Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

imac g3 HDD switch - difficult?

gohome190

gohome190

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 18, 2007
127
0
Hey,

I have a 400 G3 that has an annoying whine (presumably) coming from the HDD. It's a 20 gigger that came with the model. I want to quiet it down, so I will replace the HDD, with probably nothing more than 40 gigs. What HDD do you recommend?

Also, and most importantly, is switching and moving ALL the DATA from the old HDD to the new one hard?

Thanks!
 
Does the whine go away if you smack the side of the case?
If it does then it's a CRT problem, which I wouldn't attempt to change.

IIRC those iMacs are pretty easy to open up and get to the HDs. Any 3.5" PATA / IDE drive thats under 128GB should work fine.
 
You know, I think maybe its a fan... Because I see a medium size fan in there... Would that be treatable?

thanks
 
Fan or no fan, depending on your iMac model it's a pretty easy switch on the hard drive, although it takes a little bit of time. Some useful instructions are here.

I'd advise using a magnetized screwdriver if possible as some of the screws are in hard to get places.
 
gohome190 said:
Thanks, would this work:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148231

Nope - that is a SATA drive. You'll need an IDE.

This one should work and has a 16MB cache too:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148143

However it's worth double checking here with someone else or by calling new egg, checking Apple.com. What type of iMac is it?

gohome190 said:
Also, say it is the fan, how hard would that be to replace?

Well, anyway I need a new HDD, because I've heard the original one clicking. Thats a tell-tale sign of "Oh, crap", right?

Thanks again :)
Click to expand...

I'm not sure about the fan, sorry. And yeah, if your HDD is clicking that can be a bad sign.
Click to expand...
 
gohome190 said:
Oh, its a g3 400.

Okay, since I need only a little amount of space, will this work:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148236

?

Also... I never received a Recovery CD or anything like that. So, will transfering my OS and Data be impossible?! Uh oh...

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Yeah that should work fine, although I think the other one is better value for money considering its capacity and cache. But as a step up from your 20GB, this one will be fine. :)

In terms of your data, without disks you'll need to clone your drive.

To do this, you could buy an external enclosure and clone all your data using a free program like SuperDuper (very, very easy to use and works flawlessly) or simply borrow one from someone. Even reformatting an ipod and using that as a temporary external would work.

You could also hunt around on eBay for a s/hand copy of a full, universal install of one of the operating systems (Jaguar, Panther or Tiger discs can be had pretty cheap on eBay these days).

Edit: In most cases you'd need a DVD player to run the install discs unless they were the exact ones for your machine.
 
My 450 iMac has the same wine. I don't think it's the hard drive. It has an after market drive in it (60 Gb).
 
:( Then wonder what it is. Because it is the only reason I rarely use my Mac. I wake up the whole house.
 
No doubt it's the hard drive. They are notoriously slow and noisy in the older iMacs. In fact, I just replaced the 20 gig drive in my iMac G3 with a 100 gig Seagate because it sounded like a jet plane. I didn't even need the extra room! :)
 
Well, I'm getting conflicting reports. Some say: noise caused by HDD. Some say: noise caused by fans. Some say: noise caused by CRT monitor.


Hmmm... I'm thinking Arby's.

I mean, I'm thinking it's the HDD.






So, will transfering the data be impossible without a recovery CD?

Thanks mates!
 
gohome190 said:
Well, I'm getting conflicting reports. Some say: noise caused by HDD. Some say: noise caused by fans. Some say: noise caused by CRT monitor.

Hmmm... I'm thinking Arby's.

I mean, I'm thinking it's the HDD.
Click to expand...

A lot of Macs whine. I had a G3 iMac that did and also two PowerMac G4s that used to make a high-pitched racket. Lot's of the 1st Gen MBPs whined ;). However, you would have noticed it before now if it was normal. It's worth determining what component is causing this new whine - if it is new.

However, if the hard drive specifically has started clicking then you could do worse things than replace it. At least then you'll have a new hard drive and will be safe in the knowledge that it's ok.

gohome190 said:
So, will transfering the data be impossible without a recovery CD?

Thanks mates!
Click to expand...

