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Mac Pro 5,1 2010 PSU squealing

wulai

wulai

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 4, 2018
38
1
Has anyone who owns a Mac Pro 2010 noticed any squealing noises when the unit is under load or transferring large amounts of network traffic?

I only noticed this just recently after copying over 600MB of data over the External Hard Drives .

The sound is similar to this:

 
The only time I've heard loud whining like that in my power supply was from "dirty" power, like when there is a hair dryer on in the house. This also stopped completely when I hooked the computer up to a UPS with a line conditioner.
 
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Come to think of it, I can remember another time I heard squealing from a power supply, but it wasn't a Mac Pro, it was a CRT monitor. After a few months of random squealing (it didn't squeal all of the time), a part inside the power supply exploded.

The part was a bridge rectifier. I clipped the remains off of the board, took it to Radio Shack, got a roughly equivalent part, and soldered it back into the monitor. Obviously this was quite a while ago--I don't think you could do any of this today.
 
Thanks to all who replied.I checked with Temperature Monitor and CPUs/disks/etc. are around 60C，
I tried capturing the sound with my cell phone
I want to know what I should do next
 
May be just "dirty power".

In fact, a member here reported that he realise this PSU noise after move to a new place (from 110V to 220V). Not 100% sure if the voltage can make the difference.

But my PSU has those sounds for many years already. And it still running 24/7, nothing explode. (my city voltage is 220V)
 
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Sounds like dirty power.

Can you try a different outlet connected to a different circuit that has NOTHING else connected to it?
Can you get an electrician to check master breaker panel and outlets? Also ask to check for proper grounding.

Would suggest to get a UPS with line conditioner, ideally something with pure sine wave or similar tech. There are outlets that claim they help with line conditioning, but you're better off with a UPS that does this. If not, get a meter to monitor the voltage for a few days to see how much it fluctuates.
[doublepost=1523033533][/doublepost]
ActionableMango said:
I can't hear any squealing in the video.
Click to expand...

It sounds more like pulses to me. Which usually means an inconsistent power signal/source. Even minor changes in voltage can cause weird problems. A good UPS with line conditioner usually fixes 90% of the problems right away. The others need a good electrician to help and/or semi-expensive power equipment that does line conditioning with voltage regulation, like this from Furman:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/P1800AR--furman-p-1800-ar
 
wulai said:
Thanks to all who replied.I checked with Temperature Monitor and CPUs/disks/etc. are around 60C，
I tried capturing the sound with my cell phone
I want to know what I should do next
Click to expand...

Same noise here with 230V 50Hz. The noise was in the Apple Store power network and with 3 different PSUs and at my home to. A friend has also the same noise. So i dont think it is dirty power.
Looks more like bad isolated coils.
 
TzunamiOSX said:
Same noise here with 230V 50Hz. The noise was in the Apple Store power network and with 3 different PSUs and at my home to. A friend has also the same noise. So i dont think it is dirty power.
Looks more like bad isolated coils.
Click to expand...
Thank you，I want to know what I should do next？
[doublepost=1523291056][/doublepost]
h9826790 said:
May be just "dirty power".

In fact, a member here reported that he realise this PSU noise after move to a new place (from 110V to 220V). Not 100% sure if the voltage can make the difference.

But my PSU has those sounds for many years already. And it still running 24/7, nothing explode. (my city voltage is 220V)
Click to expand...
Yes ，I buy from Japan to ebay （form 110v to 220v）。I'm not sure whether before have this squeal。
 
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Do either of you with PSU noise happen to know the part number for your PSU? Recall there being EU specific part numbers of the power supply for the 5,1 at one point. Not sure if they were just "clocked" differently for EU voltage/frequency, or if the same 120V/60Hz PSU was "smart" enough to switch.
 
bsbeamer said:
Do either of you with PSU noise happen to know the part number for your PSU? Recall there being EU specific part numbers of the power supply for the 5,1 at one point. Not sure if they were just "clocked" differently for EU voltage/frequency, or if the same 120V/60Hz PSU was "smart" enough to switch.
Click to expand...

I am quite sure it's "one PSU fit all", no difference between 110V and 220V model.
 
I'm not 100% sure if there is a difference between the PSU parts. All should be 100-240V & 50-60Hz compatible. Some PC PSUs have a switch on the back for different voltage. AFAIK, the 5,1 PSU does not have this switch.

I do know there are at least two different part numbers for the 4,1 & 5,1 PSU - 614-0454 and 661-5449. 661-5449 may just be a replacement part number, with 614-0454 being the original. Part number 661-5011 also "works" but may be for the server versions of the 4,1 & 5,1?
 
I found d
wulai said:
Thank you，I want to know what I should do next？
Click to expand...

I does not found a solution for this problem, but a wall direct behind the Mac is reflecting the noise back to the user. No wall behind the computer will help a bit.

Acoustic isolating mats inside the Mac warm up the electronic to much.
 
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