Suspend HDD with ropes?

ar1speedboy · Nov 30, 2015

My HDD is making really annoying vibrations that stop only when I touch the case or tighten/loosen the screws on my case slightly. The sound just starts again a few seconds later. I hate it.

I've researched online and found that the best option is to suspend my HDD. I don't have elastic chord and I was hoping that I could suspend it with normal rope. Will this cause any issues or is it OK to use? Personally I don't see any problem, but some people are saying that it could cause an issue with static electricity.

Thanks in advance.

Link to image of rope on OneDrive: http://imgur.com/2mmw21v

jimmysmitty · Nov 30, 2015

While it might not cause the issues to happen, it is better to not risk it. I would just go and buy some rubber gaskets to put between the HDD and the drive cage and see if that helps first.

http://www.frozencpu.com/cat/l2/g33/c113/list/p1/Ultra_Quiet-HDD_Silencers.html

mudpuppet · Nov 30, 2015

I'm less worried about static electricity and more worried that you are suspending something with moving parts inside. If it starts to shake or rock and fall out of it's cradle, well then your HDD could now be scrap. A lot of newer PC cases and mounting brackets come with rubber mounting to help reduce noise and vibration. Even a thin rubber washer should help.

jldevoy · Nov 30, 2015

Plenty of people have suspended HDDs with elastic bands, rubber pads would be safer.

plasmastorm · Nov 30, 2015

Get some double sided velcro, stick the HDD to the bottom of the case. Sorted.

ar1speedboy · Nov 30, 2015

mudpuppet :

It won't fall out of its cradle. My PC sits on my desk and barely ever moves, so movement should not be an issue.

jimmysmitty · Nov 30, 2015

ar1speedboy :

The movement of the HDD not the tower. When it spins up and down the centrifugal force can make it move slightly. Hell the vibrations might slowly (along with the heat causing it to dry out more) cut the "rope".

The solution I suggest is a much safer alternative and will make sure nothing could possibly happen to your HDD.

USAFRet · Nov 30, 2015

I've done exactly that with zipties and a 2.5" drive, in a 3.5" drive cage.
Over/under the drive, through the normal HDD mount points.

Worked for about 2 yrs in my wifes PC.

Or..look into rubber isolation mounts.

Or..make sure the drive is actually screwed in tightly.

ar1speedboy · Nov 30, 2015

jimmysmitty :

ar1speedboy :

The movement of the HDD not the tower. When it spins up and down the centrifugal force can make it move slightly. Hell the vibrations might slowly (along with the heat causing it to dry out more) cut the "rope".

The solution I suggest is a much safer alternative and will make sure nothing could possibly happen to your HDD.

http://imgur.com/a/KGJdu

I think this will be good enough, and I doubt that vibrations will be able to cut the rope. To be safe I'll check every now and then, but I think it will be fine.

USAFRet · Nov 30, 2015

ar1speedboy :

jimmysmitty :

http://imgur.com/a/KGJdu

I think this will be good enough, and I doubt that vibrations will be able to cut the rope. To be safe I'll check every now and then, but I think it will be fine.

Zipties would be far, far better than that rope.
That is pretty much exactly how I had the drive installed, minus the padded case.

ar1speedboy · Nov 30, 2015

USAFRet :

ar1speedboy :

Zipties would be far, far better than that rope.
That is pretty much exactly how I had the drive installed, minus the padded case.

The rope made no difference. Absolutely no difference. Not a single thing has changed, even a little bit. Why would zip ties be better?

USAFRet · Nov 30, 2015

ar1speedboy :

USAFRet :

The rope made no difference. Absolutely no difference. Not a single thing has changed, even a little bit. Why would zip ties be better?

No difference in what?
The vibration? Maybe it's just the drive. I have a couple of older HDD's that are LOUD.

Why the ziptie instead of rope? No fibers flaking off, floating around inside the case.

ar1speedboy · Nov 30, 2015

USAFRet :

ar1speedboy :

No difference in what?
The vibration? Maybe it's just the drive. I have a couple of older HDD's that are LOUD.

Why the ziptie instead of rope? No fibers flaking off, floating around inside the case.

