GPU making buzzing sound (Causes + Fix)

The GPU fans and heatsink can become clogged with too much dust and debris, which can cause the fans to spin erratically and emit a buzzing sound. Your GPU should be disconnected from the motherboard so you can clean it with a brush or compressed air. After learning a quick solution, let’s see further the causes for GPU making buzzing sound in depth.

Modern graphics cards are robust devices that handle a tremendous amount of work all the time, especially whether you’re gaming or performing graphics-intensive tasks.

The graphics card occasionally starts to emit a loud buzzing sound. Coil whine or malfunctioning GPU fans could be the source of the noise. It is an uncomfortable and bothersome sound that can greatly irritate you.

Why is GPU making buzzing sound?

Any equipment with a power supply, including a graphics card, can make coil whine, a high-pitched sound. Typically, it sounds like an electronic buzzing at a high frequency. Some say it makes a hissing sound like a tea kettle, while others say it sounds more like something being ground together while squealing or scratching.

How do computer components produce this sound?

An electrical current passing through a power-regulating element, such as an inductor or a transformer, typically causes coil whining. A copper wire coil is wrapped around a core, which makes up an inductor. Iron or ferrite makes up the majority of the core.

The magnetic field generated by inductors must be transformed and stored as electrical energy. They simplify the power supply to the components and filter out any anomalies.

There are inductors in several PC components, and depending on where they are, they are referred to by different names, such as reactor, choke, coil, or solenoid. Now, an inductor can vibrate when current flows through its coils.

We occasionally hear the coil whine when it vibrates against the inductor’s core at an audible frequency. Depending on the load on the system, the current flowing through the coil can have a variety of frequencies, which changes the frequency and amplitude of the vibrations.

As a result, the coil whine’s pitch and volume can shift. Sometimes we can’t even hear it, and other times it’s just audible to younger people. The coil can also whine if there is a poor solder connection between the inductor and the circuit board. However, this is less frequent.

Which PC Parts Are Responsible for Coil Whine, and Where Can You Hear It?

The graphics card is the main offender in coil whining. The motherboard and power supply unit are additional parts responsible for this noise. These particular components have more coil whining issues since they are constantly under a heavy strain.

The PSU’s coil whining inductors are larger and open-style, but the motherboard and GPU are smaller and enclosed in tiny boxes. Some GPU models, such as the Nvidia GTX 1080/1070 and RTX 2080/2070 series, frequently exhibit coil whine, especially when subjected to high loads. Coil whining can occur in any GPU.

Therefore it is impossible to isolate the problem to a particular manufacturer or model. Now, if you’re still unsure about whether your GPU is producing the sound, follow these steps to determine it:

1.     Listen For It:

Listening intently to the sound is the best approach to identifying its origin. It could be challenging to find because of the intrusive sounds made by the GPU, CPU heatsink, and case fans. The first choice is to disable the fans using a third-party program.

The MSI Afterburner is one of the top applications available. Another choice is to use a funnel-shaped object, such as rolled-up paper to muffle background noise. Before the PSU and motherboard, pay attention to the graphics card.

2.     Swap out the Parts:

If you have leftover parts from a previous system or are a part collector, you can switch out the components to identify the defective ones. Replace the GPU with a working one first; if the coil whine stops, you’ve identified the problem. Similarly, use the power supply. If neither is the issue, you’ll know the motherboard is at fault.

3.     Install the Parts In Different Systems:

Last but not least, if you have another system handy, you can remove the GPU and PSU from your computer and install them one at a time in the other system. If you hear whining, the replacement component is to blame.

How to fix GPU making buzzing sound?

Now that you’ve established that the noise is coming from your GPU let’s learn about the fixes that can help to dampen or even get rid of it. The remedies listed below address coil whine and fan buzzing problems.

1.     Wait A While:

As previously indicated coil whine is a common first symptom of new graphics cards, although it almost always goes away or lessens over time. Give your GPU a few days to settle in if you just installed it before attempting any time-consuming solutions.

Since there is nothing physically wrong with a GPU that may create coil whining, it won’t harm anything. Use sound-dampening or active noise-canceling headphones in the interim. Simple foam padding can be very effective in absorbing high-frequency noises.

Additionally, you might try relocating the case further from where you are sitting because high-pitched sounds are progressively quieter the farther away.

