My Raptor just got so dam noisy!! It never shuts up!!

[rHy0]

Ok, when i first got my new system up and going with my Raptor 150gig in it the noise levels were very tolerent, but just about 2 weeks or more ago my Raptor has been so noisey! Now i wouldnt care at all if this was just during a loading of a game or a virus scan, but its going none stop, even at idle on the desktop! Every couple of seconds thered be this small grunt from the drive and its driving me insane! And when i do simple this like open a folder it goes crazy as if its loading a game or sumthing!!? Ive done loads of different kinds of diagnostics tests and health checks on my Raptor and it passed them all so its just simply the dam noise! Are any other Raptor owners having this problem??

 

[nannerla]

Check to see if like a screw or something fell off it or if u used brackets that they are not broken.
O and has it been defragged?

 

[rodney_ws]

I would be inclined to think it's not the Raptor... my 74 GB Raptor is fairly loud when it's in use, but otherwise it's silent... that said, even when it's not "in use" it's still possible that it's vibrating the components used to mount it... make sure all of your screws are tight. If the cage it's in snaps into place, see if there's a screw hole that would allow you to bolt that thing down. Could be something that simple. Why not open up your case and put your hand on the drive while it's being noisy to see if that calms the noise... if that works, it's vibrating against something else.

 

[rHy0]

Yeah its been defragged bout twice in the last 2 weeks. The last defrag i did was around 2-3 days ago. Why?

 

[ecosoft]

Having read your "symptoms" my first question is ... what code is initiating the furious disk seek actions?? Something must have "happened" code-wise between your initial OS install and when the noisy stuff started, didn't it? If the problem is the Raptor itself, it's got an iron clad 5 year WD warranty ... I've had two 37GB Raptors totally replaced due to broken SATA connectors no questions asked.

Try opening Task Mgr and click the Processes tab ... then, open another file, while watching which process is glomming the CPU cycles ... that'll lead you to the code, which you will want to check the properties page of ... does it belong in your OS and/or installed apps, or not?

Good luck Dude

 

[nannerla]

Yeah its been defragged bout twice in the last 2 weeks. The last defrag i did was around 2-3 days ago. Why?

The head would have to move more to pick up files and make more noise if it was fragmented.

 

[Codesmith]

Is the drive vibrating or making a loud noise when idle. Leave the drive connected but pop it out of the case. Boot to CMOS Setup (aka BIOS). If its vibrating/rattling like mad then something is wrong with the spindle/bearings/motor and its needs an advance replacement RMA fast.

If its just making the regular Raptor seek noises, but more often then you have a software problem. Its not the hard drives fault its just doing what it is told.

Something is causing a lot of random read/writes to occur, and the read write head is dutifully dancing all over the hard drive in response making those gurgling noises.

Quickest way to tell a software from a hardware problem is to backup your currrent OS and then restore from a image taken when everything worked perfectly.

If the problem goes away its software. If the problem stays then it must be hardware.

If you don't do OS backups then now is a good time to start. My favorite for OS backups is True Image 9 for $35.

 

[slimbones]

Let me guess. Kind of like a cha-chunk over and over, pretty quiet, but still there. It goes away if you don't do anything, but as soon as you move the mouse or something it comes back?

My 74Gb Raptor does that. The first one I installed sounded like it was grinding corn after installing Windoze XP (which was the fastest OS install I have ever seen, about 35 minutes) and then the system died after being up for only a few hours. I took it back and replaced it with another, which has been running non-stop for over a week now, but that cha-chunk is usually there while I'm working.

My guess is that is is normal OS operations occuring, reading/writing and updating info on the HD. Get a quieter case or some silent drive enclosure or just turn up the tunes a bit. And, of course, back up your data regualrly just in case...

 

[Artmic]

Let me guess. Kind of like a cha-chunk over and over, pretty quiet, but still there. It goes away if you don't do anything, but as soon as you move the mouse or something it comes back?

My 74Gb Raptor does that. The first one I installed sounded like it was grinding corn after installing Windoze XP (which was the fastest OS install I have ever seen, about 35 minutes) and then the system died after being up for only a few hours. I took it back and replaced it with another, which has been running non-stop for over a week now, but that cha-chunk is usually there while I'm working.

My guess is that is is normal OS operations occuring, reading/writing and updating info on the HD. Get a quieter case or some silent drive enclosure or just turn up the tunes a bit. And, of course, back up your data regualrly just in case...

Interesting, i just noticed my drive is doing the same thing, except it is a 120Gig Maxtor and it is quiet, but the hard drive light blinks every second or so, what the hell is the OS doing ?

 

[slimbones]

Windows has so much going on, it's hard to say. Program update checks, network traffic, you name it.

Bring up the Task Manager. Go to Processes and watch all the stuff that runs. Pay attention mostly to the CPU usage column.

I'm not an expert by any means. That's just my guess. The Raptor drives are spinning so fast, they tend to be a bit more noisy on those real quick Drive accesses. That's why I chose a Raptor for my System drive. The faster the system can do it's business, the more time for doing MY business.

 

[choirbass]

as far as monitoring hdd activity in the tast manager... under the Processes tab, go to View, then 'Select Columns...', put a check next to 'I/O Reads, I/O Writes, and I/O Other', and then click OK... under those 3 colums, you should be able to see which processes are doing the most drive accessing

 

[slimbones]

Nice tip! Thanks.

 

[incinerator]

Cool HD monitor program

This program actually tells you what is accessing your HD. Its very usefull to figure out what is going on. The download is at the bottom of the link. Its freeware and very nice. I use it all the time to figure out what programs are raping my hard drives.

Good luck, hopefully this will shine the light on your problem.

-][nCiNeRaToR-

 

[hybrid09]

Mine is pretty loud when writing something in my Shuttle, but also I forgot to install shock pads so it doesn't vibrate the table all the time.

Try loosining/tightening some screws or seeing If it's vibrating against something.