Houston, we have a problem!!!

[The Compensator]

Just turned the old girl on and this happened! It's coming from the PSU (I banged it and the sound changed). Does this mean it's ded? It doesn't smell or anything. :panic2:

 

Vid

 

[TIMELESS]

I'm no expert, not even close, infact I'm an idiot. Where am I?

 

Umm, I would check the fan, make sure it's still spinning, not clogged by dust. How old is it? It may be replacement time, if you don't it could go bang (mine did earlier this year) and I'm guessing that could hurt other components. Luckily PSU's are fairly cheap and easy to replace!

[The Compensator]

 

Finally someone replied.

 

It's not dusty at all; nothing that could stop the fans. I'll take a detailed look at in the morning, there are some screws even so I'll try to disassemble it and hopefully I won't screw up more things.

 

It is 5 years old, I believe. Greenpower-something 550W.

[TIMELESS]

http://i.imgur.com/pZBagjc.gif

 

Finally someone replied.

 

It's not dusty at all; nothing that could stop the fans. I'll take a detailed look at in the morning, there are some screws even so I'll try to disassemble it and hopefully I won't screw up more things.

 

It is 5 years old, I believe. Greenpower-something 550W.

 

My pleasure :cheeese:

 

Yeah, take a look, you might be able to figure out what's gone wrong with a "visual inspection" :lol: Mine was about 5 when it went kaboom, so I'd take a lookout for some PSUs in the sales :p

[Ryzza5]

Swap PSU's with another PC if that's an option, will quickly tell you if it's at fault or not.

[The Compensator]

We have one desktop only so that's not an option unfortunately.

[Andreas¹]

Coil whine from the PSU?

 

I've never heard of that brand of PSU, if it's low quality then I wouldn't be surprised if it was on its way out.

[T1M]

Does it still work fine? Could just be resonation I had a PSU that used to do that really bad sometimes but it smoothed out eventually...

 

If not then its borked...

[The Compensator]

Looks like it's done its job; there's nothing I could do to it (removed the grid to see it the fan is loose). Google says it's made by Fortron.

 

There are no 550W PSUs available in local shops. >.<

[Ryzza5]

YOu mean NCIX doesn't have a store in noitacoL? Check ebay. There's always a risk with that method but you might get something great from 3 years ago for a bargain.

[The Compensator]

Dad needs it as soon as possible. :(

 

Guess a 500W one is not enough for the pc, is it? Gainward says my GPU needs 550W.

 

--- Post Updated ---

 

Found a Corsair CX500 - even though it is only a 500W PSU instead of the old 550W, the specs are the same or better. I've read that 12V rails are important as they power the CPU & GPU. CX500 has 38A on the 12V rails while the old Fortron PSU has 36A. It is cheaper, too.

 

Now that I have got my lovely laptop, the PC will not be used for gaming anymore. Just normal work & Internet stuff.

[TIMELESS]

Dad needs it as soon as possible. :(

 

Guess a 500W one is not enough for the pc, is it? Gainward says my GPU needs 550W.

 

--- Post Updated ---

 

Found a Corsair CX500 - even though it is only a 500W PSU instead of the old 550W, the specs are the same or better. I've read that 12V rails are important as they power the CPU & GPU. CX500 has 38A on the 12V rails while the old Fortron PSU has 36A. It is cheaper, too.

 

Now that I have got my lovely laptop, the PC will not be used for gaming anymore. Just normal work & Internet stuff.

 

Have you tried this? Power Supply Calculator - The most accurate PC wattage calculator

[The Compensator]

Have you tried this? Power Supply Calculator - The most accurate PC wattage calculator

 

Yes, I have already. ~404W.

[Andreas¹]

The wattage of the PSU isn't as important as the quality is. The CX is generally regarded as quite crap here but should still be light years better than what was already in your system. If it's not a huge performance system then it shouldn't really matter.

 

For the same reason, PSU recommendations can and should be taken with a bucket full of salt. What are the actual specs of the PC?

[The Compensator]

Core 2 Quad 2.6 GHz

4 GB DDR2 RAM (or DDR3, I can't remember)

GTX 260 896MB

500GB HDD Samsung

17" monitor if that matters

 

I cancelled the order actually due to the fact my mom took the car and therefore I did not have anything to drive there (the shop, half an hour away, closes at 6PM). I'm going to the local town shop tomorrow morning to order something better then.

[Andreas¹]

500W is way more than that machine needs so a CX500 should be fine. I wouldn't put a CX in an expensive high performance gaming rig or something critical but I don't see an issue with it here. It's still Bronze-certified.

[TIMELESS]

Yeah 500w should be fine for that *looks at everyone else for reassurance*

[Camel]

No no no no no. 500w is nowhere near enough. You need 2, yes TWO gigawatt PSUs. :rolleyes:

 

Nah, a 500w CX should be fine. For a standard workstation type desktop the CX series shouldn't be a problem. Would recommend a better series for a much beefier computer though.

[The Compensator]

I thought so. Thanks guys for the help.

[Ryzza5]

It's not just the total W, you have to take into account how much is on each rail. I'm not going to explain it so just search on YouTube.

[Andreas¹]

Any half reputable brand is going to have almost all of the PSU's power be taken out on the 12V rail though. The quality of the components inside is more important I'd say.

[Ryzza5]

That's right, but do you trust him to get any half reputable brand? :cheeky:

[The Compensator]

:bdown:

[The Compensator]

Ok, so I went to the shop yesterday to order a new PSU and the dude there sold me this one. I told him the computer specs, that I had the Corsair CX500 in mind, etc., and he just handed me this one. He said it's good enough for me...

 

 

... It might be, but it doesn't work.

 

[Camel]

"MADE BY PART;S Inc." That says it all. You can be sure that it's made using the cheapest parts around.

 

Take it back for a refund and go to another shop where they won't fob you off with cheap/potentially dangerous parts.