The vibration is identical. When I touch the case in the same place, it stops. Suspension won't work, so now I'll need to look at a silencer. Would placing a sponge in the gaps between the HDD and the HDD cage help?

USAFRet · Nov 30, 2015

Are you 100% sure it is actually the drive?

mudpuppet · Nov 30, 2015

I wouldn't look at a sponge. Without being able to see myself (images don't load at work) I would still suggest finding some rubber washers or something like a noise dampening foam mat. If you're touching the case to make the noise stop then it sounds more like something else is loose inside.

ar1speedboy · Nov 30, 2015

mudpuppet :

I don't see what else it could be. If it is something else, how can I go about identifying it?

mudpuppet · Nov 30, 2015

Depending on the PC case, both side may come off. Take them off and look to see if you can find any screws that could be tightened. Look to see if the HD cage is really close to something like the front or side of the case. If it helps, wait till the noise starts then look around and see if when you get in there, if it is the HDD in question, or maybe from that area but again maybe the cage itself.

(headed out for the night back sometime later tomorrow. best of luck)

jsmithepa · Nov 30, 2015

That's one funky drive, what kind of drive is that, or is that just a dummy for illustration purposes?

There is the mechanical vibration that's transmitted from drive's casing to enclosure, then there are acoustic (noise) vibration that bounces off the inside of the enclosure and amplified (fix: rubber inside the enclosure if room permits).

ar1speedboy · Dec 1, 2015

jsmithepa :

It's a dummy, not my actual drive xD

jsmithepa · Dec 1, 2015

ar1speedboy :

I asked because for the "rope trick" to work, the idea is, you are physically decoupling the drive from the enclosure. So for this to work, the 3.5" cage has got to be WIDER than the width of the 3.5" drive. Am assuming you know about this.

ar1speedboy · Dec 1, 2015

I've managed to fix my problem (partially anyway).

I placed a sheet of floor insulator underneath my PC, which has drastically helped with reducing vibrations all over my desk (my PC is on my desk, not underneath). I also loosened two thumb screws that I had wedged in far too tightly into my optical disc drive, which somehow helped a bit (I don't fully understand how; my PC is weird). However, the biggest difference has come from a screw on the back of my case. 3 of my four screws had a rubber like material on them to help stop noise I guess. One of the screws didn't so I rammed the screw through some insulator and then screwed it into the case through the insulator. Together these three changes haven't really helped to reduce the noise from my hard drive, but it sounds much more like a healthy (and tolerable) hard drive noise than it did before, which is great! The noise does still come back occassionally (it just did while typing this, but far less than it used to).

To anyone reading this post, a good way to check if your HDD is the source of your problem is to turn your HDD off using Windows, and see if the vibrations stop. Use suspension if you have the right material, not any old rope like I had, and consider fiddling with the screws inside and outside of your case. Ram them through some insulator or similar material if you have to.

Thank you for everyone who has helped me to solve my problem and has given suggestions and advice. It's been a great help. I also hope this thread can help people with similar issues.

Link to an image of my insulator screw: http://imgur.com/kOoCBJl

popatim · Dec 1, 2015

I have put a strip of electrical tape down the sides of hdd's before, this works as well as rubber insulators but will also insulate along the length of the drive & anything that might be touching it in places other than the holes. Cutting the tape lengthwise makes it an almost perfect fit for the sides of the hdd.

GaryO63 · Dec 8, 2015

If your hard drive is making so much noise that you have to suspend it with ropes,it just may be time to get a new hard drive.

Fin1977 · Dec 10, 2015

Have same issue but my vibrations turned out to be fan related even tho they have rubber mounts, as for my Hdds rubber washers work best insulation tape is a great idea too might I add. Would be a lot quicker and less fiddly than suspension

GaryO63 · Dec 11, 2015

I have a Seagate Barracuda and a WD Black.The WD makes pretty good noise when I'm copying to it.It's the older of the 2 and my main drive is an SSD.I'm soon replacing the 2 mechanical drives with SSD's.Also the WD is hotter,so it's time to replace that one.Or get an external drive.Not sure yet.The less moving parts in the case,the better.

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