Posted: 3/12/2010 10:53:29 AM EDT
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I am no expert on computers, but I know some of you here are. FWIW, my CPU is a frankencomputer put that was put together. A few days ago my computer started making noises. The sound was coming from the power supply fan inside of the CPU. It sounded a lot like the fan was hitting on something. So I took the side cover off and decided to blow out the dust from the computer with one of those aerosol dust cleaners. After I sprayed into the power supply fan, it stopped moving. The fan turns about 1/4 inch every 3 seconds or so. I am going to attempt to shut off my CPU and take apart the power supply to see if I can fix the fan. Do I need that fan? I have 2 other fans inside my CPU, but I am not sure if that is enough. I don't want to have it overheat and burn up or anything bad. If I need to buy a new power supply, where is the best place to find one?  This is the fan that does not run  Here you can see the 2 working fans inside, will they do the job or no?  |
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I've removed and oiled or replaced all the different kinds of fans in many different computers. The main problems are cheap fans that use the plastic housing as the shaft "bearings" rather than having sintered bronze bearing sleeves that retain oil for the shaft. There's nothing you can do with a worn out fan that has plastic "bearings". I've been able to oil some of them and keep them going a while longer, but they always start howling and vibrating again.
You have to take careful measurements of the fans, the voltage rating, the number of connecting wires (some have speed sensors), etc, etc, and Google for sources of replacement fans. Sometimes Best Buy has usable replacements for the most common sizes. |
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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341019 -$44.99 after rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022 - $44.99 after rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171031 - $29.99 after rebate |
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Quoted: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341019 -$44.99 after rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022 - $44.99 after rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171031 - $29.99 after rebate Thanks for the links, but will these fit right in and hook up with the right connectors? Being they are the same brand and all.  |
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Not gonna beat around the bush: You need a new supply (unless you are an engineering technician who works with circuit boards and power supplies on a regular basis, don't try to repair the supply yourself - just replace it altogether - the cap discharge you absorb won't be worth the effort).
If you've got one of them newer fancy video cards, make sure that your new power supply has the current capacity to handle the video card requirements. While wattage is nice, the strain on the power supply from inadequate current capacity will ruin a supply with a quickness. This will be current rating on the +12V output. Many of the newer video cards are pulling 22A to 30A. Swapping out a supply is pretty quick and painless, you should be GTG after that. ETA - the form factors for the plugs will be the same - industry standard. 
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I am no expert on computers, but I know some of you here are. FWIW, my CPU is a frankencomputer put that was put together. A few days ago my computer started making noises. The sound was coming from the power supply fan inside of the CPU. It sounded a lot like the fan was hitting on something. So I took the side cover off and decided to blow out the dust from the computer with one of those aerosol dust cleaners. After I sprayed into the power supply fan, it stopped moving. The fan turns about 1/4 inch every 3 seconds or so. I am going to attempt to shut off my CPU and take apart the power supply to see if I can fix the fan. Do I need that fan? I have 2 other fans inside my CPU, but I am not sure if that is enough. I don't want to have it overheat and burn up or anything bad. If I need to buy a new power supply, where is the best place to find one? http://i40.tinypic.com/awrzo6.jpg This is the fan that does not run http://i39.tinypic.com/655obc.jpg Here you can see the 2 working fans inside, will they do the job or no? http://i44.tinypic.com/21ou234.jpg Yes you need the fan in the power supply. when I have a fan do what you discribe, I just apply a drop or two of three in one oil to the bearing (carefully peel back the sticker on the center of the fan, apply oil , replace sticker) this usally brings it back to live and is a lot cheaper that a new power supply. do not touch anything in the power supply except the fan. |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. ETA This is typical of 95% of power supplies. The fan mounts with 4 screws and comes out easily.  