It's not the CD you need necessarily. What you're missing is the ability to transfer data directly from the old drive to the new one.

If you had a CD you could start from scratch with the OS and reinstall all your programs, files and everything bit by bit on top, but without a CD you need to keep the OS intact somehow.
 
Well the one I bought from newegg in April has been removed from their site. 120 GB Seagate 7200 RPM 8 MB cache. It was 55 bucks I think. It's so much quieter than the stock 20 GB HD.

Anyway, since it's not being sold from newegg anymore I'd suggest you first buy an anti-static wristband from newegg so you don't fry the components. (Be careful and don't touch anything metal besides the grate).

If you have any questions about installing it I'll send me a PM. It's very easy when you've done it once. First time can be hard if you don't have the right screwdrivers.

I'd highly suggest an HD with 8 MB cache and not the 2 MB cache. The 120 GB seagate they have for sale now is a bit more expensive than the one I bought before for some reason but I'm sure it's a great drive. It's retail so that may have something to do with it.

I'd suggest:

$69.99 Seagate ST3120026A-RK 120GB 7200 RPM IDE Ultra ATA100 Hard Drive - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148035

$54.99 Western Digital Caviar WD1200BB 120GB 7200 RPM IDE Ultra ATA100 Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822144107

$42.99 Western Digital Caviar SE WD800JB 80GB 7200 RPM IDE Ultra ATA100 Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822144122

or $35.99 Open Box: Western Digital Caviar SE WD800JB 80GB 7200 RPM IDE Ultra ATA100 Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822144122R

Notice the last one is open box. I know seagates have a 5 year warranty which is great, but iwth an iMac G3 who knows it will last that long anyway. If money is tight then you could take a chance with the open box item. However, you could get the 120 GB WD for not much more.
 
Thanks, I'll probably buy the 80 gigger, with the wristband.

Now, my final question: Will the Harddrive come with a program to transfer the OS/Data? Is that even possible without a recovery CD?

Thanks
 
gohome190 said:
Thanks, I'll probably buy the 80 gigger, with the wristband.

Now, my final question: Will the Harddrive come with a program to transfer the OS/Data? Is that even possible without a recovery CD?

Thanks
Click to expand...

You are going to have to find a way to backup your data. You could buy an enclosure for your old HD and connect it as an external HD to move the data to the new internal HD. If you have a larger ipod you can put all your stuff on there in disk mode.

As for the OS you are going to need the CD to start from. The other option for the DVD version of Tiger is to get on someone else's computer with a DVD reader drive and make a disk image. Use an ipod or something that can start up in firewire and restore your ipod with the Tiger disk image. Start up with the ipod, format the new HD, and install the OS. Then put your data back on there.

The simplest solution is to get an enclosure for your old internal HD.
 
How much would that run me? Also, would the OS be transfered with all my music, movies, etc?

Because... If I can't move the OS wihtout burning a DVD... I might need to buy a new OS.

Thanks for all your help!
 
my g3 actually just developed said 'whine' this morning.. strange. most likely the cpu or the screen.. definetly not the hd cuz my hd spins down all the time and the sound remains
 
I'm 75% sure mine's the HDD. Cause I turned off the monitor and kept everything else running, yet the sound remained. And my g3 doesnt have a fan. So... I don't know what else it could be.
 
gohome190 said:
How much would that run me? Also, would the OS be transfered with all my music, movies, etc?

Because... If I can't move the OS wihtout burning a DVD... I might need to buy a new OS.

Thanks for all your help!
Click to expand...

Only Tiger comes on a DVD. The rest don't. External HDs are mid 150s. Enclosures are pretty cheap. Check out newegg. I'm not an expert on enclosures but just make sure it's the IDE to fit your current internal HD.
 
Okay, so I will be able to move OS 10.3.9?

Yeah, I found an IDE/SATA enclosure on newegg for 25. not bad!
 
gohome190 said:
Okay, so I will be able to move OS 10.3.9?

Yeah, I found an IDE/SATA enclosure on newegg for 25. not bad!
Click to expand...

If you get the enclosure for $25 and a decent hard drive, plus the free version of super duper, you'll have everything you need.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back