My chipset fan dies on ASUS board

**masada** · February 4th, 2006, 03:48 PM

Everytime I boot up my computer my chipset fan will go for a little while and then just die on me. Sometimes I can kickstart it by flicking it, but it doesn't go for to long. As of now my temps are fine and it hasn't caused any issues, but I'd like all my hardware components running fine. I have a ASUS A8N-SLI board. Any help would be appreciated.

**xpuser357** · February 4th, 2006, 04:54 PM

You may need to replace the fan. If you have to flick the fan to start
that is not a reliable part for your computer.

**slavedriver** · February 4th, 2006, 06:17 PM

Originally Posted by masada

Everytime I boot up my computer my chipset fan will go for a little while and then just die on me. Sometimes I can kickstart it by flicking it, but it doesn't go for to long. As of now my temps are fine and it hasn't caused any issues, but I'd like all my hardware components running fine. I have a ASUS A8N-SLI board. Any help would be appreciated.

Yep had many of ASUS's MB fans with this problem.. your choice is to RMA the MB, add your own fan.. the MB still runs fine with the heat sink.

**houseisland** · February 4th, 2006, 07:45 PM

I have had a good degree of success with Zalman chipset heat sinks. If you have good case ventilation, you might get away without a fan. The reduction in noise is nice, too.

http://www.zalman.co.kr/

**Garak** · February 4th, 2006, 09:41 PM

Replace the fan, sounds like the bearing has gone.

If that doesnt work, power the fan via the psu rather than the mtherboard.

**slgrieb** · February 5th, 2006, 03:50 PM

Definitely bad bearings, and Zalman, Vantec, and others make replacement heatsink/fan sets. Frankly, I this is just a ploy some mainboard makers use to signal that you are Getting A Serious Performance Board. More marketing than substance. I'd just unplug the fan, and let the heatsink act as a passive cooler. If your case is running in any reasonable temperature range, the fan simply isn't needed.

**masada** · February 6th, 2006, 01:40 PM

Sweet. Thanks for all the help guys.

**confus-ed** · February 7th, 2006, 03:22 AM

Originally Posted by slgrieb

... Frankly, I this is just a ploy some mainboard makers use to signal that you are Getting A Serious Performance Board. More marketing than substance..

Nope, I can't agree with that, adequate cooling on your motherboards chipset, is probably as important, if not more so that cpu cooling in terms of operation, as its pretty easy to appreciate why matters 'break' when the cpu is too hot, but far harder to pick up all those 'random' glitches caused by an overly warm system board & chipset..

If it has a fan & that isn't now working, it wants replacing.

**masada** · February 7th, 2006, 03:12 PM

Originally Posted by confus-ed

Nope, I can't agree with that, adequate cooling on your motherboards chipset, is probably as important, if not more so that cpu cooling in terms of operation, as its pretty easy to appreciate why matters 'break' when the cpu is too hot, but far harder to pick up all those 'random' glitches caused by an overly warm system board & chipset..

If it has a fan & that isn't now working, it wants replacing.

Uhh so should I go ahead and buy another fan and replace it myself? One of the above posters said to buy a heasink; is that similar to a cpu heatsink requiring me to apply thermal paste?

**xpuser357** · February 7th, 2006, 06:17 PM

Yes you need a fan and it is the same thing (Heat Sink) for your CPU

**confus-ed** · February 8th, 2006, 11:53 AM

Originally Posted by masada

Uhh so should I go ahead and buy another fan and replace it myself? One of the above posters said to buy a heasink; is that similar to a cpu heatsink requiring me to apply thermal paste?

So you can rma the board as Asus know all about this fault (I've sent about 1/2 a dozen of them back myself) - as you suggested you could also replace the fan yourself (tricky to source just one fan the right size though 'cheap', I'd have thought) - or if you are absolutely convinced you have adequate cooling in your case you could just fit a heatsink (again same problems 'sourcing' as before - as it needs to be at least a 'reasonable fit' to avoid shorting anything) & attach that with the same thermal gloop as you might use when fitting a cpu heatsink - I will say, again, though, that if was designed with a fan there, then that bit gets too hot for just a heatsink, or that's exactly what asus would've put there in the first place

.

Personally I'd recommend you return it, as any 'diy' on it voids any remaining warranty

**confus-ed** · February 8th, 2006, 04:09 PM

Originally Posted by OMGmissinglink

.. nope you do not apply thermal paste.

Well what do you think he should attach it with then ? - because that's generally what you stick a heat sink on with, as its designed specifically to transfer heat from one bit to another..

**confus-ed** · February 8th, 2006, 04:51 PM

I'm not telling him to attach a fan with thermal gloop

, but a new & bigger fanned heatsink, if he must ..

Perhaps OMGmissinglink, you should try & apply your grey matter slightly when reading ?

**slgrieb** · February 9th, 2006, 07:36 PM

Well, -ed, I think the operative phrase "is adequate cooling" for your chipset and I think passive cooling is well up to the task. I've run different boards with the same chipset; some of which have active cooling, and some with passive cooling and just see no problems in systems with the same CPU, overall hardware demand, etc. etc. related to differing cooling methods. Sorry, a fan for the chipset is a marketing ploy and the system will perform fine without it given basic, decent case ventillation.

I've seen many boards where the chipset cooling fans quit with never a clue that the fan was going south other than noise, or doing some routine maintanence and discovering that the fan didn't turn. Nor have I ever seen a mobo with performance issues which could be resolved by replacing a passive heatsink with a HSF.

AND... -ed, before you tell me that I'm a wise-*** know-it-all; my wife got there first today!

**slgrieb** · February 9th, 2006, 08:43 PM

Masada, what this means is that we all have different opinions on many issues. I think you'll be fine with no fan on the chipset. But, if you prefer, by all mean just buy one! Not much money involved, and if you are more comfortable with a working fan, by all means get one! I believe the old saying; "Opinions are like a**holes. Everybody has one, and most of them stink!" is true. Never said mine smells like a rose.