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From The Egg:
Model Brand COOLER MASTER Model RP-600-PCAR Type ATX from factor 12V V2.01 ... Main Connector 20+4Pin PCI-Express Connector 2 x 6-Pin Almost any current ATX 12V power supply (with the proper amount of wattage) will work. The only question I'd have is if you have a lot of SATA devices OR if you intend to upgrade to multiple video cards. If you do, then you may want to upgrade. 1. Some power supplies don't come with a lot of SATA power plugs. Even some higher-end units (e.g. Corsair's 850TX) only come with two cables' worth of SATA power plugs, which basically restricts you to one cable to your SATA optical drives and the other cable to your SATA hard drives. If you're running a huge bank of SATA hard drives you might not have enough power unless you use adaptors. 2. Modern videocards are increasingly using multiple PCI-E power plugs. A single Radeon 5850 will take up both of your PCI-E plugs. You could not run two such cards with your current power supply. If you intend to run SLI or Xfire with modern video cards upgrade to one that has more than two PCI-E plugs. |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. Thats crap.. just make sure the PSU is a ATX power supply and your good to go.. any of the ones linked above will work. Turn your shit off now.. If your power supply goes there is a good chance it takes something else out with it... If you know its going to die why risk it. |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. Thats crap.. just make sure the PSU is a ATX power supply and your good to go.. any of the ones linked above will work. Turn your shit off now.. If your power supply goes there is a good chance it takes something else out with it... If you know its going to die why risk it. If it's a name brand machine, it might be a crapshoot. If it's a decent universal case with a no-bullshit power supply, it'll be easy. Don't bother with the old one, if the fan's old enough to shit out the rest is too. Best go with new, they're not too expensive usually. ETA- If you want to be anal about it ;) If the PSU fan's old enough to throw a bearing, the other fans are too. Might as well measure out and replace all the internal fans at the same time, pay shipping once. |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. Thats crap.. just make sure the PSU is a ATX power supply and your good to go.. any of the ones linked above will work. Turn your shit off now.. If your power supply goes there is a good chance it takes something else out with it... If you know its going to die why risk it. If it's a name brand machine, it might be a crapshoot. If it's a decent universal case with a no-bullshit power supply, it'll be easy. Don't bother with the old one, if the fan's old enough to shit out the rest is too. Best go with new, they're not too expensive usually. ETA- If you want to be anal about it ;) If the PSU fan's old enough to throw a bearing, the other fans are too. Might as well measure out and replace all the internal fans at the same time, pay shipping once. He said someone put it together and if you look at his pics you can see its a ATX case and PSU... |
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So my model is a Cooler Master: RP-600-PCAR newegg shows them as unavailable. Will any power supply fit? I am guessing I need to replace a 600 with at least a 600 model? Depends on what kind of hardware you have running. A 400 watt power supply should be able to meet at least 80% of the computers out there, a 500 watt will handle 95% of the computers out there. Unless you are running a ton of hard drives, multiple video cards, and burning three cds at once, you really don't need an uber powerfull one. |
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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341019 -$44.99 after rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022 - $44.99 after rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171031 - $29.99 after rebate Thanks for the links, but will these fit right in and hook up with the right connectors? Being they are the same brand and all.
We need to know what processor you have, video card, how many devices (hard drives and cd drives) and what type of power connections (4-pin molex or the new SATA type) you need to power? I think the second one will work for you the best, unless you have some kind of wierd setup that requires an abnormal amount of power connections. If I was in the market for a PSU, I would get the second one myself. (OCZ Fatality) |
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Yes, that fan is critical to the survival of the power supply.
If you can't fix it easily, just buy a new PS from NewEgg. http://www.newegg.com/Store/Category.aspx?Category=32&name=Power-Supplies |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. Thats crap.. just make sure the PSU is a ATX power supply and your good to go.. any of the ones linked above will work. Turn your shit off now.. If your power supply goes there is a good chance it takes something else out with it... If you know its going to die why risk it.  
 
 
 
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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341019 -$44.99 after rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022 - $44.99 after rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171031 - $29.99 after rebate Thanks for the links, but will these fit right in and hook up with the right connectors? Being they are the same brand and all.
