Coil whine (or buzzing noise)

[Stonedfish]

Hello there,

To begin with I'd like to thank all of you (including linustechtips.com) for your support over the past year sine I'm the member of this forum.
I have to note that in my master race build, I went mostly with the suggested components on forums and everything worked flawlessly until I finally got my gpu - Asus Strix gtx970, and now another one - Asus Strix gtx980ti.

I will take some time and post my full PC specs this time, which are:
CPU: Intel Core i5 4690k @~4,4GHz ( Using my bios EZ tune mode - auto )
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15
RAM: 8GB G.Skill Sniper 1866
GPU: Asus Strix gtx980ti DC3OC
MOBO: Asus Maximus VII Ranger
PSU: Corsair RM850
SSD: Samsung evo 840 250GB
Case: Fractal Define R5 ( with window )

All I can say is that I am happy with most of the components and thankful to you guys for helping me pick those out.
But, my problem, as said above, started when I got my first gpu after 4 months of using my PC with integrated graphics.
The first thing I noticed was that my gpu (gtx970) was making a buzzing noise, I didn't really care until I moved my PC onto the desk, when it started being really annoying, so I went out and returned my gpu, after which it was marked as defective and I was offered a replacement or exchange for another product, so I went and bought a gtx980ti, thought it would serve me well in my next build...
The moment I started a game with my new gpu, drivers were installed etc., the buzzing noise became insane, even if I put my PC on the floor and a pillow next to it, I could hear it - that was on low settings. Once I set everything @ Ultra, I was getting 90ish fps, it was buzzing so loud that even if I moved to the other corner of the room ~4 meters away, I could still hear it and it was still very loud.

I was wondering, was there a problem with some of mine components that could cause such a defect since this is the second card (from the same retailer) having the same problem, just this time it was so loud that I instantly removed my gpu from the pc and packed it up for another RMA. Is there a way that some of my faulty components, psu is only thing I could think of, could damage the gpu, or could it be caused by my cpu "not being quality enough"?

[Vivilacqua1]

iirc, I think strix and windforce cards have alot of coil whine. Don't take me on this as true though, hence the iirc.

[don_svetlio]

Asus and Gigabyte's cards coil whine a lot

[KemoKa]

Under normal circumstances an RMA wouldn't help you. Coil whine is not defined as a defect by most companies, except in extremely severe cases. It's just an audible side-effect of a VRM doing its job. Luck of the draw, I'm afraid.

[AverageHardware]

Coil whine doesn't mean your card or component is bad or faulty. My router whines. It's annoying, but you can't really do anything about it.

[don_svetlio]

Under normal circumstances an RMA wouldn't help you. Coil whine is not defined as a defect by most companies, except in extremely severe cases. It's just an audible side-effect of a VRM doing its job. Luck of the draw, I'm afraid.

Since it happens with 2 different cards it might be the PSU

[KemoKa]

Since it happens with 2 different cards it might be the PSU

I suppose. If the PSU is delivering unstable power then the VRMs could be just regulating a lot of fluctuations and that's what is causing the whine. Nothing the VRMs can't handle, but just makes an annoying sound.

[Stonedfish]

I suppose. If the PSU is delivering unstable power then the VRMs could be just regulating a lot of fluctuations and that's what is causing the whine. Nothing the VRMs can't handle, but just makes an annoying sound.

So I have instantly removed my card from the pc, is there a chance that in case my psu was the cause, it had done some perma dmg to the gpu?

[KemoKa]

So I have instantly removed my card from the pc, is there a chance that in case my psu was the cause, it had done some perma dmg to the gpu?

Nah, the graphics cards are fine regardless. Coil whine is no indication of damage. If your GPU was permanently damaged, it wouldn't be making coil whine.

 

it's just little fluctuations in the voltage that the VRMs are dealing with.

[Stonedfish]

Nah, the graphics cards are fine regardless. Coil whine is no indication of damage. If your GPU was permanently damaged, it wouldn't be making coil whine.

Are there any other components that could cause gpu to whine?

The thing with my gtx970 was that I got an RMA for the coil whine, meaning it was defective. I have to say that if I had to compare loudness of whine, the 970 was quiet like a whisper, while this is loud like normal talking or 100 bees flying thru ur room

[KemoKa]

Are there any other components that could cause gpu to whine?

The thing with my gtx970 was that I got an RMA for the coil whine, meaning it was defective. I have to say that if I had to compare loudness of whine, the 970 was quiet like a whisper, while this is loud like normal talking or 100 bees flying thru ur room

Doubt it. Could be supplementary power from the motherboard. It's just a difference in power consumption. The 970 draws quite a lot less power from the PSU, so there's a lot less work for the VRM on the card to do.

[Stonedfish]

Doubt it. Could be supplementary power from the motherboard. It's just a difference in power consumption. The 970 draws quite a lot less power from the PSU, so there's a lot less work for the VRM on the card to do.

In other words, what you were trying to say, was that I should RMA my gpu and also ask the store to try it out on a testbench in front of me using a quality psu. In case it's not whining I should replace my PSU, in case it is whining I will get the RMA anyway so...?

[KemoKa]

In other words, what you were trying to say, was that I should RMA my gpu and also ask the store to try it out on a testbench in front of me using a quality psu. In case it's not whining I should replace my PSU, in case it is whining I will get the RMA anyway so...?

No. I wasn't trying to say it any other way. I meant precisely what I said. You could take it in and see if someone can try it on a test bench with a good PSU, but coil whine is not normally grounds for an RMA. We had one guy come in threatening to sue Newegg for not accepting an RMA for a card he had which had coil whine. Really quite entertaining watching him lose his shit when he found out there wasn't a thing he could do.

[Vivilacqua1]

In other words, what you were trying to say, was that I should RMA my gpu and also ask the store to try it out on a testbench in front of me using a quality psu. In case it's not whining I should replace my PSU, in case it is whining I will get the RMA anyway so...?

You sure it's not just the fans? "like a hundred bees" Try stopping them while it's running and see. but it could still be coil whine.

[Stonedfish]

No. I wasn't trying to say it any other way. I meant precisely what I said. You could take it in and see if someone can try it on a test bench with a good PSU, but coil whine is not normally grounds for an RMA. We had one guy come in threatening to sue Newegg for not accepting an RMA for a card he had which had coil whine. Really quite entertaining watching him lose his shit when he found out there wasn't a thing he could do

That's why I went with Asus, they claim that their product will perform like this and that, and in case it doesn't ur getting an rma, I've got an rma last time for a card on which coil whine was hearable only if you really focused on it, which I didn't expect but I asked for it since with asus and evga you actually have a chance with trying to get an rma for coil whine. I think it would be the best if I asked them to try the card on a high end psu in front of me, and therefore ask for an rma in case it's faulty. It's hard with newegg, ebay and amazon, while local shops, or even those in a smaller country will make sure you get an rma for something that is defective rather than get a bad reputation and therefore lose customers.

[soup]

I have an ASUS strix GTX970 which has zero coil whine (that I can descern) most manufacturers/retailers do NOT treat coil whine as a manufacturing defect[1] it is pretty much luck otf the draw You can stay away from manufacturers known to make products which whine badly but there is no real guarantee of getting a product which doesn't have whine.

 

[1] Unless VERY bad or to keep customers sweet