MACS Monsoon II Lite problem..

[randomomen]

Hi All. I'm new to the board and even newer to OC'ing. And, naturally, I am experiencing a problem. A strange problem..

My Vigor Monsoon II Lite sounds annoying as hell other than when it's on full load and the fan speed is maxed out. When on low/medium load, the fan spins slower and I can hear an electronic buzzing noise coming from the unit. It almost sounds like a loud HD ticking away, but more annoying. Before I OC'd my CPU, the fan would even stop for a very short time, and I could hear the electronic buzz without the "tick" sound - sort of like how you can hear a refridgerator in the background. (However, if this sounded like a refridgerator, I'd not complain since this is actually a higher pitch.)

Does anyone else here with this cooling solution know what I'm talking about or do I sound like a crazy man?

Tom's review of the TEC did say that when it's on the threshold an audible growl can be heard, but if this is what was meant, the review should read "an audible growl that will drive you mad."

If I left some detail out, please don't flame - I'm new to this.

My setup:

Intel Core2 Duo E6400 2.13Ghz set to 3.50Ghz (fsb set to 1750)
Asus P5N-E SLI
Corsair XMS2 DDR-800 2gb
XFX GEForce 8800GTS 320mb

 

[3lfk1ng]

I have the Monsoon II (not the Lite) and I do not hear any buzzing. The fan is supposed to stop occasionally under idle usage, that is normal, but the "buzzing" (afaik) is not normal.

You may want to RMA that unit and use the stock cooling HSF while you wait to get the new Monsoon II Lite. The last thing you want is for there to be a malfunction somewhere and watching your processor fry (Although I do love fireworks)

Best of Luck

 

[tekbot]

mine does the same frickin thing. im RMAing it for a full refund. no second chance!
totally sucks though becuase im seeing temps at idle around 27 with my 6400 OC'd @3.2. im impressed but the noise has to go.

im going to try the ultra120 tower cooler by thermalright.

 

[randomomen]

mine does the same frickin thing. im RMAing it for a full refund. no second chance!
totally sucks though becuase im seeing temps at idle around 27 with my 6400 OC'd @3.2. im impressed but the noise has to go.

im going to try the ultra120 tower cooler by thermalright.

Glad I'm not the only one! My temps are great the but sound is nerve-racking. I guess we just aren't generating enough heat! I spoke with Vigor directly and we are in talks to make it right.

Thanks to both of you for your responses.

 

[randomomen]

My problem has been solved. Upgrading to the full Monsoon II (the one with the LCD unit) and removing the Lite's PCI card solved it. The LCD unit controls the fan much better than the PCI card. The temperature is much more stable and the fan on the TEC no longer makes an awful buzz noise.

In other words:

Monsoon II Lite = Annoying
Moonsoon II w/ LCD = Sweet!

 

[RJ]

Hi All. I'm new to the board and even newer to OC'ing. And, naturally, I am experiencing a problem. A strange problem..

My Vigor Monsoon II Lite sounds annoying as hell other than when it's on full load and the fan speed is maxed out. When on low/medium load, the fan spins slower and I can hear an electronic buzzing noise coming from the unit. It almost sounds like a loud HD ticking away, but more annoying. Before I OC'd my CPU, the fan would even stop for a very short time, and I could hear the electronic buzz without the "tick" sound - sort of like how you can hear a refridgerator in the background. (However, if this sounded like a refridgerator, I'd not complain since this is actually a higher pitch.)

Does anyone else here with this cooling solution know what I'm talking about or do I sound like a crazy man?

Tom's review of the TEC did say that when it's on the threshold an audible growl can be heard, but if this is what was meant, the review should read "an audible growl that will drive you mad."

If I left some detail out, please don't flame - I'm new to this.

My setup:

Intel Core2 Duo E6400 2.13Ghz set to 3.50Ghz (fsb set to 1750)
Asus P5N-E SLI
Corsair XMS2 DDR-800 2gb
XFX GEForce 8800GTS 320mb

I changed out my fan to this and I gutted an old fan to make a short shroud to help quiet things. It worked. If you look at the advertised stock fan speed, I think it says 2600 is the max speed, problem was that mine under load was reading a fan speed OVER 3000 RPM. Hence the noise and vibration. I used a jeweler's screwdriver to take the "stock" fan's wire out of the clip. This way If I need to warranty it, I've got the original parts looking like the original parts. I plugged the new fan into the CPU fan port on the mobo, and it controls the speed. No noise, no overheating...works nice.

 

[falstaff1]

I have the Monsoon Lite version, I took RJ's advice except I used a Silenx Ixtreme 92mm 14 dba fan I aquired from 3dcool. It's blue lighting matched the stock setup I have. Only way to go. Can't hear ANYTHING. I'm running an E6300 on an ASUS Striker (1.86 overclocked to 3.01 stable) VERY, VERY HAPPY--now! Before this with the stock fan, the noise before was unbearable. I'm still 26C at idle, in the thirties with most programs running. With most benchmarking programs I'll peak between 49C- 51C. I experimented turning the TEC off just to see what would happen. Even air cooled I stayed at 35c-39c at idle and 62c under extreme load. It's nice to know the CPU's protected adequately no matter what. Kudos to you RJ for thinking out of the box!

 

[tekbot]

funny you give kudos to RJ for thinking outside the box for fixing an issue with one the most expensive air cooling set-ups, by throwing more money at it.

i give kudos to RJ for proving the monsoon lite is a P.O.S.

save your money and take a stand! RMA rocks!

