solution for 'Still no luck with HDD noise'

[Tinus]

I recently posted a couple of problems with different HDD's in my Z60-2529 EPG.
Since I wasn't satisfied with the idle noise of the sata 80 GB Toshiba (which was a replacement of the Hitachi 5k100), I bought myself a Samsung HM040HI 40 B single platter, s-ata.
This was a big relief in idle noise!!

BUT: the old spin up - spin down problem was back! (the same with the Hitachi). Moreover: the samsung doesn't spin down after the Power Management period (same as with the first Hitachi 5k100).
The Toshiba drive doesn't have these problems. It shuts down, it has no pulsing spin up/down noise....but had a too loud hissss sound.

WHAT's GOING ON ??? I really getting sorry I bought myself this notebook.

I tried all the settings. In Bios, Power management, disabling it all.
I also used a tool of samsung (HUTIL) and tried all the settings of the Acoustic Managment (even disabled it). I even set the SATA- mode back to UDMA133. This all reduced overall idle spinning noise, but the spin-down/up issue...It's driving me grazy. Also tried the Notebook Hardware Control utility...nothing helped. No total spin-down and a pulsing noise. Even when I'm doing nothing for 30 minutes!

Please, can you guys with a z60m listen carefully to your notebooks and tell me if you hear simular noises.
Here is a link to a recording of the samsung spin-up /down noise (used internal mic, so please turn up the volume a bit).


http://home.wanadoo.nl/vanderwijst/soun ... M040HI.wav


Tinus

[GomJabbar]

Is it Tinus or Tinnitus?

[Tinus]

yeah. It's probably someting with my ears...

But strange. I just ask if people can listen to their drivers and tell me what they hear. But nobody seem to have a z60, ears or hd's...still no reply.

[GomJabbar]

I don't have a Z60m. I listened to your wav file, but I had to turn the volume all the way up to hear it. My T42 has a fujitsu hard drive which I cannot hear at all. My old 600E ThinkPad had a Hitachi drive that I could easily hear, and sounded somewhat like your wav file. I did not like listening to the sound of the hard drive, but in the end I just ended up not paying much attention to it. I suspect that your noise problem is more of a hard drive problem, than a laptop problem. But then again, maybe other laptops have more of an acoustic barrier around the hard drive.

Caveat: my job entails going into a loud environment. I do wear hearing protection, but I know my hearing is not as astute as some. One trick to get around your problem would be to put on an AC/DC CD - then you won't even notice your hard drive noise.

[GomJabbar]

I just ran across this thread in another forum of how the user got his hard drive to spin down. Maybe it will work for you. http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=21525

[Tinus]

Thanks. But my bios doesn't have a 'custom' option. I did try all the other options though..even disabling. But still no luck.

By the way, I can imagine you don't like listening to your HD. It's kind of paranoid But, although soft in the recording, this sound is really above my attention threshold, even during daytime/streetsound noises. I like working in silence...and plugin my Ipod would help offcourse...

I think the z60m has a thin acoustic barriere around the HD. That's why I bought the samsung in the first place. Idle spinning noise really is much better...but the stupid parking and not spinning down. Bleh!

[pibelss]

Hi Tinus, I have a Z60m with a TOSHIBA MK6032GSX hard disk. It doesn't make any noise. Maybe some times while it's working too hard I can ear some small noises, but not similar at all to yours.
Does it illuminate the light when you listen to the noises?

[Tinus]

Thanks Pibelss, I have besides the samsung a Toshiba MK8032GSX 80GB s-ata. Lenovo send it me after a Hitachi 5k100 crash. But I still wasn't satisfied about the sound. I couldn't reduce the idel sound which sound like this:
http://home.wanadoo.nl/vanderwijst/sound.html

It's has no parking sound at all, but it does hissss a lot, I think.
Has your Toshiba one platter ? That would make a difference ofcourse.
If you've time left, maybe you could send me a .wav file recording of your hd-noise with your internal mic? (I will leave my email in my profile). I

Does it illuminate the light when you listen to the noises?

No, not always. That's a bit strange isn't it?
The Samsung tool didn't gave me errors, so the drive is in good condition. I'm still wondering if it's maybe my z60m. That's why I hope to get some feedback of other z60m users.

[GomJabbar]

Dumb questions. Are you positive it is not the optical drive making noise? What about noise coming from the speakers? Have you tried using the mute button to turn the speakers off? Is their any change to the sound if you are running off of the battery?

