iPod New iPod Classic making strange noises, issue unresolved with Apple Tech Support

[RussianCyborg]

Hello all.

I got a new iPod Classic in late June. After I'd had it a few weeks, I noticed it making a strange noise as I move around in the menus. It makes a faint clicking noise, then soft, high-pitched "peeeeeeeew" sound that doesn't last too long.

I've found that I can reliably recreate the sound by navigating to a song, then pressing and holding the menu button to go back to the main menu. Almost every time, it makes the sound. It might be the hard drive "winding down" or something (that's kinda what it sounds like), but I'm no expert.

It gets better. I talked to an Apple Support rep about the problem the day I noticed it. I did the restore process, updated software; the usual troubleshooting steps. As soon as I was done I heard the noise again, told the Apple rep, and I ended up sending the iPod in for repair. After all, it's brand new. Well, I got the same iPod back a week later with a letter describing how the problem "could not be reproduced" and how the product "meets Apple standards." Well, I pulled the iPod out of the box and sure enough it was still making the noise. It seems to function fine, but it's brand new, and I'm afraid the issue might be the start of a hard drive failure or similar issue.

Any thoughts?

 

[Labaguette]

Hello,

my Name is not John and no i'm no Apple Genius but i'm here to solve your problem anyways

This issue appears with the slim 160GB iPod classics released in 2009, i have not had this sound appear on the 80GB 2007 model or the 120GB 2008 model. it is indeed the hard drive spinning down, so it is nothing to worry about - although you will hear it a lot when you listen to songs in higher bitrates as the iPod classic only has 64MB of RAM which is used for the OS and caching of songs.

Enjoy your iPod with no regrets

best wishes from Apple DontCare!

 

[RussianCyborg]

Thank you for the help. I'm glad to hear that it's nothing to worry about. I still think it's a bit odd to be able to actually hear that sound, but I can live with it.

I'm not doubting you in any way, but I'm just curious: how did you know that?

 

[Labaguette]

Made my ACMT certification last year; since i'm into Mac hardware i sometimes do "unauthorized" repairs on iPods and iPhones. so i got a broad variety of components to test lying around here. i connected a 160GB HDD to my MacBook and transferred some files. after the dialog closed, the drive was immediately shut down to save power. i guess it's just firmware, but it feels better not walking the streets with an iPod that risks a head crash

best regards!

 

[marsmissions]

Thank you for the help. I'm glad to hear that it's nothing to worry about. I still think it's a bit odd to be able to actually hear that sound, but I can live with it.

I'm not doubting you in any way, but I'm just curious: how did you know that?

You can hear most hard drives. If you don't like it, you might want to consider a flash based iPod.