IMPORTANT: Poll for those with SAMSUNG Hard Drives

Share your experiences about noisy computers and components, and vendors responses to your valid complaints.

Moderators: NeilBlanchard, Ralf Hutter, sthayashi, Lawrence Lee, Devonavar

What motor sticker/stamp does your Samsung have, and is it there a noticeable whine (with case closed, about 1 meter away)?

JVC, no noticeable whine
22
14%
JVC, noticeable whine
31
19%
NIDEC, no noticeable whine
84
53%
NIDEC, noticeable whine
6
4%
No sticker or stamp, no noticeable whine
7
4%
No sticker or stamp, noticeable whine
2
1%
Other, noticeable whine
2
1%
Other, no noticeable whine
5
3%
 
Total votes: 159

dan
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Post by dan » Fri May 28, 2004 6:45 pm

hi ed,

well i guess i could buy from Compuvest, but is it safe to say that the NIEDEC motors are more quiet than JVC motors?

thanks ed!
dan

Edward Ng
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Post by Edward Ng » Fri May 28, 2004 6:59 pm

The survey results so far would point to that; I've never yet heard a Samsung with anything but NIDEC, so I really don't know. :?

dimva
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Post by dimva » Fri May 28, 2004 7:49 pm

Yes, it looks like NIDEC motors are the quiet ones. :(

I say :( because I just got my RMA'd harddrive. It's quieter than the old one (since there was something wrong with the old one), but it's still not as quiet as I expected.

Also it looks like all SP1614C's are JVC and whiny. If someone can prove otherwise please post here.

As for my setup, I have 2 SP1614C's and after 1/2 inch insulating material and case I can still hear them a bit if I listen (although the sound is masked by the whine of the Antec PSU (by the way, why does everything I own whine? Harddrives, PSU, Monitor) :x ).

prof99
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Post by prof99 » Fri May 28, 2004 8:11 pm

I'm going to be getting a SP1213C, which is close, so I'll report what I can find. I'm going to the reseller in person and picking out the drive myself (making sure it's a Nidec, of course). However, it'll be about two months before that happens...

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Post by Ralf Hutter » Sat May 29, 2004 6:18 am

EdwardNg wrote:My only worry is that you need to remember one small thing about NewEgg's customer reviews; the majority of SPCR members have a much, much more stringent set of standards for acoustic performance. While most NewEgg members may say an item is quiet (or very often, silent), sometimes it could be an item that we would consider merely okay or even not good; the Vantec Stealth fans are a fine example of this.
Not to mention that it's fairly well known that Newegg deletes most of the negative reviews.
Last edited by Ralf Hutter on Sat May 29, 2004 6:33 am, edited 1 time in total.

Edward Ng
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Post by Edward Ng » Sat May 29, 2004 6:28 am

Yes, it seems they leave only the negative reviews that go like:

"J00 SUX0RZ I HATE J00R SH1T THIS CARP WAS DOA AND I REPLACED IT TOWICE AND THE AND TEH THIRD ONE STILL COULDN'T OC FOR SHITT ONLY GET FSB260 AND THE VCORE MAXES AT MEASLY 2.5V NEVER BUY FROM HERE IT YOU WILL REGRET IT!!!!"

:roll:

So, you know, it would pretty much negate any and all credibility that said negative comment could possibly have, anyway.

sneaker
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Post by sneaker » Wed Jun 02, 2004 11:33 pm

Drive 1

Noticeable whine (with case closed, about 1 meter away): No
Noticeable whine (with ear next to harddrive): No
Model Number: SP1614N
Supplier: Sephiroth Computers (Australia)
Month of purchase: 2004.03
Motor: JVC sticker, no "FDB", P/V80 2D R2, 31211BD
Revision: Rev A
Date of Manufacturing: 2004.02
Any other relevant/interesting info: Mounted in BQE case. No whine with case open and ear to drive, so obviously none from a distance.

