Can ANY PSU have a fan swap?

Markp.com · Post by **Markp.com** » Mon Nov 15, 2004 1:50 pm

My PSU is blasting out loads of noise, so I'd like to replace the fan, the largest noise producing thing at the minute...

It has silent psu written on the side, its anything but silent!

I've just noticed, it is also only 230w!

Would this be why I am having problems running two HDs, GFX card, TV card, firewire card, lan card, sound card, two 80mm 12v fans and a arctic copper silent cooler TC...

I thought the 4090 was too much power for my system, but maybe I don't have enough power at the minute?!

If my machine is underpowered, then I'll buy the PSU asap, but if not can I just put in a less noisey 80mm fan?

burcakb · Post by **burcakb** » Mon Nov 15, 2004 2:22 pm

If that's your Athlon64 system, yes, you might be pushing it.

Fan swap is always possible and will work if done intelligently.

Since you're a fast & eager learner, I suggest you go through the PSU articles and stickies, try to calculate the load your system puts on individual voltage rails. Then we'll see if you need a new PSU

Markp.com · Post by **Markp.com** » Mon Nov 15, 2004 2:27 pm

I think I'll just buy a new PSU

Save me lots of hassle

Or wait till I have no freelance work on, then swap the fan, if the PSU dies then I can wait a week for a new one to be delivered

Thanks again

teejay · Post by **teejay** » Mon Nov 15, 2004 2:28 pm

Cheap psu's tend to have lower efficiency, which means they transform more consumed power into heat than a more efficient model and deliver less to the system. So with the assumption of low efficiency, a maximum rating of 230W (not Volts, right? Sorry, just checking) and considering all your gear and your XP2600+ cpu I'd say you could do with a PSU upgrade. The cpu is a guess based on other posts though....

There is no such thing as too much power (meaning the system will always run with an overspec'd psu) and based on my experience with the Nexus fans I'd say you can't go wrong with that psu. I'd forego the NX-3500 even though it will probably deliver more than enough power for your system and will be slightly cheaper. The 4090 has a lower noise signature (or so Nexus says); not sure if that's true since they both use their trademark orange fan, but I do know that the 4090's fan ramps up a lot slower, which translates into less noise. Also, as a rule of the thumb, a higher power unit will run cooler at any given power consumption below its threshold.

Then again, if the thing does not run too hot right now and you want to save a few dollars/pounds/euro's/goats, just get a decent fan and try the swap. Just be careful inside the psu and try to avoid touching anything other than the fan and its wires.

What type of problems are you experiencing right now? With your PC I mean, not with your new-found silence addiction

Markp.com · Post by **Markp.com** » Mon Nov 15, 2004 4:40 pm

My main problem is S.M.A.R.T. I keep getting bad SMART errors on boot when both drives are connected, so end up leaving my machine on 24/7.

If I connect either drive by itself, no errors, no problems.

I've just flashed the Bios to see if that would help... I actually bought two new drives, as I thought the previous drives were dead (160GB and a 200GB) but plugging them in alone and they work without problem.

I've tried disabling SMART in the bios, just makes the drives not able to be "seen" on boot.

So I'm putting this down to a power problem, but if anyone knows otherwise?!

Post by **MikeC** » Mon Nov 15, 2004 4:46 pm

Yup, 230W is probably not enough, especially if the PSU is a few years old -- these things do age and give less power. Plus they put out a lot less current on the 12V line than new ones. HDDs mostly draw on the 12V line.

pangit · Post by **pangit** » Mon Nov 15, 2004 4:56 pm

How many fans do you think I could get with this lot?:

Markp.com · Post by **Markp.com** » Mon Nov 15, 2004 4:59 pm

Haha that reminds me, the Animal was on the other night