We need to know what processor you have, video card, how many devices (hard drives and cd drives) and what type of power connections (4-pin molex or the new SATA type) you need to power? Even though they do make specific PSU's for certain hardware all the generic ones you listed will plug up to all of his gear and will work just fine for that AMD... Just make sure the power output is the same as you previously had and move on.. I would guess thats a 600.. whether you needed a 600 or not is any ones guess but unless you got something fantastic in there (which i dont see on the MoBo then a 400-600 should be just fine. |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. Thats crap.. just make sure the PSU is a ATX power supply and your good to go.. any of the ones linked above will work. Turn your shit off now.. If your power supply goes there is a good chance it takes something else out with it... If you know its going to die why risk it. http://www.use.com/media/2009/1110/293909/p_001.jpghttp://content5.videojug.com/81/81982f96-117c-c88e-45f1-ff0008c9225a/how-to-install-or-change-my-computers-po.jpg http://www.build-your-own-computer.net/image-files/power-supply-connections-labeled.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4923222/169077-main_Full.jpg http://www.icpamerica.com/images/ace830cu1_rs_large.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4727492/101619-main_Full.jpg http://bestpcreviews.com/uploads/psu/1208404976_atxpsu.gifhttp://www.endpcnoise.com/e/images/powersupplies.jpg Yes i know there are specialized PSU's thats why the key word in my post is "ATX". ATX is a form factor and a standard. As long as he buys a ATX power supply it will fit... All the previous links in this post will work. EditL: ONly a couple of your pics show ATX power supplies and each one would fit his case. |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. Thats crap.. just make sure the PSU is a ATX power supply and your good to go.. any of the ones linked above will work. Turn your shit off now.. If your power supply goes there is a good chance it takes something else out with it... If you know its going to die why risk it. http://www.use.com/media/2009/1110/293909/p_001.jpghttp://content5.videojug.com/81/81982f96-117c-c88e-45f1-ff0008c9225a/how-to-install-or-change-my-computers-po.jpg http://www.build-your-own-computer.net/image-files/power-supply-connections-labeled.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4923222/169077-main_Full.jpg http://www.icpamerica.com/images/ace830cu1_rs_large.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4727492/101619-main_Full.jpg http://bestpcreviews.com/uploads/psu/1208404976_atxpsu.gifhttp://www.endpcnoise.com/e/images/powersupplies.jpg Yes i know there are specialized PSU's thats why the key word in my post is "ATX". ATX is a form factor and a standard. As long as he buys a ATX power supply it will fit... All the previous links in this post will work. EditL: ONly a couple of your pics show ATX power supplies and each one would fit his case. AND...most of the different physical packages I showed are ATX supplies, which the OP may or may not have. He MAY have a proprietary supply, like a lot of my own computers have. I have over a dozen PC's and not all the supplies will physically interchange. That's why I always go for the fan - it solves 99% of the physical package problems that can arise. Go to a computer store and look at the selections of power supplies - they're NOT all the same, and then you get into the proprietary stuff. each one would fit his case
How do YOU know? HE doesn't know what he has, nor does anyone else posting here. |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. Thats crap.. just make sure the PSU is a ATX power supply and your good to go.. any of the ones linked above will work. Turn your shit off now.. If your power supply goes there is a good chance it takes something else out with it... If you know its going to die why risk it. http://www.use.com/media/2009/1110/293909/p_001.jpghttp://content5.videojug.com/81/81982f96-117c-c88e-45f1-ff0008c9225a/how-to-install-or-change-my-computers-po.jpg http://www.build-your-own-computer.net/image-files/power-supply-connections-labeled.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4923222/169077-main_Full.jpg http://www.icpamerica.com/images/ace830cu1_rs_large.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4727492/101619-main_Full.jpg http://bestpcreviews.com/uploads/psu/1208404976_atxpsu.gifhttp://www.endpcnoise.com/e/images/powersupplies.jpg Yes i know there are specialized PSU's thats why the key word in my post is "ATX". ATX is a form factor and a standard. As long as he buys a ATX power supply it will fit... All the previous links in this post will work. EditL: ONly a couple of your pics show ATX power supplies and each one would fit his case. AND...all the different physical packages I showed are ATX supplies, which the OP may or may not have. He MAY have a proprietary supply, like a lot of my own computers have. I have over a dozen PC's and not all the supplies will physically interchange. Did you look at his picture of his old power supply that he posted in the OP? Or maybe the model number that he posted in the OP or maybe the fact that it is a frankenbuilt computer his buddy put together for him and he supplied pictures.. Its a standard ATX PSU.... No matter how many computers you have will change the fact that his PSU is a standard out of the box generic ATX PSU... |
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Thanks for all the advice, I don't use my computer for much other than internet and E-mail. I have a DVD drive, but it does not burn CDs, a few USB plug-ins (printer and sometimes a digital camera), and some kind of video card, but I don't know for sure where it is located, but I think it may be a "Radeon 7000 w/64MB DDR"? I have had this thing for 3 or 4 years now, is that a normal life for a PSU? I think it is capable of loading and playing some cool games, but I have not bought any. |
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Thanks for all the advice, I don't use my computer for much other than internet and E-mail. I have a DVD drive, but it does not burn CDs, a few USB plug-ins (printer and sometimes a digital camera), and some kind of video card, but I don't know for sure where it is located, but I think it may be a "Radeon 7000 w/64MB DDR"? I have had this thing for 3 or 4 years now, is that a normal life for a PSU? I think it is capable of loading and playing some cool games, but I have not bought any. 3-4 years is average for any PC componnet in my opinion. If you got 4 trouble free years i would not complain to much.. |
