I'm looking to do some HDD suspention in my Sonata.
I've seen a couple examples so far.
I think it would be a good thread to have for reference if everyone posted their suspended hdds.
SO LET"S SEE THEM!!!

This is what I did on an SLK3700BQE. The HDD cages are virtually identical to the ones in the Sonata. Doing something like this to the Sonata, combined with doing the front bezel mods would give you a tremendous increase in your case ventilation. Other than the work involved, it's a win-win situation all around.

Really nice work, Ralph. I'm almost ashamed to post the picture of my suspended HDD cage in the SLK3000B, but I shall as I'm quite proud of it myself (based on the burcakb method):

Quick, simple, and dirty

http://forums.silentpcreview.com/viewtopic.php?t=18889

but damned if it doesn't work.

Works pretty well. :)

Ralf Hutter, how did you cut your case like that (what tools)?

Wiss tin snips and a Dremel. Edges are covered with the same "C" channel rubber molding that I use on fan grills.

Well I got off my lazy butt and went down to Home Depot.
Now my HDD is suspended
Here's a pic:



I must say, this mod has made the biggest impact on silencing my computer.
This HDD had a lot of vibration and was definately my biggest offender of noise.
Now I have to struggle to hear it!

kloppe definitely has the cheapest method so far

Secured with zipties + hot melt glue:


Zipties are your friend:

For more pictures see the Reusable drive suspension thread.

Thanks to ImageShack for Free Image Hosting

Using the same bracket with another HD in that Sonata after the drive cage was removed.


P.S. Why is this thread in the General Galery in stead of the Silent Storage forum?

Good point Tibors.
I started it here because it was more focused on showing off your pictures and less on discussing techniques. I don't know id there is a way to "mirror" the thread so it is in both areas, but if there is than that would be up to a moderator.

Tibors, how did you remove the drive cage?
No cutting?

I bet mine is cheaper (only cord needed)

link to my blog (they don't like direct links to images). I can make more photos if you want.


I also removed the drive cage, with a screwdriver

It has to be a very special screwdriver to remove the drivecage from a Sonata

Here is what I did:
I sheared off the five poprivets holding the drivecage to the floppy bay and the case bottom. Then I used tinsnips to roughly cut the drivecage from the motherboard tray. I first tried to use a rod saw to remove the last bit of the drivecage. This didn't work out. Because of the awkward working angle, I couldn't really steer the saw. So I took the tin snips again. Because I had to cut so close to a corner the cut became a bit ragged. That's why I covered the edge with some duct tape,

If you cut this much of the drivecage away, then the bottom right of the motherboard tray will no longer be fixed to the case. Still it is such a tight fit that it will only move if considerable force is used.

Ralf Hutter, where do you buy your "C channel rubber molding"

Check out this thread Where to buy uchannel (fan hole) rubber molding?

What is everybody suspending their hard drives with? It looks like some of you are just using shoe laces and others are using elastics.

Suspension using shoe laces works, but using a more elastic material works better.

Imagine a vibrating weight hanging from a non-elastic string. Vibrations in the front-back and left-right directions are dampened by swinging. Vibrations in the up-down direction are transmitted through the string to wherever it is attached. Now change the string to something elastic. Then the up-down vibrations are dampened too.

I used elastic cord that I bought at my local fabric store for dirt cheap.
It was like 40¢ a yard!

I just cut some of the antistatic packing foam to fit inside the drive tray and along the cage wall. It's nice and snug in there and a fan is giving a little airflow.


I can't believe how much difference it makes - seek noises have really dropped! I might repeat this for the Linux drive (old Maxtor) and see how it goes. There's enough of the stuff going to waste.

Have a look here...
http://forums.silentpcreview.com/viewtopic.php?t=18696

Many solutions seem to be very unstable if you want to move
your computer in any way and perhaps laying it down during transport.

I fastened the rubberbands both above and below the hdds and I have
no problems with transport as long as I use the same care one would
normally do while transporting a computer.

Fredar

Here is my previous setup, which has since been superseded:



I used the two HDDs plus steel sides to create a "box" and I suspended the whole thing with elastic top and bottom. Very quiet and very secure.

More details on my website here

Heres my solution. Two 120gb Nidec Spinpoints in Sonatas 5.25 bay.


I cant hear them right now:)

Unfortunately this assembly cannot run passive in a small case like mine, i had to fit a 120mm fan on top.[/img]

**EDIT**



Taking Mike's comments about my elastic bands into account, my HD is now suspended using knicker elastic. It looks uneven in the photo, but it's perfectly level. It's just the connectors are pushing it off-centre, so it's twisted. At some point I'll shorten the elastic and possibly run another length from underneath to hold it steadier.


Quick simple and effective - 4 elastic bands and 4 screws in an Antec SLK3700AMB suspending my SP1614C. I just did it tonight and now my wires need tidied up as they used to be hidden by the HD cage

charlaph --

Caution! Ordinary rubber bands like the ones you are using are not suitable. They wear very quickly under stress and heat, then break. I strongly recommended more robust elastic. Just swing by the nearest sewing shop, look for elastics used in clothing. Super cheap and much more robust.

Cheers MikeC, I will do. The elastic bands aren't really intended as an permanent solution anyway (too ugly for that) more of a test to see what difference it made to sound - which was LOTS by the way. Thanks for the warning though.

Bah. I'm using rubber bands to suspend mine.... i'm also using the cloppy drive cage and it's only about an inch from the bottom of the case, if it falls, no big deal.

For me the change was swung by the fact that my HD is pretty much brand new, so I wouldn't want it falling any sort of distance. Plus the elastic was only 14p/metre. I bought 2m as I wasn't sure where I was going to attach it and how far it would hang etc... I had to visit 2 fabric shops to find it, so it was a hassle but worth it for the drop in noise and the added security over rubber bands.