PowerMac G5 High-pitched Whining Noise

[Gamer9430]

my G5 makes a odd whining noise that appears like it's coming from the back of the computer, towards the bottom. It's high pitched, so some older people and those with bad hearing would probably not be able to hear it. However, i can loud and clear. I hear it more when there are animations on the screen, like the opening of dashboard, or minimizing a window, or even when the screen saver is running. I have no clue what it could be, nor is it a big deal, but I was wondering if anyone else is having this issue and if they were able to fix it.

 

[MagicBoy]

Most likely coil whine.

 

[MacCubed]

Whining

This is a problem with most G5 PSUs. A way to fix this is by going into System Prefs>Energy Saver>Options>Processor Performance:Reduced. This worked for me and a certain model of the PowerMac G5's had this problem and apple replaced the PSUs for free. But Im pretty sure this was for the 1st gen g5's

 

[Gamer9430]

This is a problem with most G5 PSUs. A way to fix this is by going into System Prefs>Energy Saver>Options>Processor Performance:Reduced. This worked for me and a certain model of the PowerMac G5's had this problem and apple replaced the PSUs for free. But Im pretty sure this was for the 1st gen g5's

Well, I did as you said, but it didn't seem to fix anything...

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Most likely coil whine.

What is coil whine?

 

[Xernicus]

I would look into installing Apple CHUD Tools, and set it to allow CPU "napping", which I presume is automatically reducing the clock speed when the processor is not in use (similar to SpeedStep or Cool n' Quiet Technology, I'd figure)

Here's some links for you:
http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/G5/G5_noise_tips.html
http://www.caddpower.com/osxchirp.htm

Depending on the specs of your PM G5, I may also have a PSU replacement available, which I know for a fact does not chirp/whine/hiss.

Cheers!

 

[Gamer9430]

Thanks for the links, I didn't get a chance to look at it last night, but I will today. Anyway, how hard is it to replace the PSU? Because if I can't fix it, I would do it, but I thought the replacement process is painstaking, and I'm sure I don't have all the right tools to do it

 

[MagicBoy]

What is coil whine?

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

 

[Gamer9430]

well i finally went and installed the CHUD settings and it worked! There is no more chirping and its great. Is there any risk in having NAP mode off?

 

[proxyLain]

I would look into installing Apple CHUD Tools, and set it to allow CPU "napping", which I presume is automatically reducing the clock speed when the processor is not in use (similar to SpeedStep or Cool n' Quiet Technology, I'd figure)

Here's some links for you:
http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/G5/G5_noise_tips.html
http://www.caddpower.com/osxchirp.htm

Depending on the specs of your PM G5, I may also have a PSU replacement available, which I know for a fact does not chirp/whine/hiss.

Cheers!

Do you know why that high-pitched metallic noice even happens?
I had that problem on my first G5, that was a dual processor that I got when it was kinda new. I even returned it for "reperation" because of it.