Firstly, hello. So this last year I have been slowly upgrading my PC from an old i5 2500k........ A GPU Gigabyte 1070ti. Mobo Asus z270-a and cpu i7 6700k. 16g of HyperX ram. All a bit dated but they are what they are.
 
My old PSU had been getting louder/hotter as time went on so middle of June I bought a EVGA 850 GQ. Everything seemed fine.
 
Then at the end of July. I turn on my PC to find my Corsair H100i had died. So I got a replacement, H100i pro. From the word go I had what I thought was air in the system so I tolerated the noise, a buzzing in the pump. It did get quieter but continued and then I started to get the occasional knock/bang, not loud but it was doing my head in. A forum recommended that I try to mount it vertically in the front of my PC. The constant buzz faded for the most part but these annoying bangs continued. They would only happen under load but so random that I could never quite work out where they came from and had assumed it was the water cooler. I put up with this for three months, until recently when under load not only would I get the bangs but a much louder buzz with the AIO cooler.
 
I talked again to some people on a forum and they urged me to investigate the PSU. 
 
So I contacted EVGA support a few days ago, basically saying what Ive just said here. The reply was short, "Most likely the  Noise is coming from the pump of the Hybrid pump. Regards EVGA" 
 
I bought a new AIO water cooler. I decided on a Arctic Liquid Freezer II 240. Partly because of the good reviews so far, the price and that it is powered by the CPU_FAN header, not a SATA cable like the previous two Corsair AIO coolers were.
 
After it was installed today, I chilled and watched some videos and Twitch stuff for an hour. Then went on to play WoW to see how things went under load....... A short while later ........ the knocks were back. SIGH . I got my GF to sit right next to the computer and listen as I played for a little while longer. She knows even less about computers than I do but she clearly pointed out, with her ear right next to the PSU, that the knocks were from the PSU.
 
It isnt a coil whine, not at all. It's a metallic knock, a bit like if you knocked a side panel with your knuckle. Not a light tap, a knock.
 
Would this be an issue for you guys? I feel like it is and I certainly cant afford to buy all new components if the PSU blows up and takes everything with it.
 
I contacted EVGA a few hours ago. Hopefully I will get some sort of helpful reply.... Do I try to make a fuss if they arent overly helpful?
 

If the PSU itself is making this noise and testing it outside of the case reveals the same noise, then yes, I would recommend to replace it. I will pop in to your ticket and take a look.

Welcome to the forums, Andrew.
 
As EVGATech_DanielM said, you can disconnect and take out the unit and turn it on for bench testing using the EVGA Detection Tool or the Paperclip Test..Just let it run for a while.
 
You could also take the unit out so that it's farther away from the AIO cooler to better help isolate what's making the noise..Leave all the cables connected to your PC and boot into Windows (or whatever) normally.
 
See: How do I test my power supply? in the EVGA FAQs.

From what Andrew described in his ticket, it is hard to imagine it being another component. Recommended he replace it just to rule it out at this point. 

EVGATech_DanielM
From what Andrew described in his ticket, it is hard to imagine it being another component. Recommended he replace it just to rule it out at this point. 

My idea was to try to pinpoint the exact source of the noise rather than throwing darts and hanging parts.
 
But yeah, it probably is the PSU.
 
I have a case fan that's sometimes been knocking a little at low rpm for a while now..I need to get around to changing it... someday .

Thanks EVGATech_DanielM .... I have just submitted an RMA with the ticket number provided. I hope I have done all of that correctly. Will now wait for instructions from the RMA people as to where the PSU should be sent etc.
 
Fingers crossed this all works out soon.
 
Thanks again.
 

bob16314 , since this problem has developed I basically bought a new PC apart from the PSU. At this point I feel the only thing it could be is the PSU as it literally is the only part not replaced... not including the CPU but there is no way a CPU would do what I have described.
 
Thanks for your reply.
 

Hopefully the RMA takes care of the noise. It can be very annoying trouble shooting it as an issue and trying to pinpoint the source but since you replaced most everything else it makes sense it would be the PSU. Let us know how the RMA goes.

Hoggle, it's a bit like when you cant find your keys when your already late for an important appointment. That frustrating 5-10 mins until you find them. My dad would always swear and say, "Found the keys! They were in the last place I looked." Well ofc they were, always made me laugh when he said that.
 
Yes it has been frustrating but it'll be fine though in the end.
 
Thanks for your reply.

a plastic or wood dowel [Only Use Dry Non-conductive material] is your friend when trying to pinpoint the source of noise in a PC.
 
Touch the suspect part with one end & the dowel will conduct the sound to your ear
 
Knocking sound ..... harmonics can sometimes shake the case in a way that one of the side panels amplifies the sound.
 
If it happens again; touch the side panel on both sides of the case & see if it is reduced or stops
 
 
Make sure you change the PSU cables if the RMA is a different model of PSU unit