Chipset noise / whine - Resolved

Hello everyone, after months of lurking and searching, I'm excited about the idea of actually contributing!

I believe I've solved my CPU whine/noise issue that has been brought up/discussed so frequently on the NBR forums and others as well, and felt it was worth sharing.

Scenario:

1/28/10: Took delivery of a new HP EliteBook 2530P, refurb from NewEgg. Penryn, GS45 chipset I believe, Intel GMA graphics, SL9300 CPU. I Installed operating system (Win 7 Ultimate), fresh build. Didn't notice anything at first, but once everything was installed and the machine went in to an idle state, the notebook would emit a rather loud, headache inducing buzz or humm, throwing in an occasional high pitched squeel or beeping sound as well. Moving the mouse with the trackpad also seemed to add some of its own flavor to the constant buzz. As described in many other topics, running a program to induce a higher power draw on the CPU made the noise go away.

I'm not normally picky about random computer sounds, but this was piercingly bad; I lost count of the number of Advil I went through over the few days that I was experiencing this problem. I needed to figure out some sort of solution or send this thing back. I couldn't get any of the software solutions to work -- RMClock wouldn't recognize my CPU or allow me to modify any settings (C4 states, etc.), and my BIOS doesn't have an option to disable C4... and ultimately, I would not have been satisfied with a BIOS/Software solution anyway -- my OCD would not allow it.

Just before getting ready to package this thing up and send it back, I decided to try an experiment with the crappy/loud Samsung HS08XJF drive that this machine came with. With the machine in an idle state, I shut the lid, turned the machine over and tried to figure out where the noise was coming from -- it appeared closest to the hard drive location, so removed the cover for the hard drive and loosened it up. I then removed the hard drive (there was enough cable present to flip it around and set it on the outside/bottom casing of the notebook while the computer was still running -- and low and behold, the noise went away. When moving the drive back to it's "spot" in the notebook, the noise would instantly come back, increasing in volume the closer the drive got to it's permanent location (it sits immediately adjacent to the GPU -- right behind it in the 2530P).

My guess is that there is some sort of electrical interference between the chipset (perhaps the GPU since it's so close?) and the electronics in the Samsung HS08XJF that "amplifies" the chipset whine/noise. Note that removing the drive does NOT get rid of the noise all together, however when the drive is removed from the machine my ear must be within two inches of the mainboard in order to hear anything. With the drive in place, I can hear the noise 5ft away.

I had a 250gb drive on order, a Toshiba MK2529GSG. Before sending the machine back, I figured I'd wait and try the Toshiba drive, in hopes that it may have more shielding. Turns out the MK2529GSG has much more metal surrounding it -- the drive is far more insulated and far quieter than the Samsung (I can barely hear the Toshiba drive when its actively in use.) None of the drive electronics are exposed either, unlike the Samsung. With the Toshiba drive installed, my CPU whine/noise issues are no more.

Something to try -- would be curious to know if this resolves the issue for anyone else.

Happy to (finally) contribute,

Nick

 

Thanks for contributing Nick,
From what you are getting at, the noise is either coming from the harddrive or an interference between the two.

While you are waiting for the new Toshiba drive, I would suggest going to the hardware store and getting a small piece of rubber. I am not sure of the dimensions of the 1.8" drive, but a 6"x6"x 1-2mm thick piece or so should be more than enough. Cut it up and put some on either side of the harddrive, and see if that isolates the noise any.
Its worth a shot, rubber isnt very expensive anyways.

Usually the noise people complain about is related to leaking voltage regulators. This to my knowledge can only be corrected for my covering them in a sound deadening non-conductive clay, or a process of physically replacing the leaking/properly sealed/inadequate voltage regulators with better ones.

Good luck,

K-TRON

 

K-TRON -- I may not have been very clear in my original post -- the Toshiba drive had arrived and was installed at the time of the original post and my noise problem is resolved. FYI.

 

OK time for me to jump in here with all my knowledge. CPUs, GPUs and other chips do NOT generate any noise as they are solid state and do not move. Its the power regulators and coils that are creating the whine everyone is hearing. This is Electrical Engineering 101 here.