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Apple going to do something with the hard drive noise?

cavi

cavi

macrumors regular
Original poster
Sep 19, 2010
151
28
Haifa, Israel
Hi,
I have SG 1TB drive in my iMac and it's really ANNOYING.
I see that Apple says that this is ok and HD should make noise.
I know that HD should make noise but when I use Safari I always hearing this "PAK PAK... PAKPAKPAKPAK... PAK PAK".

I sent feedback to Apple but it's seems that no one there care, they should allow AAM the the hard drive long time ago or fix this problem by different way. P.S, SG has firmware update for this but we can't install it because our HD is Apple OEM:mad::rolleyes:

Now I ask you what more can we do?
It's really annoying to write a work on computer that make "PAK PAK" every second..
 
cavi said:
Hi,
I have SG 1TB drive in my iMac and it's really ANNOYING.
I see that Apple says that this is ok and HD should make noise.
I know that HD should make noise but when I use Safari I always hearing this "PAK PAK... PAKPAKPAKPAK... PAK PAK".

I sent feedback to Apple but it's seems that no one there care, they should allow AAM the the hard drive long time ago or fix this problem by different way. P.S, SG has firmware update for this but we can't install it because our HD is Apple OEM:mad::rolleyes:

Now I ask you what more can we do?
It's really annoying to write a work on computer that make "PAK PAK" every second..
Click to expand...
It's possible you may simply have a bad hard drive. I would take it into the Apple store & have it looked at.
 
wirelessmacuser said:
It's possible you may simply have a bad hard drive. I would take it into the Apple store & have it looked at.
Click to expand...

I took it already and the test was ok.
They say that my computer is fine.
this is my 3rd iMac and the two before this one make the same pakpak noise.

Seagate told me that this is ok and it's not causing any damage to the HD, they also told me that they have firmware update that will solve the problem but as I say before Apple has their own firmware.
there is a lot of topics here and in Apple forum, I keep asking myself why the don't doing something with this problem:rolleyes:
 
Hi all,
I'm new to iMac, but I'm kinda worried about my iMac.
My iMac has audible noise but I'm not really sure if it's from the HDD, I can hear the whirring sound from my iMac.
It occurs occasionally when it is in use and always heard when I launch apps.

My current iMac stats:
CPU: 45C @1198rpm
HDD: 47C @1096rpm

My question:
is it normal for an iMac?
any advice/reply will be very appreciated.

Thank you
 
John T said:
Oh dear! So what on earth has this to do with Apple? :confused:
Click to expand...

Maybe because it's installed in an expensive computer from Apple who does not allow for a user replacement of said drive. OP has a legit complaint. If there is firmware to correct the issue but cannot be applied to the drive because it's an Apple OEM issue, then it has a lot to do with Apple.
 
pixid said:
Hi all,
I'm new to iMac, but I'm kinda worried about my iMac.
My iMac has audible noise but I'm not really sure if it's from the HDD, I can hear the whirring sound from my iMac.
It occurs occasionally when it is in use and always heard when I launch apps.

My current iMac stats:
CPU: 45C @1198rpm
HDD: 47C @1096rpm

My question:
is it normal for an iMac?
any advice/reply will be very appreciated.

Thank you
Click to expand...

Did you spot something in the advertising for the iMacs that states they are fanless? The 'whiring' is perfectly normal and those fan speeds are fine, stop being so anal and enjoy the machine. The noise you hear when starting apps is from the hard drive, from experience I know the Seagate barracuda drive you most likely have in your system is a bit more 'grumbly' than the Western Digital you can also find in that system line. Apple do not manufacture the drives as somebody quite rightly pointed out earlier in this thread, however, Apple do place custom firmware on the drives, the firmware is responsible for speed variations and drive acoustics. Don't rule out an update if this gets enough attention....
 
