Macbook Air strange noise link to video included

[somethingnew]

hi,

just bought the Macbook Air from ebay ... 2012 ... it has strange noise... which happens every 5 seconds... I have uploaded a video of it on YouTube...

Can please any tell is that normal ? is it fan noise ? ... why it is every 5 seconds ?

link :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPXAhfwKa3Q

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p.s. I have tried resetting SMC & PRAM ... no luck

 

[Mrbobb]

An idle Air doesn't make any noise. When pushed, the fans works harder and you hear the fan. Fan does not go click.

If this is normal you would live with it?

 

[somethingnew]

An idle Air doesn't make any noise. When pushed, the fans works harder and you hear the fan. Fan does not go click.

If this is normal you would live with it?

well if it was normal, why would I have asked and made this effort to ask.

sorry, I did not ask my question in right way in my first post....

my question is : has anyone else experienced it? what the noise could be from? can it be fixed, if yes, how? thanks...

 

[DisplacedMic]

well if it was normal, why would I have asked and made this effort to ask.

sorry, I did not ask my question in right way in my first post....

my question is : has anyone else experienced it? what the noise could be from? can it be fixed, if yes, how? thanks...

i suspect it's the fan - probably slightly out of its groove and having a hard time spinning. you could take it apart and check or take it to Apple.

or you could complain to ebay and get a return...
in fact, either way I would complain to the seller, take it to apple, and submit the repair costs (if any) to ebay assuming there was no mention of this in the ad.

edit - i suppose it could be the SSD, but i'd think fan first as that's the one part (other than the keys) that actually moves...so that's probably the one making the noise.

 

[Mrbobb]

One more stupid question: You did MUTE the speaker right. OK.

 

[DeltaMac]

Could be something in the audio path.
Muting the speakers may (or may not) tell you something - as it could be noise introduced after the sound chip, and the noise would always be produced by the speakers, regardless of the muting.

However, more likely it's the only mechanical piece in your Air - the fan.
You can quickly tell by downloading and running one of the apps that can control the fan, such as smcFanControl - https://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/23049/smcfancontrol

Run the app, and adjust the fan to maximum speed. If there's a fan mechanical problem, you'll hear it immediately.
If the volume and interval of your noise does not change, but you hear the fan run up (and you should hear the fan at top speed) - then the noise is not your fan

 

[somethingnew]

Could be something in the audio path.
Muting the speakers may (or may not) tell you something - as it could be noise introduced after the sound chip, and the noise would always be produced by the speakers, regardless of the muting.

However, more likely it's the only mechanical piece in your Air - the fan.
You can quickly tell by downloading and running one of the apps that can control the fan, such as smcFanControl - https://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/23049/smcfancontrol

Run the app, and adjust the fan to maximum speed. If there's a fan mechanical problem, you'll hear it immediately.
If the volume and interval of your noise does not change, but you hear the fan run up (and you should hear the fan at top speed) - then the noise is not your fan

Thanks everyone for reply. the volume is mute.

I tried this app... it reports 000 rpm ... and temp is reported at 45deg... nothing running .... I tried to listen to fan from underneath closely and I hear no change in noise (fan running noise) present and it is same when turned off... I have come to conclusion that fan is broken or something is struck in the fan's ribs...

I contacted the seller on ebay, he asks me to post back... but I do not want to do as I do not know if he is going to send me back again or not... as the paypal transaction is already completed.

I asked the seller twice that he has to pay for the fan and screwdriver (pentalobe 1.2mm required to open) ... but he insists for me to send mba back to him...he is in NSW, Australia.

Another reason is I won the auction via bidding and I think I got it cheap, than what seller was expecting to sell, so maybe he will refund me the money and fix it and try selling again for higher price....

I guess I have only one option to fix it myself ... with expenses from out of my pocket.... can try raising paypal complaint to get those expenses reimburised ... any thoughts?

 

[firedept]

You have options through Ebay & Paypal to send it back for a full refund. This is what I would do. Why take the chance that you mess something up trying to repair it yourself. Unless you really know what you are doing. And I am not saying you do not.

As long as you have a tracking number and receipt proving you sent it back to the seller, the seller will have to refund you if that is what you request. It is totally up to you. I know you say you got it cheap, but is it worth not having a working computer or a computer that might have more problems down the road.

I know nothing about taking a computer apart and repairing it. Other have said it is most likely just the fan. Common sense tells me, that if I pay for a working computer, that is what I want. I do not want to have to do repairs to it right of the bat, unless I bought it knowing something was wrong with it and I was going to have to repair it.

Did the seller tell you there was a problem? If not, you know what I would do.

 

[Mrbobb]

I would run a hardware diagnostic to confirm fan is really broken. Google for exact procedure.

can try raising paypal complaint to get those expenses reimburised ... any thoughts?

I believe if he offers to take it back and refund, he would have fulfilled his obligation.

 

[somethingnew]

I ran AHT ... and it reported error with exhaust...

see image :

now i'm pondering, shall i just wait for pentalobe screw driver 1.2mm ordered to arrive and try fixing the fan ... or order replacement fan already !!! ... ummm ... new replacement fan - $44 ... hmmm