lucas_the_MN :
TMTOWTSAC It sounded EXACTLY like that. Now that we know what might have caused the problem, is this an indication of an esd?
That would probably be jumping to conclusions. Here's what we do know, you shut down your machine and heard an unusual sound, which strongly resembles a capacitor charging. Capacitors store and release electricity in controlled amounts, which greatly reduces current fluctuations. But they do wear or dry out over time, get damaged by heat or trauma, and sometimes you just get a defective batch.
ESD is short for electrostatic discharge, when you build up a strong charge and ground out against something. Like walking with bare feet across a thick carpet then shock yourself when you touch something metal. If the metal you touched happened to be your motherboard, then yes it could have damaged it.
If your problem is capacitor related, it could mean a previous ESD damaged it, but it's fairly unlikely. Caps accept a large range of current in order to deliver a very specific amount, that's their job. But if you've never heard that sound before, it could mean something has changed. For example, a capacitor that has started to discharge early or not holding a charge. It could mean another component was damaged and isn't delivering power correctly. Or it could be completely unrelated. Maybe it always makes that noise but it's too quiet to hear unless the room is very silent.
In any event, caps are just like batteries that release their power all at once. Same signs for bad ones. You can google "mobo capacitors" and get pictures. Any sort of bulging, fluid leaks, crystal formations, scorch marks, and even exploding like Tesetilaro said. If you do spot something, it may be as simple as taking it to a shop and having them remove the bad one and solder in a new one. If it was on a component like the PSU or GPU, it may require replacing the entire component.
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