to track down an AMD fan but again, they are said to be not the quietest although the one on mine is pretty quiet.
Just for comparison, these are the sort of things available here (I buy almost everything, including all the parts for my last three computers from here) Falcon
I have a AMD processor myself, and I added this sucker :eek: on top of it. I am very satisfied. It’s enormous, though; 4 inch diameter. Put this on your CPU, all you’ll see is the fan.
www.quietpcusa.com has some less expensive alternatives as well. I am really impressed by Zalman’s stuff, by the way, and you can get it (in the SF Bay Area) at Fry’s Electronics.
), I am ready to spend some on the fixing.