Computer screams during game play. !!!HELP!!!

[leighbyron]

Hi,
When I play any game on my desktop i can hear a screaming sound like a high pitch sound. at first i put it down as the fan but it stops when press the windows key and starts again when i go back into the game, no sound when I am in the menu of the game and it also stops then i press pause. I notice the pitch of the noise gets higher if in a game and I look up and the pitch goes lower when I look down in a game.

Thank you.

 

[Motopsychojdn]

Need more system info before hazarding a guess,
post details of Mobo, gfx card etc,
have you changed anything recently at all?
how old are components?
Moto

 

[PsyKhiqZero]

I would say it's your gpu fan. the sound seems to be reacting to gpu load. The menu and looking down are less demanding (less to render) then when you look up. what game are you playing?

Try something really easy on the gpu like counter strike or half life 2 on medium settings to see if the sound returns. or try playing you game at the lowest possible settings.

 

[jb6684]

Does the sound come from your speakers? Turn them off just to be sure. I've seen computer speakers that would pickup noise from the "workings of the computer." Yeah, had a pair would output a high pitch when I moved the mouse around....

Other than that, a high pitch comes from inductors "singing" either in your power supply or those on the motherboard. List both power supply brand / model and motherboard brand / model.

 

[davcon]

This guy is using a wireless usb headset.
I seen that in another post.
Might have something to do with it.

 

[Leaps-from-Shadows]

I would tend to agree with Psy -- the GPU fans are reacting to the load. If you want to play demanding games at high detail levels, you will likely have to get used to that sound.

If the sound is actually coming from the wireless headphones, then it might be electrical noise being generated by the system under load and picked up on the wireless. If that's the case then enabling Spread Spectrum in the BIOS may help.

 

[leighbyron]

hello again,
first, I do not use a headset and I turned my speakers off (they run off a 3.5 mm jack) and the noise it still there. The computer screams on any game, I first noticed it playing Minecraft which I don't think is a high graphic game, and now I notice it on COD MW2 and Black Ops. my computer is about 4 days old here are is the info. But in all if I could fix it it would be great! I just don't want it to do damage to my computer and should I be concerned?

Component

CPU Intel Core i7 970 (3.20Ghz/12MB/ 4.8GT QPI/ 6 Core)

Motherboard <b>Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R</b>, Intel X58 Chipset, QPI 6.4GT/s, DDR3 2000, PCI-Ex16, SATAII, SATA3, USB3.0, RAID, IDE, GB LAN, 8ch, 2oc PCB

Memory Kingston 12GB Kit (3x4GB), PC3-10600 (1333MHz) DDR3, Triple Channel

Hard Disk OCZ 120GB SSD, 2.5", Vertex 2, SATAII, Read 285MB/s, Write 275MB/s

Hard Disk #2 Western Digital 2TB, Caviar Green, up to 7200RPM, SATA-II, 64MB Cache, IntelliPower, NCQ

Case Fractal Design Define R3, Titanium Case, 8x 3.5" Bays, 2x 5.25" Bays, 2x 120mm Fans Included, Front USB, eSATA, Audio

Optical Drive LG Blu-Ray Burner, 10xBD-R Read/Write, 16xDVD+-R Read/Write, SATA, Lightscribe, Silent Play

Video Card Gigabyte Radeon HD6970 OverClocked (900Mhz), 2GB GDDR5 (5500Mhz), PCI-E 2.1, Dual DVI, HDMI 1.4a, Dual Mini DisplayPort 1.2

Wireless Card INTELLINET Wireless 300N PCI Card 300 Mbps Wireless 802.11n, MIMO

Power Supply Antec 750W TruePower PSU, 120mm fan, 2x PCI-E Graphics Card, 4x SATA Connectors

Cooler # 2 x Noctua NF-P12-1300, 120mm, 1300RPM, Pressure Optimised Fans

Anti Virus Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 OEM (1 Year Subscription)

Operating System Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium with Service Pack 1, 64bit DVD OEM

Thanks,

 

[jb6684]

Well if it's not a situation where your audio gear, like speakers or headset, is picking up "noise" from the computer then we are certainly focus on the power supply and motherboard.

In your case, both are good brand, good quality. So, that leaves only one choice, you have a defective PS or MB...... Look at your MB, there are inductors located primarily in the CPU power supply section surrounding the CPU. To hear them, I use a piece of rubber tubing. Kind of like a stethoscope, place one end of the tube near your ear, and, the other end near each of the inductors in the CPU PS on the MB...... One by one. If you find one the screams, then its the MB. If NONE scream then its the PS......

 

[leighbyron]

hi,
if it is the MB can i fix it easy? and if its the PS is it fixable. i can stand it but is it doing damage?

Thanks

 

[Leaps-from-Shadows]

It's likely the sound of the graphics card fans kicking into high gear, and there is nothing to fix in that situation.

To find out, just take the side off of the case. Play a game, and when it "screams" find out if it's coming from the graphics card. If it is, then the fans are turning faster to keep the graphics card cool.

You should be able to tell the difference between something that sounds kind of like a hair dryer (which is basically a really really fast fan) and a high-pitched electronic humming/screeching sound right away.

 

[HEXiT]

id be thinking a cap is straining on the gfx card if it only happens in games. so im guessing its only happening under load. i dont think its the fan unless its broken as they whir like as above said a hoover/dustdevel handy vac.
can you try another gfx card?
it may also be a bad contact with a heatsync also. ( i have heard cpu's squeal because of this) so its not imposable that a gpu or ram chip could do the same.

but i am of the opinion that its a bad capacitor rather than anything else as can whine when they start to fail.

 

[yyk71200]

GPU fan speed can be tracked by using GPU-Z to log its speed and temperatures. Worth checking.

 

[Motopsychojdn]

Another squealing thread here, http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/265815-11-cyclone-squealing-sound with possible solutions included
Moto

 

[jb6684]

MB, PS, or Graphics card has a "squealing" component.... I believe that's the consensus...........

First, find out which one it is:
- either use the hollow tube "stethoscope" method
- or, if you can, swap out graphics card and/or power supply

Second, Hopefully, the defective item is still under warranty from the factory, so just RMA it



Will it do any damage:
- to you ears & patience, likely
- to the system, maybe, maybe not

 

[JoMo87]

I'd just open the case and stick my head in and find out where it's coming from. Since it stops when you pull up a menu, my guess would be GPU fan. You can either purchase a new fan and replace it, clean out the existing in hopes it stops, or if its within warranty, send it back for a new card. If the fan is clean and seems to be functioning properly, you may have your settings turned up too high for your graphics card to keep itself cool under the load.

It also may very well be the CPU fan, which is also replaceable. Finding out where the sound is coming from is the first step to finding the solution.

If your core temperatures for your components aren't peaking there isn't any threat to damage being done, however if you're overworking your system without sufficient cooling, you can overheat and kill a component.

 

[leighbyron]

Best answer selected by leighbyron.