I recently built a new PC and have been playing games on it, but I've encountered a problem. After playing for about 1-2 hours, the PC shuts down suddenly. I noticed the PSU has a burning smell and discovered that the fan doesn't automatically turn on under high load. When I blew on it in frustration, it started working, but now it only activates when I blow air on it after idling for a bit. The PSU is a Gigabyte UD850GM, and I'm looking for solutions to make the fan turn on automatically without having to replace it. Any suggestions on how to fix this?
5 Answers
1. Is your PSU brand new? If so, just return it! A burning smell means there's something seriously wrong.
2. Where did you purchase it?
Sometimes, there's a specific voltage needed for the fan to start spinning. It could be that your fan is failing, or the power delivery to it is off. You could replace the fan yourself with the proper safety measures, but only if you know what you're doing.
Yeah, many PSUs have a zero RPM mode nowadays, but they should still kick in under high loads. Sounds like something's not right. If you're comfortable with it, doing an RMA could be the best bet since it seems like the PSU is potentially faulty.
Honestly, if I'm smelling burning from a PSU, I wouldn't take any chances. It's the most critical part of your setup, and it's potentially dangerous. Since it's new, definitely contact customer support for an RMA. They may send a replacement before you even ship the faulty one back.
You might want to check if there's a button on the back of your PSU that toggles a "hybrid" mode. If there isn't, don't stress too much about it. It sounds like your PSU might have issues since you mentioned that burnt smell. Have you checked your CPU and GPU temperatures? That could be a factor too! Also, consider reaching out to the manufacturer for support or an RMA.
Unfortunately, there isn't a button for hybrid mode on this model. The CPU temps are in the 80s and the GPU is around 60°C under load, while idling they're about 45°C. The smell is definitely coming from the PSU, especially near the power cable input.
Yes, it is brand new. I thought the smell would go away if it cooled properly. I ordered it from an online store in Hungary.