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Mac Pro: Quiet or Noisy?
- Thread starter Curren~Sea
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Did you try taking the RAM out and replicating the problem? That way you would isolate it to that.
At the moment, only taken it out and re-seated everything, since it seems to be mechanical rather than theermal...but that is, I agree, the next logical step.
My Mac Pro with X1900 is barely audible. When I play WoW, the graphics card whirs slightly more, but it is still much quieter than ANY PC I've had in the last five years.
Same here, with the Mac Pro in my signature. I was working on some pretty heavy PhotoShop files today and the box never got noisy at any point.
Since noise is so critical to what puts food on the table for you, I suppose you would be willing to consider anything reasonable? To begin with, I sit with my 2 PM's and 1 MP directly under the table in front of me. I have 2 LaCie Ethernet drives and they are the only noise I hear when my MP is the only computer running. So, I think the standard MP can be quiet by default. However, I have a couple extra long DVI cables. They would allow me to move the MP 10' away from me. That would be pretty quiet. You can get DVI cables that go 150'. That would allow you to move the computer a loooooong ways away from you. USB can go at least 150' as well. So, you can work in a very quiet environment and only incur minimal cost.
http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/5/167706.html
http://www.cablestogo.com/product.asp?cat%5Fid=1521&sku=39993
http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/5/167706.html
http://www.cablestogo.com/product.asp?cat%5Fid=1521&sku=39993
Just got my Mac Pro. I updated from an iBook G3 that was absolutey silent. Like 0 decibels. This new Mac Pro, it's silent, but not THAT silent. I can hear it all the time, it's like a mmmmmmm sound, a constant humming. I think that it are the fans? Is that normal?
I did the EFI update, heard the fans take off like a jet, to return the way they are now, the constant humming. It sounds like my brothers dell.
Basically, I have found that my Mac Pro is just barely above the sound of my iBook G4 (but only when the iBook's fan is not running!)
That being said, the hum I hear is from the hard drives; I believe this is totally normal.
After only one week, my take on the new Mac Pro (which replaced my 2G G5, which had very noisy power supply fans - !) is this:
For the power, performance, and sheer ability, the new Mac Pro is by far the quietest desktop I've ever used. True, my sensitive ears can pick up the hum of the HDD, and can detect a gentle rush of moving air, but bear in mind that I use it in a most "deafeningly-quiet" environment, and can detect even the slightest audible sound.
For a computer that's basically a "Mini-Server", you won't get anything quieter, IMHO!
Is there a quieter solution? Of course, but this is the only one I've found to date, and it's a PC-only solution: http://www.endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e/std/sku=tnn_fanless_p4.html
Again, just merely my opinion; hope it helps someone...
What graphics card have you got in the Pro?
Sean
Just the base NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT.
Most of the noise issues are either the X1900 XT or the hard drives. What drives are you using (if you don't mind my continued nosiness
)?Sean
When I installed my second SATA drive, I noticed that when I first pushed it in, it made a crazy loud humming noise. I realized that it was vibrating the case a little so I gently tapped it with my finger until it was nudged into a spot where it stopped vibrating against the case. All is well now.
Most of the noise issues are either the X1900 XT or the hard drives. What drives are you using (if you don't mind my continued nosiness
Sean
Not at all.
In addition to the stock Western Digital 250GB drive, I've installed a Seagate ST3200822AS (186.31GB); my experience with Seagate drives has been relatively quiet (just a slight hum) and relatively cool.
I may experiment with a WD Raptor at a later date, realizing that it's an audible screamer.
My only complaint with the Mac Pro has not been with the hardware, but with the lackluster encoding performance of iDVD 6.x, due to its stingy and quirky CPU allotment (another story for another time...)
From the start, my 2G 2.0MHz G5 was a royal pain in the ears due to the twin whirring 60mm power supply fans; it's been two long years, and I couldn't be happier with my new Mac Pro! No doubt cooler running Intel chips along with full-size, low-rpm 120mm fans have made this all possible.
Hope this was helpful!
Just One More Thing -
I've noticed that many of the posters here have made reference to "humming" sounds with regard to the operation of their HDDs within the confines of the Mac Pro case:
IMHO, I've noticed that while the construction, fit, finish, and quality of materials is very good with regard to the new Mac Pro case, no doubt any metal-to-metal contact between any of the HDD caddies and the frame of the computer could certainly cause a mechanically-amplified hum; perhaps reseating one or more of these HDD caddies (or removing the unused ones) would help to alleviate this audible anomaly...
I've noticed that many of the posters here have made reference to "humming" sounds with regard to the operation of their HDDs within the confines of the Mac Pro case:
IMHO, I've noticed that while the construction, fit, finish, and quality of materials is very good with regard to the new Mac Pro case, no doubt any metal-to-metal contact between any of the HDD caddies and the frame of the computer could certainly cause a mechanically-amplified hum; perhaps reseating one or more of these HDD caddies (or removing the unused ones) would help to alleviate this audible anomaly...
I tried that experiment and it cost me $30 restocking fees. I couldn't stand the seek noise. I used the Raptor as a boot/OS drive and whenever I did anything that required writing or seeking data, it make a loud clickety click noise. Launching an application, it sounded like microwave popcorn was cooking inside of my computer. When you consider the price vs noise vs size vs the drive space, I just don't think it's worth the investment. If I were a gamer who needed fast disk access, AND if my environment wasn't so quiet, then the Raptor might be okay. Although, I think in that case a person would be better off with a RAID0 for about the same price.
