TiVo Community Forums Archives - What Brand 120GB Drive Runs Quietest???

TiVoCommunity.com
(c)opyright 1995-2005 All rights reserved
indexcheckTC
This area is a static history of posts in the TiVo Community Forum Archive.
This archive history was made for the simple indexing of search sites like Google.

Pages:1

What Brand 120GB Drive Runs Quietest???
(Click here to view the original thread with full colors/images)

Posted by: RickyD1967

I just upgraded my SAT-T60 with a pre-formated 120GB Maxtor "A" drive that I got from "AmblerTech" a TiVo upgrade company. The problem is that it just runs way too loud, making a ticking/clicking sound that just draws your attention to it like a magnet, even turning the volume up on the TV doesn't help because you can always hear it in-between silent spaces in the dialog, very annoying. The stock 40GB Quantum never made a sound. My question: Is there any 120GB drive out there that runs as or almost as quiet as the stock 40GB Quantum ? "AmblerTech" has 120GB 5400RPM "Samsung" drives, would these be quieter ? If so, I could always exchange it. Thanks everyone for any advice!

Posted by: weaknees

We've found that the Samsung drives are the quietest - much quieter than the stock drive.

What brand drive did you get? Almost any new drive should be quieter than your old drive.

Michael

Posted by: brett63

I replaced the original 30GB Quantum drive with a 7200 RPM 120GB Maxtor. I ran the AMSET /quiet (acoustic management utility) before installing it. It is definitely quieter than the original drive I replaced. The case fan almost completely drowns it out.

If I was to do it again, I'd probably pick up the Samsung 5400 RPM drive from an online vendor for $125. Anyhow, my Maxtor upgrade is working just fine (and provided my CompUSA rebates arrive, it works out to $100!)

Posted by: RickyD1967

The hard drive did not have a brand name that I could find on the label, however on one of the chip boards it said "Maxtor, Inc." so I would assume it's a Maxtor. I looked at several posts regarding drive noise, and the 120GB Maxtor always seemed to come up as being quite noisy.

I personally didn't want to go through the hassle of opening up my computer and formatting the drive myself. So when I heard that "AmblerTech" was located in San Francisco, and my being in the Bay Area myself, I decided to go with them for convenience, I could just drive over and make the transaction. AmblerTech and I have just made arrangements for me to drive over tonight and exchange this drive for the 120GB Samsung, they've been very kind.

One more question: Does anyone know if the "Model# HD_SV1204H" is the only 120GB drive that Samsung makes ? That way anytime anyone talks about a 120GB Samsung, we will automatically know it is this Model.

Thanks everyone for your advice & input. This is an AWESOME forum!

Posted by: flyersfan

I have an 80 gig WD 7200rpm special edition (8 meg cache) in my S2. I can't hear it.

I tried 80 gig and 120 gig 5400rpm Samsung drives in my S1. Can't hear them either. It made a HUGE difference since the original Quantum drives were whiny and chattered.

Posted by: stormsweeper

quote:
Originally posted by weaknees
We've found that the Samsung drives are the quietest - much quieter than the stock drive.

How warm do these run? I'm actually more concerned by the heat output of various 120GB drives than their noise, as long as it's within normal ranges of EIDE drives.

Posted by: titsataki

any vendors that sell the 120Gb Samsung drive that people bought and were happy with the vendor/price/experience?

Nick

Posted by: RickyD1967

Hi everyone,

I just installed the "120GB Samsung SV1204H" and that sucker Purrrr's super quiet, much quieter than the "120GB Maxtor". As for heat, I'll have to wait a week or so to average-it-out, looks like it'll be fine. Anyone thinking of upgrading with a 120GB hard drive, I would highly recommend this drive. One guy said he bought his from: www.esystor.com, I think the price is: $125 w/free shipping, I believe this is the best price anywhere.

SAT-T60
105 hrs
Love it!

Dual LNB coming soon!

Posted by: RickyD1967

http://www.esystor.com/shop/index.asp

Posted by: ClutchBrake

I'll chime in and say that my 80GB Maxtor is UNGODLY loud and has been since day 1. Not only that, but one of my Maxtor drives is dying (after a whole 18 months :rolleyes: ).
RickyD1967, thanks for the link. I have been waiting for a week for one of the deals sites to come up with another $100 120GB non-Maxtor drive. No such luck yet. Looks like I will be buying from the link you provided. :)

Posted by: Webguideguy

I put a 120GB Wester Digital in my Sony SVR 2000 in November.

I was very worried about the noise too since my original drive was always very quiet.

Now that I've added the 120GB drive I've found that I can barely hear it.

I really wanted a Maxtor, but the WD was cheaper - now I'm glad I have the WD.

I've also read somewhere on here about a command to make the Maxtor drives run quieter....

Paul
Madison, WI

Posted by: titsataki

Is that the utility?

AMSET /quiet (acoustic management utility)

Cheers

Nick

Posted by: ronsch

Yes, and my Maxtor 80GB has been very quiet for the past year.

Posted by: FUBAR

I've got a 60GB maxtor and a 60GB WD, i can't hear either one of them... maybe it's the heater drowning them out.

Posted by: remster

I'm quite happy with my WDs JB models (8mb cache). Got one 80Gb, and one 120GB.
Also, my maxtor diamondmax plus 9 120GB is fine, with a bit of noise for the seeks.
I didn't even run the software to make them more quiet.

Temp went from about 31C to 39C.

I got them pretty recently so I can't vouch for their own reliability yet.

Posted by: hinsdale

Sounds like amblertech was using White Label drives in their upgrade kits to save money- you need to be careful of these drives because they do not carry a manufacturer warranty and I'm not sure how you would ever get warranty on these as a third party without receipt from the retailer. (Actual Maxtor branded drives can be returned for free replacement with a simple phone call to their 1-800 number - White Label drives have no warranty or are warranteed by the retailer). The ticking/clicking is head seeks and can/ and should have been easily quieted using the amset utility set to quiet (surprised they didnt take the time to run the utility).

