M17X Fan problem

Hi all,

I've had a few completely idiotic moments in which this forum helped greatly (Forgot to turn my raid0+sli on in bios after an update, etc), but I havn't been able to find someone with my current problem.

Everytime I turn my computer on, or leave it running idle (as in, not fragging some peoples requiring the fans to be moving quickly), it seems like the far left fan just sounds odd... I've looked at it from the outside, and didn't see anything - I also opened the main panel (which shows the HDDs, etc) but also couldn't see anything in the fan. I don't quite have a screwdriver to open up the GPU panel, but I figured I would ask incase there was something else that could be wrong.

Basically, it sounds like the wheels on a bike if you put a card into it or something - as if everytime it spins around it's hitting something very light. When it's at full speed the sound is completely gone, and the fans sound completely fine. On occasion, at startup, this fan will seem like it's gone into ultra turbo, and I immediately shut down my computer ASAP, because it literally does seem like it's abouit to explode or somethig - it's THAT loud.

I guess my question would be, has anyone else had this problem/is it a problem I can solve without going and buying a screwdriver to open the side panels. Advice on how to solve it if I do have to go into the panels would be greatly appreciated, too.

Incase it matters, my system is as follows:
M17X
Win 7 Ulimate 64
RAID 0 640gb hdd
QX9300 processor
SLI GTX 280Ms
8GB DDR3 RAM@1333MHz

Thankes ahead of time, and please do excuse the extreme stupidity in my question .

 

Seems as if it's just defective. I've had that sound where the fan is clicking but that was because the fan was dying.

It's standard procedure for a fan to blast it's max RPM's due to a brief test of whether it works effectively, or even at all.

You can try compressed air blowing towards the center of the fan (the bearings, wires etc...)

Hope you get it fixed : )

If I could measure my fans decibel rating I would, what are your temps?

 

Well the best bet is for you to open the machine up yourself and physically remove/inspect the fan. It might have been defective a long time ago and just becoming a problem now. It should be easily replaced if it's not a serious issue.

 

happened to me b4 on my right gpu fan. I called alienware and they send a technician and replaced both left n right gpu fans in 2 days. u should give it a try.

 

I'll check it out when I get a chance... there's no way in hell a technician will get to my house within 2 days, as I'm in Canada right now... it's tricky to find the igloos since they're the same colour as the snow .

 

It's also best if you can do the repairs yourself as not all techs are trained to disassemble the Alienware line.

 

I'll try that out, thanks. Oh, and, by the way, and this will really enforce my stupidity, I think it might actually be something in the fan due to the fact that my kitten, not long before this problem started, literally lached his claws into the back of the laptop when I stepped out of the room (because of the heat, obviously) and when I took him out of the grating(sp?) I think a chunk of his nail got stuck in there, and somehow may have made it way to the fan... anyway, I'm searching my house for a bloody screwdriver right now... thanks guys ;P

 

One of my fans was replaced (in 2 days as well and I'm in Canada )
Just call them!
You didn't answer, what are your temps? You can use a variety of progs (HWMonitor, HWinfo32, GPU-z, Everest, etcs). If there's no difference between the two cards, I'd not worry much, but call the anyway.

 

I'll probably call a tech soon, then...

Also, sorry, forgot to answer that, I havn't been running the computer long or anything, but you didn't specify conditions - the 280Ms are at 42&47 degrees..., :|

Edit: After running a game, the 280Ms are at 67&38 degrees... damnit ><

Also, I'm looking at the documents that were included with the purchase... all of them say the parts, etc that were shipped, nothing has the code/product information for the warranty, but I know for a fact I bought the more expensive 2 year warranty... anyone know where I could find proof of this somewhere? :|

 

ur invoice should haf the proof that u haf purchased the warranty u mentioned. for part no., u might wanna go into dell's website, go to their support page, n choose 'warranty status' on the left side. after that, go to 'original configuration'(or somthing like that), all the no. for ur laptop should b listed there.

 

5c difference when idle is fine. The game you ran was utilising a single card, you need to either update the SLI profile or run a different game with SLI support. 67C is fine @load.