RMA'd ASUS 6990 - Still making buzzing and clicking noises

[Darkenraja]

So about two weeks ago I bought a brand new ASUS 6990 - to my dismay when the card is placed underload (games etc) it emitted a loud clicking and buzzing noise depending what was happening onscreen. various thigns cause this apparently, and the supplier I got it from RMA'd it straight away and sent me a replacement (was new, had its layer of protective 'film' on the top and everything - same box though which is what I would expect when something is RMA'd.

Anyway, I install it and fire up a game - and to my dismay, the sound is STILL there. though a little quieter. Also, the sound is now audible in windows when surfing webpages and what not, not loud, but you can hear it. Mind you that when I swap to my 5870 - the sound disappears completely.

I really don't know what to do now - something that cost me $850 AU shouldn't be behaving like this - and surely it isn't ANOTHER faulty card - which leads me to my next question. Is it possible it is something else in my system causing the problem - I purchased all the parts the same time I got the 6990.

-i7 960
-ASUS Sabretooth X58
-6GB Patriot Viper RAM
-ASUS HD6990
-Corsair 850TX (850w) PSU

The only thing I can really think of is that its to do with the PSU - even though the sound is coming from the card, is it possible that for whatever reason the 850w just isn't doing it for the card? I remember the old 6990 before I RMA'd it, tested it in a friends PC which had a 1200w PSU and the sound was a bit quieter than what it was in my system.

Please help - I'm almost at the end of my tether!!!

 

[Darkenraja]

Bump!

 

[Rustyy117]

Sounds like coil whine to me
this sound similar? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4d23F2jehQ

 

[Darkenraja]

Yeah I know what it is - but the fact is they RMA'd it and it makes the same noise.

 

[Rustyy117]

Do some research on coil whine, I'm pretty sure its not a sign of a faulty product.

Are you positive the noise is coming from the GPU and not the PSU?... you may not get the noise with the HD5870 because it uses alot less power.

 

[Darkenraja]

Absolutely positive - I have done every type of query you can possibly do. Switching systems - the only thing is that I think the card might be drawing too much from the GPU and doesn't like it resulting in the coil whine. It's just a bit annoying - I know alot of people say to 'put up with it' but really that just isn't acceptable - it gets s loud that i can hear it over my speakers. I expected more from ASUS to be honest.

 

[Rustyy117]

If its a reference design PCB then its not really ASUS's fault as all they have done is slapped their sticker on it. Maybe this is caused by lower quality coils/caps?

I found that with my cards when I'm getting a huge number of FPS (for example loading Crysis gives 4000+ FPS) I can really hear the coil whine....but when in game and I'm only getting 60ish FPS then I can't hear it at all.
What I'm saying is try using V-sync in games to cap your FPS at your monitors refresh rate.

 

[nforce4max]

Some types of chokes tend to make more noise than others. If the noise is just to annoying to live with or life span becomes a concern to just return the card and get your money back. I can't stand the noise period!! That type of noise is audible over just about any thing even the loudest fans that one can buy. If you just want to stick with that card and go through the trouble then I know a few things that you can do but unfortunately you are limited. If all else fails to work get some silicone and dab some around the choke coils which is common in electronics repair.

 

[Darkenraja]

I pretty much know what I have to do. I understand that some people can tolerate the noise - but I can't - and forcing v-sync in everything I play is just not an option, I hate using vsync and I only use it when completely necessary, but it's just too lagged and I'm not about to change my playing style just because video card manufacturers are getting sloppy with their builds. The bottom line is my friend purchased his, and his makes NO noise whatsoever in my system. So I think I'll try and RMA it one more time, if it doesn't work then it's money back for me and I'll hang onto the cash until the next best thing comes out.

 

[NorBdelta]

So about two weeks ago I bought a brand new ASUS 6990 - to my dismay when the card is placed underload (games etc) it emitted a loud clicking and buzzing noise depending what was happening onscreen. various thigns cause this apparently, and the supplier I got it from RMA'd it straight away and sent me a replacement (was new, had its layer of protective 'film' on the top and everything - same box though which is what I would expect when something is RMA'd.