Many others have started to use the Samsung drives because they are cheapest and do still offer an attractive 3 year warranty. But in the 4 upgrades I have performed where the upgraders provided their own Samsung drives, all of the Samsung drives were very noisey in my opinion and were substantially louder then Maxtor drives (with acoustic management enabled quiet). Having dealt with hundreds of Maxtor drives and with every other manufacturer hard drive, I would definitely spend a little bit more to get the Maxtors over Samsung drives if planning on having this unit in a bedroom (Samsungs would be annoying at the least in my opinion).

Having worked with a very large number of Maxtor drives, I have never run across a Maxtor drive that did not run whisper quiet as long as you make sure acoustic management is enabled quiet ( the 5400RPM drives came default with amset set to quiet - many of the newer 7200RPM models you actually need to run the amset utility)

http://maxtor.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/...hp?p_faqid=1200

Posted by: dss4menow

I have a T-60. Do you know if I can install 2 120GB Samsung SV1204H drives in it? Thanks

Posted by: tiellv

[QUOTE]Originally posted by stormsweeper
"How warm do these run? " I'm actually more concerned by the heat output of various 120GB drives than their noise, as long as it's within normal ranges of EIDE drives. [/QUOTE

I added the Samsung 120GB 5400 and the temp stayed virtually the same.

Posted by: RickyD1967

quote:
Originally posted by Dss4menow
I have a T-60. Do you know if I can install 2 120GB Samsung SV1204H drives in it? Thanks

Yes, one as drive "A Master" the other "B Slave". The SAT-T60 is very easy to add a second drive because there is no additional hardware needed, the original bracket already has a space for it. I'm looking in the future at possibly adding a second 120GB Samsung to my T60, but are concerned about the heat. If you do add a second 120GB Samsung SV1204H, please post your findings on the temperature of your unit after the upgrade, because the T60 has poor ventilation issues. I've had my single 120GB Samsung going for six days, and the temp fluctuates from a low of 40C first thing in the morning to a high of 48-49C after being on all day, much depending on room temperature, fortunately I like a somewhat cool room around 65-70F.

Posted by: dss4menow

I wonder if a second fan can be installed in there. Like maybe cut put a second hole or something - or even a grill that allows for ventilation.

Posted by: GoodSpike

quote:
Originally posted by hinsdale
Many others have started to use the Samsung drives because they are cheapest and do still offer an attractive 3 year warranty. But in the 4 upgrades I have performed where the upgraders provided their own Samsung drives, all of the Samsung drives were very noisey in my opinion and were substantially louder then Maxtor drives (with acoustic management enabled quiet). Having dealt with hundreds of Maxtor drives and with every other manufacturer hard drive, I would definitely spend a little bit more to get the Maxtors over Samsung drives if planning on having this unit in a bedroom (Samsungs would be annoying at the least in my opinion).

You obviously have a lot more experience in this area than me, but I'm surprised to hear you say this. When I was doing my upgrade, I couldn't even hear the Samsung drive, even though it wasn't enclosed in a case at the time. I could hear the Seagate drive that was mounted in the computer, and they are generally regarded as very quiet (it made me wonder if it was failing--but my daughter hasn't reported any problems). The fan on that computer's power supply was rather noisy, however, so it didn't make for the best test environment. But Tomshardware.com has reported their tests as this drive being very quiet.

In the Tivo, all I can hear is the fan.

Posted by: JTAnderson

I have WD 100/120 GB 7200 RPM drives in both of my TiVos and cannot hear any rotation noise from either of them. (There is seek noise, but I'm too lazy to take them out and try an AM utility on them.) On the other hand, I just put a new 120 GB WD drive in my PC, and it makes far too much rotation noise to be acceptable in a TiVo.

IMO, it's mostly the luck of the draw. You might get a quiet one. You might not.

Posted by: cclaunch

I installed a Western Digital 120GB 7200 RPM drive (Caviar SE with the 8MB drive and ATA/100 performance if that matters) and it is extremely quiet even out of the unit when I was doing the install. Undetectable in the TiVo.

Posted by: Atoo

The seagate barracuda IV drives are completely quiet. I cannot hear them at all and I have two in my tivo and the cover of the tivo is off. They have fluid bearings for no spin noise and you cannot hear the seek. The newer barracuda V drives have been reviewed as being even more quiet! They would be the most quiet hard disk currently being made. I've used a lot of different brands at work (in server farm) and I've never found anything that comes close to the seagate drives for being quiet.

Posted by: pdvale

For the Maxtor drive. Search for acoustic on the Maxtor site and run the AMSET program on the drive. You can change the acoustic setting to QUIET. I had the same problem with mine, click-click-click as the disk head would move.

I took the drive out and hooked it up to a PC. Boot to DOS, run the AMSET command

AMSET /quiet

Drive does not make clicking noise anymore, it is definately worth doing.

I am using a Maxtor 120gb Diamond max 9.

Paul.

Posted by: revity

quote:
Originally posted by RickyD1967
I just upgraded my SAT-T60 with a pre-formated 120GB Maxtor "A" drive that I got from "AmblerTech" a TiVo upgrade company. The problem is that it just runs way too loud, making a ticking/clicking sound that just draws your attention to it like a magnet, even turning the volume up on the TV doesn't help because you can always hear it in-between silent spaces in the dialog, very annoying. The stock 40GB Quantum never made a sound. My question: Is there any 120GB drive out there that runs as or almost as quiet as the stock 40GB Quantum ? "AmblerTech" has 120GB 5400RPM "Samsung" drives, would these be quieter ? If so, I could always exchange it. Thanks everyone for any advice!

while doing my upgrade to the HDVR2, I measured the sound level of my drives using the Radioshack SPL meter. The factory installed 40Gb Maxtor drive measured in at approx 52-53dB, while the 120GB Samsung SV1204Hs measured in at approx 54-55 dB each, just slightly louder. Both measurements taken within one inch of the drive. After installation, I couldn't tell any difference from my normal seating position.

