This has me completely confused...

[Woodman]

A few weeks ago while playing a pretty intensive game, I was shocked to find that my CPU temperatures went off the roof. I opened my case, & sure enough, I saw that my CPU fan had stopped functioning completely.

At the time, I thought maybe it had to do with the fact that it was a cheap fan, even though it was only in operation for about a year. So I went ahead & bought a much better one.

And then, just a few days ago, I got another surprise. My CPU temperatures went up to 70C, & the system promptly shut down. After opening the case, I saw that the fan <b>again</b> stopped functioning.


My question is what's causing this? I tried powering it through the motherboard & the PSU, & in both circumstances, it would still malfunction. I also figure that it can't be my PSU, because I have 3 other fans powered through it, & they're all working just fine. Dust could be a factor, but since my current fan is pretty new, it can't be the main reason why it's malfunctioning.

The only thing I can think of, is that the temperature of the processor is "somehow" making the fan stop working altogether. Any thoughts?

 

[10GHZ]

wierd, could be just your bad luck twice in a row. maybe your psu cant pump out enought watts?? i'm only guessin here. just attach another cheap fan and see if it happens again

 

[Woodman]

Ok, I guess I could switch one of my 80mm Enermax case fans to the processor to see what happens.

Thanks.

 

[lhgpoobaa]

hmmm.
where were you running the fan from?
A motherboard header or straight from the PSU?

If they both were connected to the motherboard one could reasonably assume that they were drawing too many amps from it or the header was in some way defective.

Or it could have been just simple bad luck.
Sometimes, fans just die

Its also possible that poor power has cauzed the fan to die, though i think its pretty unlikely as fans will run with voltages down to 5v.

<b>My CPU is so powerful its faster than Melb_Angel's Laptop!</b> <i>(Plus it's not pink)</i><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by LHGPooBaa on 07/11/03 01:19 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[robertk]

1)not enough voltage to the fan
2)too much voltage to the fan
3)really shoddy fans
in the case of voltage it would be your board or psu at fault probably the board.
for example akasa 785-cu`s dont work with a7n8x due to it causing the baord to think its not running, starnge but sadly true.
also how big is your psu and how many things have you got drinking from its electrical fountain?


If you gotta go, go with a smile/y.

 

[Woodman]

where were you running the fan from?
A motherboard header or straight from the PSU?

Both actually. And they both failed when I first tried it.

If they both were connected to the motherboard one could reasonably assume that they were drawing too many amps from it or the header was in some way defective.

While that is possible, it didn't explain why it failed when I connected it through the PSU .

Or it could have been just simple bad luck.
Sometimes, fans just die

I'll take the former heh . Strangly, tThe fan seems to be working now. I was hoping to exchange it with another the moment it failed again, & luckily that hasn't happened yet.

Its also possible that poor power has cauzed the fan to die, though i think its pretty unlikely as fans will run with voltages down to 5v.

Well if that's the case, it should've also taken one of the lives of my other 2 fans.

Guess I'll have to experiment more to see what exactly is the problem, bleh .

 

[Woodman]

1)not enough voltage to the fan

Well I don't see how that's possible, considering my other fans work just fine through both the PSU & the mobo.

2)too much voltage to the fan

Possible , but the same problem as above. Also, I don't run my fans at top speeds, so the voltages aren't that high I think.

3)really shoddy fans

Heh, nah don't think thats it either .

in the case of voltage it would be your board or psu at fault probably the board.

My board isn't the newest, an Asus A7V266 type board, but the power pins do work just fine. A few weeks ago, I connected one of my case fans through it, in all 3 connectors, & without problems. My PSU isn't the greatest, but it has worked very well for the past year now. If it was at fault, then it should also cause problems for my 2 other case fans, & they're working perfectly fine.

for example akasa 785-cu`s dont work with a7n8x due to it causing the baord to think its not running, starnge but sadly true.

Hrmm, very interesting, didn't think something like that was possible heh .

also how big is your psu and how many things have you got drinking from its electrical fountain?

It's a 350W rated PSU. And I have these things connected to it:
1. WD 80GB HDD
2. 80mm Enermax Fan 1
3. Sometimes 80mm Enermax Fan 2
4. Samsung CDR+DVD Combo
5. Floppy
6. Sometimes my CPU fan

My other stuff:
1. Asus A7V266-C mobo
2. GeForce4 Ti4200 w/64MB

I also sometimes connect a spare HDD to do other stuff.

 

[Codinerx]

So you are positive that the fan is turning off first, and then the computer is shutting itself down? I was thinking that perhaps the program you use to monitor temps could be off, or maybe the bios is reading temps incorrectly and then shutting down automatically. On my mobo, if the cpu reaches a temp of 70c, the computer automatically shuts down. I think its odd that a fan would just randomly stop like that, but who knows.

 

[Woodman]

So you are positive that the fan is turning off first, and then the computer is shutting itself down?

Yep. Motherboard monitor suddenly displayed this warning saying that my processor was at 70C (which I set it to go off at) twice, & I then promptly shut everything down. I didn't power it on again until at least after 15 minutes has passed. Before I did that though, I opened the case to see what's up, & saw the problem afterwards, the fan stopped moving.

I was thinking that perhaps the program you use to monitor temps could be off, or maybe the bios is reading temps incorrectly and then shutting down automatically.

Thats possible, but the evidence seems to point directly to the fan itself.

On my mobo, if the cpu reaches a temp of 70c, the computer automatically shuts down. I think its odd that a fan would just randomly stop like that, but who knows.

Thats's strange, your processor also a paly?


Well a few days have already passed, & nothing happened as of yet. I'm sure the problem will eventually come back, & when it does, I'll be sure to get to the root of the problem. Thanks for your responses guys .

 

[Helpmostimes]

Seems that most of the problems start with the fan.People want quit fans with good cooling.But what if the fan stops? You cant hear it.And you know what that means.I allways go with High RPM fans.My choice is Delta.That way if it stops I know it,and it can be shut down ASAP. Seems alot of Toms posters have $ to burn.And dont care.But for some of us,we cant shell out the dollers.For me its my safeguard.I dont trust those temp gauges,or thermal probs. "When the whine goes down,I shut down"

 

[Helpmostimes]

On another note....Never hook up your HSF to the fan Header.Allways jump of your PS.....

 

[lhgpoobaa]

But unfortunately some older boards wont boot at all if there isnt a signal comming from the CPU fan header.
(my GF's system is like this)

In that case, run a casefan from the header


<b>My CPU is so powerful it can think faster than George Bush</b>