UX360UA - swap fan, difficulty?

Got the UK version of the UX360UA and on occasion it has started making a slight buzzing noise when the fan speed increases.

I was wondering how difficult access to the fan is? I have looked online and sadly can't find any images of this machine with the bottom off. And I'm not sure what similar/sister models there are for comparison.

It is under extended warranty, but for the fan it seems a bit of a hassle loosing the use of it for however long it would take Asus to sort it out. Thanks for any advice.

 

It probably has a bad bearing now therefore it's highly recommended to replace the fan. Check with the service center and see if you can obtain the fan instead of sending the system in.

 

I accidentally bumped on this thread.
The part you'll need (fan) is Delta Electronics NC55C04.
I got my UX390UA from Amazon US as I prefer US Layout keyboard. Got it on March 2017 and haven't a single problem with it. Still as good as new (Core i7/16Gb RAM/512Gb SSD).
You can check the disassembly process here

 

Despite being a hassle, it could lead to a free repair if it is under warranty coverage without having to purchase the part. Tampering with the computer could void what remains if something serious has the potential to come along.

 

Were you able to get it to work as planned?

 

Blimey, I forgot I had posted this thread as it remained silent for quite a while

Thanks to @Polter for that website link. Though the fan in mine seems to be the NC55C01

I did eventually find a website called asus-accessories, and paid them for a fan, and since then haven't heard a peep out of them. I paid by paypal so will open a dispute, but I know Paypal are a bit rubbish at times when it comes to sorting out stuff like this.

Thankfully that site looks legit. I was missing that NC part number before and only had a really long one which didn't throw up much in Google. Edit: scratch that....just looking on their facebook page and a fair few complaints from people not receiving items and they haven't responded at all. What is it with these companies???

I spoke to Asus again and they want my laptop for roughly 2 weeks or so, which is just too long. It has to be sent off overseas somewhere else in Europe supposedly :/ Can't believe they don't have registered repair centres in the U.K. That's just rubbish!

edit: actually, another reason I didn't check back, is that the noise stopped almost as soon as I had posted here. It only started again yesterday. I have a feeling if I can get to the fan, I can lubricate it with some high melting point thin grease that we used to use at work in car cd/tape player repairs. It's a lovely white lubricant that would do the job nicely I think.

 

2 weeks is a normal turn around time for many regions, including US/Canada, sometimes 1 month for out of stock parts. This issue includes MSI too.

 

Keep in mind that since it's a fan it's necessarily going to have a lot mode "stuff" going through it than a CD player or tape deck. If the grease picks up too much dust it may have the opposite effect you're looking for.

 

Yeah I'm talking about stripping down the fan and lubricating the spindle/bearing, and sealing it back up. I've done it with small motors at work

edit: well despite my scepticism, the fan I ordered actually just arrived in the post. It's a wonder these tiny things shift any air at all! Impressively quick delivery time though.

Of course, my fan is now silent again, so I'll wait off changing it for now

 

Well, to answer my own question.....it was a doddle! No security seals, no rubber feet to peel off. Just the screws there ready to be undone.....with a teeny tiny torx driver.

I was a little bit concerned that I might need to remove the heatsink, but turns out there is enough wriggle room. So whole job done and back together in 20 minutes

 

Nice, so it's running well I presume?

 

Fingers crossed...so far yes I'd forgotten just how quiet the fan can actually be. The one I removed was really clean...not a bit of dust on it, which surprised me. It feels solid so must have the absolute tiniest bit of play in it that caused the buzz.

 

Make sure to clean it up once every few months to ensure the best life expectancy and quietness of the fan. There are reviews of users who complained about every single notebook products out there with noisy fans but guess what? All they needed to do is repaste and cleaning of the fan and vent.

 

Hi there!
Sorry it took me so long to answer back.
What I meant was that my Zenbook 3 has never developed any weird fan sound.
Glad I could help you with the part No and the dissassembly process.
I've opened mine once, just to remove dust and see if there was a way to improve heat dissipation so that the fan would not be so active.
I've got some heat pads to stick on the heat pipes so that they spread some heat over the bottom of the case but haven't tried them yet.

 

Well, this didn't last long! This replacement fan is now making the same noises that the original one was, and it's roughly 6-7 months old

Looked around the internet and the only place I can source another one, is from the same place as last time. Another £50 odd spent. This is going to get expensive if they keep wearing out this fast.

I guess it may be time to start looking for a fan-less laptop instead...save me all this hassle.

 

Have you tried cleaning the fan up to see if it helps? Or it's totally out?

 

Sadly it is nice and clean. Considering I leave this machine running 24/7 I'm amazed at how clean it is inside. Like...virtually spotless!!

Having said that, the fan has gone quiet again!! I decided to put it to sleep for an hour or so the other day while I wasn't using it, and when I switched it back on, the fan had gone back to being silent.

New fan is arriving today so at least I have my backup ready. Always makes me nervous when fans get noisy in case they give out when I'm not around.

 

Have you tried undervolting as well as repasting of thermal compound?

 

Hadn't thought about undervolting to be honest! Will give that a try. Not too sure about thermal compound. I'd like to try it, but once you get the bottom half of the case off, it's quite daunting stripping it down enough to do that job.

You can fortunately fudge changing the fan, but other than that, there is some serious dismantling involved. Not that I'm incapable, just means a LOT of work