Crackling sound from Motherboard on new laptop.

Question

I just got this laptop, a Yoga Slim 7x Gen 11, and started noticing this noise. This video was taken with my phone face down directly to the left of the laptop. I originally asked Claude, and it said the frequency (I think it said 5.4 or something) is a normal sound for laptops to make as long as it doesn't get worse. But I don't fully believe it. Does anyone here have any idea?

The sound only happens when I try to open something new. Like a new app or website. It even occurs as I'm shutting down my device. It almost sounds like an HDD.

The sound is very faint; I can hear it because my room is quiet. But any noise, whether from the laptop or another room, makes it very hard to hear.

Now, I know that this place is for Microsoft-related questions, but I can't seem to get an answer from anyone else on other platforms. I have a local Best Buy nearby, but I don't want to go through the hassle if this isn't anything to worry about.

Since I don't seem to be able to upload a video, I uploaded it to Dropbox. The link is below.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/jk140tgou4t3fwcn502ac/IMG_8229.mov?rlkey=2nt3cd0oz1zi4wpply213ul85&st=zjqx2skl&dl=0

Answer 1

If the sound is coming from the inside of the laptop, not from the speakers, that is mostly normal with laptops, it is the SSD that is making that noise when you are reading/writing data to the SSD, it is very easy to become focused in on the sound once you know it is there, rest assured that is nothing to worry about and does not indicate a hardware or software issue.

Answer 2

Grinding, whining, or ticking sounds are not considered normal fan behavior. If the sound resembles a mechanical noise and happens during app launches or shutdown, that points more to a hardware-related sound than normal audio playback.

For a new Windows 11 laptop, use this order:

1. Check whether the noise is actually coming from the speakers.
   • Select Start > Settings > System > Sound.
   • Under Output, confirm the correct playback device is selected.
   • Turn the volume down or mute temporarily and test opening an app again.
   • If the sound still happens with audio muted, that suggests it is not normal speaker output.
2. Rule out Windows audio processing issues.
   • Go to Start > Settings > System > Sound.
   • Select the active output device.
   • Turn Audio enhancements off and test again.
   • Then select Advanced and try a different Default format.
3. Check the audio driver.
   • Open Device Manager.
   • Expand Sound, video and game controllers.
   • Right-click the audio device and select Update driver.
   • Restart the PC.
   • If the issue continues, uninstall the audio driver and reinstall the latest version from the device manufacturer.
4. Restart audio services.
   • Press Start, type services.msc, and press Enter.
   • Restart Windows Audio.
   • Restart Windows Audio Endpoint Builder.
5. Run Windows audio troubleshooting.
   • Select Start > Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters.
   • Run the Audio troubleshooter.

If the sound is truly a faint physical ticking, grinding, or whining from inside the chassis rather than from the speakers, Microsoft guidance treats abnormal hardware sounds as not expected behavior. If the troubleshooting above does not change it, the next step is service inspection or repair options.

For Surface devices, Microsoft specifically states that abnormal sounds such as grinding, whining, or ticking are abnormal and service options are available. That is the closest applicable Microsoft hardware guidance in the provided material.

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