Whirring Noise from my Imac

silvine · 07-04-2012 07:10PM #1

There's a faint whirring noise coming from the top left corner of my 2010 27 inch iMac. There's no fan up there and I am certain it's not the HDD. What could cause this issue?

Hootanany · 07-04-2012 07:13PM

Could be a dust build up in the vents behind the stand.

silvine · 07-04-2012 07:52PM

That's what I thought but I opened the imac and dusted it. The noise only comes from the top left, everywhere else sounds okay.

silvine · 08-04-2012 09:45PM

I think the HDD fan might need replacing. Any idea how to do this or where to buy one?

acous · 09-04-2012 01:10AM

Do you have the stock HDD or did you install your own?

silvine · 09-04-2012 11:03PM

I have the stock hdd and an SSD. I think the stock HDD is on its way out. I ran disk utility on it and found no errors but it's making unusual noises.

Sad Professor · 09-04-2012 11:56PM

Probably the HDD, then. Is it slow to copy and write to?

silvine · 10-04-2012 12:10AM

Seems to be copying at normal speeds but I notice a faint increase in the buzzing/whirring sound when I do. Can you recommend a replacement? i have a WD Caviar Green I was going to use for something else.

Janedoe10 · 10-04-2012 12:29AM

Does noise happe when the screen brightness is decreased

Check the site http://www.apple.com/support/imac-harddrive/ -If u check with the serial number of computer u will be able to see if the HD is covered or not .

Check also if this happens without anything plugged in .If it happens booted from install disk ?
Does noise happen when the HD is been accessed a lot . or when the unit is idle ? Were you able to run to Apple HW test

brav · 10-04-2012 08:38AM

That program is only for the Mid 2011 iMacs, not the 2010s.

If copying speeds etc are still OK sometimes HDDs do get a bit more noisy and some more vibrations but could keep going for another few years, however If it was mine I probably would have lost trust in it now so obviously make sure you have a backup.

Is the sound def in the top left? I thought the HDD was in the center and extra one behind the optical drive? but maybe thats the 2011 model

silvine · 10-04-2012 01:43PM

Hi,

The noise rises and falls when I adjust the brightness. It's less audible when the brightness is all the way down. Does that mean it's the display?

I thought the noise was from the top left but I think that's just an echo.

I'll run the hardware test in a bit. I removed my optical drive and replaced it with an SSD so I need to find a workaround to run this test.

Sad Professor · 10-04-2012 01:59PM

Yeah it could be the display. My 24 inch ACD makes a clickIng noise.

silvine · 10-04-2012 04:40PM

Is there a fix?

brav · 10-04-2012 04:48PM

You could try basics like SMC or PRAM reset.
(SMC is leaving power cord disconnected from back of iMac for 30seconds, PRAM reset is holding Cmd+Alt+P+R at startup until second chime)

Could be display alright*, I think the LED driver board is on left hand area and power supply beside that, so the extra draw of power could be the causing the issue.

I think when these normally go you can loose the back light for the display etc.

Sad Professor · 10-04-2012 04:58PM

If it is the display it's possibly due to electrical interference. I haven't noticed any ticking from my ACD in a while, but I tend to keep the brightness down low anyway. I'll check it later.

I have all sorts of problems with my ACD tbh. In addition to the ticking/buzzing, it also "blinks". And the vent has somehow sucked in dust and blown it all over the backlight. Pretty ridiculous given what it what cost. I have AppleCare so I'm going to get after Apple about it before it runs out. It still works fine though.

silvine · 10-04-2012 05:18PM

I tried the PRAM reset and disconnected all the peripherals and other items on the circuit but it still didn't stop the issue.

I'll learn to live with it I suppose. It's not that loud, it's just annoying that the machine was once dead quiet and now makes a noise. I kind of regret not getting Applecare now.

silvine · 10-04-2012 05:22PM

Sad Professor wrote: »

If it is the display it's possibly due to electrical interference. I haven't noticed any ticking from my ACD in a while, but I tend to keep the brightness down low anyway. I'll check it later.

I have all sorts of problems with my ACD tbh. In addition to the ticking/buzzing, it also "blinks". And the vent has somehow sucked in dust and blown it all over the backlight. Pretty ridiculous given what it what cost. I have AppleCare so I'm going to get after Apple about it before it runs out. It still works fine though.

Would you recommend the ACD or would you recommend a similar monitor from another manufacturer?

Sad Professor · 10-04-2012 05:59PM

I probably wouldn't get one again, no. But mostly because I think the iMac (which is basically the same thing plus a computer) is better value.

silvine · 10-04-2012 06:59PM

Except when they make strange noises. Thanks for the help guys.

Whirring Noise from my Imac

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