I assembled my initial computer, encountering odd PSU sounds and further inquiries.
I assembled my initial computer, encountering odd PSU sounds and further inquiries.
I just finished assembling my PC and updated the BIOS, Windows, and drivers. I have a few concerns regarding the cables and an unusual sound I’m hearing. From the photos, I’m wondering if the GPU cables are in good condition. The glass panel pushes them back, making them very stiff—so they’re actually holding the GPU upright without any support. Are those cables okay in this setup? Is it normal for them to be bent this way? I’ve also heard that pigtail cables can cause issues, but my PSU only has four PCIe slots, and two are dedicated to the CPU on the motherboard. The pump tubes barely touch the GPU cables, which shouldn’t be an issue.
Regarding the noise, it sounds like an electrical whistling. It’s not clear if I missed it before or not, but I noticed it after Windows 10 updates and during the update process. It seems to come from the PSU, though I’m not sure if it’s typical for this model. Is this normal? Could it be a problem with the PSU itself, or is there something else going on? I can hear it from a few meters away, but it’s loud and bothersome. I’m worried about its reliability.
PC specifications: MO: MSI B650M GAMING PLUS WIFI CPU: Ryzen 7 7800X3D GPU: ASROCK 7900 XTX RAM: 2x16 GB 6000 MHz Corsair Vengeance SSD: Lexar NM620 M.2 2280 Pcie Gen3x4 NVMe SSD, 3500 MB/s Read speed PSU: Corsair RM850e CPU Cooler: Arctic Liquid Freezer II 240 Case: DeepCool MATREXX 55 MESH
GPU cables appear fine! No major concerns here. The PSU hum is mild—this isn’t harmful and shouldn’t shorten the product’s life. It can be slightly bothersome if it’s too loud. My RM750i has this issue too, but it only becomes noticeable when I’m inside my case. If it bothers you, you might want to return it for repair, as I’ve handled similar cases with noisy components.
Thanks for your response! I'm relieved the cables are okay and the noise isn't too bad—mostly smooth so far. The loudness is noticeable from over five meters away, which might mean I need to return it. Hopefully it's not a bad PSU or any of my mistakes.
I had to return a RTX 2080 Super because of intense coilwhine; I could hear it through my tower speakers while gaming. If it’s noticeable at such a distance, it would be an RMA issue since the product is unnecessarily disruptive. The RMe line from Corsair performs well but uses slightly lower quality capacitors than the RMx series, which might lead to more coilwhine. Coilwhine isn’t exclusive to GPUs—it can also appear in power supplies, motherboards, and monitors. If you’re curious about it further, explore what I’ve found. You’re definitely not alone—we see around 15 discussions weekly on the forum about GPU and PSU coilwhine.
I just started a game and heard the same sound coming from the GPU as in the Linux video. Another part causing extremely loud coil whine. I plan to take the whole PC to the professionals where I bought the components and ask them to verify if both the PSU and GPU are producing these noises, so they can replace them if needed. It's making the system unusable due to the volume.
It seems you experienced strong coilwhine from two powerful coilwhine products. (You can purchase the same PSU and GPU again without issues—it's essentially a matter of luck.) You might want to cap your framerate to match your monitor’s refresh rate, which could reduce GPU-related coilwhine. The louder the FPS or workload, the more noticeable the coilwhine becomes on high-end GPUs like the 7900 XTX. While some coilwhine is normal on top-tier graphics cards, it shouldn’t be overly disruptive. It won’t disappear completely. Fingers crossed these parts offer quieter performance. I swapped my MSI 2080 Super Ventus for a Palit Gamerock RTX 2080 Super and it was much quieter.