Drive 2

Noticeable whine (with case closed, about 1 meter away): Yes
Noticeable whine (with ear next to harddrive): Yes
Model Number: SP1614N
Supplier: Sephiroth Computers (Australia)
Month of purchase: 2004.05
Motor: JVC stamp, no "FDB", P/V80 2D R2, same as zsazs's picture except "40126EN" instead of "40126DD"
Revision: Rev A
Date of Manufacturing: 2004.03
Any other relevant/interesting info: Mounted in external FireWire enclosure. Whine with enclosure opened and ear anywhere near drive. With enclosure closed, less intense but still clearly heard from a meter or more in this reasonably quiet room with PC switched off.

Drive 2 just arrived today. If I didn't know any better, I'd think they were two different model of drive after hearing them. Lucky the new drive is for backups and not installed in my system, or I'd be a bit annoyed.

My third and oldest Samsung (SV0802N) doesn't whine (it makes a whirring that is very similar to SP1614N #1) but I can't be bothered removing that to check its motor and make a report.

P.S. How do I vote in the poll if I have two of the same drive with different results?

Edit: Voted based on Drive 2 since that was the more recent purchase.

nels0360
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Post by nels0360 » Mon Jun 07, 2004 11:55 pm

Noticeable whine (with case closed, about 1 meter away): Yes
Noticeable whine (with ear next to harddrive): Definately
Model Number: SP1614C
Supplier: NewEgg.com
Month of purchase: 06.2004
Motor: JVC
Revision:
Date of Manufacturing: 03.2004
Any other relevant/interesting info: I can't stand high pitch noises.

So what drive should I get to replace with one? This thing is nowhere near silent. My 120 GB Maxtor Diamond 9+ 8MB cache was much quieter at idle than this one.

greenhorn
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Post by greenhorn » Tue Jun 08, 2004 3:48 am

Is it just me or did Samsung run out of Nidec motors and switch to JVC, seems so judging by the man. dates.

Anyone order a 1614N from newegg recently, or have a line on someplace I could pick one up? I'm ordering a bunch of parts today, but might hold off a day on the drive to try and find a Nidec. Otherwise, I'll order it from newegg and tell y'all what I end up with. I'm really not looking foward to shelling out for multiple SmartDrives though because sooner rather than later I expect to be needing at least 320Gb + 320Gb backup in case of a failure.

much love and thanks in advance to anyone who can help me out!

JVM
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Post by JVM » Tue Jun 08, 2004 5:57 am

greenhorn wrote:Is it just me or did Samsung run out of Nidec motors and switch to JVC, seems so judging by the man. dates.

Anyone order a 1614N from newegg recently, or have a line on someplace I could pick one up? I'm ordering a bunch of parts today, but might hold off a day on the drive to try and find a Nidec. Otherwise, I'll order it from newegg and tell y'all what I end up with. I'm really not looking foward to shelling out for multiple SmartDrives though because sooner rather than later I expect to be needing at least 320Gb + 320Gb backup in case of a failure.

much love and thanks in advance to anyone who can help me out!
I ordered a SP1614N from ZipZoomFly a few months ago and got the NIDEC stamped version.

greenhorn
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Post by greenhorn » Tue Jun 08, 2004 8:53 am

awwwwwww damn, they're backordered. Thanks though JVM.

anyone else got a lead on Nidec 1614N's?

samwc912
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Post by samwc912 » Tue Jun 08, 2004 11:39 am

Does anybody know if frontierpc takes special requests (checking the motor of hard drive)? I've emailed them once but the email got lost somewhere. I might email them again.

RLiu818
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Post by RLiu818 » Wed Jun 09, 2004 12:28 pm

prof99 wrote:
dan wrote:so it appears the nidec FDB motors are better than JVC FDB motors.

gee i hope NEWEGG ships with NIDEC or that it is somehow possible to only order and purchase NIDEC SP80's.