Anyway, I install it and fire up a game - and to my dismay, the sound is STILL there. though a little quieter. Also, the sound is now audible in windows when surfing webpages and what not, not loud, but you can hear it. Mind you that when I swap to my 5870 - the sound disappears completely.

I really don't know what to do now - something that cost me $850 AU shouldn't be behaving like this - and surely it isn't ANOTHER faulty card - which leads me to my next question. Is it possible it is something else in my system causing the problem - I purchased all the parts the same time I got the 6990.

-i7 960
-ASUS Sabretooth X58
-6GB Patriot Viper RAM
-ASUS HD6990
-Corsair 850TX (850w) PSU

The only thing I can really think of is that its to do with the PSU - even though the sound is coming from the card, is it possible that for whatever reason the 850w just isn't doing it for the card? I remember the old 6990 before I RMA'd it, tested it in a friends PC which had a 1200w PSU and the sound was a bit quieter than what it was in my system.

Please help - I'm almost at the end of my tether!!!

SOULTION TO YOUR PROBLEM

I thought it was my PSU somehow generating the buzzing noise but it turned out to be the inductors on the PCB of my 6990, I RMAed my first one but the replacement did the exact same thing so I made a solution.

Now firstly a great thumbs up to fluxlite for this article found HERE that helped me get the following solution below.

Excellent Article Mr Fluxlite!

HERE IS MY SOLUTION to the AMD 6990 Buzzing problem.

I generated a solution from the info you provided as well as other related articles I have found around loads of forums.

I have had an identical "buzzing" problem with my Sapphire branded AMD 6990, when-ever certain GPU intensive games/apps are run my card generates a very distinct low frequency buzzing as demonstrated on another article I found, see here http://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/hardware-clinic-2/6990-screeching-squealing-sound-3280497.html.

As recommended by many users of different graphics cards a dowsing of the marked inductors in your post with clear nail polish rectified my issue immediately. See below for exact area and instructions.
.

I as mentioned below, injected the polish through the fan without removing anything and thus not voiding any warranties, beneath the marked area in the picture above is the same area with the housing of the 6990 removed marked in the picture below that you will be injecting the polish onto.


DO AT OWN RISK!!!

Now my card was still within its warranty period but I was to impatient to RMA the bad boy so this is what I did. Also personally I "injected" the polish through the fan blades in-between the two inductors with a hypodermic needle and syringe for better accuracy but as the solvent in the polish evaporates anyway so it would not really matter if you misdirected a few drops but the precision helps.

ALSO LET THE POLISH DRY FOR AT LEAST TWO TO THREE HOURS OR YOU MAY FRY THE CARD, SOLVENT = CONDUCTIVE, SO GIVE IT TIME TO DRY EFFECTIVELY!!!

Now admittedly I made the above mistake. I applied the polish and did not let it dry properly and my PC booted with a Graphics Card Failure POST beep sequence (LONG BEEP followed by THREE SHORT BEEPS) but I left it to dry and after two hours it was perfectly fine but be warned I was lucky and also too impatient and wanted to see results of my efforts.

METHOD

You will need:

Nail Polish (clear)
Buzzing AMD 6990
Syringe with optional needle.

Step 1

Fill the Needle and Syringe with the clear Nail Polish



Step 2 Insert Needle/Syringe head between fan blades and center motor housing between the inductors.



And inject liberal amounts of nail polish immediatly next to and in between the two inductors ( I used the roughly 2/3 of a small bottle of the stuff) and then let the card dry somewhere for at least a few hours (next to a fan worked very well for me), you can tell when it is dry as the smell of the solvent will have disappeared.

Personally the buzz was still present with my card but reduced in volume by about 90% and I will probably inject a bit more nail polish later on.

Anyway hope this helps, message or comment on this if you need help or have suggestions