Thanks, Katrina! It is definitely a steady, continuous beep, until I cut it off, not a buzz or whine. I'm not someone who opens up computers by myself, but I'll definitely pass that on to my friend who's going to help me out when he gets a chance. Unfortunately, when he was over at my place setting up my wireless network, he couldn't get the case off. This was originally a computer that a guy custom-built himself, so it's quite nice for its age, but it has some quirks.