-dan
Unfortunately, neither newegg nor ZipZoomFly do such a thing.
newegg's [url=http://www.newegg.com/app/faq_product.asp?DEPA=0]FAQ[/url] wrote: UNLESS directly specified y the product description or title, we do not guarantee revision or version numbers. We ship what we have, when we have it. Generally, our stock moves so fast that we have the latest version or revision of everything. Newegg.com cannot tag a particular version or revision for a particular order and make sure the warehouse picks that box or item when your sales order comes up.
I "pricegrabbed" the SP80's and found a decent reseller (or at least the reviews aren't too bad) called Compuvest. I emailed them, and they do allow special requests like this, as long as the product is in stock. Their prices aren't too bad either...
i just called conpuvest and asked if they can check for me but they said its impossible cuz their stock is at their warehouse.

prof99
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Post by prof99 » Wed Jun 09, 2004 1:48 pm

Hmm...the response I got was just "we can do that but it would need to be in stock for us to look at". Who knows...

acaurora
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Post by acaurora » Wed Jun 09, 2004 5:01 pm

Noticeable whine (with case closed, about 1 meter away): YES
Noticeable whine (with ear next to harddrive): YES
Model Number: SB1614N
Supplier: Silicon Acoustics
Month of purchase: 6/04
Motor: JVC
Revision: A
Date of Manufacturing: 2004.03
Any other relevant/interesting info: No FDB. Whiny POS... -_-;; need to call SiliconAcoustics for a RMA, and tell them I NEED A NIDEC ONE, lol :P

I emailed SiliconAcoustics, and this was their reply:

All of the Samsung drives we sell have FDB. The features of the drive are best referenced through the model number (SP1614N). The absence of an FDB stamp on the motor is not an indication that the motor does not feature FDB. I am aware of the discussion on Silent PC Review of the difference between Nidec and JVC motor. I have compared them both. It is true that the sound JVC has higher frequency characteristics compared to the Nidec. But the difference is only audible when the drive is held close to the ear. High frequency sounds rapidly diminish with distance and obstructions. I have found that the difference is inaudible from an installed position inside the case.

I don't believe them, as the one I recieved, the SP1614N, had a high pitched whine that could CLEARLY be heard a meter away from my SFF SN45G. It also could clearly be heard from my SLK3700BQE, which is pretty decently quiet, but has no acoustic padding.

I emailed them asking to check if they have any Nidec ones, which I will happily swap for. Otherwise, *holds giant neon sign* RMA TIME!

dan
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Post by dan » Thu Jun 10, 2004 6:12 am

greenhorn,

i put a thread "newegg bad eggs?" on this issue "Anyone order a 1614N from newegg recently, or have a line on someplace I could pick one up?"

RLiu818
i wonder if samsung is moving away from NIDEC for JVC?

"Is it just me or did Samsung run out of Nidec motors and switch to JVC, seems so judging by the man. dates."

i emailed compuvest, and they said the same thing. "i just called conpuvest and asked if they can check for me but they said its impossible cuz their stock is at their warehouse."

prof99
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Post by prof99 » Thu Jun 10, 2004 6:40 am

I guess whoever I talked to was wrong then. Anyway, I have sent an email to A2Z Computers, Computer Giants, and TheNerds.net. The only reply I got was from TheNerds.net, which said "Sorry, we could not accommodate your request even if the product is in stock. That would mean we would have to open the package and everything is factory sealed." Nuts...

dan
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Post by dan » Thu Jun 10, 2004 12:18 pm

i emailed silicon accoustics, still waiting to ehar from them, if anyone does it it should be them, since silence is their niche.

i posted it as a seperate thread

if not, i'll order from newegg, and cross my fingers and knock on wood. if i get JVC i'll probably RMA it without even bothering trying.

RLiu818
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Post by RLiu818 » Thu Jun 10, 2004 12:21 pm

dan wrote:i emailed silicon accoustics, still waiting to ehar from them, if anyone does it it should be them, since silence is their niche.

i posted it as a seperate thread

if not, i'll order from newegg, and cross my fingers and knock on wood. if i get JVC i'll probably RMA it without even bothering trying.
yea i was thinking to try with newegg and returning if had a JVC motor..

