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Humming sound from new Imac 27"

L

Langee

macrumors newbie
Original poster
May 4, 2011
4
0
Hi all

i just picked up the new 27" imac and switched it on. And it is constantly humming with a low dimming sound. Its high enough to notice it when around 2 meters from the machine.

Is this normal on all imacs? i must admit im getting pretty tired of listening to it so if that is the standard I dont look forward to using my imac :(
 
no. i tried that as i saw a lot of people had that problem on the 2010 version but no luck.

The humming is constant no matter the brightness
 
my mid 2010 21,5" imac does that sound. when i lift him off the table the sound disappears.
It's something vibrating
 
My guess - either a defective hard drive or bad PSU. Is the sound louder near the upper left of the machine? This is where the PSU is. My '10 i7 iMac makes a faint buzzing at low brightness when its hot from sustained CPU load. Not obtrusive, though.
 
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I feel some vibration on the table where my imac is.
When i lift the imac, the vibration disapears. also the huummmm sound disapears.
I think it isn't a normal behavior. If you can easily change for another imac, go for it.
I didn't change mine because this was the 3rd imac, due yellow tint
 
Return?

When I bought my imac years ago, it made a loud, vibrating, squeal right out of the box. It was so long ago, I forget if it was a hard drive or fan. After a couple tries with phone support, I took it back and was given a new one.
 
just noticed that when i lift the imac from the table the sound disappears
 
I had this when i got an imac a few weeks back... it's your desk. seriously!

Have a look at my previous threads and you'll find the details of the post and how i fixed it.

edit...... => this post... https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1137139/

Picked up a new 2011 iMac today and had the same thing, isolate the imac from the desk and it will go.
 
trackbikes said:
I had this when i got an imac a few weeks back... it's your desk. seriously!

Have a look at my previous threads and you'll find the details of the post and how i fixed it.

edit...... => this post... https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1137139/

Picked up a new 2011 iMac today and had the same thing, isolate the imac from the desk and it will go.
Click to expand...
I had 2x 21,5" on the same desk, at the same spot and none of them made the noise. Just this one, the 3rd 21,5"

Edit: the first 2 imacs were the low 21,5". The 3rd is the high end 21,5". The hdd is different on my 3rd imac(1TB)
I read the thread you linked and i agree that it must be something related with the hdd
 
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tried moving it around and as noted above the sound decreases and increases depending on where it stands. guess itspropably the desk then
 
Langee said:
tried moving it around and as noted above the sound decreases and increases depending on where it stands. guess itspropably the desk then
Click to expand...

yep... bet it's quieter closer to the corners, I found some cheap noeprene mousemats worked well
 
imac 2011 noisy hdd

that's a very known issue caused by WD hard drive which has FALS in its model name. = WD Caviar Black 1 TB (not even the latest 1 Tb model offered by WD, still used by Apple in 2011).
this drive is too much vibrational to be used in a system like iMac and I think you have a right to request a replacement. 2011 Seagate models used in iMacs are reported to be quiet.

Hitachi 2 Tb drive is also emitting a humming noise which is very recognizable in a silent room.
 
Confirm that Noisy said.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYs-uKDR4pM

This is WD stock HDD FALS model. I have the same sound with that HDD.
I've figured that it depends on where the table with imac lays on. I got this humming sound only in one room. In other's - no sound.

Another thing is that my table base on metallic frame. And I think that the structure of the table, and the evenness of the floor finish in conjunction with the vibration of HDD create this resonant sound.

I see only solution - change stock HDD to HDD Green Serie or better SSD.
 
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All iMacs make a slight buzz... its normal and expected.

..in fact, all machinery makes small noises...its your tolerance or awareness level which is probably high.
 
I have the 1 TB WD drive and have never felt or heard any vibration. My guess is either you got a dud or your rubber hard drive bushings are faulty.
 
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