[Fusion_Inc]

this few day my computer had this weird sound coming out. It is like static, sounds like someting is running, i think is the fan problem do you think so? if it is, my computer is a dell dimension 4600 series, can i replace it by myself?? which fan can i purchase??

thanks

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Fusion -
You need to help yourself before anyone here is going to be able to provide useful input. First off, Dells are a pain. I was under the hood of a friend's Dell a coupla days ago. That's what you have to do, is open the thing up. Can you tell if the noise is emanating from the power supply fan or the combined case/CPU fan?
The Dell we were looking at has a simple latch that allowed us to roll the power supply out and get it far enuf away from the other fan to say, "OK, it's the CPU/case fan, not the PSU fan." We had the PC off while opening it, then turned it on for a minute with the power supply resting on some books.
Please do that. Verify which fan is making noise.

We turned the PC off again & screwed around with that stupid green duct for 10 minutes before figuring out how to remove. Blew out the dust. Another 5 minutes figuring out how to remove the CPU/case fan. That's where things got more complicated. His Dell fan has a tiny thermal probe peeking up above the fan hub. Since the one case fan does double-duty as a CPU fan also, what Dell did makes sense. If the CPU is working hard, the thermal probe will sense the extra heat and spin the fan harder.

Problem is how to pay for a replacement. He went online and found some places wanted over $100. He found "refurbished" ones and used ones. Finally bought a new one for about $50. $50 for a fan.

If it's your power supply fan that should be a cheaper fix. Some folks will say that you're risking electrocution by going into a power supply because they have big capacitors inside that hold a charge. Let the PSU set for a day or two and the caps will discharge. Open it up, figure out how the fan is wired (whether it's soldered in place or just plugs in), make sure you've measured it correctly, and get a new one. If you live near a big PC store bring the fan with you. If you're concerned about quiet, get a Nexus or other high-quality replacement not the cheapest one you can find. Don't put it in backwards. You want it blowing out of the case. Look for the little arrows molded into the fan's frame that indicate direction of airflow.

[Bartender]

Fusion -
You need to help yourself before anyone here is going to be able to provide useful input. First off, Dells are a pain. I was under the hood of a friend's Dell a coupla days ago. That's what you have to do, is open the thing up. Can you tell if the noise is emanating from the power supply fan or the combined case/CPU fan?
The Dell we were looking at has a simple latch that allowed us to roll the power supply out and get it far enuf away from the other fan to say, "OK, it's the CPU/case fan, not the PSU fan." We had the PC off while opening it, then turned it on for a minute with the power supply resting on some books.
Please do that. Verify which fan is making noise.

We turned the PC off again & screwed around with that stupid green duct for 10 minutes before figuring out how to remove. Blew out the dust. Another 5 minutes figuring out how to remove the CPU/case fan. That's where things got more complicated. His Dell fan has a tiny thermal probe peeking up above the fan hub. Since the one case fan does double-duty as a CPU fan also, what Dell did makes sense. If the CPU is working hard, the thermal probe will sense the extra heat and spin the fan harder.

Problem is how to pay for a replacement. He went online and found some places wanted over $100. He found "refurbished" ones and used ones. Finally bought a new one for about $50. $50 for a fan.

If it's your power supply fan that should be a cheaper fix. Some folks will say that you're risking electrocution by going into a power supply because they have big capacitors inside that hold a charge. Let the PSU set for a day or two and the caps will discharge. Open it up, figure out how the fan is wired (whether it's soldered in place or just plugs in), make sure you've measured it correctly, and get a new one. If you live near a big PC store bring the fan with you. If you're concerned about quiet, get a Nexus or other high-quality replacement not the cheapest one you can find. Don't put it in backwards. You want it blowing out of the case. Look for the little arrows molded into the fan's frame that indicate direction of airflow.

[Fusion_Inc]

hey Bartender


Thanks for replying. While i was openning up the case, i pressed the release button tried to push out the case. There was a sound like "pa" and the noise was gone =) hahahaha it was very random. So i will replace it when the noise comes back again

[Bartender]

So did you continue into the case? If you've never poked around inside, betcha there's dust built up. Everyone says to use the cans of compressed air to blow out the bunnies. That is the safest advice. However, I've always just risked it with a standard air compressor. Turned the regulator down to about 10-20 psi and used tiny puffs. It'd be safest to let the air compressor pump up, then let it sit for an hour so the water can fall out and accumulate in bottom of tank.
Dust will accumulate along the intake side under the green Dell CPU duct, hampering air flow and cooling. You can't see this until you remove the duct.
Could be your noise was something simple, like a wire touching against the blades. If so, that's great. But I'd still recommend going in there and cleaning it out.

[fleamailman]

Well, if you are inside get an dry-air can with a straw and blow as much dust out of the comp, keep the hover nozzled at a short distance but sucking away so that the muck doesn't get everywhere. Touch the spinning fan gentle while blowing much from it or it will just spin.