Incidentally, my temperature went from about 42C to about 46C after the upgrade. I have the HDVR2 sitting on 2x4 blocks on top of a Denon AV receiver, which is why my before/after heat is elevated. I also do notice that moving in and out of todo/now playing lists seems slower.

Posted by: ronsch

quote:
Originally posted by cclaunch
I installed a Western Digital 120GB 7200 RPM drive (Caviar SE with the 8MB drive and ATA/100 performance if that matters) and it is extremely quiet even out of the unit when I was doing the install. Undetectable in the TiVo.

I installed a pair of these on Saturday and I can't hear them at all. Temperature has been within the same limits as my old Quantum/Maxtor pair.

Posted by: sublime75

I upgraded my Tivo with two 120GB 5400RPM "Samsung" drives and I don't know how hot they are supposed to run but the Tivo seems to run really hot now. I am having a problem with the picture frizzing and sputtering. The drives are quite but it really would not matter know, because I replaced the fan in the back, added a fan right above the drives and cut some are intake slits in the side were the drives are. And I still can't completely shut the unit. I have read a lot about the frizzing being caused by a bad drive (after I started chopping on the case). If any one can give me some good input on how to test the drives to see if they are bad, or any other suggestions I would greatly appreciate it.

Craig Booth
vapcraig@hotmail.com

Posted by: GoodSpike

I'd guess your problem may be more related to heat. You may have messed up the airflow of the unit with your modifications. Remove the extra fan, tape up the slits and any other holes, and see what happens.

Posted by: sublime75

If I take the fan out and cover the vent with tape it will do the same thing that it was doing before I made the modifications. It did not start having problems after the modifications. I modified the case because it was having problems. The fan I added to the top and the slits I added in the side makes for good ventilation for the hard drives. It sucks in room temp. air from the side and blows hot air out the top. My Tivo had very bad ventilation when I got it. After I put in the two 120 Gig HDs it worked well for about a month or two then it started acting up. After I watched ether stored programs or live TV through the Tivo for 30 min. or so it would start to flicker and sputter so I took off the top and the HDs were very hot to the touch hot enough to burn the skin. I asked some computer guys that I know what they thought it might be and they said that it might be the added heat of the bigger HDs. I read on this web site a little and saw other people having similar problems with heat. One guy said that he added an intake fan in the top and it solved his problem. Wile using an intake fan would pull in a lot of air to flow of the HDs, it will also pull in a lot of dust and that in it self could cause other problems. So I decided to go with my design. And it is better than before but it still has problems. If there is something wrong with my HDs I would like to get them replaced sooner rather than later, but I don't what to send them off if there is nothing wrong with them. So I am wondering if anyone out there can tell me some ways on how to tell if the drives are bad or not.

Posted by: Answers II

I've just finished adding a water cooling setup to my PC and it occurs to me that it may be possible to apply this technology to insitu TIVO hard drives. If there's enough room in the case for the hard drive water coolers the advantage would be two fold - low heat and totally quiet. This approach would require some case modification and some additional water cooling accessories (small radiator - water reservoir - pump) but it's possible that it could be made to work. Here's a description of such a device in 'Tom's Hardware'. There must be other companies selling similar setups. Just a wild thought. My PC is now almost completely silent and running very cool. It strikes me that it would be great to cool a TIVO this way and would probably prolong the life of the system as well.

http://www17.tomshardware.com/howto...cooling-10.html

Answers.

Posted by: ct williams

I have a question for the Samsung 120 owners....I just picked up this drive and when running I find it has a semi-loud metallic whine to it. I have downloaded the samsung utility to try and quiet the drive, has anyone done this and still have the loud whine? From several of the posts it would seem that this drive is quiet.

Thanks for any input..

CT

Posted by: revity

quote:
Originally posted by ct williams
I have a question for the Samsung 120 owners....I just picked up this drive and when running I find it has a semi-loud metallic whine to it. I have downloaded the samsung utility to try and quiet the drive, has anyone done this and still have the loud whine? From several of the posts it would seem that this drive is quiet.

Thanks for any input..

CT

I have 2 of them. Neither one whines, nor did I run any quiet utilities on them. With all of kid noise around here though, maybe I'm just desensitized....

Posted by: GoodSpike

quote:
Originally posted by ct williams
I have a question for the Samsung 120 owners....I just picked up this drive and when running I find it has a semi-loud metallic whine to it. I have downloaded the samsung utility to try and quiet the drive, has anyone done this and still have the loud whine? From several of the posts it would seem that this drive is quiet.

I think you may have gotten a bad drive. I didn't even know Samsung had a utility, and in any case, mine certainly didn't need one.

Posted by: sublime75

I am sorry about all the people that what to know about what this thread was originally about (the Noise the HDs make). Answers II, did you build the water-cooled system your self, following their instructions, or did you get the water-cooled case. I was thinking about ether getting the water-cooled case or building me a WC system in the next computer I build. Until I read about Tom�s new cooler using Freon. Dose is you cooling just you processor or are you cooling everything (Hard drives, Processor, Video processor, ext.). I think this new system will work better if you are cooling a lot of different things. Back to more Tivoish conversation I have even thought about putting the guts of the Tivo in an old computer case I have, if I can�t figure out the heat problem. I would still like to know a way of checking the Hard Drive if possible before I send it in if any one knows a way to check the drives I would appreciate any help.

