Power Brick clicking noise - Normal????

Hi, Just noticed this when I had my power brick sitting right next to me. When im browsing the internet using my scroll wheel to go up and down a web page by power brick makes a clicking noise. Is this normal as this is my first laptop in 6 years or so.

Thanks

 

I have had the clicking noise on all the laptops I have owned. I think it is normal. I mean I hope it is

 

I don't think that this is normal. I haven't heard how exactly your power brick is clicking, but that could be either a thermal protection relay or electricity shorting/sparking, both of which would be bad. Does your power brick get really hot? If so, then it's most likely the thermal relay if it has one.

In either case, I would be looking for a power brick replacement.

 

I think author means the clicking of the power brick and not the laptop. Is that right? If you meant the actual laptop makes clicking noises, then it's probably the hard drive head and that is normal.

 

Yes it is the power brick that is making the clicking and it only does it when it gets real hot. Should I rma for a replacment? Any others have this problem if it even is a problem?

 

Ok, then it's most definitely the thermal relay kicking in for protection. Now, where do you have your power brick? Is it "in the open" or maybe you have it covered with some cloth? Is it laying on a bed, thick carpet, or on other piece of cloth?

Also, I assume it gets very hot even if you are using your laptop "lightly", i.e. browsing the Internet. Is this right?

 

Right now its sitting on a wood table. Nothing on top of it. It has tons of room. Its almost like a spring noise. It does it every so ofter then im scrolling up/down a web page. It seems really weird to me. It was even doing it right after I started the computer and the brick was still cool to the touch. But yes even when doing nothing it gets pretty warm.

 

From what you have said there are 2 possibilities now:

1) The power supply is faulty, can't handle the load, and quickly overheats.

2) Something is wrong with the power rectifying circuit inside the laptop itself and causes unusually high load for the CPU. This can mean that the laptop must be RMA-ed.

To rule out issue #2 you could try using an identical power supply and see if clicking issue persists. You need to find a power supply with:

-same wattage
-same voltage
-same polarity on the plug

See if you have a power supply around the house and could test it with your new computer.

You could also most likely get a compatible power supply from a local radio shack or so.

On the other hand, if you don't want to bother with all of this you could RMA your whole system and get a different one, but here's my opinion on RMA: from my experience, RMA may take a while and there is a chance that you will get back a laptop with even more problems (just a chance, but still...).

Therefore, I would try a new power supply. If your new/compatible power supply will also make such clicks, then there is no other choice but to RMA the laptop and hope that you will get a "normal" one in exchange.

 

Mine does the same thing...

normal? I don't know

If it's bad I need to get it exchanged or replaced ASAP.

I first noticed it in a hotel room, plugged into the wall socket and brick was on the desktop beside me.

Sounds like a spring or relay clicking in power brick, while typing or scrolling/clicking around in a web page

 

My laptop just got back from rma so I will try the first one I think.

Thanks for the help

 

Ok at least someone else has this. I only noticed it because i had to put the brick next to my for like 10 seconds.

 

May I ask what's the model of your laptop?

 

G73JH - A1

 

OMG!

I have a different laptop, G51vx, but just for the kicks I've decided to see if my power supply makes such clicking.

First, I've listened to it while browsing and didn't hear anything. Then I've ran Furmark and guess what... I could hear clicking of approximately 7-10 times per second. Now, this clicking is very very very quiet. I had to put my ear against the power supply surface to hear it. And I'm not deaf (a musician btw), but i couldn't hear it from 0.5 meters away.

I don't know if your clicking is louder than mine, but if you wouldn't tell, I would probably never ever noticed it.

Also, and most importantly, my power supply doesn't make any noise unless it is under heavy load (Furmark). It doesn't get hot while browsing either. So, there's still a chance that your power brick is flaky. You could try a different one to see if it behaves the same or ask more people with G73JH if majority of their laptops do that even without any load.

 

Yes same for me would have never noticed it unless the brick is within 2 feet of my ear. I might wait for more people to chime in before I call asus to get a replacment.

 

Put my ear to mine,and it just hums....

