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FSP 400W psu question

J

jmartis

n00b
Joined
Aug 9, 2008
Messages
60
So i have this PSU (Fortron ATX-400PNR), it was nothing expensive but has enough power for my system.
It is proudly labeled with "Noise Killer" sticker, however I feel it kills the noise too loud:D
What happens is that it will run silently for 3 minutes then the fan speeds up full throttle for one minute. It is really loud when it spins up, but very silent otherwise.

Is this a design flaw/restriction of the PSU or is my unit defective? I don't really think it needs so much cooling, the air coming out is not more than hand-warm...

Any ideas appreciated:)
 
If this is something that just started recently then it sounds like a possible faulty fan controller.
 
device manager said:
If this is something that just started recently then it sounds like a possible faulty fan controller.
Click to expand...

The PSU is new like the rest of the system. Maybe there's a faulty overheat sensor which turns the fan on full speed on apparent overheat?

Did anyone else notice such problem with lower-end PSUs? If not then I'll probably send it on warranty repair...
 
I had to search for your previous posts since your OP was vague. If you power the system on and enter the bios (stay in there) does the fan still ramp up after ~3 min.?
 
device manager said:
I had to search for your previous posts since your OP was vague. If you power the system on and enter the bios (stay in there) does the fan still ramp up after ~3 min.?
Click to expand...

It only speeds up under load. That's logical, but what is not logical is that the air coming out is only hand warm when it turns up, and whats also weird is that it seems to have only 2 speeds... (the max power input for my system should be ~250W)
 
I'm not following you, the whole point of the fan speeding up is to keep the air below a certain temperature. I'd be even more worried if the fan ramped up and the air temperature proceeded to get warmer still instead of staying the same temperature.

That FSP is a good solid unit and should serve you well, although they aren't quite the 'noise killer' the little sticker claims they are. FSP/Sparkle units are also typically underrated wattage wise, so it's a good buy. Although I'd probably have saved a few bucks and bought the Antec Earthwatts 380 from Newegg.

If you're looking for something quieter you should return the FSP and look at something with a larger fan such as the Corsair 450VX.
 
Blue Falcon said:
I'm not following you, the whole point of the fan speeding up is to keep the air below a certain temperature. I'd be even more worried if the fan ramped up and the air temperature proceeded to get warmer still instead of staying the same temperature.
Click to expand...
Yeah, but I don't really think it's too warm (the output air temperature from my old crappy 300W Redstar PSU was much higher and it held up fine).

Blue Falcon said:
If you're looking for something quieter you should return the FSP and look at something with a larger fan such as the Corsair 450VX.
Click to expand...
I think I'll consider buying a new PSU after I enjoy my system a bit:p The problem is that in my country you really can't "return" things and get your money back...
 
OK, my last question on this is, does the mainboard have any way to control PSU thermal management?

I would still like to know if someone has/had similar problem as in my first post.
 
jmartis said:
OK, my last question on this is, does the mainboard have any way to control PSU thermal management?
Click to expand...

Nope, the fan speed is controlled by a thermistor inside the power supply.

Some PSUs have an RPM monitoring lead in the cable bundle that will allow you to monitor the fan speed, but you still can't change it.

As for the question in your first post, again I'll say that this is normal behavior for that particular unit. I've got two of them:

One is in an Antec Sonata (original version) case which is famous for having poor airflow. In this case the PSU fan acts exactly like you describe in your post. Normal speed for a few minutes, higher speed for brief period, rinse, repeat.

The other is in an old Antec SOHO full tower case which has MUCH more airflow (3x 80mm intake, 2x80mm exhaust) and the PSU fan stays at low speed unless the PC is at high load for an extended period of time, or unless the room temp becomes REALLY warm. If the room temp gets to about 80 or so the PSU fan will start ramping up for short periods of time to cool itself down.
 
I've found an easy and cheap fix for this: Put a slow (low-noise) 80mm fan on the exhaust of the PSU (secure it with that two-sided sticky foam or how its called) and you're done. The added noise is marginal while the PSU fan remains silent all the time. Even my CPU temperature has dropped after this mod.
 
Hey guys, I just found out my PSU has no safety stickers on it which would tear/break when I open it up. So what I'm gonna do, replace the helicopter-loud-fan with a better and silent one, without losing the warranty!

Is there any way "they" could know that I messed with the PSU internals when it goes "pop" and needs warranty repair?
 
jmartis said:
Hey guys, I just found out my PSU has no safety stickers on it which would tear/break when I open it up. So what I'm gonna do, replace the helicopter-loud-fan with a better and silent one, without losing the warranty!

Is there any way "they" could know that I messed with the PSU internals when it goes "pop" and needs warranty repair?
Click to expand...

Yes.
 
How is the fan attached to the PSU? If it's soldered right on it, then that would mean that you would have to de-solder it in order to replace it. That is pretty noticeable.
 
Here you can see how badly stuffed and cooled the secondary components are, especially the rectifier heatsink (which has the temperature sensor next to it). I'm not surprised the fan needs to spin up so much:mad:
PSU.jpg
 
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