WD Caviar Green 2TB & Seagate Pipeline HD 500GB: Two Very Quiet Drives

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ROTATIONAL SPEED

A simple frequency analysis shows the true rotational speed of these two drives. The pitch of the sound corresponds to the frequency of the vibration, which is caused by its rotational speed. The former, Hz, is cycles per second, while the latter is rotations per minute.

Caviar Green 2TB Frequency / Amplitude graph.

Our Caviar Green sample had a sharp spike at 90 Hz (cycles per second). Multiplying that number by 60 (to get cycles per minute) yielded a rotation speed of 5400 RPM. Despite Western Digital's claims about IntelliPower, we have yet to hear a single case of a Green Power drive running at a speed other than 5400 or 7200 RPM.

Pipeline HD 500GB Frequency / Amplitude graph.

Our 500GB Pipeline sample generated a a spike at 96 Hz, which means its disks spin at around 5800 RPM.

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