2.     Change The Power Draw Of The GPU

You must alter the amount of current flowing through the inductor coil to shift the frequency at which it vibrates and remove it from the hearing range. This can be done by altering the power consumption of the GPU, and the steps are as follows:

·       Limit The Framerate:

I am lowering the GPU’s output frame rate results in less current flowing through the coils and a reduction in coil whining. That can be especially useful if you hear loud noise while playing a game. First, you can restrict the frame rate using the AMD Radeon Settings or the Nvidia Control panel.

Second, some third-party programs, such as the MSI Afterburner and the RTSS FPS limiter, can lower the frame rate. Depending on your computer model, you can activate the V-sync, G-sync, or FreeSync utilities. These apps automatically cap the game’s frame rate to the refresh rate of your monitor.

It is not advised to employ this technique during competitive situations because it can make the game lag and stutter. Furthermore, you can use the built-in FPS limiters in some games.

·       Disable Overclocking:

You must be aware that overclocking the graphics card puts extra strain on it and its inductors, causing them to vibrate quickly under load and emit an annoying coil whine. If you overclocked the GPU, reset it to the default setting.

Underclock:

You can try under-voting or underclocking your GPU if it produces coil whine at default clock speed and frequency. Both methods greatly improve user experience. In this manner, the GPU consumes less energy. You can lower the card’s power target to less than 100% if you don’t want to do that.

These techniques will affect the GPU’s performance, but you won’t notice the effects if your graphics card is powerful. The MSI Afterburner program allows you to underfoot, underclock, and limit the card’s power goal.

Change The Video Card’s Fan Speed:

It’s worth a shot because several users have reported that altering the GPU’s default fan speed has reduced coil whine. The inductor’s temperature will fluctuate, causing tiny expansion or contraction, which will silence the noise the vibrations produce. Start by slightly increasing the fan speed using software like MSI Afterburner, RivaTuner, or something similar.

If that doesn’t reduce the noise, try reducing the speed while keeping an eye on the temperature of the graphics card. Leave the fan speed at its default setting if the GPU temperature exceeds 80°C while operating at its highest speed. Once you identify the sweet spot, keep watching the scenario.

3.     Troubleshoot The GPU Fans:

Buzzing sounds from a graphics card could indicate problems with its fans or heatsink. Let’s troubleshoot the fans in four simple stages and address any issues that may be present.

Update The GPU Drivers:

Before attempting more complicated remedies, try updating any outdated or corrupted GPU drivers to see if they are interfering in some way with the fans.

• In the Windows search box, type Device Manager.
• Locate the Display Adapter, click on it, and then look under there for your driver.
• Select Properties by doing a right-click on the driver’s name.
• Click Update Driver from the Driver menu.
• Select Search automatically for updated driver software in the window.

Launching the OEM graphics card program is another way to update the drivers.

Alter The GPU Fan Curve:

The GPU’s default fan curve might be the noise source, and changing it could assist find a solution.

• Get the MSI Afterburner application and install it.
• Open the app, and then select the Gear icon.
• After opening Settings, choose the Fan tab and the checkbox next to User-defined software automatic fan control.
• The GPU can lower fan speed at greater fan temperatures by gently altering the fan curve. Avoid making significant adjustments since they will cause your graphics card to overheat.
• If the noise persists, play some games and check the fan speed and temperature using the MSI Afterburner program.
• If the settings differ from what you’ve set, the GPU’s fan speed sensor can be damaged, and you’ll need to fix it.

Check The GPU Physically:

The following step requires you to get your hands dirty and physically inspect the GPU for any errors.

• Unplug the power cord from your computer and turn it off.
• Locate your GPU by opening the side panel of the case.
• Check the GPU for frayed or broken cables. If you do, repair it before trying again.
• Search for any things that might make the noise by getting stuck in the fan blades.
• Rotate the GPU fans with your finger to check for broken fan bearings if you notice irregular fan motions or if one fan moves differently from the others.

It would help if you swapped out the GPU fan.

Conclusion:

The noise made by the electronic parts within a GPU is known as coil-whine. The additional power the graphics card uses while using a game or other graphics-intensive apps causes some internal components to vibrate. These vibrations produce noise. You might have observed that the GPU making a buzzing sound.

Due to how loud it is, it cannot be very pleasant, and the user might want to turn off the computer. Most of the time, you may have to put up with the noise because doing so comes at a cost if you want to play 3D or fast-paced games.

Although they can be noisy, cooling fans are essential for keeping the GPU cool when playing certain games. The GPU uses more power and becomes hotter when the screen’s graphics are higher.

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