Help: Best hard drive replacement for 27" iMac?

[ataylor]

My previous iMac 27" had a hard drive fail this week and I got a replacement (I guess they didn't want to wait for a replacement drive to come in, who knows). Problem is, this hard drive also makes the ticking noises, although not quite as loud or as frequent, and it also makes a louder whirring noise than I've heard on a Mac in a long time.

So I'm a little bit skeptical about this hard drive as well, and I'm considering replacing it. What is a good option that will be quiet and reliable? I don't want to spend a lot of money, so solid state is probably not an option. That said, I don't need a ton of space, 500GB to 1TB would probably suffice (the current drive is the 1TB, it's the base level 27" iMac).

Also, how much would I expect to pay to have this installed by an Apple authorized repair center?

Thanks.

 

[Hellhammer]

WD Caviar Blue

What I've heard, it costs around 200$ to replace it. If you're still within warranty, then they may do it for free

 

[ataylor]

Will they replace under warranty it even though it's a brand new replacement unit for a failed hard drive on the previous one -- and just because it's more noisy than I'd like?

Although I do home recording sometimes (vocals and guitars) so a quiet unit is important to me. My 24" iMac was silent. Unfortunately the display sucked which is how I got the 27".

Yeah, I've had a bad string of luck with my iMac. Yet I'm typing this from a flawless 27" at work...

 

[Hellhammer]

Will they replace it even though I just got the new unit and just because it's more noisy than I'd like? I do home recording sometimes (vocals and guitars) so a quiet unit is important to me.

If it's noisier than it should, then they will, for free. They won't likely let you use your own HD though so you'll get what they have

 

[ataylor]

In regards to the whirring noise, how can I be sure it's the hard drive and not fans? It comes on right away when I turn the computer on, whereas my experience with fan noise is that it tends to be something that comes on a bit later once things heat up.

Any ideas?