if you don't want noise ,then dont buy a computer where everything is direct in front of your eyes , ears i mean:) even worse one out of alluminium which acts as a parabolic dish throwing all internal made sounds back towards you.
you did want a fast modern computer , and a fast CPU or GPU needs cooling , and in that slim design thats only possible with fans , so you will hear them , and as you would guess they are right in front of your ears too ,
its just the way AIO computers are designed today , of course they could cool the iMac fanless , but not in that slim sleek unibody case , it would need a lot of cooling fins on the back to cool down a i7 convection cooled

ok my iMac G3 700mhz is really a lot quieter then a modern iMac as it is convection cooled and has one of the most quiet harddrives inside ,

it would be possible in "theory" to fit in a i7 and a lcd and use the rest of the remaining space complete up to the last remote corner of the case for giant heatsinks , then you could possibly in "theory" with a lower clockrate operate a i7 complete fanless ..

but you dont want a bulky back on your iMac , some even say the original iMac g5 was to bulky to look at ,
so you have to put up with fans which are not able to be operated without making any noise and
equally you did order the iMac with HDD instead of the SSD only option,
so you have to put up with mechanical noise from the HDD
 
All Taken said:
Did you spot something in the advertising for the iMacs that states they are fanless? The 'whiring' is perfectly normal and those fan speeds are fine, stop being so anal and enjoy the machine. The noise you hear when starting apps is from the hard drive, from experience I know the Seagate barracuda drive you most likely have in your system is a bit more 'grumbly' than the Western Digital you can also find in that system line. Apple do not manufacture the drives as somebody quite rightly pointed out earlier in this thread, however, Apple do place custom firmware on the drives, the firmware is responsible for speed variations and drive acoustics. Don't rule out an update if this gets enough attention....
Click to expand...

I agree completely. Enough of the constant whining and Apple bashing.
Note to the thread starter: Shut up, use earplugs and enjoy your iMac, or Apple will sue.

Tom B.
 
cavi said:
Hi,
I have SG 1TB drive in my iMac and it's really ANNOYING.
I see that Apple says that this is ok and HD should make noise.
I know that HD should make noise but when I use Safari I always hearing this "PAK PAK... PAKPAKPAKPAK... PAK PAK".

I sent feedback to Apple but it's seems that no one there care, they should allow AAM the the hard drive long time ago or fix this problem by different way. P.S, SG has firmware update for this but we can't install it because our HD is Apple OEM:mad::rolleyes:

Now I ask you what more can we do?
It's really annoying to write a work on computer that make "PAK PAK" every second..
Click to expand...

Try to call Apple Customer Service (or email Steve Jobs) directly. Even the Apple haters agree, that Apple Customer Service is second to none. Or simply buy an SG HD and put it in.

Tom B.
 
All Taken said:
Did you spot something in the advertising for the iMacs that states they are fanless? The 'whiring' is perfectly normal and those fan speeds are fine, stop being so anal and enjoy the machine. The noise you hear when starting apps is from the hard drive, from experience I know the Seagate barracuda drive you most likely have in your system is a bit more 'grumbly' than the Western Digital you can also find in that system line. Apple do not manufacture the drives as somebody quite rightly pointed out earlier in this thread, however, Apple do place custom firmware on the drives, the firmware is responsible for speed variations and drive acoustics. Don't rule out an update if this gets enough attention....
Click to expand...

MacHamster68 said:
if you don't want noise ,then dont buy a computer where everything is direct in front of your eyes , ears i mean:) even worse one out of alluminium which acts as a parabolic dish throwing all internal made sounds back towards you.
you did want a fast modern computer , and a fast CPU or GPU needs cooling , and in that slim design thats only possible with fans , so you will hear them , and as you would guess they are right in front of your ears too ,
its just the way AIO computers are designed today , of course they could cool the iMac fanless , but not in that slim sleek unibody case , it would need a lot of cooling fins on the back to cool down a i7 convection cooled

ok my iMac G3 700mhz is really a lot quieter then a modern iMac as it is convection cooled and has one of the most quiet harddrives inside ,

it would be possible in "theory" to fit in a i7 and a lcd and use the rest of the remaining space complete up to the last remote corner of the case for giant heatsinks , then you could possibly in "theory" with a lower clockrate operate a i7 complete fanless ..

but you dont want a bulky back on your iMac , some even say the original iMac g5 was to bulky to look at ,
so you have to put up with fans which are not able to be operated without making any noise and
equally you did order the iMac with HDD instead of the SSD only option,
so you have to put up with mechanical noise from the HDD
Click to expand...

