Clicking Noise issue *resolved*

Try the "-B 255 hda" command in hdparm. It should disable the acoustic management completely.

 

qtq, try HD Tune Pro (trial version) and see if that allows you to set the AAM value.

 

My 4 month old Vostro 1500 has begun to suffer from the head parking noise when idle. I also noticed it's not specfic to the OS as it will happen if i'm in the BIOS.

Question, I noticed in the Dell BIOS there is a high performance setting for the hard drive. Has anyone tried this setting with any success?

 

The BIOS has three modes: Bypass, Quiet, and Performance. I set it to performance. So far so good.

 

I setted the AAM value as 254 now.The clicking noise stopped.

 

Thanks Deadsimple, & Cyanize...

Worked great for me. Clicking began for me when I upgraded the hard drive. Had to disable UAC... It's been a pain anyway.

Dell Vostro 1400 w/ WD3200BJKT Upgraded HD running Vista 64.

 

Don't know if this has been posted before because there are 26 pages but brightness can be fixed in vista if you change the LCD values in settings.xml

I changed my AC value to 100 so when it's plugged in and I run NHC, the brightness stays bright.

If NHC isn't working for you, make sure you're changing Advanced Power Management and not Acoustic Management. Advanced Power Management should be at Max Performance (254) and Acoustic Management should be at default (128).

If you still hear clicking noises, looks like you need to optimize your startup/services because you're laptop is doing too much crap in the background. My hard drive light doesn't constantly blink, and yours shouldn't either. I'm running Vista BTW.

 

Has anyone managed to install the WD fix?

I would rather do this than have scripts etc on bootup (currently using the hdparm fix, works well, thanks)

I have access to a USB Floppy Drive, but it seems others couldn't get it to work via that method?

Any tips for getting the WD Fix to work?

 

I have an xps M1530 with a seagate 7200rpm 250gb hd. I have tried using NHC, ive tried setting the bios, and when i try using hdparm using the "-B 255 hda" i get an error message. I just want the clicking to stop please help me!

 

Try the "-B 254 hda" setting. It should work.

 

It tells me
'-b' is not recognizable as an external or internal command

 

Ok i managed to get the command to work in hdparm but it didnt do anything, my laptop continues to click

 

It doesn't stop the clicking, it just reduces it by a lot.

 

i've been having problems with my WD scorpio 2.5" 320GB 7200rpm HD (on vista home premium). here is WD's official response with info on creating a bootable XP cd from a non-XP machine - unfortunately, i can't post links yet. PM me if you need them.

disclaimer: i haven't tried this yet so i hope it works:

***************************************

microsoft support:
How to create a bootable floppy disk for an NTFS or FAT partition in Windows XP

How to obtain Windows XP Setup disks for a floppy boot installation

WD Response
try, if possible making the floppy or cd from an XP PC so we can boot the Vista laptop with the disk.

During normal operation, a WD Scorpio 2.5" hard drive will make a clicking noise when attempting to enter into power-saver or standby mode.

This issue is caused by a system initiated power management command being interpreted incorrectly by the hard drive.

There is a WD Scorpio 2.5" hard drive optimization utility available to resolve this issue.

Please follow the directions below to download and run the utility.

IMPORTANT: Please ensure that AC power is connected to, and supplying power to the laptop computer before attempting to run the WD Scorpio 2.5" hard drive optimization utility.

Although this utility should not alter any data on the hard drive, Western Digital recommends backing up any data on the hard drive before running this utility.

Download the file wdupd020.zip to any Windows based computer system and use an extraction utility (such as WinZip) to extract all files onto a bootable DOS floppy diskette or DOS bootable CD.

Insert the floppy diskette or CD into the computer system with the WD Scorpio 2.5" hard drive.

If the computer system is running, save any open documents, close any open programs, and reboot the computer. If the computer system is off, please start the computer.

Please Note: If the computer system does not boot to the floppy diskette or CD, you may need to enter the computer BIOS and set the floppy drive as the first boot device (before the hard drive or CD-ROM drive).

After booting to the DOS bootable diskette or DOS bootable CD, type wdupd020.exe and press enter. Highlight the Western Digital hard drive using the arrow keys.

The listing will show "Update Applicable" under status. Press Enter to continue.

Press Y to accept the license agreement. Follow the instructions listed and press Enter to continue.