BUT they charge 15percent restocking and 15 percent of 100+ dollars is alot of money.

mjolson
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Post by mjolson » Thu Jun 10, 2004 1:44 pm

Noticeable whine (with case closed, about 1 meter away): None
Noticeable whine (with ear next to harddrive): faint
Model Number: SP1604N
Supplier: Newegg
Month of purchase: June 2004
Motor: Nidec FDB
Revision: A
Date of Manufacturing: Dec 2003
Any other relevant/interesting info: No

This is my first samsung drive. I have to say that I'm impressed by the build quality - it feels like a tank compared to my WD 1200JB.

JVM
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Post by JVM » Thu Jun 10, 2004 2:49 pm

I am also a new Samsung HDD owner with an SP0812C and SP1614N and very impressed with the quiet... :D

RLiu818
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Post by RLiu818 » Thu Jun 10, 2004 4:23 pm

JVM wrote:I am also a new Samsung HDD owner with an SP0812C and SP1614N and very impressed with the quiet... :D
does your SP0812C have a NIDEC motor or JVC? Where and when did you order it?

JVM
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Post by JVM » Thu Jun 10, 2004 6:20 pm

RLiu818 wrote:
JVM wrote:I am also a new Samsung HDD owner with an SP0812C and SP1614N and very impressed with the quiet... :D
does your SP0812C have a NIDEC motor or JVC? Where and when did you order it?
Both my Spinpoints have the NIDEC stamp. I got the SP0812C from a distributor in California and the SP1614N from ZipZoomFly. I first purchased the SP0812C about 6 months ago and the SP1614N about 3 months ago. Both were manufactured in September of 2003.

Pate
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Post by Pate » Thu Jun 10, 2004 9:13 pm

Noticeable whine (with case closed, about 1 meter away): None
Noticeable whine (with ear next to harddrive): Very faint
Model Number: SP1604N
Supplier: www.verkkokauppa.com
Month of purchase: October 2003
Motor: Nidec FDB
Revision: Forgot to check
Date of Manufacturing: Forgot to check
Any other relevant/interesting info: My disk has quite a lot of vibration. The whole case resonates heavily even when using rubber blocks to mount the disk. I only got rid of the vibration and resonance when I suspended the disk using rubber cords.

Pate

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Post by Phrozenpenguin » Fri Jun 11, 2004 4:38 am

Noticeable whine (with case closed, about 1 meter away): N/A Yet
Noticeable whine (with ear next to harddrive): N/Q Yet
Model Number: SP1614N
Supplier: www.tekheads.co.uk
Month of purchase: June O4
Motor: JVC 40314AD P/V80-2D R2
Revision: Rev. A
Date of Manufacturing: 2004. 05
Any other relevant/interesting info:

Just bought this drive, then find the thread. Oh well, looks like i got a JVC without FDB.
Im going to be testing next week (not extensively) but will update when i have an opinion.

Hopefully all is not waster if its whining.....as they run cool i can bung it in a silentdrive or some enclosure (c'mon, give me some hope:p) ??

I have a 60gb BarraIV to compare, and maybe some serial ata Barra V

Do these come with AAM enabled or disabled by default?

JVM
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Post by JVM » Fri Jun 11, 2004 4:54 am

Both my SP0812C and SP1614N came with AAM set for performance - not quiet. However, I have to say both drives, mounted in a Zalman ZM-2HC1, have been very quiet and I left the setting for performance.

mjolson
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Post by mjolson » Sat Jun 12, 2004 7:54 am

I was surprised to find that my 1604N came with AAM disabled.

Edward Ng
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Post by Edward Ng » Sat Jun 12, 2004 7:57 am

Disabled and set for performance are the same; virtually all SpinPoints come from the factory set for performance/AAM off.
You have to turn on AAM, i.e. set it for quiet mode, yourself.

-Ed

acaurora
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Post by acaurora » Sat Jun 12, 2004 9:40 am

oh? maybe thats why they're so f#@$king whiny... (AAM was off...?)


how do you turn it on?

JVM
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Post by JVM » Sat Jun 12, 2004 11:19 am

acaurora wrote:oh? maybe thats why they're so f#@$king whiny... (AAM was off...?)


how do you turn it on?
You can use the Hutil utility found here:

http://www.samsung.com/Products/HardDis ... /hutil.htm

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