Seagate Hard Drive question..

On Wed, 13 Sep 2006 00:18:42 GMT, lynx
wrote:


Maybe I'll run this one for a while then, and see if it 'settles down' a
bit. Might be just because it's new, and the bearings are tight. But my
thought is that vibration is most likely caused by the platters or motor
not being perfectly balanced, if indeed they're balanced at all. Reminds
me of getting an engine crankshaft balanced to prevent vibration.


There should be no break-in period necessary, if the
mechanical parts wore (broke in) that fast, it would also be
a sign it could go out of operational tolerances too soon
also.

wrote:


I spoke to the dealer yesterday, and his comment was that all SATA
drives are noisy- or noisier than PATA drives at least- and that the
level of noise that I was experiencing was quite normal, and is due
mainly to two factors: poor quality of today's drives that are now made
in China, and the much faster data transfer rate of 3Gb/s. He said he
was nevertheless happy to replace the drive to allay my fears.



Yours is beyond "loud" into the realm of "defective", he probably has
no idea just HOW bad your case is, until he hears it himself. It sounds
as if the platter is badly warped. And the SCRAPING noise, would
confirm this. You shoud *never* hear scraping, it's the read head
hitting a warped platter. I wouldn't trust that drive for anything but
a paperweight.




Thanks. That sounds more like what I suspected.


--

rgds,

Pete
~~~~~
'This is like deja vu all over again'

lynx wrote:

I have just purchased a ST3250820AS 250gb
but when I put it in the system, and fired it up,
I noticed how noisy it was. I'm not talking about hard drive
activity, as I haven't even installed a OS on it yet, but rather just
the noise caused by the rotation of the platters. It produced a
humming type noise, and vibration was quite noticeable.

So I'm wondering if this is normal for this drive, or if it's faulty?

I spoke to the dealer yesterday, and his comment was that all SATA
drives are noisy- or noisier than PATA drives at least- and that the
level of noise that I was experiencing was quite normal, and is due
mainly to two factors: poor quality of today's drives that are now made
in China, and the much faster data transfer rate of 3Gb/s. He said he
was nevertheless happy to replace the drive to allay my fears.

Why should SATA drives vibrate more than PATA drives when they're
mechanically identical to each other? What's the name of that dealer?
Because frauds and idiots like that should be exposed.

I think that you were simply sold a worse than average sample because
I've bought Seagates since the Barracuda IV series, and none vibrated
much at all. I recently had a chance to compare PATA and SATA Seagate
400GB series 7200.9 and 7200.10 drives being tested together, and they
were all quiet and hardly vibrated, with no noticeable differences
between the PATA and SATA versions or between those made in Thailand
and those from China. I was interested in these because the 400GB PATA
7200.9 I recently bought (made in China) ran a few degrees hotter than
my 120GB and 160GB series 7200.7 drives, but apparently that's normal.

MY only HDs that vibrated noticeably were all PATA: 120GB Western
Digital (Thailand or Malaysia), 250GB Samsung (unknown origin, in a
Buffalo USB drive), and a 200GB Hitachi (Thailand).

wrote:

I spoke to the dealer yesterday, and his comment was that all SATA
drives are noisy- or noisier than PATA drives at least- and that the
level of noise that I was experiencing was quite normal, and is due
mainly to two factors: poor quality of today's drives that are now made
in China, and the much faster data transfer rate of 3Gb/s. He said he
was nevertheless happy to replace the drive to allay my fears.

Yours is beyond "loud" into the realm of "defective", he probably has
no idea just HOW bad your case is, until he hears it himself. It sounds
as if the platter is badly warped. And the SCRAPING noise, would
confirm this. You shoud *never* hear scraping, it's the read head
hitting a warped platter. I wouldn't trust that drive for anything but
a paperweight.

Wouldn't a drive as bad as that shut down or not be recognized by the
computer?

Isn't vibration more likely to be caused by platters that are
off-center rather than warped? And I've heard scraping noises from HDs
when they turn on or shut down.

"lynx" wrote in
message
...
Swampfox wrote:


"lynx" wrote in
message
...

G'day all. I'm hoping that someone
can shed some light regarding noise
with a Seagate drive. I have just
purchased a ST3250820AS 250gb SATA
drive. (info he-
http://www.seagate.com/cda/products/...81,761,00.html )
This drive is supposed to be pretty
much the bees knees with regards
latest technology, but when I put it
in the system, and fired it up, I
noticed how noisy it was. I'm not
talking about hard drive activity, as
I haven't even installed a OS on it
yet, but rather just the noise caused
by the rotation of the platters. It
produced a humming type noise, and
vibration was quite noticeable. It
even caused the computer case to
vibrate slightly, which in turn made
it's own noise. (modern cases are
made of such lightweight material
that they vibrate and generate noise
more often than not). So I took the
drive out, and just holding it in my
hand to confirm that it was the drive
causing the noise, and how much
noise, I could feel the vibration. I
have other seagate drives (older
models), and they are not as noisy,
or vibrate as much as this one. Also
when I powered it off, and the
spinning stopped, after a few seconds
there was a faint scraping or rattle
like sound for a second or two. So
I'm wondering if this is normal for
this drive, or if it's faulty? (It
would seem strange to me if it is
normal, considering how much Seagate
boast about it's 'whisper-quiet'
operation. But maybe that refers to
just the read/write function). I
can't take it back until next
weekend, but I was hoping to get some
info first. I wrote to Seagate but
they were no help- just referred me
to a warranty page.

Also, if it is faulty, and I'm able
to swap it, would I perhaps be better
off with another make, such as
Western Digital? Are they a quieter
drive?


TIA.



We fitted a Seagate 160Gb SATA drive
to a new PC on the weekend and it made
a high pitched whine for a few hours
then stopped and it's been quiet
since.

Maybe I'll run this one for a while
then, and see if it 'settles down' a
bit. Might be just because it's new,
and the bearings are tight. But my
thought is that vibration is most
likely caused by the platters or motor
not being perfectly balanced, if
indeed they're balanced at all.
Reminds me of getting an engine
crankshaft balanced to prevent
vibration.


Sounded like a bearing but as it was
working OK I planned to leave it until
I had time to get it back to the shop
but now it looks to be OK.
I've had plenty of Seagate drives and
they're normally very good.


I always had Seagate's too, but
noticed that it's only the later more
modern and faster drives that seem to
have this vibration/noise problem.


--

rgds,

Pete
~~~~~
'I don't have a solution but I admire
the problem'