Craig
vapcriag@hotmail.com

Posted by: Shredfest

I first put a WD 120GB 7200RPM 2MB cache drive in my HDVR2 and the seek noise was unbelievably LOUD. I ripped that sucker back out in a heartbeat. Went out and found a nice deal on a 120GB Maxtor with 8MB cache. I bought it figuring at least the Maxtor's have the AMSET utility available. Installed the drive without doing AMSET /quiet and it's seeks are also loud, though not as bad as the WD. Pulled the drive, hooked it back up to my PC, and ran AMSET /quiet. No Maxtor drives found. Huh?

A visit to the Maxtor website shows that the AMSET utility does not work for the DiamondMax Plus 9 drive. GRRRRRRRRR... :mad:

The Maxtor website says this about this hard drive line: "DiamondMax Plus 9 is equipped with fluid dynamic bearing motors for acoustic sensitive applications. This allows the drive to operate with extremely low sound output, an important feature for many applications." So how is it that the HDVR2 chassis manages to make this drive annoyingly loud? I can barely hear the seeks out of my GXCEB0T's... I am really, really, getting annoyed by the HDVR2.

I hope that the Pax.Mate acoustic foam I ordered arrives soon and actually works...

UPDATE: Yes, the AMSET utility DOES work with the DiamondMax Plus 9 drives. I was being a moron and running it from the Windows XP command prompt rather than a DOS boot disk. DUH! Major brain fart. Anyway, disregard the above rantings.

BTW, the Pax.Mate foam seems to work - the HDVR2 is noticeably quieter with it installed.

Posted by: regicat

I posted this earlier in the dtivo forum but thought some folks may find the site below helpful in this thread....

I did my research at www.storagereview.com, a site I find indispensable. Simply go to the database and sort by idle noise. I then bought 2 Barracuda V 120Gs from www.megahaus.com (I used Megahaus before) for $185 each. They are now in both HDVR2s and I can tell you they are the quietest drives I have ever come across. The fan makes MUCH more noise , those are next to upgrade once I figure out what to do. BTW, these drives use the new FDB motors.

Posted by: MikeMcr

quote:
Originally posted by Shredfest
A visit to the Maxtor website shows that the AMSET utility does not work for the DiamondMax Plus 9 drive.

The AMSET utility DOES work with the Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 9 range of drives. If you are referring to the same web page I saw, it is confusing because it starts off by listing the drives that it works with. Since the DiamondMax Plus 9 range was not mentioned, it made me think it didn't work with these drives too. However, further down the page it says it will work with all FUTURE drives as well.

I tried it and it DOES work and makes a lot of difference - the seek noise is virtually silent after making this change.

Posted by: ct williams

quote:
Originally posted by regicat
I posted this earlier in the dtivo forum but thought some folks may find the site below helpful in this thread....

I did my research at www.storagereview.com, a site I find indispensable. Simply go to the database and sort by idle noise. I then bought 2 Barracuda V 120Gs .

Thanks for posting that link. I sent the Samsung back, I think there is something wrong with it, and went with the Seagate that you bought.

CT

Posted by: RonOhio

quote:
Originally posted by ct williams
I have a question for the Samsung 120 owners....I just picked up this drive and when running I find it has a semi-loud metallic whine to it. I have downloaded the samsung utility to try and quiet the drive, has anyone done this and still have the loud whine? From several of the posts it would seem that this drive is quiet.

Thanks for any input..

CT

I ran this this program with all 4 of my Samsung drives and found that all of them were set to run in quiet mode by default.

Posted by: Answers II

Found a good link for info on hard drive noise levels:

The Silent PC

http://home.swipnet.se/tr/solutions.html

Hard Disks

The best hard disks for building quiet PCs are the ones with a documented low level of acoustic noise emissions - Hard disk manufacturers can dare stating noise declaration according to ISO 9296 - this for to facilitate comparision between products [1].

The connection between the moving and the not moving parts of a hard drive is critical. Here some kind of bearings are used to minimize friction and vibration. Today the most quiet bearings are the fluid ones (FDB).

The hard disk should feature the possibility to, via a software interface, choose if one wants give priority to acoustic ergonomy before optimal performance.

One should look for the hard disks that generates as little heat as possible, at the best making it possible to enclose the disk in a noise dampening enclosure, but at least not adding more heat to the system than necessary. Checking hard disk heat emission can be accomplished by comparing product sheets, and checking that the disk has a low level of electric power consumption measured in Watt.

One should check that the hard disk take use of the so called S.M.A.R.T. system, and that the manufacturer has implemented thermal awareness in this system: The best hard disks features a built-in temperature sensor, which is able to report the temperature of the disk to the S.M.A.R.T. system. When one puts a hard disk capable of reporting its temperature in a noise dampening enclosure one can be sure that it tells if it's having problems with heat.

The ideas behind the S.M.A.R.T. system - Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology - came from IBM, but it is now used by almost all hard disk manufacturers. It includes a software interface when fully implemented. Strange enough has it taken some time before hard disk temperature has been included as a part of the S.M.A.R.T. system - a system intended to protect the user's valuable data.

The most foresighted hard disk manufacturers states that they are working for standardization of temperature reporting of hard disks to a future implemented motherboard unit for coordinated adaptive cooling of personal computers. Read more on this on the Intelligent PCs page of this site.

Their blurb on Samsung:

"Samsung: "All Samsung-created hard drives are equipped with NoiseGuard & Trade technology, making them the quietest drives in the world. We are currently in the process of designing a "noiseless" drive motor, the FDB (Fluid Dynamic Motor)." In the paper issue of the Swedish PC magazine MikroDatorn (nr 3, 1 Mars 2001 pp 55-59) the Samsung SV2040H disk was chosen as the best in test among 15 tested disks regarding a low level of noise. Here a 40.8 GB Samsung SpinPoint V20400 disk is reviewed: "Samsung has put a lot of effort into making all their drives quiet, and they have done a great job because their drives are some of the quietest around." It doesn't seem that Samsung has implemented awareness of temperature in their hard disks yet."

