SOLVED How to quiet a noisey HD?

[TrainableMan]

I am not looking to replace it but I have a 500MB HD that is quite loud. I have two of these HDs and cases and both are quite loud so I know it is just the nature of this HD combined with the case acoustics. I have in the past moved one of these noisey HDs to a new case and it helped a little bit but now I bought another and I realize it is the nature of this HD.

When windows starts indexing it can get annoying (I do not want indexing turned off so that is not a solution), especially when I'm sleeping right next to it.

I am fixing this up to sell it so it won't be MY problem forever but what I am looking for is ideas others may have used, short of filling the case with cotton to muffle noise inside the case.

My plan is to try moving it to a different bay and to find some spongy material, like a table placemat, and put it around the drive. Should I be worried this will make it too hot?

Ideas please.

 

[clifford_cooley]

My plan is to try moving it to a different bay and to find some spongy material, like a table placemat, and put it around the drive. Should I be worried this will make it too hot?

You may can make rubber washers or such for reducing vibrations at the mounting screws. Sometimes the case will amplify the drive noises. If you can soften the space between them, you may cut back on the amplified sound.

I would never wrap a drive with anything that will trap heat. This would be the total opposite to drive cooling. I have read many places that heat is the number one cause to drive failure. Wrapping the drive would be the worst thing you could do to the drive.

Out of curiosity, what is the drive maker and RPM's?

 

[catilley1092]

You make an excellent point, Clifford. Heat is one of the leading causes of failure in many electronic devices, be it a computer component, stereo equipment, you name it. In my younger days, I had two separate car amps fried by heat, as well as an in dash high powered Sony AM/FM/CD player in 1998. Crutchfield replaced my Sony, but the amps were my loss.

 

[Nibiru2012]

Is the drive making a lot of clicking noises? Would it be vibrations instead?

How old is the drive? What type of sounds is it making?

 

[TrainableMan]

It is the sound of the seek arm as it moves in and out. Lots of clicking. When I got the first one my thought was man this is a headcrash waiting to happen.

It is a Hitachi Deskstar 500GB SATA 7200RPM and was shipped in a Gateway desktop, ship date Apr 2008 making it about 2 years old. I do not have the other computer in hand to verify it is the same but since it also came in the exact same style Gateway case (although a different MB/chip) and sounded just the same and because it is one of the 3 available HDs in that model, I suspect it was also the Hitachi. (Too bad really because the other options are WD and Seagate).

I just pulled it out of the case after loading Win 7 on it and man this baby was hot. So I definately wouldn't put anything around it but I will try to add some rubber washers between the HD and the mounting cage.

 

[clifford_cooley]

If this is the correct data sheet - http://www.hitachigst.com/tech/tech...E61A0/$file/HGST_Deskstar_P7K500_DS_FINAL.pdf

I just read through the data sheet. The data sheet doesn't say much for the noise level control of the drive. Some drives have features that you can change for adjusting the acoustics of the drive. I may have looked over it but didn't see any such feature for that drive.

 

[TrainableMan]

Well I have turned it upside down and slipped some felt buffing pads between the mounting cage and the HD. I don't think it really did much for the sound but hopefully the extra space in the cage will help cooling. Its a two HD cage and the bottom of the HD was almost against one wall so I moved it towards the middle with the most extra space now being under the HD)

 

[Veedaz]

Hi TrainableMan

There are a few things you could do, use a computer case soundproofing pack, install silent Hard Drive mounting, use rubber grommets mounting the Hard Drive etc, there are quite a few firms that sell such stuff via the Net.

 

[TrainableMan]

To hear the soothing sounds of this HD indexing, turn your volume up and enjoy ...
http://user.pa.net/~trainableman/Hitachi.mp3
arghhhhhhhhhhh.

Given the chance avoid this HD! Quite honestly I plan to now avoid all Hitachi HDs. I'm used to WD, Maxtor, and seagate and there I shall stay.

 

[clifford_cooley]

Are you sure that was your HD. Sounded more like a herd of horses. :lol:

Yeah I know that wasn't funny.

I have a Seagate 500GB 7200.12 and honestly, I can not hear the drive unless I have my ear on the case.

 

[Nibiru2012]

I just pulled it out of the case after loading Win 7 on it and man this baby was ho

Sounds like your hard drive is starting to go out on you if it's getting hot. One of the first signs is all the clicking you're hearing.

I use Samsung hard drives and they're silent basically. Same for WD, Seagate and Maxtor (although Maxtor is now owned by Seagate).

Spend $50-60 and get a new hard drive. Trying to "sound isolate" the drive won't reduce the clicking noises hardly at all.

 

[Veedaz]

I cant hear my Drives if I do have my ear on the case ..... three OCZ Vertex Series 120GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drives

 

[Nibiru2012]

three OCZ Vertex Series 120GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drives

Now that's funny!

 

[yodap]

Got video?

Please tell me you're running a model train nearby.

 

[TrainableMan]

I bought this to tweak (upgrade video, memory, add extra usb ports, and install win 7) and resell so I can't put an extra $50 into it as I will be lucky to break even with my quote as it is.

And as I said I bought another one of these that was exactly the same sound and I refurbed that one for my niece, so I believe it is just these harddrives. I will recommend regular backups and if they go bad w/in 12 mos I guess I'll replace 'em.

 

[TrainableMan]

BTW Veedaz, In my experience solid state drives are very noisey ... every time I get near one I keep hearing Ka-ching! and loud moans from my wallet

 

[Veedaz]

As I keep telling my wife - (Money is a tool to be used)

 

[catilley1092]

As I keep telling my wife - (Money is a tool to be used)

Now, that would go a long way to quietening your hard drive, provided you carried it to the right place.

 

[TrainableMan]

I have modded the case a little, adding an extra case fan and changing the way the HD basket is mounted so that the new fan will blow over it.

When I got it out of the basket this time I looked it over and I believe it is designed to get hot as the underside appears to be a triple plated heatsink.

I still don't like the heat or the noise.

So the HD to avoid people is Hitachi Deskstar SATA 3.0 GB/s 7200RPM 500GB capacity Model HDS725050KLA360.

 

[TrainableMan]

A final follow-up and I will mark this thread solved.

I have delivered the computer to the buyer, I spent 9 hours at their house migrating data, installing programs they like, setup and testing the printer, and testing the joystick with Flight Simulator

Since the HD finished search indexing it is much quieter, plus I put the side back on the case. It does seem the noise was just the intense indexing it was doing at initial set-up and now it isn't really noticable.

With the heat from the HD, the quad cores, and the HD4850 this will make a nice foot warmer for his wife in the winter months. I have pretty good circulation with the case mod so it rolls out the back.

Thanks for all who posted or laughed.

Hmmm, clifford it doesn't give me the option to mark it solved, is this because I'm the last poster? If you could please mark it SOLVED.