I spoke too soon, the whine's back.
It's going for replacement.

larry moe 'n curly wrote:


wrote:


I spoke to the dealer yesterday, and his comment was that all SATA
drives are noisy- or noisier than PATA drives at least- and that the
level of noise that I was experiencing was quite normal, and is due
mainly to two factors: poor quality of today's drives that are now made
in China, and the much faster data transfer rate of 3Gb/s. He said he
was nevertheless happy to replace the drive to allay my fears.


Yours is beyond "loud" into the realm of "defective", he probably has
no idea just HOW bad your case is, until he hears it himself. It sounds
as if the platter is badly warped. And the SCRAPING noise, would
confirm this. You shoud *never* hear scraping, it's the read head
hitting a warped platter. I wouldn't trust that drive for anything but
a paperweight.



Wouldn't a drive as bad as that shut down or not be recognized by the
computer?



According to the computer boot up screen, SMART is not enabled on my
drives, but there doesn't seem to be anywhere in the motherboard BIOS to
enable it. (???)


Isn't vibration more likely to be caused by platters that are
off-center rather than warped?


That's what I thought.


And I've heard scraping noises from HDs
when they turn on or shut down.




I've checked two other drives both seagate- a 120gb PATA ST3120814A
7200.9, and a 160gb SATA ST3160827AS 7200.7. The PATA drive makes the
scraping noise, but the SATA doesn't. The noise is quite faint. Could it
just be the heads 'parking', or some other aspect of the mechanics?

I often wonder just how careful some dealers are with handling of hard
drives. And of course there's all the transport/shipping/handling before
they even reach the retail outlets. But this drive is definitely going
back! I'm just not confident that I'll then get a replacement that's
good. I'm starting to lose faith in modern hard drives. Someone I know
had a Seagate PATA fail after just six months.