The application will report "Update Completed." Follow the remaining instructions and press Enter to exit the utility.

Remove the floppy diskette and restart your system.

 

ok i realize someone made a post explaining this earlier but it really didnt make sense to me. How do I set it up so that hdparm automatically runs the "hdparm -B 255 hda" script when I turn on my computer or wake it from hibernation or sleep?

 

I have the same problem with a loud clicking noise from my HDD
A Samsung HM320JI and went through the trouble shooting guide that the Sony techs sent me. It did reduce the ramdom clicking noise to maybe once or twice a day but didn't stop it. So far i have tried the NHC, whiched worked, but found that it not only dims my monitor on starup but also it causes my computer to get laggy after a while (couple of hours) my CPU usage will be all over the place even if it just idling. Not sure if it is conflicting with vista or sony hardware. did anyone else's notebook start lagging when using NHC.

I'm sending my laptop back to Sony for them to take a look at, but since this issue is with this model of hard drive. I'm guessing im just gonna be replacing old clicking hard drive for a new clicking hard drive. LOL Lucky I only had got this laptop last month and theres not my in the HD so far

 

So ryaske's instructions for using hdparm has solved my clicking problems for a while now...but a couple of questions:

When I set it to 254, it stays that way for several weeks, no matter how much I reboot, sleep, hibernate, etc. Then once in a while it will randomly revert to clicking mode, until I run the hdparm.exe -B 254 hda command again. Is this because I have UAC enabled, so it can't change itself back to the regular setting?

Also, if I wanted to manually change back to the default clicking setting, would hdparm.exe -B 127 hda be the correct command? I think my hd is a 220gb Western Digital.

 

BuddaTele: No, I think that this hasn't anything to do with UAC. You can try my HDD Acoustic Fix that I posted few pages back, that will copy a simple .bat file to your startup folder, so if you have hdparm installed (you say that you do), it should disable the clicking right after every startup, so you don't need to care about anything. It uses the same command for hdparm that you use, so it will work for you. If you are running x64 OS, then write it here, I can provide the version that is changed for x64 OS.
And yes, for changing back to default, that command is correct.

 

Thanks man, it really work for me ... enjoy the silence ^^

 

I'm using vista x64 so if you have time please provide us the x64 version Thax

 

Yes, here it is...unrar and run

 

Thanks a lot for the info!

 

Ugh.... I have the clicking noise and I would like to use this fix. But honestly after scanning 28 pages of this thread, I am more confused than ever.

I have a Dell XPS 1530 running Vista X64 Home Premium. My Hard Drive is a 320 GB SATA with 7200 RPM Free Fall Sensor.

Can anyone help me figure out what I need to do.
Thanks so much!

 

Download & install hdparm and use my fix for Vista x64 posted on this page or maybe one page back and you should be ok

 

Thank you!

 

Hello
There is a new update from Dell to SATA Drives:

Dell say: "The DE16 firmware corrects an audible "clicking" noise."

For Seagate and Latitude, Vostro, XPS and others

Anyone tested this ???
Is it really works ???

Klamerek

 

I checked and there wasn't anything available for my Vostro 1500.

 

Sorry, my foult.

Below list of models:
Inspiron 1525
Inspiron 1526
Inspiron 1721
Inspiron 1318
Latitude D530
Latitude D531
Latitude D631
Latitude E4300
Latitude E5400
Latitude E5500
Latitude E6400
Latitude E6400 ATG
Latitude E6500
Latitude ATG D630
Latitude D630
Latitude D830
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M2300
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M2400
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M4400
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M6300
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M6400
Studio Laptop 1435
Studio Laptop 1537
Studio Laptop 1737
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M4300
XPS M1730
XPS M1330
XPS M1530


And list of systems:
Microsoft Windows Vista 32-bit
Microsoft Windows Vista 64-bit
Microsoft Windows XP
Microsoft Windows XP x64


Klamerek

 

Would appreciate it if you could provide a link to the update..

 

Sure, here it is:
http://support.dell.com/support/downloads/download.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=gen&releaseid=R206231&SystemID=PREC_M4400&servicetag=&os=WLH&osl=en&deviceid=18100&devlib=0&typecnt=0&vercnt=1&catid=-1&impid=-1&formatcnt=2&libid=41&fileid=288150

 

hmmm.... I am running Vista x64 on a XPS M1530. When I download and attempt to install this, it says it is not compatible.
I agree, it says that it applies to my system but it won't let me install it.

