Maximum PC

My new ga-x79-ud7 makes clearly audible sounds. The sounds seem to come from the two rows of black cubes in-between the CPU and the heat-pipe riser. The sounds are loudest with heavy graphics card use, but are noticeable with any significant IO load, including USB devices. The sounds are as loud as conversation, (30-60db at one meter on my sound level meter). The sounds are similar to hisses, squeals, squeaks, scratches and ticks.

I have never encountered this before, nor even heard about it until I started googling. It seems that IF any solutions work, they are board-by-board specific. So anyone have any recommendations for my ga-x79-ud7? Currently, I am NOT overclocking my 3.3ghz i7-3960x .

MOBO: GA-X79-UD7 (rev. 1.0)
BIOS Ver : F7
VGA Brand : Nvidia Model : 580GTX SLI: two cards.
CPU Brand : Intel Model : i7-3960x Speed : 3.3ghz
Operation System : Win 7 64-bit SP : 1
Memory Brand : G.Skill Type : DDR3
Memory Size : 16gb Speed : PC3-12800
Power Supply : 120 W
Cooling: Water, 13mm inside diameter fittings, 360sq cm radiator, pump=Koolance PMP-450 17L/min flow.

Hardware monitor ITE IT8728
Voltage 0 1.06 Volts [0x58] (CPU VTT)
Voltage 1 1.50 Volts [0x7D] (DRAM C/D)
Voltage 2 11.88 Volts [0xA5] (+12V)
Voltage 3 5.07 Volts [0xA9] (+VCC)
Voltage 5 0.89 Volts [0x4A] (CPU VCORE)
Voltage 6 1.50 Volts [0x7D] (DRAM A/B)
Voltage 7 3.36 Volts [0x8C] (+3.3V)
Temperature 0 42°C (107°F) [0x2A] (TMPIN0)
Temperature 1 45°C (113°F) [0x2D] (TMPIN1)
Temperature 2 35°C (95°F) [0x23] (TMPIN2)

Yeah, return it. I suspect your referring to your MOSFET's. Probably not something that you're going to want to toy with. Where did you buy it, and are you still in the return window for a replacement?

Failing that I would RMA it to Gigabyte. You'll be without your rig for probably about two weeks. That's about average in my experiences with Gigabyte, but they've never sent a bad board back.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOSFET

"Power MOSFETs are at risk of thermal runaway. As their on-state resistance rises with temperature, if the load is approximately a constant-current load then the power loss rises correspondingly, generating further heat. When the heatsink is not able to keep the temperature low enough, the junction temperature may rise quickly and uncontrollably, resulting in destruction of the device."

It's not a woman...if it's cooking get rid of it.

You mean women still cook these days?

Nasty

I just saw on another forum:
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It's has been widely documented that there was a BIOS/Noise issue when first released .... it was a BIOS programing error, not poor hardware....the BIOS update apparently fixed ni on all boards ..... if your board does not settle down ...... there could be a problem!

Aussie Allan
****

Now, I don't know about "widely reported" because my searched did not turn up anything, but Im going to give it a try.

In nearly 30 years of computer repair, I don't recall ever hearing of a BIOS noise. In fact, I'm sitting here trying to resolve how its possible that firmware could possible make noise that doesn't involve settings of moving parts, or the overvolting of capacitors and chips.

If flashing the BIOS eliminates this noise, you might want to consider the possibility that improper firmware has caused damage to board. Given the fact that we're talking about high end gear here, I'd still RMA it personally.

If it's true that the F7 BIOS simply limits overclocking to solve the issue then you're just getting ripped off. You don't need this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_Wk4QWH ... r_embedded

I think you're right, and I'm boned like a fish. Newegg has a 40% 1 egg rating for the GA-X79-UD7, from people with bad boards. The product has been "deactivated" and may not be restocked.

Damn damn damn. This board was by far the best feature match for me, and I spent DOZENS of hours crafting a custom cooling loop and hand-made cabling. I even bought orange sleeveing and shrink-wrap to match the black-orange color scheme of the heatsinks.

RMA is still an option. Gigabyte will fix the board. Problem is, if they send it back with the F7 BIOS, you may still be getting hosed.

BIOS don't make noises, and yeah...that's not wide spread.

What IS widespread is the noises from nVidia cards while loaded. Since the 8xxx series nVidia cards, there's an audible noise from the card every time it's loaded. Since I'm a folder I freak out if I don't hear that noise. "The sounds are loudest with heavy graphics card use", you have a GTX580, and Bob's your uncle.

You've finally found the nVidia squeal I presume. Just amuse us for a second. Run a GPU benchmark. If it's quiet during normal cruising and then squeals during the bench, then it's the GTX to blame. Nothing you can do about it if so...and I'm pretty sure that's it. 100% sure it's not a BIOS though, so rule that genius that gave that great advice out.I know I make grammatical errors left and right, but this I'd take with a grain of salt. It has has been?

