Computer Dying, Makes Scratching Sounds

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Number1SuperGuy

New Member
Hey, I just built a brand new computer yesterday. The second I started up a game I started hearing scratching noises coming from the tower. I ran the Windows system performance test and the test completed fine, with my processor getting a 7.3, my video card a 7.8, and my hard drive getting a 5.9.

It was late so I went to bed and tried again tonight. The first thing I did was start overclocking the processor. I booted just fine at 3.5gHz (up from 3.0) so I tried running the test again and the computer died halfway through the test. The scratching noise happened a bit right before the crash.

I slowly turned down the processor speed but it crashed every time I run the system test, usually accompanied by the scratching sound. Eventually I gave up and reset the bios settings to default and tried running the test again, and it crashed again... I tried starting up a game that ran fine the night before and it crashed. Basically, anytime I do something that pushes the computer, it starts making scratching noises and dies.

One thing to note is the video card I got is gigantic and sits quite awkwardly in the case. It presses pretty hard up against the hard drive bay and makes it sit at a slight angle in the PCI slot. The video card works great when the games run, so I don't know if this has anything to do with it, just thought it might be worth noting.

Here's all the parts, can anyone spot a possible issue?

11-119-196-S01

COOLER MASTER Storm Scout SGC-2000-KKN1-GP Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
14-161-301-Z01

HIS Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) 1GB Video Card
AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Deneb 3.0GHz Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Processor
Tuniq Tower 120 Universal CPU Cooler 120mm Cooling Fan
OCZ 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
HITACHI 2TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
Foxconn A79A-S AM2+/AM2 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard
APEVIA 650W SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Power Supply
LG DVD Burner
 
N

Number1SuperGuy

New Member
Ran the tests again with HWMonitor running. All tests completed this time, though I don't think I did anything differently.

The scratching only happened during the video card tests... since the computer shut down while the scratching was happening it makes me wonder if the fan for the video card is locking up. Would the computer shut down immediately if the fan locked up? Could the fact that the video card is pressed up against the case be causing the fan to get stuck?
 
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Number1SuperGuy

New Member
Nope, no cables... The fan is sorta embedded into the video card which is why I'm wondering if the end of it being pressed up against the case could be affecting it. I moved the video card around a bit, I'm gonna start up a game and see if I run into more issues.
 
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Number1SuperGuy

New Member
I started the game and the scratching was going non-stop while the game was running. Something is definitely wrong with my card. I'm just gonna try and send it back to newegg...
 
johnb35

johnb35

Administrator
Staff member
Look at the fan on the video card and see if there is any broken fins cause that will cause it be off balanced and will hit the side of the fan case that its in.
 
N

Number1SuperGuy

New Member
My temps were fine, GPU never got over 62C... I've submitted an RMA through newegg, but it would only let me get a replacement, not my money back. In other words, let's hope that the card was defective and it didn't have anything to do with the card's awkward placement in the case.
 
linkin

linkin

VIP Member
"scratching" sounds huh? i'd run a HDD diagnostic. it sounds like you got a dud drive (it does happen)
 
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Paul17041993

Paul17041993

New Member
If it is a fast, constant scratch sound (like tttttttttt, or dddddddddddd,) than it is probably a fan somewhere,
if it is a pulsating scratch (like t_t___t_t___t_t___) and/or a clicking sound (d_d_d_d in tune with the scratches) than that would probably be a defective HDD

i agree with Linkin, sounds like a HDD problem
 
G

Gabe63

New Member
My first 5970 was defective and made an aweful sound. Swap the case for one that fits the card, it should not fit sideways in the slot. My case could take a card another 5 inches longer, I am sure others can also. I am concerned about your PSU, it is a 4 rail where you draw power to the PCI-E. I called antec on their 650W 4 rail and they said I should not run it on a 5870 because it may not power the card properly. That is why I went to a single rail like the Corsair.

IMG_7338.jpg
 
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