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New HDD making awful squealing noise when I start up games.

Tags:
  • Gaming
  • Desktops
  • Hard Drives
  • Computers
  • Storage
  • Games
  • Western Digital
Last response: in Storage
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September 5, 2014 2:58:13 AM

Hello, I recently finished building my new gaming computer around a month ago and I'm starting to encounter a hard drive issue (or so I think). My computer has three hard drives: an SSD (boot device), a WD Black 1TB, and a small Seagate I took out of my other computer. The WD Black is the one I'm addressing.
Since the first time I turned on my computer, I suspected something may be wrong with the drive. I would hear little "thumps" here and there, and after checking the rest of the computer, I confirmed it was a hard drive. I assumed those were just normal hard drive sounds though because the drive was reading and writing completely fine, and aside from the thumps, it was overall quiet. If it means anything in this situation though, the thumps I hear from the hard drive sound similar to the sound sample of "unstable heads" here. My hard drive doesn't stop spinning though.
The WD Black has most of my media files (pictures, music, etc), most of my programs, and is where I planned to primarily install my games. I installed a few games already onto the WD Black; however, as of recently, I have mostly been playing the couple games I installed on my SSD.
Anyway, I decided to play one of the games I installed on the hard drive (Sims 3). As soon as the loading screen came up, I hear a high-pitched screech from inside the case. The screech became 10x worse as soon as the game hit the main menu; It actually hurt my ears a little, no joke. As soon as I exited the game, the screech stopped and the hard drive went back to how it usually behaves. I was confused, to say the least.
I'm thinking it's time for an RMA. It's odd though because the hard drive loaded the game pretty quickly. It's still reading and writing fine, and the S.M.A.R.T tests said the hard drive is in good condition. I thought it would be behaving more erratically if it was failing. Regardless, I backed up the data.
I was wondering if I could get a second opinion. Should I call WD for an RMA, or do you think it's possibly something else?
Thanks for reading.

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a b G Storage
September 5, 2014 4:56:22 AM

While it may be a bad hard drive, I would look at something else first. Occasionally, a hard drive may be in contact with the metal case, and the transmitted vibrations sound like something os broke. You can check it by running the computer with the case off, and trying to reproduce the sound. Then put your hand on the drive, and see if that makes the sound go away, The fix is to place those felt dots or foam strips onto the drive to prevent the vibrations from being transmitted and amplified.
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a b G Storage
September 5, 2014 6:57:32 AM

Hey there, sprophet!

I'm truly sorry that you are facing such an issue with the WD Black!
I found a link that might help you determine if the noise is normal or not: http://wdc.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/568
It's good that you already have the backup solution implemented.
The squealing is usually a sign of a mechanical problem within the drive. It may be unstable heads but it may also be the actuator arm or some other component, it's hard to say. However, it seems that you've bumped into a defective drive.
Just because it's reading/writing fine and tests healthy, doesn't mean that it's not going to die sooner or later. There are cases when HDDs with abnormal noise run for months, even years but I personally would RMA as soon as possible. You mentioned that you recently build your rig, so your WD Black should still be under warranty services. Here's a link to how to get a replacement: http://wdc.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/8/
You can also directly contact our technical support: http://support.wdc.com/contact/contact.asp?lang=en

Hope I was able to help you!
Best of luck!
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September 5, 2014 3:02:56 PM

digitaldoc said:
While it may be a bad hard drive, I would look at something else first. Occasionally, a hard drive may be in contact with the metal case, and the transmitted vibrations sound like something os broke. You can check it by running the computer with the case off, and trying to reproduce the sound. Then put your hand on the drive, and see if that makes the sound go away, The fix is to place those felt dots or foam strips onto the drive to prevent the vibrations from being transmitted and amplified.


Thanks for the suggestion. I tried what you said and unfortunately, there was no difference in noise.
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a b G Storage
September 5, 2014 3:55:27 PM

sprophet said:
digitaldoc said:
While it may be a bad hard drive, I would look at something else first. Occasionally, a hard drive may be in contact with the metal case, and the transmitted vibrations sound like something is broken. You can check it by running the computer with the case off, and trying to reproduce the sound. Then put your hand on the drive, and see if that makes the sound go away, The fix is to place those felt dots or foam strips onto the drive to prevent the vibrations from being transmitted and amplified.


Thanks for the suggestion. I tried what you said and unfortunately, there was no difference in noise.


Mechanical issue. RMA the drive then.

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