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I've replaced power supply fans before. I only did so because they were proprietary power supply units and would have been expensive to replace. Just buy a new PSU and be done with it. Not all power supplies are physically the same. You have to take measurements of every damn thing to make sure a new one will fit in the case, as well as being the right type, usually ATX. It's possible to remove the fan without touching much of anything else in there. I've done it many times. Just find a new fan the same size and voltage (almost always 12VDC), screw it in, splice the red and black wires, put it back together and back into the case. Easy. Thats crap.. just make sure the PSU is a ATX power supply and your good to go.. any of the ones linked above will work. Turn your shit off now.. If your power supply goes there is a good chance it takes something else out with it... If you know its going to die why risk it. http://www.use.com/media/2009/1110/293909/p_001.jpghttp://content5.videojug.com/81/81982f96-117c-c88e-45f1-ff0008c9225a/how-to-install-or-change-my-computers-po.jpg http://www.build-your-own-computer.net/image-files/power-supply-connections-labeled.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4923222/169077-main_Full.jpg http://www.icpamerica.com/images/ace830cu1_rs_large.jpghttp://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4727492/101619-main_Full.jpg http://bestpcreviews.com/uploads/psu/1208404976_atxpsu.gifhttp://www.endpcnoise.com/e/images/powersupplies.jpg Yes i know there are specialized PSU's thats why the key word in my post is "ATX". ATX is a form factor and a standard. As long as he buys a ATX power supply it will fit... All the previous links in this post will work. EditL: ONly a couple of your pics show ATX power supplies and each one would fit his case. AND...all the different physical packages I showed are ATX supplies, which the OP may or may not have. He MAY have a proprietary supply, like a lot of my own computers have. I have over a dozen PC's and not all the supplies will physically interchange. Did you look at his picture of his old power supply that he posted in the OP? Or maybe the model number that he posted in the OP or maybe the fact that it is a frankenbuilt computer his buddy put together for him and he supplied pictures.. Its a standard ATX PSU.... No matter how many computers you have will change the fact that his PSU is a standard out of the box generic ATX PSU... The supplies in my motley collection of computers are NOT physically interchangeable, and they're all "ATX" types. I'm not still using any computers with PC or AT type supplies any more, ATX type only, and they are not all interchangeable. |
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The supplies in my motley collection of computers are NOT physically interchangeable, and they're all "ATX" types. I'm not still using any computers with PC or AT type supplies any more, ATX type only, and they are not all interchangeable. We are not discussing your personal rag tag collection.. We ARE discussing the PSU and case that the OP supplied pictures and model numbers of.. For fuck sake man... Here is a list of all ATX PSU's at new egg. Please point to the one that does not fit his case. http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010090058%201131309959&name=ATX Dont worry Ill wait. here is one but its not really a PSU.. Its a Supplimentary for SLI crossfire. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817104054 |
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I have had this thing for 3 or 4 years now, is that a normal life for a PSU?
I have PC power supplies 20 years old that are still good - except for maybe the cheap ass plastic fan with wobbled out "bearings". Saying a PC supply is only good for 3-4 years and needs replaced is like replacing your car when a headlight burns out or it needs new tires. If you're lucky enough to have a "standard ATX form factor" power supply that can be replaced by any of a hundred choices - great. But you better be sure about that before ordering one. I've had my hands in these things for 30 years and those supplies are NOT all interchangeable. |
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I have had this thing for 3 or 4 years now, is that a normal life for a PSU?
I have PC power supplies 20 years old that are still good - except for maybe the cheap ass plastic fan with wobbled out "bearings". Saying a PC supply is only good for 3-4 years and needs replaced is like replacing your car when a headlight burns out or it needs new tires. If you're lucky enough to have a "standard ATX form factor" power supply that can be replaced by any of a hundred choices - great. But you better be sure about that before ordering one. I've had my hands in these things for 30 years and those supplies are NOT all interchangeable. look at this pic... it even says ATX....
But you are correct. Power supplies can run a long time.. However replacing any PC component is gonna happen, i just would not be pissed about it unless it lasted me less than 4 years.. |
Might try pulling the fan apart and lubing it. I did that to this one when it started making noise and has worked fine for at least a year maybe more. Cleaning might have helped.
Not sure what plugs you need but something like a corsair vx450 or 550 would be a good choice and give you some buffer room to upgrade or use it in a new pc. Looks like a standard 120mm fan would do but check if it's 2 or 3 wire. |
| If you buy a new PSU, PLEASE buy something from a reputable brand. Cheap power supplies, like the one you have, have a tendency to die early and die in a spectacular fashion, taking the rest of your computer with it. Antec, Corsair, PCP&C, and Silverstone are good brands along with a few others I can't remember. Get something ATX spec with a good wattage rating and preferably some 6 and 8 pin connectors. You could also replace the fan if you wanted to do it on the cheap. It's a 120 x 25mm, but I don't have a clue what speed or connector type. You could install any 120x25 and hardwire it directly to the 12v rail if you wanted to be really cheap. |