Occasional beeping noise coming from computer.

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around a faint beeping noise that a user hears intermittently from their computer, with participants exploring potential sources of the sound, including the power supply unit and other devices. The conversation includes technical reasoning and personal experiences related to computer hardware.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant suggests the beeping might be from the power supply unit (PSU), questioning if PSUs beep to indicate failure.
  • Another participant counters that the LSP Ultra 550W ATX likely does not have a built-in speaker and proposes that an internal speaker for error messages could be the source of the beeping.
  • A participant mentions that if the computer was off and the beeping continued, it likely indicates the sound is coming from another source, possibly an Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) or a line conditioner.
  • One participant expresses uncertainty about the power supply's operation when the computer is off, noting that it might still be listening for a signal but not actively supplying power.
  • Another participant suggests pulling the plug on the computer to definitively rule it out as the source of the noise.
  • Some participants share personal anecdotes about similar noises from other hardware, including overheating power supplies and graphics cards producing high-pitched sounds under certain conditions.
  • A participant humorously mentions the possibility of an "Annoyatron" device being the source of the noise.
  • One participant raises the idea of "Wake on LAN" as a potential cause for the beeping.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the source of the beeping noise, with multiple competing theories and personal experiences being shared. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the exact cause.

Contextual Notes

Participants express uncertainty about the operation of the power supply when the computer is off and the potential for other devices to emit beeping sounds. There are references to personal experiences that may not apply universally.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to individuals experiencing similar issues with computer noises, those troubleshooting hardware problems, or anyone curious about the behavior of computer components.

leroyjenkens
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I'd say about every 15 minutes or so, a faint beeping noise is coming from my computer. It's really hard to tell where it's coming from, but I'm pretty sure it's my computer. I shut down my computer last night and I believe I heard it in the middle of the night. So I'm thinking it's my power supply. Do they sometimes beep to let you know they're about to go out? On the side of it it says LSP Ultra 550W ATX power supply, if that helps.

Thanks.
 
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I would be surprised if the beeping is coming from the PSU(Power Supply Unit). I looked up your LSP Ultra 550W ATX and it doesn't seem to have any speakers built in for it to beep. A lot of computers come with an internal speaker specifically meant to communicate error messages. Its possible its that speaker that's beeping.

If your computer was turned off and you still heard the beeping then its definitely not the computer, its something else. Do you have a Uninterrupted Power Supply or a Line Conditioner that your system is plugged into? These devices sometimes have a battery and it may be a warning from that.
 
Routaran said:
I would be surprised if the beeping is coming from the PSU(Power Supply Unit). I looked up your LSP Ultra 550W ATX and it doesn't seem to have any speakers built in for it to beep. A lot of computers come with an internal speaker specifically meant to communicate error messages. Its possible its that speaker that's beeping.

If your computer was turned off and you still heard the beeping then its definitely not the computer, its something else. Do you have a Uninterrupted Power Supply or a Line Conditioner that your system is plugged into? These devices sometimes have a battery and it may be a warning from that.

I thought power supplies always run, so if the computer was off, it would still be running.
But if it doesn't have a speaker, I guess that means it's not the power supply.
It is a faint beep, so maybe it's not really a faint beep but a loud beep somewhere far away that I'm hearing.

My computer is only plugged into a thing that let's me plug in a bunch of different things. It's not one of those things that you're talking about that keep your computer on when the power goes out.
And I just heard the sound again. I started a stopwatch to know how long it is in between beeps. My computer is on my right, but I think I heard the sound to my left from another room. My dad has a bunch of gadgets, so who knows what it could be.

Thanks for the reply.
 
Technically yes, part of it is turned on and is listening for the signal from the motherboard power switch to turn everything else on. But not in the sense that I think you are saying. It's not actively supplying power all the time.

The only thing i can suggest to rule the computer out is to "pull the plug" so it turns off immediately and see if you still hear the beeping. If you do, then its definitely NOT the computer.
 
Routaran said:
Technically yes, part of it is turned on and is listening for the signal from the motherboard power switch to turn everything else on. But not in the sense that I think you are saying. It's not actively supplying power all the time.

The only thing i can suggest to rule the computer out is to "pull the plug" so it turns off immediately and see if you still hear the beeping. If you do, then its definitely NOT the computer.

I'm moving my computer to my new apartment later today. That will tell me 100% if it's the computer or not.
 
yep! that will do it too. best of luck!
 
Could it be http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/8c52/?
 
Could it be this thing?

I suspected that thing in the first post haha

In the past i have had a 1000wtt PSU beep due to it getting overheated and it was on its way out, although it was not just a short beep, its a constant Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep type of thing (stays beeping for the entire time)

Also it may be your graphics card, i have had a 7600gt, 9800gt and a GTX275 all make a high pitched noise when FPS goes above 100, to fix this turn on Vsync.

Only the lower quality graphics cards do this and it is very frustrating.

If its going while your pc is turned off. most likely it is the Annoyatron. just open up your rig and make sure its not in there haha.
 
Wake on lan?
 

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