Answers II

Posted by: Answers II

The folks at EndPCNoise.com seem to think that the 120 Gig Seagate Barracuda is the quietest:

http://www.endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e...tharddrive.html

Silent Hard Drives - NEW 120 Gig Seagate Barracuda ATA V 100 7200 RPM Quiet Hard drive - the quietest operation ever for a desktop 7200 RPM drive. Only $189.00 (INCLUDES FREE GROUND SHIPPING).

This quiet hard drive, which utilizes Seagate's SoftSonic Fluid Dynamic Bearing (FDB) motor, runs at a barely audible 25 decibels (2.5 bels) during idle and 33 decibels (3.3 bels) during performance seek. Seagate's ATA V silent hard drive also includes Seagate's exclusive 3D Defense system to protect users' data and increase reliability. It also can withstand 350 Gs of non-operating force. All of these features make the Barracuda V the quietest, fastest, and most durable hard drive available. If you want the quietest hard drive available, or if you just want the best, the Seagate Barracuda ATA V is for you.

This 120 gigabyte hard drive is part of Seagate's new quiet, high-performance line, the Seagate Barracuda ATA V line of hard drives. The ATA V are equally as quiet as the previous ATA IV hard drives (between 25 and 33 decibels). However, the ATA V is available in the larger 120 Gig size, has even better performance, and runs cooler than its little brother the Seagate Barracuda ATA IV.

120 Gig Seagate Barracuda ATA V Specifications
Interface/External Transfer Rate (Mbytes/sec) Ultra ATA/100
PERFORMANCE
Maximum Internal Transfer Rate (Mbits/sec) 570
Maximum External Transfer Rate (Mbits/sec) 100
Sustained Transfer Rate (Mbytes/sec) 27 to 44
Multisegmented Cache (Mbytes) 2,8
Average Seek (msec) 9.4
Average Latency (msec) 4.16
Spindle Speed (RPM) 7,200
CONFIGURATION/ORGANIZATION
Discs/Heads 2/4
Bytes per sector 512
Logical CHS 16,383/16/63
Recording Method EPRML (16/17>
RELIABILITY/DATA INTEGRITY
Contact Start-Stops 50,000
3D Defense System Yes
SeaShild and S.M.A.R.T. Yes
Nonrecoverable Read Errors per Bits Read 1 per 1014
Limited Manufacturer's Warranty (years) 1
POWER MANAGEMENT
+12 VDC � 10% (amps max) 2.2
+ VDC � 5% (amps max) NA
Power Management (watts typ) Seek 13
Power Management Read/Write (watts typ) 12
Power Management Idle/Standby (watts typ) 9.5/0.7
ENVIRONMENTAL
Temperature: Operating (�C) 0 tp 60
Nonrecoverable read error per bits read (�C) -40 to 70
Shock, Operating: 2 msec (Gs) 350
ACOUSTICS
Idle (bels-sound power) 2.5 (25 decibels)
Quiet Seek (bels-sound power) 2.8 (28 decibels)
Performance Seek (bels-sound power) 3.3 (33 decibels)
PHYSICAL
Height (in/mm) 1/26.1
Width (in/mm) 4/101.85
Depth (in/mm) 5.75/146.56
Weight (lb/g) 1.2/544

Posted by: Answers II

Or you might be able to adapt a 'Silent Drive Enclosure' (or two?) to the TIVO box for $29.95 plus shipping:

http://www.endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e/00017.html

SilentDrive Enclosures : Silent Drive Hard Drive Enclosure
Silent Drive Enclosures - SilentDrive � Hard Drive Enclosure W/ Thermal Temperature Sticker by Molex �
� SilentDrive � reduces hard drive noise by >90%.

� SilentDrive � is easy to install into any 5 1/4" drive bay in a new or previously built computer.

� Hard drive continues to operate at full performance inside hard drive enclosure.

� Designed to fit all 1" high, 3.5" hard drives.

� Reuse SilentDrive � Hard Drive Enclosures every time you upgrade or replace your computer. You only have to buy SilentDrive � once!

The Problem

Bothered by hard drive noise? A great deal of the noise generated by your computer comes from that noisy hard drive. The metal platters inside hard drives are constantly spun by an electric motor and the drive heads move back and forth across the surface of the drive and cause a "clicking" noise.

Newer hard drives are becoming quieter, but for the most part hard drive manufacturers have yet to make them quiet enough for the silent computer market. Even with today's current hard drives, you can still hear the hard drive motor and trademark "clicking sound".

The Solution

What's the solution? Well, you could put your computer in another room, or you can stop the noise at its source and block hard drive noise with a Silent Drive Enclosure �. The SilentDrive (by Molex �) is a one-of-a-kind product that can quiet hard drive noise by over 90%. It is an acoustic enclosure made from ABS plastic with two aluminum plates that wrap around the drive and conduct heat away from the hard drive. This is the major challenge with a sound dampening hard drive enclosure: how to enclose a hard drive and block its noise but still keep the hard drive cool enough to operate properly. The SilentDrive � enclosure solves this challenge but does have a limit to how hot of a hard drive it can keep cool.

Will the SilentDrive � Work With My Hard Drive?

Silent Drive � Enclosures work properly with hard drives that dissipate up to about 6.8 watts of heat. This means that if your hard drive has a spindle speed of 5400 RPMs or less, the SilentDrive � will definitely keep your drive cool enough. Cool enough means at or below 55 degrees Celsius or your hard drive manufacturer's recommended maximum operating temperature. If you have a 10,000 or 15,000 RPM hard drive DON'T try enclosing it in a SilentDrive �, it's too hot! Although most 7200 RPM drives work fine with the Silent Drive � Enclosure, if you have one you will need to check with your hard drive manufacturer to get two specifications for your hard drive model:

1) The heat dissipation at idle (this needs to be 6.8 watts or less to work with the SilentDrive �).
2) The maximum operating temperature (usually 55 degrees Celsius).