 

So, how hot does your power supply gets while under load and while browsing? Do you have a digital thermometer to measure it?

I will browse for half an hour, then measure the temperature of my power brick and post the results. Of course, it would be much more useful if people with the actual G73JH would post their feedback too.

 

No digital thermometer but it's not painful to touch it,will act as a nice feet warmer when winter comes

 

Thats about as warm as mine gets.

 

How interesting, mine does the same thing. I have sensitive hearing, so I've heard "springy" noises occasionally but shrugged it off as vibrations affecting speakers... now I know it's actually the power brick! What makes it interesting is that it really only does seem to happen when scrolling down a webpage - my system is backing itself up right now and my 3 HDD's are spinning quite fast, but it isn't sproinging.

prem, my brick seems to have the same temperature ("quite warm", it feels like ~40c, sort of like touching the dashboard of a car sitting in the summer sun) while idle as it does under load.

Let's see what we have in common? Mine was shipped with an A2 made in may, the part # on it is FSP150-ABBN1, and it seems to do it less frequently if it is on it's side.

 

Ok, my power supply's temperature after half hour browsing is 40 C or 104 F. Definitely a nice feet warmer. lol.

So, I guess there's nothing wrong with you power supply and no need for RMA, which is very good.

 

Oh, forgot to add that I double checked: my power brick doesn't make any noise at all unless under heavy load such as Furmark or Crysis.

 

I have a g73JH-A1, and I also hear the clicking, but only when i use the scroll wheel on the mouse. My power brick gets warm, but not unusually hot by any means.

 

So I gues the clicking, when i use the scroll wheel on the mouse is used is normal. Good to know thanks guys

 

Here's another interesting thing that I have discovered. I have a power inverter in my car that makes 110 volts out of car's 12 volts battery. The other day I had to sit in a parked car for an hour and I decided to use that inverter with my laptop.

I have found that my power brick starts making clicking noise right away (even without plugged into laptop) and much more loudly with car power inverter, than from a wall outlet.

There is a sticker on the power inverter that say "non-sinusoidal alternating current". So, now I'm thinking that maybe there is a relation between how sinusoidal the AC is clicking of the power adapter.

 

I do hope you realize that the cigarette lighter ports for DC12v output are limited to a max 130-140w max draw, and using a gaming machine like the G73JH through that can cause you to short out the port. (It can pull 172W occasionally)

For my G73 usage in my truck,I use my inverter's alligator clip connectors to connect to the battery circuit direct, and run the cable to the vehicle's interior.

 

Yes, I knew that and hence I wasn't gaming, but just browsed the internet. Also, that inverter is only 150 watts max, so there's no way I could game on it. It held out browsing just fine.

 

If the battery is recharging, it can still pull quite a bit.

 

i had an ac adapter that did the same clicking noise, and I didn't replace it. Later, the ac adapter wouldn't charge at the same rate, it would just charge my laptop very slowly.
So yea, I think replacing it would be the best option. A good replacement though, not those cheap ones.

 

Could've been your battery was old too though..?

Anyone else find that it doesn't click nearly as much if you flip it on it's side, ie with the little light facing you? It's clicked once since I flipped it, and that was over a week ago

 

Yes, I completely agree. My battery, however, was completely charged. Also, I have a very good power inverter which has overload protection. It starts making beeping noises at >150W and turns itself off at >175W according to the user manual + there's a fuse along the sig. lighter's wire too in my car (not that I'm putting my hopes on it).

Overall I'm very mindful of things like that and I have some good experience in electronics, but I also think it is very thoughtful and kind of you making these remarks about dangers of overloading car's DC. I've seen some car's wiring short and catch on fire before.


Also, a while ago I borrowed a Kill-A-Watt unit to measure all my computers' power consumption (just curiosity). Unfortunately I've lost the spreadsheet that I've made for all my computers, but I remember that my laptop was definitely <100W while not playing and was 165-170 W while running Furmark (just like you said). I haven't tested the wattage while charging battery though...

 

I think this is "normal", my old Gateway FX7811 has the same problem, but it still lives.

 

I don't hear a clicking noise.. its more of a whirring one like the fans in the fridge.