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computer making random ticking noise

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  • Computers
  • MSI
  • Motherboards
Last response: in Motherboards
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March 14, 2013 3:03:24 PM

So I have this experience where my computer would make random ticking sounds that sound like two marbles hitting each other softly. I had this problem before on my older computer and I thought it was the power supply, so i RMAed and replaced it. While i was waiting for my replacement to arrive, I bought new parts and built a whole new computer, but it had the same motherboard and graphics card models (gtx 680 and msiz77agd65 mobo). After I got my psu back and put the computer together with the new parts, I started getting the same exact ticking noise again. I'm thinking this could be either a problem with the msi gtx 680s or the msi boards in general since I got new ones and the sound is still there. My old msi board and msi gtx680 is also making the same sound. What do you guys think is the problem here?
PS: I am not experiencing any instabilities in the system. Computer runs fine without any trouble. The only problem that I'm getting is that strange sound.
new specs:
msi z77agd65 (1 month old)
msi gtx680 (1 month old)
i7 3770k (1 month old)
Corsair 850w psu (replacement = 1 month old)
Corsair vengeance 8gb (replacement = 1 month old)
old specs:
msi z77agd65 (2 years old)
msi gtx680 (1 year old)
i5 2400 (2 years old)
Same psu and ram



More about : computer making random ticking noise

a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 3:06:02 PM

Have you tested the HDD?
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a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 3:12:18 PM

As anonymous said, it's very likely it could be your hard drive. Mine makes loud, rapid clicking noises whenever it needs to read/write. This happened with an older hard drive of mine, as well. Would you mind telling us the make/model of your hard drive?
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Related resources
March 14, 2013 3:26:30 PM

This is my hdd http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/ite...
and yes, I tested the HDD and got no errors.I do know the reading sound of the hard drive and i'm pretty sure that's not it. I put my ear next to what I think could be the source of the noise and it seems to be near where the gpu and psu is and it is definitely not coming from the top side or front side of the case.
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a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 3:40:21 PM

Hard drive is suspect. Can you unplug the case fans (it is ok if you keep it brief)?
How often does it occur of average?
Can you open the case and stick your head in there is try to listen to where it is coming from?
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a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 3:48:09 PM

Do you have another HDD? Maybe you could unplug the one you're currently using and test another one to see if you still get the clicking sound. Or do you have more than one HDD in this build?

Since you seem to have really high end parts, it might be a good opportunity to upgrade to a SSD, then you could spend a few weeks without the HDD and see if you still hear the sound.
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March 14, 2013 5:05:09 PM

smeezekitty said:
Hard drive is suspect. Can you unplug the case fans (it is ok if you keep it brief)?
How often does it occur of average?
Can you open the case and stick your head in there is try to listen to where it is coming from?


MC_K7 said:
Do you have another HDD? Maybe you could unplug the one you're currently using and test another one to see if you still get the clicking sound. Or do you have more than one HDD in this build?

Since you seem to have really high end parts, it might be a good opportunity to upgrade to a SSD, then you could spend a few weeks without the HDD and see if you still hear the sound.


I removed the gpu and hdd completely, still got the same noise.

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a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 5:40:43 PM

sherifsaid123 said:

I removed the gpu and hdd completely, still got the same noise.


How often do you hear the noise? Can you try unplugging the case fans as I suggested above?
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March 14, 2013 7:05:14 PM

The noise is completely random. Sometimes it ramps up (mostly when the computer first starts) and ramps down whenever it wants to. Usually its the worst during the first few minutes after the computer starts up. I've tried unplugging fans as you suggested. The noise is still there :( . Now that I think about it, that ticking sound kind of sounds like a static shock, but I really don't know what to think of it anymore. I practically purchased a whole new computer minus the fact that most new parts I bought were from the same manufacturer as the old computer, which was probably my biggest mistake.
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a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 7:59:54 PM

Listen to the PC speaker and it see if it is coming from there. Could be a BIOS bug.

Also listen to the sound card speakers if you have any plugged in.
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March 14, 2013 8:33:12 PM

I only use headsets, don't have speakers and I don't have a sound card plugged in either. You might be right about the BIOS bug though. How can I check if it is? could it be some feature in BIOS that is causing this ticking noise? speedstep or turbo boost maybe? I literally can't find a single person on the internet who has the same kind of noise that i'm getting, which seems rather hopeless. It's as if aliens are trying to communicate with me via that ticking noise and no one seems to know what the hell i'm talking about. As frustrating and time consuming this problem is, it still feels kinda funny.
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a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 8:35:36 PM

sherifsaid123 said:
I only use headsets, don't have speakers and I don't have a sound card plugged in either. You might be right about the BIOS bug though. How can I check if it is? could it be some feature in BIOS that is causing this ticking noise? speedstep/turbo boost maybe?

What about the motherboard/case speaker if you have one?
Note this would be either inside your computer case or soldered to the motherboard.
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March 14, 2013 9:04:22 PM

Don't mean to sound dumb, but I have no idea how to locate the motherboard speaker. Didn't even know that motherboards had speakers soldered to it.
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a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 9:43:21 PM

Some do not but many do. Can you link a picture of the board (even one from the internet)

I cannot seem to find it.
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a b V Motherboard
March 14, 2013 10:41:38 PM

Your motherboard does not have a speaker and unless you plugged in a speaker in the case, then that is not the source of the noise.

Listen to the PSU which has a slim chance of being the noise.
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March 15, 2013 2:48:49 AM

The noise does seem to be strongest when my ear is near the psu although it is still really hard to tell. The only thing that i'm 100% sure about is that the noise is coming from the very bottom half of my case all the way in the back (from where the gpu is down to the PSU).
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a b V Motherboard
March 15, 2013 11:15:52 AM

Do both builds share the same type of case?
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!