Nope, sorry doesn't work. I'd list everything I've tried but I don't feel like typing that much. The major problem is that whenever you get the drives tweaked so that don't hum or buzz, it doesn't last. I can get my Mac to the point of no buzz, but then it will return on it's own after a restart, or wake from sleep... or while just sitting there doing nothing. I'm dealing with it by giving it a swat, or giving one of the handles a quick jerk whenever it starts humming and that takes care of it for awhile. However, it always comes back. Like now... excuse me, I have to go smack my computer...
Okay, that did it. I jerked on one of the handles and the buzzing stopped. I know, something inside is loose, but I can't find it. I think it's the way the sleds were designed. There is no way to lock them down and they eventually pickup a buzz. If two or more drives start buzzing in harmony they really create a weird resonating sound. It's the mating call of my hard drives!
Does it help if you tap on the sled a little to nudge them into a spot where it stops humming?
I thought the Seagate drives didn't have a built in Acoustic Management system? That's what I heard anyways. I have 2 250GB Western Digitals that have the AAM option.
I WISH THERE WAS A UTILITY FOR THE MAC THAT COULD CHANGE THAT SETTING!!! Sorry, it's just a pain to install Windows for one tiny thing.
Two things.
1) My Mac Pro with my X1900 is very quiet. Not as quiet as with the 7300GT, but it's not super loud. It's MUCH quieter than my friends PC with an X1900XT.
2) For years I have been purchasing small O-Rings from the hardware store and installing them where the hard drive meets the chassis, or other metal surface and it really helps to reduce noise. The other thing that can help to reduce noise is to defragment your hard disk.
1) My Mac Pro with my X1900 is very quiet. Not as quiet as with the 7300GT, but it's not super loud. It's MUCH quieter than my friends PC with an X1900XT.
2) For years I have been purchasing small O-Rings from the hardware store and installing them where the hard drive meets the chassis, or other metal surface and it really helps to reduce noise. The other thing that can help to reduce noise is to defragment your hard disk.
I have the Mac Pro 2.66GHz with the ATI1900XL.
Normally, the hard drive is the noisest thing on the machine.
Occasionally you can hear the ATI 1900XL spin up. This happens when I'm playing WoW in 1900x1200 on my 23" LCD with every single option turned to max everything.
If I turn it down a tiny bit, the fan on the ATI never spins up. When it is on, it's momentary here and there.
Playing UT2004 for an hour with everything at max detail I never heard it come on. WoW just recently started doing that but they also recently changed the graphics engine to give an almost 2x performance improvement in frame rate.
Normally, the hard drive is the noisest thing on the machine.
Occasionally you can hear the ATI 1900XL spin up. This happens when I'm playing WoW in 1900x1200 on my 23" LCD with every single option turned to max everything.
If I turn it down a tiny bit, the fan on the ATI never spins up. When it is on, it's momentary here and there.
Playing UT2004 for an hour with everything at max detail I never heard it come on. WoW just recently started doing that but they also recently changed the graphics engine to give an almost 2x performance improvement in frame rate.
the stock 7300GT is silent. the 1900XT spins loudly upon boot - but even under lots of pressure, I don't hear it.
as reported above, the dang hard drives are the loudest. I put in a bunch of extra Seagate drives - they are much quieter.
as reported above, the dang hard drives are the loudest. I put in a bunch of extra Seagate drives - they are much quieter.
Yep, that helps... for a minute or two. That's how I "fine tuned" my drives to stop buzzing. I opened the side panel and nudged and poked the sleds until the buzz or hum goes away. Then I go back to work until the buzz comes back... then start the whole process over.
What's really quirky, is that sometimes the drives are quiet for long periods of time even though they aren't set to spin down. Today when I woke up my computer it started buzzing. I did a very slight jerk on one handle and it went silent for a few hours. Then I noticed after awhile that the buzz was back even though I didn't touch or move my computer. It's enough to drive you crazy! Like you know how when you first get a new computer and you treat it very gentle like it's such a precious beautiful thing? Well, I was like that with this MacPro at first.... now because of the buzz, I feel like giving it a swift kick like it's a bad dog.
Will this help with the humming and buzz? I'm not having trouble with seek noise, just the vibrations. Is there an "anti-vibration" control panel available?
How do you get the WinAAM to work on drives that are formatted for OSX? I can't see any of my Mac formatted drives when I'm booted into windows so I don't understand how you can manage the accoustics. Maybe I'll go try anyway... I wonder if it will screw up my data?
Part of the problem it seems is that I mixed drives. I was talking to an Apple guy at MacWorld and he told me his computer drives are virtually silent (no vibration or humming). The difference is that he used 4 identical drives from the same manufacturer. Currently, I have the stock Seagate 160 for OS and applications, Two WD RE 320's setup as RAID0 and One WD SE 500 for storage. I guess my Mac doesn't like diversity.
WinAAM adjusts firmware settings on the drive itself, it does not need to know about anything that's actually on the drive. With regards to whether you could loose data, it is extremely unlikely but you should backup first.
Sean
I have found the WDs to be louder drives in general (as compared to my Seagate 7200.9 & 7200.10s). I can barely hear the Seagates, but the WD sounds like it is transmitting Morse Code. And if you are running RAID0, well, that's doubling the fun.