TSSTcorp SH-S222A

hi paul, i have the same problem with mac pro and tsstcorp sh-s222a, any luck fixing the issue?

Sorry to come in at the end of an old topic like this, but I have having almost the same problem as the original description. The difference is that I have a Quad running Tiger and the Apple Shipped HL-DT-ST DVD-RW GWA-4165B is making the same annoying periodic noise as it tries to spin up an empty disc tray.

I recently purchased a new main SATA drive and installed the OS from scratch, so it's very possible that I have my Energy Saver settings much different than I ever had before. Previously, I had been running for about three years with updates only, never a clean install, so my settings had been preserved. This time, I did not clone my drive or take advantage of the feature to move my account over from the old drive. One important different is that I used to have Energy Saver set to never sleep, thinking that this was necessary for Logic Studio Pro to operate fully. However, now I want to save on my electric bill, and I have things sleep after 10 minutes, including the hard drive.

Is there a known issue with Energy Saver settings which might cause repeated access to an empty DVD, even when the hardware is Apple original? (except the new SATA disk drives)

Is there a known issue with Energy Saver settings which might cause repeated access to an empty DVD...

Most often it's the opposite, having a CD/DVD in the drive can cause this.

Try pulling the IDE/ATA cable from the Optical & see if it still happens.

Might try killing iTunes Helper for another test.

Thanks for the suggestions.
iTunesHelper is not running, probably because I rebooted and have not run iTunes yet, but I've heard noise from the CD/DVD a few times today already.
I am in the process of trying it out with the "Put the hard disk(s) to sleep when possible" option disabled. I heard the CD/DVD at almost the same time as a drive spinning up/down, so I thought they might be related.
I won't be able to try disconnecting the IDE/ATA cable without disabling the drive entirely, unless it has a separate power connector (haven't looked). It's actually easier to avoid running iTunesHelper than to open the tower!

iTunesHelper is not running...

Hmmm, in Tiger/.4.x I always find it running, unless you removed it from Login Items, did you check Activity Monitor???

Yes, I did remove almost everything from Login Items - maybe that's my problem? Is it possible that iTunesHelper was keeping it quiet all these years?

Yes, I checked Activity Monitor, sorted by name, and with All Processes selected.

P.S. I had some problems with fans running, so I dusted out the computer and have been very focused on processes, temperatures, and fan speeds. Maybe I nudged a CD/DVD connector while I was in there - but it still reads and burns.

Is it possible that iTunesHelper was keeping it quiet all these years?

The thought crossed my mind too! 😉