[XBOX X] Fan RPM goes up and down permanently (4K)

Instead of the fan constantly running, they let the CPU getting warm until a certain threshold, and then spin the fans until the temperature drops under that threshold, then stop, wait until temperature is up again, then stop and so on.

I understand the noise that you hear, as my two Xbox One X (Scorpio Edition) consoles do the same, depending on the game running.

Sometimes it's 10 to 20 seconds until the fan spins up, or as you say every one or two seconds.

The fans doesnt stop & go...they change their speed like a sine wave. every 1 or 2 seconds. for example 3000 rpm....5000 rpm...3000...5000...and so on. That sounds awful. I'd rather if the fans are working the whole time @ 5000. That would protect my nerves.


I've never heard such a behavior (never ending sinus wave) before. It sounds more like a software/firmware problem.

This is normal. Not many games mine does this but Red Dead Redemption2 is one of them. It's a high resource game requiring a lot of power.

Is your xbox in a well ventilated space?

Personally, if I'd just purchased it I'd consider returning it for exchange and not risk it burning out on me.

I have a One X and never notice that much of a difference in fan noise, even if I'm running 4k, Enhanced, or UHD.

Without hearing it I would not consider the described behavior "normal".

This is normal. Not many games mine does this but Red Dead Redemption2 is one of them. It's a high resource game requiring a lot of power.

The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt GOTY is another I've noticed make the fans spin up, but not as much as RDR2 which seemed to constantly spin when there was lots going on.

XB1X 4K UHD

If it's of any help: My Xbox One X also turns the fan on and off periodically when rendering 4K games.

The hardware designers probably were of the opinion, that a constantly faster spinning fan is more annoying than a temporarily faster spinning fan every now and then.

So this behaviour is by design and not an error.

The reason is, that 4K content requires more processing power, generating more heat. Heat which has to be dissipated by more airflow.

If the noise of the fan is that disturbing, your only solutions are to turn up the volume of your TV or surround sound system, or to use headphones that you plug into your controller's headset plug, which has the advantage, that you can turn on Windows Sonic
for Headphones, which will then give you spatial 3D audio, just like Dolby Atmos, without the need for a high end surround system.