 

[falstaff1]

If it didn't otherwise work so well, I would...but it really cools off an overclocked CPU extremely well. The stock fan is not defective and works fine, but as everyone posted, its way too loud. At this point, it's not worth it to me to take my the system apart for an RMA when the solution worked. My system is stable. If I were just now considering a new TEC/Cooler, I'd probably look elsewhere. Vigor should get their act together. I lowered my voltage on the CPU and now it's running 23 C idle on a 62% overclock...can't complain.

 

[FireWater]

I was thinking of getting the monsoon II lite for my next system. Can anyone post a video of how loud it is, or record from where you sit how loud the fan is?

I usually wear headphones and I have them pretty loud, I doubt the CPU fan would interfere with my gaming.

 

[Crashman]

Get the Ultra ChillTec instead: It's the SAME cooler as the Monsoon II (full version) and cost LESS than the Monsoon II Lite. Plus it looks cool.

 

[tekbot]

i think everyone can agree that this thing is the bomb. i overclocked my 6400 to 3.6 easily and it peaks around 50. killer!

the noise on the other hand is only when its at idle. it sounds like an extremely loud harddrive searching or something.

the new thermaright ultra 120 extreme will hopefully be available soon and is testing with similar results. tuniq tower seems to get pretty close.

 

[RJ]

I was thinking of getting the monsoon II lite for my next system. Can anyone post a video of how loud it is, or record from where you sit how loud the fan is?

I usually wear headphones and I have them pretty loud, I doubt the CPU fan would interfere with my gaming.

I liken it to having F-16s flying lower than 1000 feet overhead...without the afterburners. The thing is, the F-16s go away after a few seconds.

 

[RJ]

funny you give kudos to RJ for thinking outside the box for fixing an issue with one the most expensive air cooling set-ups, by throwing more money at it.

i give kudos to RJ for proving the monsoon lite is a P.O.S.

save your money and take a stand! RMA rocks!

So I'm an idiot for spending another $10 and having a BETTER product?

 

[falstaff1]

Thanks again for the info RJ. With my 14db fan, I never hear the Monsoon anymore (my other fans are far louder fans and obscure the sound) and I still get great performance. I'm sure the TEC is now quieter than the stock fan with ANY version of the Monsoon. I'm glad Vigor may have addressed the switching/cycling control issue in their FULL version. We're hardware enthusiasts so modifying the Monsoon Lite was really no big deal. Mounting the TEC took far more effort than just swapping out the fan. This Mod fixes the only weakness in the setup. I obviously disagree with tekbot's impression the "monsoon lite is a P.O.S." I thought an RMA was unnecessary. The noise was brutal however.

 

[tekbot]

haha. you guys crack me up.

 

[MxM]

It is definitely the fan itself. I had RMA the unit and still exactly the same problem with the new one. If I stop the fan by hand that clicking/buzzing noise disappears.

If I take out the unit and connect/disconnect to the 6V battery the pins that responsible for fan, then I hear that loud click sound, which other fans do not produce.

But I have the cheapest way to solve the problem with slight cooling performance hit (or even without, read below)

What I did, I found that the board supplies +12V constantly by the middle wire (middle that goes to the fan itself, there are 3 wires), the other wire is for the CPU FAN sensor (you can see it is connected to the mobo after the unit connector), and the third wire (which is black in my case) goes through transistor on the monsoon board to the ground.

So, I have cut that black wire and connected directly to the ground (in my case computer case is aluminum and grounded) through 25 Ohm potentiometer (rheostat) that I bought for couple dollars in Radio Shack. By adjusting the rheostat I can set the fan speed. I set it rather low so that its noise is comparable to my 120mm case fan (which is really low noise). Now I have VERY quite computer. Of cause the cooling performance is not as it was before, but I have E6600 CPU at 27C while overclocked to 3.12GHz (can probably go higher, I never tried to crash the computer). This is better than any non-TEC solution, and it is much quieter than most of them.

If you want to get the full performance from this cooler, then you still can by regulating manually to the full speed, you still will not hear that clicking noise anymore, just regular fan noise.

 

[MxM]

I already have the described above system (with rheostat regulating the fan) for about 1 month and I am really happy. I made the fan speed only 10% below the maximum speed, but it is significantly quieter, and of cause no clicking sound, and no sound due to changing of the fan rotation speed. It is less loud than my 120mm case fan (because case fan is easier to hear - it is on the case after all, and the processor fan is inside the computer, so the sound is muffed), which is quite quiet. With this low sound and low temperature performance, this system is great (but you have to mod it to achieve that)!

 

[Crashman]

Have either of you guys considered putting a large capacitor across the possitive and negative sides to "cushion the blow" of the fan power turning on, rather than simply slowing the fan down?

 

[MxM]

Have either of you guys considered putting a large capacitor across the possitive and negative sides to "cushion the blow" of the fan power turning on, rather than simply slowing the fan down?

I did consider that, but
A) 10% reduction from maximum speed is really small reduction, and makes lots of difference in the noise level. Putting capacitor will not limit the maximum speed - it will only help with the clicking noise.
B) I honestly do not know if it is safe for the regulating transistor. Capacitor is a short-circuit for instantaneous increase of the current, and the switching transistor may not be able to cope with this. I think fan and transistor are connected in series directly to 0 and 12V of the power supply, so if there is a capacitor across the fan, for a short time after transistor opens it will be as if the transistor connects 0 and 12V directly in open state. So I have decided not to risk it.