If your 7200 RPM hard drive model dissipates 6.8 watts or less of heat at idle, then it should be fine with the SilentDrive �. Just to be safe we include one free temperature sticker with every Silent Drive Enclosure �. When you install your 7200 RPM hard drive inside the Silent Drive �, simply place the temperature sticker on the surface of the hard drive. Make sure that you put the temperature sticker on a flat metal surface of the hard drive and do not cover any breather holes. After running the hard drive to full operating temperature, remove the hard drive and check that it has not exceeded the maximum operating temperature that your hard drive manufacturer recommends for your hard drive (usually 55 degrees Celsius).

What if I buy a SilentDrive � enclosure and later find out that my 7200 RPM hard drive is too hot? Not to worry, there's a no-risk 30-day money back return policy on all SilentDrive � Enclosures. The SilentDrive � Enclosure will work with most 7200 RPM drives on the market, but if you want to be sure the Silent Drive Enclosure works with your hard drive, check that your hard drive's heat dissipation at idle is 6.8 watts or less.

The following are hard drive manufacturer links:

Fujitsu
Hitachi
IBM
Maxtor
Quantum
Samsung
Seagate
Western Digital

How Quiet Will SilentDrive � Make My Hard Drive?

Okay, so I know I can use a Silent Drive � with my hard drive, but how quiet will it make my hard drive? If your hard drive is fairly noisy, say 36-38 dB then the Silent Drive � should quiet it to below 30 dB. (A 3 dB reduction equates to a 50% reduction in noise because the decibel scale is logarithmic.) If you have a quieter hard drive, the silent drive � can quiet it to 26dB-28dB or less.

What if I don't need my hard drive to be this quiet, but a little quieter would be nice, are there any other options than the SilentDrive �? Yes, you can buy the quietest hard drive on the market. Currently this is the Seagate Barracuda IV. It's too hot to enclose in a SilentDrive � (it dissipates 8 watts of heat at idle), but it's a very quiet hard drive at 25 dB (at idle) to 33 dB (during performance seek).

Product Specifications for SilentDrive � Hard Drive Enclosure

Posted by: Answers II

http://www.silentpcreview.com/modul...artid=29&page=1

HDD NOISE REDUCTION PRODUCTS - use above link to access product reviews:

Make / Model Q Noise Comments $ S

Smart Drive

Smarter realization of the seal-up-that-hard-drive idea, with slick aluminum / damping foam / aluminum construction and great attention to detail. Acoustic isolation is excellent, does not overheat even 7200 RPM drives. Does not elminate seek noise when mounted normally. Mounts in a 5.25-inch drive bay. More effective (cooler?) SD2002 now available from Silicon Acoustics for $95. Dec/02 75

NoiseMagic NoVibes III

Reduces vibration-caused noise by decoupling the HDD from the case using elastic bands in a 5.25-inch drive rack. Great for drives like the Seagate Barracuda IV where noise is virtually gone but vibration remains. Just about eliminates seek noise with any drive. Sturdy, simple, and effective. Dec/02 30 Review

Molex Silent Drive

Frankly, this product is here so that we can caution you about it. While providing some noise reduction, it is known to overheat drives. The manufacturer warns about use against 7200 RPM hard drives, yet one reads ongoing accounts of users damaging their 7200 RPM drives in the Silent Drive. We would only use it with 5400 RPM drives and keep an eye on drive temps. Design and construction quality are not great. Dec/02. 30 First hand experience

Posted by: cgould

Just to add my 2cents & experience:
I've added a Maxtor DiamondMax 5400rpm, and now a new WD80 (wd800jbrtl) 7200rpm, and both were very quiet. If anything, actually the WD sounds quieter than the 5400maxtor (although I also had the old Quantum fireball in with the maxtor.)
I cannot hear the drives over the case fan, so it is quiet enough for me in the living room.

However, the interesting thing to note:
At first, I *DID* have an unacceptable, faint whine noise, audible even in other rooms, with the maxtor 5400 rpm.
This was due to NOT having a 9th Tee drive mounting bracket (was just sitting bare on the Tivo drive cage, it hadn't arrived yet.)

Once I put the Maxtor on the 9th Tee bracket, it went silent.

This is in a Sony SV2000.

If people haven't already tried it, I would strongly suggest buying the (cheap) 9th Tee bracket, before going to more esoteric "quiet kit" type solutions above.

Hope that helps!

Posted by: magik

The other important question is how your drive performs overtime.

My original Seagate Barracuda was very quiet for the first three months and then developed annoying high pitch sound. I just could not stand it and had to replace the drive.

-m

Posted by: farfromuman

My original 30 GB Quantum was loud, I added a 80 GB 5400 Maxtor and it was also loud. Recently I took out both drives and replaced them with a WD 120GB 2MB 7200rpm and cant hear a thing even the fan is louder then this drive. This is in a sony SVR2000.

Posted by: gigageek

When I upgraded my SVR-2000 a couple years back, I replaced the factory A-drive with a pair of Maxtor drives (30+80). These drives whined from day one (drive motor), but I never heard a head seek. IMHO, the drive motor whine was far more obnoxious, as both drives whined 24/7 (while a head seek only occurs occasionaly). The whine wasn't so loud that it could be heard over the TV at normal listening volume, but it irritated me that the house was never "silent" when the TV & stereo were turned off. Even 30 feet away (in my breakfast nook), I could still hear the drives as I read the Sunday comics (I'm such an intellectual).

