I have been googling this and trying to figure out what causes it. Different answers, none of which seem to agree with each other. I thought maybe I could get some answers here.
I can't actually tell where the sound is coming from, but I assume my video card.
Nvidia GeForce 7800 GS, 256mb Motherboard: Asus P5PE-VM Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster Audigy Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo 1.86ghz 2048 MB RAM Windows XP Home 2002 Service Pack 3
I have had this problem for many months, but I can't remember exactly when it started. I can't even remember for sure if it started before or after I installed my sound card last year.
Anyway, the problem is that I get a very high-pitched squeal on occasion, though lately, it has become more often: usually a couple times an hour. It used to only happen every couple weeks, and has progressively gotten worse over the last year.
The reason I think it is my video card is that if I put my finger on the edge of the video card, just barely touching it by moving it a hair--the sound stops. After I do this, it may resume a few seconds later, or not for many hours. So the video card's placement in the slot has some effect on the sound. I have also noticed that it does this consistently only on certain video games during the menu screen. I assume this is unfettered frame rate causing it to squeal. It also seems to do it on certain webpages, and simply scrolling down the page can cause it to stop temporarily--again, I suspect frame rate: when the video card doesn't have to put out much for graphics, namely, nothing moving on the screen, it seems to squeal more often in these circumstances.
However, it still is random much of the time. It is highly annoying. The sound makes me want to claw my eyes out and is quite loud. I have pulled my card out and put it back in. I have cleaned the dust. I have ruled out the movement of the video card fan as the source of the noise.
I don't know if there is something I can do to manually adjust frame rate limits, or if it has nothing to do with that. Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks!
P.S. - On very rare occasions, like maybe twice in the last year (including yesterday), my computer video goes completely haywire: a screen full of pretty colors and patterns. I can't tell if my computer is frozen or not, because there is nothing to look at it, but the video is definitely frozen. Restarting fixes this.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
What you're describing sounds like capacitor whine (or possibly EM interference, if pressing on the card -- but not actually seating it any more securely -- makes it stop). If the capacitors on your video card are going, that'd also explain strange video lock-ups like the mosaic patterns you've been seeing.
Posted by Wingracer (Member # 12293) on :
Could also be a fan. CPU fan, Video card processor fan (if it has one) or power supply fan.