"Ghetto" hdd sound damping

sandos · Post by **sandos** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 12:43 am

I was looking for something we had in our home to silence my very whiny maxtor disk. Suspension did not help, hard-mounting did have a small negative effect but just suspending wasnt silent enough.

So I used these scotchbrites! I think you would be amazed at how well they isolate the sound from the disk, even with this coverage in the image which isnt complete.

My concern now is of course temperature. Regular temperatures before were 40-43 degrees, now they seem to be down to 30-32. It is positioned right in front of a 80mm fan which wasnt in the case before.

The "mounting" angle is also a concern, Im worried this will shorten the lifespan of the disk somewhat. I didnt really have space to mount it any other way.

StarfishChris · Post by **StarfishChris** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 6:57 am

Keep the drive perpendicular to the ground. I don't know how modern drives fare at an angle but the suggestion is always to keep it at right angles to gravity.

I don't know how well those pads let air flow along the drive surface, though it's not flat so air can still go through regardless. Still, I would just check the temperature with your hand in case the temp sensor is placed in one of the cooler areas of the drive.

Shadowknight · Post by **Shadowknight** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 10:51 am

Let me put it this way: I had a perfectly good Maxtor drive that refused to work after I ran it at an angle for 30 minutes.

Make SURE it is perpendicular!!!

sandos · Post by **sandos** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 2:51 pm

Heh, "oops"! It hasnt died yet, but I laid it on the bottom of my case to be on the safe side. Just hope it doesnt get too hot now...

mg1394 · Post by **mg1394** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 6:12 pm

sandos, maybe you didn't completely understand the comments. Your mounting in the picture would be ok if the drive were vertical, not slanted. It does not have to be on the floor of the case, and heat can be a problem with your "insulation" arrangement, so being in the path of a fan is good.

Natronomonas · Post by **Natronomonas** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 9:31 pm

If angled HDDs are a problem, how come they are OK in the new G5 imacs? The screen can be tilted back and forth for good angle, and the HDD is in the back of the screen....?

sandos · Post by **sandos** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 12:28 pm

mg1394 wrote:sandos, maybe you didn't completely understand the comments. Your mounting in the picture would be ok if the drive were vertical, not slanted. It does not have to be on the floor of the case, and heat can be a problem with your "insulation" arrangement, so being in the path of a fan is good.

Well, it was easier than getting it perpendicular to the ground. Temps are also fine.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 12:55 pm

Shadowknight wrote:Let me put it this way: I had a perfectly good Maxtor drive that refused to work after I ran it at an angle for 30 minutes.

Make SURE it is perpendicular!!!

I really doubt that was because of the angle unless
1. You moved it while it was running
or
2. The drive was +10 years old

I've run HDs on angles, on their sides, upside down, every direction imaginable for months without any ill effects.

It says explicitly in almost EVERY drive manu's data sheets that the drive can be mounted at ANY angle.

As long as it isnt going to move around while it's on, you're fine.

mathias · Post by **mathias** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 2:54 pm

StarfishChris wrote:Keep the drive perpendicular to the ground. I don't know how modern drives fare at an angle but the suggestion is always to keep it at right angles to gravity.

But how accurate a right angle does it need to be? That one of the reasons I've been sticking to foam instead of suspension, I'm worried that I might suspend at a bit of an angle.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 3:52 pm

Running it on an angle is fine.

Maxtor wrote:the hard drive can be mounted in any orientation

Maxtor Knowledge Database

autoboy · Post by **autoboy** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 10:41 pm

my laptop bounces around all the time to no ill effect. Maybe desktop drives are different but it would be kinda dumb to have a portable computer stuck to a desk while it is on. The higher spin rate and rotational inertia of a desktop drive could cause more damage to the bearings than a laptop drive if you moved it around

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 1:35 am

Moving drives around while they are on is a recipe for disaster.

Tibors · Post by **Tibors** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 6:46 am

Look at this spec page for Seagate Barracuda 7200.7 SATA drives.

You can see: Operating Shock 63 Gs @ 2 msec

This means you can move them arround while running as long as you don't bump them too hard. So if moving them arround is a recipe for disaster largely depends on how shaky your hands are

Pauli · Post by **Pauli** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 8:32 am

Splinter wrote:Moving drives around while they are on is a recipe for disaster.

Ever heard of an iPod?

I agree that bumping HDs while in operation is potential for disaster, but these HD-based MP3 players are fine even when moved around constantly.

Splinter · Post by **Splinter** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 8:53 am

Regardless, accidents happen, and I'd rather not risk losing 200gb of data because I didnt want to have to power down before I moved a drive.

Straker · Post by **Straker** » Mon Apr 25, 2005 2:14 am

not really arguing for one side or the other, but IIRC stiffness is inversely proportional to the square of the radius, i believe that was the main reason for moving away from 5.25" (and now from 3.5") drives. shorter arms and smaller platters will give you much more durability and closer tolerances for things like head fly heights, without having to use new materials or anything special.

scotty6435 · Post by **scotty6435** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 12:53 pm

Indeed. 1", 1.8" and 2.5" HDDs are designed to operate normally when moving. 3.5" HDDs are designed for speed and tend to die quickly if you're sat there shaking it or something.