[Tinus]

No, no and no. It's the hdd. Listen to the recording of it (turn up volume). Moreover, replacing the Samsung with the Toshiba: it's gone.

[pibelss]

My Toshiba hard disk spins at 5400rpm. Maybe, your other disks are more slower.

[Tinus]

No, they all spin at 5400 rpm. There isn't a 4200 RPM s-ata drive. (only one, a pretty expensive one).
Moreover, the faster the drive is, the more noise it produces.

It's a bit sad: the Toshiba's are very quiet in seeking and parking noises. But produce a idle (fan-like) noise.
The samsung is very quiet in the idle (fan-like) noise, but produces head-parking noise... A mixture of the two would be great! Maybe the momentus is a good alternative.

Anyone with a Seagate Momentus 5400.2 single platter recording ?

[pianowizard]

My X40 hard drive makes the same noise, about once every 5 to 10 seconds, and each time the hard drive LED lights up briefly. I always thought that's normal but perhaps it's not?

[Tinus]

I always thought that's normal but perhaps it's not?

Well...maybe it is. I try to find out.
But when http://www.silentpcreview.com test a drive and conclude it's pretty silent, I hope I can assume it's 's-ata' brother is also silent and that the noise will be mentioned, if it's a regular phenomenon.

With other words...I don't think it's 'normal' for all notebooks, but maybe for some chipset - HDD combination it is.

By the way. Today I installed Linux on the drive: same problem.

[lj]

the ticking sond in the background you hear is fact a mechanism that moves the heads every to prevent damage. Nothing unusual there, all newer driver will show this slight ticking noise.

I guess there are only 3 option if youwant a more silent machine that you alrady have

1. get a 4200 RPM drive wich you make less noise
2. get a solid state disk. makes no noise at all
3. get back to good ol´ pen and paper

[Tinus]

Nothing unusual there, all newer driver will show this slight ticking noise

.

My Toshiba (80 GB s-ata, 5400rpm - MK8032GSX) isn't producing this noise. And, many people with my notebook or any of my HDD's aren't complaining and don't hear the pulsating/parking noise. Moreover, parking the heads every 5 or 10 seconds isn't a proper way to prevent damage I think. Thereby, SPCR should have mention it, because it's way above audible environment noise. Where did you get this information from?

To reply on your three other options:

1) There aren't any 4200 RPM s-ata drives (only one, very expensive)
2) If I win the lottery I will
3) sure...but since I'm doing a lot more with my notebook than word-processing only, I don't think this is an option. But thank you for your opinion.

[m333333333]

I don't have a Z60M but I can tell you I don't hear any HD noise from my Z60T (Toshiba MK8032GSX). The only way I can heard the HD is when I access the drive while holding my ear right next to the wrist-rest on laptop. And even then the noise is very faint; nothing that could be recorded like you .wav file. If the sound is bothering you so much, why don't you have it checked by Lenovo tech service? They are quite fast. I think it is a worthy reason to go without your laptop for a few days.

[Tinus]

If the sound is bothering you so much, why don't you have it checked by Lenovo tech service?

I did call them. Because I had problems with the Hitachi 5k100 they send me this Toshiba drive. I think it's strange I killed two Hitachi 5k100 drives with Hitachi's Feature tool. But since this problem doesn't occur with the Toshiba, they think there nothing wrong. They think the idle noise is normal.
Also, because pc-diagnostic tools doesn't give any errors, there shouldn't be any problem.

By the way, did you compare the sound with this file?
http://home.wanadoo.nl/vanderwijst/sound.html

This is the idle hsss from my Toshiba.
The other clicking sound - file came from the Samsung drive.
Maybe your z60T has a better acoustic barrier builded around the HDD?

[Tinus]

SOLUTION !!

Thanks to Samsung I'm now running my z60m in silence!!

I mailed Samsung the wav file and they gave me a tool/patch with which I could adapt the APM (Advanced Power Management) features.
Disabling APM settings did help. The headparking sound stopped.
After running the tool I was also able to adapt the APM settings with Notebook Hardware Control. Maximize the APM settings the reduce the noise. After enabling 'spin-down' the noise came back.

So it really was an APM problem.
Now I really can work with my z60m!
Thanks to Samsung: good service!

[Herr Yunta]

Good to hear on your samsung. I have the PATA 5k100 and I chose it specifically because it is about as quiet as it gets and puts out less heat then any other Hitachi drive. Mine runs at the middle acoustic setting as shown in the Hitachi Acoustic management tool or in Notebook Hardware Control. You should try the management tool if you have not already.