Vaio Z: Switched Optical Drive for HDD, and can feel it spinning - normal?

Hey guys,

I finally took the plunge and bought a Z12. I also ordered the HDD caddy from Newmodeus and a 7200 RPM drive.

Yesterday I did the install - not very difficult at all. Anyways, I sealed the computer back up and it feels noticeably different. Basically, I can feel the HDD spinning, and it causes the whole computer to vibrate. It's not like the computer would vibrate across a table or anything, but when you put your hands on the computer, you can feel the difference.

I realize that a HDD has to sping, but I never felt the HDD in my other laptops spinning so noticeably. Is this normal for the Z since the case, etc is so small/light? Or did I maybe do something wrong during the install? I can crack the case open again and double check all the screws, if necessary.

Has anyone else that's installed a HDD into their Vaio Z's had this happen? Any advice?

Thanks!

 

Hmmm I am concerned about this too.

I currently have the caddy, just waiting for the Z to arrive.

I guess it could be why Sony themselves mount the HDD in rubber mounts....
Any scope to insert thin rubber strips where the HDD is mounted in the caddy?

 

turbodub_6
Try to glue a doubleside scotch on the caddy up to avoid a touch between HDD and keyboard.

 

Hmmmm. That would drive me crazy.

Perhaps there could be a 3rd party plastic and rubber caddy that can be made.

I'll probably mod the caddy I'm getting anyways to reduce the vibrations, but there is probably not much room from top to bottom.
-Ed

 

Is there a way to force a spindown. I'm only planning to use mine for achieval storage.

 

Thanks for the comments guys. I think I'll open the computer back up and see if I can use something to cushion the HDD from the computer casing.

I remember the HDD fitting very snugly into the caddy, so I don't think there will be room there, but potentially between the caddy (w/ HDD) and the laptop casing.

For now, I'm thinking about using some 3M double sided foam tape. Do you think that will be okay to use inside the computer? Or do I need to worry about the heat melting down the foam/adhesive and causing problems?

Here's a link to the tape I'm thinking about using: Scotch(R) Mounting Tape

 

I used double sided foam tape, cheap $1 store variety, to mount 2.5" drives in my desktop. It won't melt. It will be a hassle to get off though.

 

Hmm I've thought about this...

How about use the adhesive on the foam tape to fix a Post-it note, so that the post-it note sticky side attaches to the HDD or case? The adhesive on the post-it should keep it in place in the case, but easier to remove?

Wotdyafink?

 

turbodub_6
Glue a tape only on the caddy (not on the HDD) around the HDD

 

You should have opted for the 5400 RPM HDD, since basically you are using it for archive as you mentioned, well, Less vibration, Less Power consumption and cheaper too.

Try to ask the store to replace it with a 5400 rpm one, sometimes they can.

regards.

 

I've noticed a slight vibration as well. Nothing serious, though on hindsight I might have wanted to use a 5400rpm drive as well (the 7200rpm drive I got was on sale, so...).

There are programs you can use to manually turn off HDDs when not in use; also, windows power options (change settings -> change advanced power options) has selections that allow you to spin down HDDs that are not being used. I can confirm that this feature works as intended on my Z12.

May try the tape trick myself if it starts to bother me. Just a question to the folks that've done it, how well does it work? Wondering if it really helps when you have the other parts still flush to the case.

 

I'm not sure the foam sticky tape will do much of anything if there's isn't sufficient isolation. What would really have helped is if the caddy makers had designed them to have rubber isolation mounts. There's plenty of space for them.

 

You can change the settings under "Power Options" under Control Panel. Just select the plan (change plan settings),
select "change advanced settings for this plan",
Click the + for Hard Disk
Click the + for Turn off hard disk after
set the time.

These settings will not affect the SSD performance at all since it does not require spin up or spin down. Some people will say that spinning up your drive too often can cause failures. What I typically set mine for is 3 minutes on battery and 20 minutes when plugged in.

I have the Momentus XT installed which is a 7200RPM drive with the newmodbus HDD adapter. I have a small amount of vibration over the right palm-rest (right above the drive), but I do not notice it much even when it is spinning.

 

kind of unrelated to OP but did you need any extra connectors when you installed the HDD? or do you just use the optical drive one.