5 Ways I spot PC fans on their last legs
It's easy to diagnose a dying fan if you know what you're looking for.
Besides a few innovative open-to-air case designs, an overwhelming majority of PC cases still rely on case fans to move air through the case and over warm components, such as capacitors. Similarly, CPU coolers also use the same fans optimized for static pressure to push air through radiator fins or around heat pipes and heatsinks. With the exception of a few air coolers that rely on the airflow in the case alone, PC component design is now standardized to use 120 or 140mm fans in most mini to full-tower chassis.