I didn't say the noise is annoying.
I just wanted to know if it's normal for an iMac, I'm a newbie since this is my first iMac. I was just worried it could be the bad HDD or something.
That's why I asked for advice from you guys.
As you said it is normal for an iMac, then it's ok. I'm happy with my machine.:)
Thank you very much
 
pixid said:
I didn't say the noise is annoying.
I just wanted to know if it's normal for an iMac, I'm a newbie since this is my first iMac. I was just worried it could be the bad HDD or something.
That's why I asked for advice from you guys.
As you said it is normal for an iMac, then it's ok. I'm happy with my machine.:)
Thank you very much
Click to expand...

sorry if it sounded offensive , wasn't meant to be ,but its one of first question it seems that every new owner of a iMac is asking, if the HDD noise is normal
and the second often asked question is if its normal to hear the fans spinning :)

but i agree the seagate HDD are not the most quiet on the market

once i did fit a bigger HDD and because it was cheap i fitted a seagate hdd in my iMac G3, but it made my poor little iMac sound like a foodblender ,
so i thrown that out ;) now with a western digital drive its total silent again :)
 
Btom said:
I agree completely. Enough of the constant whining and Apple bashing.
Note to the thread starter: Shut up, use earplugs and enjoy your iMac, or Apple will sue.

Tom B.
Click to expand...
Tom, everything is OK? don't be angry, I just shared my thoughts and as a question.

I was in Apple store today, they have 2 different iMac 27 in the store and one with WD hard drive and one with SG.
I notice that the WD hard drive also making the same PAKPAK noise but less frequent.

I hope that apple will make AAM for this hard drives...
 
cavi said:
Tom, everything is OK? don't be angry, I just shared my thoughts and as a question.

I was in Apple store today, they have 2 different iMac 27 in the store and one with WD hard drive and one with SG.
I notice that the WD hard drive also making the same PAKPAK noise but less frequent.

I hope that apple will make AAM for this hard drives...
Click to expand...

Oh yes, I am OK. It was more of my answer to the guy basically bashing you ("...how dare you, my computer is perfect!..."). There are however reports of quiet (almost) iMacs and I wish you one. Why you should settle for anything else??

Tom B.
 
Btom said:
Oh yes, I am OK. It was more of my answer to the guy basically bashing you ("...how dare you, my computer is perfect!..."). There are however reports of quiet (almost) iMacs and I wish you one. Why you should settle for anything else??

Tom B.
Click to expand...
Hi Tom,
My iMac is quiet, no fans or screen noise.
I can live with this hard drive noise but it's annoying and more important I really think that it's not healthy.

But on the bottom line I really love my iMac! =]
 
I think MacHamster68 is partly right that Seagates are not exactly the quietest HDs on the market. Go to the Seagate support forum and you can read lots of people complaining. On the other hand, the WD forums have their share of complaints too. I think it might have to do with higher and higher capacities and more exotic electronics being crammed into small HD form factors and computer bodies that is apparently causing increasing noise levels.
 
Apple has no reason to do anything over a completely normal quality that HDDs have.
 
TMRaven said:
Apple has no reason to do anything over a completely normal quality that HDDs have.
Click to expand...

I have two backup HDs: one is a buzzing Hitachi and the second one is a totally quiet WD. So I'd definitely want a "normal quality" WD.

Tom B.
 
Yes it is indeed anoying, my SG has the same clunking sound with every little thing i do.
But it gets better with time, you just get used to it...
altough it does sound like an old car starting its engine when u open up a program which takes away a bit of the magic :)

The Firmware update thing sounds interesting, do you guys think that would really solve the problem?
Actually i don't think it's a software issue

Let's keep the fingers crossed that something does show up
 
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