After tolerating the noise for about 2 years, I convinced the wife that the drives needed to be replaced. I replaced the Maxtors with a single WD120BB, and was VERY happy (more importantly, so is the wife!). The drive motor is nearly inaudible on the WD, although I can occasionally hear head seeks (but only if the house is dead silent, as when I'm reading). If the TV volume is loud enough to be heard (even barely), it covers up the head seek noise.

At the same time I installed the WD drive in my SVR-2000, I replaced the factory A-drive in my T-60 with an 80GB Seagate Barracuda ATA IV (ST380021A). This drive is absolutely dead-nuts silent. I cannot hear the drive motor or head seeks from 3 feet away (with the SVR-2000 powered off), even if the house is dead silent. I highly recommend this drive. My only complaint was that Seagate did not offer a 120GB version of this drive when I upgraded (summer 2002); Seagate now offers a 120GB Barracuda ATA V (ST3120023A) that is just as quiet (25dB idle, 28dB quiet seek).

As an added bonus, I've not experienced a single "stopple" with either the WD or Seagate drives. (I occasionally got stopples with the Maxtors, and the stopples were pretty-near unbearable when the drives were full of recordings). The system temperature has not changed by more than 2 degrees in either TiVo since this latest upgrade (ambient room temperature makes a bigger difference than 2 degrees).

As always, YMMV.

Posted by: bobg573

After about a year, my 80GB Maxtor 540DX upgrade drive started to develop a noticeable--and very annoying--whine from worn bearings. (My wife could hear the whine too, but wasn't bothered by it.) I replaced the Maxtor with a 120GB Seagate Barracuda V and am quite happy with the result. I can hear a slight hum from the drive vibrating if I put my ear a few inches from the case, but nothing beyond that.

I bought the Seagate drive based on the storagereview.com review and a year of good results from several Barracuda IV drives in my PCs (including three 80GB drives and two 40GB ones). Before installing it, I got a bit concerned from some comments here and elsewhere on the web about the Barracuda V being noticeably loader than the earlier model, but that has not been my experience with the sample I received.

I used MFS Tools 2.0 for the upgrade and had no problems.

Posted by: russ725

I just ordered a Western Digital 80 GB 5400RPM drive (P/N WD800AW) on Ebay for 69.00. I looked up the specs on the WD site and found that this was manufactured as a "Home Entertainment" OEM drive for DVR's, etc. and has quieter noise specs than the standard IDE drives. Has anyone else seen these drives? I am wondering if they make a 120GB version. This is a new drive with a manufacture date of 10/02. Anyway, as soon as I get it installed, I'll let you all know how it worked out.

Posted by: kitsap

quote:
Originally posted by russ725
Western Digital 80 GB 5400RPM drive (P/N WD800AW)

This is the drive model (albeit in a different capacity) that originally shipped in both my 60hr and my 40hr Series 2. Apparently WD only sells them to OEMs. (Edit: It appears that the eBay seller has a bunch of these!)

Anyway, since they're TiVo's choice, yours should work great!

Posted by: flyersfan

I'm sure you noticed it in the ad, but I wanted to mention for others - those OEM drives have no warranty from the manufacturer. I am not making any assumptions about the drives' overall qualities, but it's something to keep in mind.

Posted by: ct williams

For those that have the Seagate 120 (ST3120023A), from reading the online manual it has a quiet mode as well as a performance mode. Does the drive come set at quiet? I looked around their site and found their tools, but also found a note that for the tools to work your bios must recognize the drive and of course mine will not. If it comes set in quiet mode there will be no problem, but I did not know if this was the factory setting.

Thanks...

CT

Posted by: Shredfest

FYI, the Maxtor 120GB drive with Fluid Dynamic Bearings and 8MB cache (DiamondMax Plus 9) has seek noise that is too loud for me, even after running AMSET /quiet on it. Just ordered a Samsung 5400RPM 120GB from esystor.com to replace it.

<sigh> The quest for a quiet HDVR2 continues... :rolleyes:

Posted by: bobg573

quote:
Originally posted by ct williams
For those that have the Seagate 120 (ST3120023A), from reading the online manual it has a quiet mode as well as a performance mode. Does the drive come set at quiet?

I didn't check my Barracuda V before installing it in our TiVo, but the seek noise is not noticeable. The Barracuda IV's that I have in my PC were set to quiet mode out of the box.

Posted by: ct williams

quote:
Originally posted by ct williams
For those that have the Seagate 120 (ST3120023A), from reading the online manual it has a quiet mode as well as a performance mode. Does the drive come set at quiet?

To answer my own question in case anyone else was wondering, I received the drive and used it as an upgrade for the hdvr2. It appears that the Seagate utility will not allow you to set the drive acoustic level, but IBM has one that does. My drive was set at the most quiet level possible out of the box. Once installed in the tivo I can hear no hard drive noise, however, I can hear the seeks from where I sit, but they are more quiet than any drive I have heard before and are much quieter than stock.

CT

Posted by: legalaliens

quote:
Originally posted by Shredfest
FYI, the Maxtor 120GB drive with Fluid Dynamic Bearings and 8MB cache (DiamondMax Plus 9) has seek noise that is too loud for me, even after running AMSET /quiet on it. Just ordered a Samsung 5400RPM 120GB from esystor.com to replace it.

<sigh> The quest for a quiet HDVR2 continues... :rolleyes:

Hey! Did you put in the Samsung?? How is it working?:)

Posted by: TigerDave

After reading all the posts in this thread, I began reading up on the Samsung hard drives' NoiseGuard and SilentSeek Technologies (as I'm about to purchase one or two 120GB hard drives for my HDVR2).

For those of you who are also interested, go to:

http://www.samsungelectronics.com/h..._papers_02.html

I'm definitely going to go with the Samsung 5400 RPM drive (model SV1204H).

