Fluttering.... [Help]

A

ATITek

Limp Gawd
Joined
Aug 6, 2004
Messages
138
I noticed recently that the rear external fan of my power supply is making a soft "fluttering" noise. I dusted the fan and the case to see if that stopped the noise, but it did not. I also took of the screen off the fan cleaned each blade with a cotton swab. However, the noise continues. I am not sure if I should be concerned since it is a soft noise. You can barely hear it over the sound of the other 8 fans in my case.
I have uploaded two videos of the fan to YouTube. In the video it sounds more like a clicking. The blades are not making contact with any wires. The video quality stinks because I used my cell phone with the machine in my desk [You can hear it best at 20 seconds+]. None the less, you can hear the "fluttering/clicking".


So is this normal or is my fan on the way to its grave? Thanks.


Video # 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibKC4BW3zIs
 
Ive had older 80mm fans do that for years and still work fine. Its a possibility that it could die, but its not guaranteed. With as cheap as fans are, Id pickup a new fan and replace it if you are worried about it. Alot of PSUs wont even wince without a fan if you have good case cooling though.
 
The power supply is still under warranty, but I would have to ship the entire system to Velocity Micro for repair. It is only 1.5 years old. What would cause the fan to have an issue so early in its life?
 
Its better to report the problem as soon as possible and see what they advise.
In my opinion its likely there is no real issue other than the sound.
Its probably caused by something moving (a loose label?) or air vibration as it passes through a gap, like a whistle.
 
The velocity micro response was:

"I would not be concerned with the noise coming from the fan unless it is not spinning at all or is running extremely slow to where its pushing almost no air. "


Maybe they are trying to avoid a warranty claim. :p
 
You have done what is required of you.
If the fan fails outside of warranty, you have a good case for them to repair or replace it.
If you want to take it further now, let them know.

ps excuse any mistakes I wrote this with Amber/Blue 3D glasses on cos its 3D week on UKs Channel 4.
Flesh for Frankenstein is on, its way more impressive than the other things they have put on so far.
 
They are going to replace the power supply. However, they are giving me crap about shipping the system without the hard drive. They claim they need it to test my system after the power supply is upgraded. I do not see why I need to send them my hard drive in my system. I have plenty of reasons why I cannot [risk of damage, company data on the drive].

Instead they offered to sell me a new hard drive and install it. :mad: Maybe next time I will build my own box.
 
Tell them they are being unreasonable asking for your hard drive.
For one, if the PC gets lost during shipping, who knows where your data will end up.
If they insist they need your hard drive to test a PSU, that is rubbish.
They can easily use a standard build to verify the new PSU's function (they supplied that build to you in the first place).

You dont need to accept what they have asked of you.
If they refuse to accept the RMA without the drive, ask to speak to someone higher up.
Keep polite, especially for the managers.
 
Doing a system reload to replace a PSU ? thats utter and total bullshit.
 
I can explain a little better, I think.

Speak to a manager re: the hard drives, I'm quite sure that the wipe/reload thing can be worked around since this pretty much requires no drivers or updates.

The reason that most companies request that you leave the hard drive in the system is to make sure that the system works properly with all the components installed. For instance, if you don't send in the hard drive, you get the system back from repair, and the hard drive doesn't show up properly or has other issues when you install it...that's another call to technical support.

I know it seems unreasonable, but from a support perspective, it's much more preferable to have 100% of the machine in front of you so that you can absolutely rule out ALL problems than to have 90% there and have that 10% as an unknown entity. Does that make sense?

What I would do is back up your HD, password protect your profile, and create a secondary profile that they can use to log into your system without compromising your data. That way, they get the whole machine to work on and you are protected from prying eyes.
 
Last edited:
If you send your hard drive it will be wiped and reloaded.
Another reason not to send it.

I cant see a valid reason in there to require your hard drive for a noisy PSU replacement.
Its up to you, I'd strongly request they accept the PC without the drive.
At best you will have the hard drive wiped, at worst, you lose all your data to an unknown.

They can easily use one of their own hard drives for testing.
 
Heather Taylor said:
I can explain a little better, I think.

Speak to a manager re: the hard drives, I'm quite sure that the wipe/reload thing can be worked around since this pretty much requires no drivers or updates.

The reason that most companies request that you leave the hard drive in the system is to make sure that the system works properly with all the components installed. For instance, if you don't send in the hard drive, you get the system back from repair, and the hard drive doesn't show up properly or has other issues when you install it...that's another call to technical support.

I know it seems unreasonable, but from a support perspective, it's much more preferable to have 100% of the machine in front of you so that you can absolutely rule out ALL problems than to have 90% there and have that 10% as an unknown entity. Does that make sense?

What I would do is back up your HD, password protect your profile, and create a secondary profile that they can use to log into your system without compromising your data. That way, they get the whole machine to work on and you are protected from prying eyes.
Click to expand...

Hi Heather,

Thank you for the reply. I do believe you are the former Customer Care Manager for Velocity Micro. You make a good point. However, I am an advanced user and know that the power supply fan is the only issue. The sad fact is that for all this trouble I am dealing with a $5 fan in a power supply. It is going to cost me more in shipping than the component that is failing costs. Velocity Micro builds hundreds of computers per month. I am sure that to make a customer happy and comfortable with the entire process that a spare HD is available for testing. I paid a significant amount of money for this machine and the fact that a little over 1 year later I have to send it in for repair is bad enough. Now I know things go wrong in some computers, but I do not see why I need to buy a new HD from VM or risk sending the one in the machine.

I will discuss this further with a manager.
 
Last edited:
Yes, I am...but that was quite a while ago. I just wanted to make sure that everyone understands that companies do have reasons other than "it's just easier" when requesting things like this--and from a support standpoint, it can get tricky for the company when they don't get the whole machine for repair (and that's from my own personal experience). By the same token, your fears are not unjustified, and I get where you're coming from.

Hopefully you'll be able to work out a compromise where everyone is happy--they tend to try to work things out so that everyone gets what they want in the end, most companies do.
 
Just an update. They are installing a 500GB drive for $50. I shipped it today. Considering it cost me $45 to ship it then I do not mind spending $50 to get something in return.

It is worth $50 just for me NOT to have to reformat my current HD, back-up all the data, and reinstall all my applications.
 
Wow thanks for posting. I'll be sure my money stays far away from a company like this. People seem to forget the meaning of the word "service." They should be working to accomodate him, not the other way around.
 
hahaha all this for a fan which you could buy for $12
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top