If you have speakers on your computer you probably know that by turning them loud it’s possible to hear noises that come from leaking currents and poor component shielding inside computer. That noise patterns match computers load and differ depending on task.
I was quite surprised when I once noticed that alike sounds came from a computer without connected speakers or headphones. Seems strange, but considering how power hungry modern GPU/CPUs are it should be possible that high currents produce magnetic fields that find something to vibrate.
But recently working with Cycles I noticed that one of GPUs produce quite distinct clicking when live preview is active. Having played with miniature relays some time ago I remembered that exact same sound. Clicks occur every time the viewport sample count is updated, which seems logical, as GPU power might go down idling for a split second at that moment. It might be just a curious observation, but it made me worry, because mechanical relays usually live 10K-100K switches, which at 2 clicks per second is not much.
@NinthJake No no - those noises in headphones are completely harmless. I’m worried about clicking as it’s most likely a mechanical part that might wear out.
Well, sort of high frequency clicking but very soft and almost inaudible. Nothing has burned yet though I cringe too when I hear them. I have to stress that ‘yet’ refers to years of use so I wouldn’t worry too much.
I can hear it quite well even when it’s working on the CPU. But my hearing is degrading as I age so it’s not as prominent as it was, say, 10 years ago. I still have computers and video cards that work from that time, so I’m not sure if it’s doing any real damage. It is also a testament to a quiet PC, because if you have loud fans it’ll be hard to hear it.
Yeah my PC also makes makes weird noises from time to time. When I have just booted and it’s still cold I often hear (though almost not audible if you don’t pay attention) high squeal from my GPU when ever I move mouse, the pitch also change a bit if change my mouses position report rate :p. When the thing warms up a bit you don’t hear it anymore lol. The GPU squeal is most audible when I do the Blender viewport benchmark, or anything that’s very high frame rate (100 fps +). I’m not even sure where all the noises come from, but I think my ram can also make sounds xD When I did crystal disk bench mark using a ram disk I again heard pretty wicked sounds coming from my PC. Another case is when I do fluid simulations, you can hear the PC chewing the calculations and pauses when it moves to the next frame - I just hope the chewing sound doesn’t come from my HDD
@Matej Mo if the sounds are of electronic not mechanic nature then there’s nothing to worry about (if something does happen it’s a faulty component, not something you do). And “screeching” looks like electronic to me.
If I go into shading nodes and tweak some shading parameter (anything that triggers render restart) very fast it sounds like “screeching”, but it’s actually one “tick” for each render restart that happens. So it sounds more mechanical, similar to what you have described.
But it does happen only with Cycles and only if “sample as lamp” is enabled in the World tab. And it didn’t happen in 2.63 (even with “sample as lamp”)
Noise that comes through your speakers is nothing to worry about. It generally happens with mass produced non-pro gear (most computer equip falls into this) that have poor grounding/shielding. Voltage leaks to ground and very low levels and can create the noise you are hearing on audio systems (Pro Audio folks spend $$$ trying to get clean grounds).
Clicking or buzzing that changes with video load usually is the fan on your video card. It may have a bad bearing or be rubbing against something. If the bearing is bad and it’s a new card that would come under warranty repair.
@dancerchris yeah, that’s what I posted originally. But the question was about noises coming not from speakers and as immediate consequence of program actions, so it can’t be a bearing. I wonder if it’s possible that graphic adapter manufacturer used mechanical relay in power control?
But speaking of cooler - ESC of RC outrunners produce sound through vibrating coils of motor. The cooler seems to be the same outrunner kind of motor. Could it be that card power control voltage spikes affect cooler controller so much? Not likely, but I’m just running out of ideas