Hard Drive Static Noise

IMHO, this is clearly a
software problem, so it makes absolutly no sense to
go and swap the computer, much less the HDD. Even if
you do not hear it anymore, the processes will
continue to access the HDD.

Today i decided to swap the original 160G Seagate Barracuda drive against a 500G Western Digital Caviar WD5000SK, which got very good reviews regarding the operating noise. The reason to swap was - of course - not the noise, but the size - i was running out of space on the original drive.

All i can say - the reviews are correct: This drive is basicly noiseless. Even if multiple tasks are gaining access to the HD, you have to put your ear on top of the computer's case to hear anything. No comparism against the noisy Seagate drive.

So guys - if you want a really quiet computer, try to avoid the Seagate drives.

Cheers

Achin


iMac 17" Core Duo Mac OS X (10.4.4) owns also a bunch of PPC Macs

I posted something like a week ago abt this, my HD screams at me! and there was even static electricity coming out of my speaker! my iMac *****... 😟

I can assure you that what you're hearing is the normal noise of the hard drive seeking data. The Barracuda 7200.7 was (and continues to be) a very popular model of drive, so I've seen and heard quite a few.

Yes, they are more noisy than other modern drives. The reason is that Seagate stopped using Acoustic Management (AAM) to save on licensing fees. But Seagate drives are highly reliable, so I wouldn't say "avoid Seagate" at all...

I've returned the iMac twice, they finally changed it for a Western Digital, no more noise. I suggest to everyone to return them.

how do I go about checking what type of drive my mac has? I have the same static problem and am curious if it is due to a seagate drive that I might have.
Thank you!