--

rgds,

Pete
~~~~~
'Key ring: A handy device for losing all your keys at the one time'

wrote
lynx wrote:

G'day all. I'm hoping that someone can shed some light regarding
noise with a Seagate drive. I have just purchased a ST3250820AS 250gb
SATA drive. (info he-
http://www.seagate.com/cda/products/...81,761,00.html
) This drive is supposed to be pretty much the bees knees with
regards latest technology, but when I put it in the system, and fired
it up, I noticed how noisy it was. I'm not talking about hard drive
activity, as I haven't even installed a OS on it yet, but rather just
the noise caused by the rotation of the platters. It produced a
humming type noise, and vibration was quite noticeable. It even
caused the computer case to vibrate slightly, which in turn made it's
own noise. (modern cases are made of such lightweight material that
they vibrate and generate noise more often than not). So I took the
drive out, and just holding it in my hand to confirm that it was the
drive causing the noise, and how much noise, I could feel the
vibration. I have other seagate drives (older models), and they are
not as noisy, or vibrate as much as this one. Also when I powered it
off, and the spinning stopped, after a few seconds there was a faint
scraping or rattle like sound for a second or two. So I'm wondering
if this is normal for this drive, or if it's faulty? (It would seem
strange to me if it is normal, considering how much Seagate boast
about it's 'whisper-quiet' operation. But maybe that refers to just
the read/write function). I can't take it back until next weekend,
but I was hoping to get some info first. I wrote to Seagate but they
were no help- just referred me to a warranty page.

I spoke to the dealer yesterday, and his comment was that all SATA
drives are noisy- or noisier than PATA drives at least- and that the
level of noise that I was experiencing was quite normal, and is due
mainly to two factors: poor quality of today's drives that are now
made in China, and the much faster data transfer rate of 3Gb/s. He
said he was nevertheless happy to replace the drive to allay my fears.

Yours is beyond "loud" into the realm of "defective", he probably
has no idea just HOW bad your case is, until he hears it himself.

It sounds as if the platter is badly warped.

No it doesnt.

And the SCRAPING noise, would confirm this. You shoud *never*
hear scraping, it's the read head hitting a warped platter.

Its MUCH more likely that that noise is just the heads parking.

I wouldn't trust that drive for anything but a paperweight.

lynx wrote
larry moe 'n curly wrote
wrote

I spoke to the dealer yesterday, and his comment was that all SATA
drives are noisy- or noisier than PATA drives at least- and that
the level of noise that I was experiencing was quite normal, and
is due mainly to two factors: poor quality of today's drives that
are now made in China, and the much faster data transfer rate of
3Gb/s. He said he was nevertheless happy to replace the drive to
allay my fears.

Yours is beyond "loud" into the realm of "defective", he probably
has no idea just HOW bad your case is, until he hears it himself.
It sounds as if the platter is badly warped. And the SCRAPING
noise, would confirm this. You shoud *never* hear scraping, it's
the read head hitting a warped platter. I wouldn't trust that drive
for anything but a paperweight.

Wouldn't a drive as bad as that shut down or not be recognized by the
computer?

According to the computer boot up screen, SMART is not enabled on my drives, but there doesn't
seem to be anywhere in the motherboard BIOS to enable it. (???)

Yeah, some older systems dont have that.

You can check the SMART data using Everest.
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=4181

Isn't vibration more likely to be caused by platters that are off-center rather than warped?

That's what I thought.

And you are both right.

And I've heard scraping noises from HDs when they turn on or shut down.

I've checked two other drives both seagate- a 120gb PATA ST3120814A
7200.9, and a 160gb SATA ST3160827AS 7200.7. The PATA drive makes the scraping noise, but the SATA
doesn't. The noise is quite faint. Could
it just be the heads 'parking',

Yep, that's all it is. The evidence is that you
only hear it after the drive is powered down.

or some other aspect of the mechanics?

Definitely the heads parking because of when it happens.

I often wonder just how careful some dealers are with handling of hard drives.

Yeah, there's always some risk that a drive got
dropped and no one had the balls to admit doing that.

And of course there's all the transport/shipping/handling before they even reach the retail
outlets. But this drive is definitely going back! I'm just not confident that I'll then get a
replacement that's good. I'm starting to lose faith in modern hard drives.

They're much more reliable than they used to be.

Someone I know had a Seagate PATA fail after just six months.

Sure, that can certainly happen.

I read the whole thread and I'm suprised no one has answered this
already. Seagate were getting sued due to a patent infringement in
their Automatic Acoustic Management (AAM) software on the drives. And
so all Seagates drives sold now have that feature removed and hence
are now ridiculously loud. If you want quiet you now need to buy
Western Digital and you can use the Hitachi disk tools CD (Feature
Tool (v2.03)) to set the ratio of acoustics/performance you prefer.

So if you are in the market for a 320gb sata avoid the ST3320620AS and
get the WD3200KS.

Feature Tool (v2.03)
http://www.hgst.com/hdd/support/download.htm
# Change the drive Automatic Acoustic Management settings to the:

* Lowest acoustic emanation setting (Quiet Seek Mode), or
* Maximum performance level (Normal Seek Mode).

It was set to normal on the WD3200KS I bought from komplett.co.uk so I
had to use Feature Tool to make it completely silent. The cd has a
seek test feature so you can actually change the AAM value (0-100)
and listen to the change it volume in real time. I ghosted my system
to the WD and now use the Seagate one as a backup which I rarely
access so don't have to put up with the noise all the time.

indiekiduk wrote:

I read the whole thread and I'm suprised no one has answered this
already. Seagate were getting sued due to a patent infringement in their
Automatic Acoustic Management (AAM) software on the drives. And so
all Seagates drives sold now have that feature removed and hence are
now ridiculously loud. If you want quiet you now need to buy Western Digital

No you dont, you can buy Samsung and get both AAM and even quieter too.

and you can use the Hitachi disk tools CD (Feature Tool (v2.03))
to set the ratio of acoustics/performance you prefer.

So if you are in the market for a 320gb sata avoid
the ST3320620AS and get the WD3200KS.

Get the Samsung instead.

Feature Tool (v2.03)
http://www.hgst.com/hdd/support/download.htm
# Change the drive Automatic Acoustic Management settings to the:

* Lowest acoustic emanation setting (Quiet Seek Mode), or
* Maximum performance level (Normal Seek Mode).

It was set to normal on the WD3200KS I bought from komplett.co.uk
so I had to use Feature Tool to make it completely silent. The cd has
a seek test feature so you can actually change the AAM value (0-100)
and listen to the change it volume in real time. I ghosted my system
to the WD and now use the Seagate one as a backup which I rarely
access so don't have to put up with the noise all the time.