-- Dave

Posted by: psvendsen

I agree with this opinion on the Samsung 120GB 5400 rpm drive. I upgraded my Sony T60 with this drive and it is absolutely quiet. I have it in my bedroom about 10 feet from our bed and I can only barely hear the fan, no hard drive noise even when recording two shows and watching a pre-recorded third show.

Go to http://pricewatch.com and you'll find them for around $120 shipped.

Posted by: legalaliens

quote:
Originally posted by ct williams
To answer my own question in case anyone else was wondering, I received the drive and used it as an upgrade for the hdvr2. It appears that the Seagate utility will not allow you to set the drive acoustic level, but IBM has one that does. My drive was set at the most quiet level possible out of the box. Once installed in the tivo I can hear no hard drive noise, however, I can hear the seeks from where I sit, but they are more quiet than any drive I have heard before and are much quieter than stock.

CT

According to Seagate support, the drive is set to 'performance', not 'quiet' mode. Here is a quote:

"By default the drive is set for performance mode.

Every disc drive makes a certain amount of noise while running. Normally, the faster the drive motor spins, the higher pitched the resulting sound will be. It is also normal for the drive to make sort of a "chattering" or 'clicking' sound while it is reading and writing data. However, if the sound coming from your drive has recently changed or is an excessive grinding or clanking noise, this may indicate a physical problem with the drive.

The latest ATA drives offer Advanced Acoustics Management (AAM). There are two modes available, quiet and performance. The quiet mode does quiet down the drive a small amount at the cost of a slight performance hit. The default setting is performance mode. In order to toggle between quiet and performance mode, use the attached AAM toggle utility (seaaam.exe). Copy this utility to a bootable floppy and execute seaaam.exe. This is a pre-release version of the utility, the full version will be made available on the Seagate web site when released."

I have a copy of the seaaam.exe program they sent me. I have not used it yet, so I don't know if it works, and, if it does, how much it quiets the seeks.

Cheers

Posted by: rtaheri

Bought a Western Digital 1600BB from Fry's for my HDVR2. Reading the comments in the TiVo forum, I figured the noise might not be the best, but at least better than the stock Maxtor. Wrong! The "hum" may be less, but the seek chatter is hard to handle.

So, I decided to put some numbers behind all the subjective comments we have been reading. First, I measured the sound level on the HDVR2 with the WD installed. It reads 57dB. By comparison, my rather quiet PC has a 52dB reading; another rather loud PC with two disk drives reads 55dB.

The hum is one thing, the seek chatter is what I can't stand. But that's a personal preference.

I then went to the manufacturers' web sites and collected some data on the drives we have been discussing. They all disclose noise levels. The spreadsheet is attached. It looks like the WD has a "Seek Mode 3" that is supposed to be quieter, but I cannot find any references to enabling it on their web site. I emailed them a question on Tuesday, but haven't heard back.

I am going to return the WD and get a Seagate ST3120024A if I can find one locally.

Cheers,
Reza

Posted by: rtaheri

quote:
Originally posted by rtaheri
The spreadsheet is attached

Wooops, here is another try to include the spread sheet.

Reza

Posted by: rablaw

I put in a Samsung 120gb-5400rpm drive last week. It makes virtually no noise. As to heat, the cover over the original Tivo drive seems slightly hotter than the area over the Samsung.

I didn't get it at esystor but with free shipping and a good resellerratings.com rating may be the best overall price available.

But I do like the idea of adding an external fan. When I opened the Tivo I was suprised to see that the internal fan just pulls the air from the power supply area and blows it into the center of the box. Or is the other way around?

/rab

Posted by: tivooh

just finished an upgrade with Samsung 120 Gig 5400 rpm
It is quiet and runs cool
The only problem is to watch out for the jumper instructions--They are confusing If when you finish and your new drive only reports 32 Gig, Try the other setting The printed instructions say to use the settings "bellow" ( which means use the set immediately below and not the set on the bottom) Yes the instructions say "bellow". Happy with 180 hours now

Posted by: ct williams

quote:
Originally posted by RickyD1967
I just installed the "120GB Samsung SV1204H" and that sucker Purrrr's super quiet, much quieter than the "120GB Maxtor". As for heat, I'll have to wait a week or so to average-it-out, looks like it'll be fine. Anyone thinking of upgrading with a 120GB hard drive, I would highly recommend this drive. One guy said he bought his from: www.esystor.com, I think the price is: $125 w/free shipping, I believe this is the best price anywhere.

I wanted to warn anyone who was thinking of using esystor.com to purchase their upgrade drive. Based on the reviews here I purchased the samsung from them. When I received it, it was obviously defective, it sounded like a table saw. While getting the RMA I got to read the small print which states that all defective returns are charged $10 (to recover their "free" shipping I guess). After I returned the drive (at my expense of course) they charged me the $10 but have refused to credit my credit card for the purchase amount. While the site lists a phone number, that phone number only talks about using their email address, no way to speak with anyone. My int ital inquires as to why it has taken almost one month to credit my card led to a reply (by someone who does not speak English): 'We are looking into matter. Be patient.' It has now been almost two months and they will no longer reply to any emails. I have had to dispute the charge with my credit card company.

Just another internet company experience, good luck if you need to deal with them in any form...

CT

Posted by: out2fly

Hey Every one,

I just completed an upgrade with Hinsdales guide. It went very smoothly. I replaced my 20 hour Quantum drive with a Western Digital 7200 RPM WD16000JBRTL. It is a 160 Gig. I know I cannot use more than 137 of it but the price was right at Fry's electronics (139.00) Also comes with a controller card. (Not sure what I am going to do with it though) Anyways you cannot even hear it in my unit, alot better than stock. Also doesnt run any warmer than it did.. Hope it helps. Todd