It's probably not a nvidia card issue. It's much more likely to be the shitty mosfets on this board. Did you not watch this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_Wk4QWH ... r_embedded

Googling this board + noises will not yield much. If you do a little research on the board itself though, there are many reports of various capacitive, or regulatory, issues that have caused problems from ranging from limited overclocks to sudden combustion.

Gigabyte's half baked attempt at a fix with the F7 BIOS seemingly limits overclocking, which would obviously relieve voltage issues near the socket, but it's not much of a fix for the folks who purchased this board expecting a very high-end overclocker.

It was certainly the MOSFETs, I checked with a stethoscope.
The new BIOS is F8, and I installed that. The squeals SEEM to be gone, but I have not heavily loaded it yet, as I am trying to overclock.
So far I am failing to get 4.8ghz, but
A) I have never tried to overclock a modern Intel, so I am flailing around.
B) Gigabyte's EasyTune is a wad of garbage, and conflicts with the BIOS settings .... anyway big headaches.

I'm not sure the "squeals" indicated permanent damage to my mobo, so I am still considering an RMA.

Overclocking issue; there's a thread for that. Not every good piece of hardware is expected to run 2GHZ above intended. If it's not the squeal, it's something else.

I'm NOT overclocking anything.

Huh? Not overclocking you said to Chumly and you are.

Nasty

^ Yeah, what Nasty said.

Anyway, the board may not be making any noise now, but whatever the cause, it would have certainly diminished the life expectancy of the part. I suggested the mosefts because they can be a common problem on "overclocking" boards when not at least passively cooled. I've also seen them sizzle and burn first hand. Temperatures outside of what may be considered a safe threshold can be accompanied by anomalies that present audibly.

The idea of being without such a formidable piece of hardware for a couple of weeks may not seem palatable right now, but consider the alternative. Should you decide not to RMA, I would at least focus some attention on trying to keep the enclosure as cool as possible, and procuring an aftermarket cooling solution. If something like this wouldn't interfere with your CPU heatsink, it could make a world of difference...

http://www.aerocooler.com/shop.cart?act ... =FANSWMC21

Sorry Sorry Sorry. What I meant was:
1) The noises started before I made any attempt to overclock,
2) I tried BIOS F8, the noises reduced
3) I tried some overclock tests, (I made a post at that point) they did not deliver great results,
4) I'm back to stock settings, and I'm inclined to stay here.

GROAN
I finally got a reply from Gigabyte, they say I should RMA it.
Looks like I will soon be the owner of a 62lb, $4000 paperweight under my desk.

Sweet nymph of pain, I hope my spouse does not ask about it.

Do it! You will probably get a new board...worth the effort. As far as the spouse goes....good luck!

Nasty

So you own that very rare 4.8Ghz processor no one else has. I get your denial.

You don't know what you're doing, or what you're talking about. 4.8Ghz is stock clocks, and the noise isn't what us elders feel is the answer. I can help you, we can help you...but you're on your own now. Live with the noise, and it's not what you think it is.

It use to be fun when people actually understood I made their shit they're talking about and could help them. Forums aren't just random people dude, so don't tell them off so quickly. You, I'll pass on and let you figure it out since you're the genius. Return the board like it's their fault. Th noise is what I said it was.

As I posted above, I did not post every detail of everything I tested and tried. So check my Mia Culpa (apology) above. On the other hand, "Stethoscope" might have clued you in that motherboard MOSFETs are easy to distinguish from GPU cards, if for no other reason than they are a foot apart.
So, it really looks like you want to get personal. Why? are you unhappy with your life? Are you feeling inadequate? Ok, this thread is dead, and we are in the valley of the trolls.
No problem.

Do you think that "sentence" you typed above makes sense? Seriously, if you have failed at life, and are too poor to buy modern hardware, and are unaware that the x79 chipset boards are rife with early revision problems, then here is what you should do:

1) Cancel your internet connection, it is not doing you any good.
2) Take your ancient EE degree off the wall, scrape off the lichen, and bury it. We can all design bipolar junctions on our iPads now.
3) With the time you used to spend trolling, give yourself some bibliotherapy http://clpgh.org/research/parentseducators/parents/bibliotherapy/showbooklist.cfm?catid=7&list=manners may be a good place for you to start.
4) With the money you save, buy the bus fare to a free-clinic cognitive therapist. Tell her that the only way that you fell strong or empowered, is in your pathetic attempts to belittle people you know nothing about, over topics you know nothing about, while pretending that the volume of your useless, idiotic postings makes you an "elder" instead of showing you that you are a sad, stupid little person.

There may be hope for you. Acknowledge your fears of obsolescence, and never again speak or type an unkind word.

Above all, stay offline.

after reading your diatribe, I am convinced that you are the pot calling the kettle black. and for your little quote, I understand it completely.