 

OK, I tried to install this update...

Dell says: "Upgrade will take approximately 15 minutes executed from CD or Floppy Image. (Will pause for a period of time "Attempting to read binary file." "

After 30 minutes of waiting I kick it of ...

Anyone tried this ? Any suggestions ?

 

Yes i tried! And it works!!! yes i waited too about 25 minutes but in the end COMPLETED ! you need to wait !.

And clicks GONE!!! before that i used hdparm and (unclick.exe) previos posts... was no click... but today i saw firmeware for hdd that link

I set my hdd back to 128 (NOT 127 LIKE IT WAS SAID! THE DEFAULT FOR SEAGATE IS 128!! REMEMBER) mode... and it started clicking again ... after that i burned iso upgraded and now its completely NO CLICKS ANY MORE!!!!


so if u a hear clicks just upgrade to the new firmeware of ur hdd

http://support.dell.com/support/dow...1&impid=-1&formatcnt=2&libid=41&fileid=288150


THANKS FOR THE LINK!!!!

 

Wow !!!

So I need more patience
OK, I'll try again as soon as possible.

 

Yes, yes, yes... !!!!!!!!!!!

IT'S WORKING !!!

First time I tried to do this with ISO image and cd and waiting and waiting.... and nothing.

Second time I tried with bootable usb pen drive and it was SO QUICK !!!
Maybe 15 seconds

Dell and Santa - Good Job
Thanks.

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=291373
http://wdc.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/wdc...F9zZWFyY2hfdGV4dD1ub2lzZQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1

These are threads relating to the same issues on the Western Digital drive (WD3200BEVT) included with my XPS 1530. I'm a little worried to try it, but if anyone else does feel free to post whether it works

 

I can't get this dang thing to update.
I follow the installation instructions about the self extractor and then directing the run command to the filepath, but it doesn't work. There is no setup.exe in my extracted folders.
How are you installing this seagate firmware update?

 

I've used the hdparm, unclick.exe, the NHC application, and recently updated the BIOS and applied the new firmware - and the Seagate drive on my XPS m1530 is still clicking.

It's strange, because it seems like at least one of the above methods has worked for most of the people that have experienced the issue in this thread.

 

After you extract, look in the folder.
And then...

Two ways:
1) Locate CD Image folder and inside you can find seagate.iso file. Burn to CD, and boot laptop with it.
2) Locate Files folder and copy all files from it to bootable usb pen drive. Boot from usb your computer. Type "de16.bat" and Enter.

 

Thank you, I'll give that a try.

 

I finally got it to work via CD. It took about 30 minutes all together.
The HDD seems a bit quieter, so that is good. Thanks for all your help.

 

! When u update firmeware... Remember set to "performance" in Bios (HDD Acoust...) Not bypass. It sounds much better.

 

I have downloaded the R206231.EXE (Seagate firmware) from Dell, burned the ISO onto a CD, and boot from it. It hangs at the black screen with "Attempting to read binary file: DE16.LOD". The CD keeps spinning fast and then stops repeatedly.

For those who are successful with this, did you have to go through this screen?

 

Looks like patience is a virtue. I waited 25 minutes and it finally processed that DE16.LOD file. Now my Seagate ST9320421ASG is not making loud clicking sound anymore! It's alot quieter!

EDIT:

It came back after a few days...what a bummer.

 

Hi! Does this also work for the Seagate ST9160821AS HDD in my XPS M1530, because it is not listed in the Compatibility filed? Should I give it a try or wait for another solution?

Thanks for the answer!

p.s. sorry for my bad English

 

^^ Looks like it is not on the list, so I would play it safe and wait for another solution.

 

The clicking is gone!!!! It was driving me nuts, since I left my laptop downloading stuff all night long and it bothered me in my quiet room...

Thank you so much everyone!!!

 

Yes I probably will wait for a nother solution. But my heart almost stops everytime I hear a grinding noise form the HDD Thats why I wanted to ask, if anyone has found a solution for this HDD.

 

does the change with hdparm stay? like after reboot? and what does this change do exactly? i don't want to wear out my HD.

 

^^ I think HDParm is a program you install; not one of those driver that flash your hard drive. I've never use it before, but this is my guess.