Pioneer 111 - Should it produce clicking noises when idle???

[Mantras]

On the forums reccomendation i bought a Pioneer to my new computer.
The computer ive built is an audio workstation, and is built with low noise performance in mind. I want to clearly hear the music, and not the insides of the computer.

Even though i did hand pick everything for my computer with low noise in mind, i didnt bother regarding the DVD-writer. I figured that all drives are more or less noisy, but that it would not be a problem since that is only the cause when they are actually reading from a disc.
And seldom do you use the discdrive at the same time you are recording something in audio software/sequensers.
So, i went for a the Pioneer DVR-111DBK since it had great reputation here.

But here is the problem... My Pioneer DVR-111DBK is producing a constant noise even when its not reading from a disc!!!

As soon as i put a disc in, dvd or cd, it spins up then goes down, and back to idle. But not quiet. It produces small rapid click sounds, and i can just let it sit there click for itself hours in windows, it doesnt stop.

This is incredibly annoying to me when ive spent 1000$ on quiet parts, case and fans. The DVD-drive producing the loudest noise of my computer even though its not actually doing anything!!!

Could anyone tell me if this should be the case? Take a close listen with the ear right besides your Pioneer 111 while a disc is inserted and not spinning... Does it create these noises??

Ive owned NEC and Liteon burners before, and though they have all been noisy, it has been when actually reading from the disc, not just sitting in the case.

Please tell me there is something wrong with my unit...

[Mantras]

Though the problem above could be solved by never keeping a disc in the drive, there is another even more disturbing problem.. it takes about 5 minutes to copy the contents from a 600mb CD in great condition to my SATA harddrives...

It seems everything else works as it should except the pioneer.

Is there any bios/windows setting i should take a look at regarding the speed of the drive?

[TheWizard]

When the drive is idle (i.e. the disc is idle in the drive too and not spinning), the drive should not be making clicking noises.

In terms of data transfer, what is the current transfer mode for the Pioneer drive? You can find out by going to Control Panel, System, Hardware, Device Manager and expanding the IDE Controllers tree. Specifically look for your Pioneer drive on the Primary or Secondary IDE Channel and check the Advanced Settings tab to view the current transfer mode. DMA is faster than PIO, so be sure to set the drive to DMA.

Other than that, make sure the IDE cable that the drive is connected to is functioning properly. If everything checks out, then the drive may be faulty. I would tend to lean toward that answer especially if the burner is making clicking noises when idle.

[Mantras]

When the drive is idle (i.e. the disc is idle in the drive too and not spinning), the drive should not be making clicking noises.

In terms of data transfer, what is the current transfer mode for the Pioneer drive? You can find out by going to Control Panel, System, Hardware, Device Manager and expanding the IDE Controllers tree. Specifically look for your Pioneer drive on the Primary or Secondary IDE Channel and check the Advanced Settings tab to view the current transfer mode. DMA is faster than PIO, so be sure to set the drive to DMA.

Other than that, make sure the IDE cable that the drive is connected to is functioning properly. If everything checks out, then the drive may be faulty. I would tend to lean toward that answer especially if the burner is making clicking noises when idle.

Hello and thank you for the answer.

Well i cant remember i could see the Pioneer drive among the IDE controllers, they was just called ID CONTROLLER 1, etc. But they where all set to DMA if available.

I guess i could try check the cable, but my hopes is not high.

[2Dogs]

Hi Mantras,

the Pioneer can use UDMA 4 if you are using an 80 wire IDE cable. It's worth trying other cables, since cable faults are not uncommon.

My own 111D does not make the clicking noises you describe, but when it spins up, it's definitely not one of my quieter drives - I'd say my Samsung is the quietest, and with CD's, it has a default quiet mode too.

[Mantras]

Hello

Im not so sure about speed problems anymore, but the noise when the drive is idle is still bothering me. I have contacted the store where i bought it from and after some emailing they have agreed to get it back and have a look at the problem. The thing is, they are threathening me that if the drive does not appear to be faulty they will charge me for looking into the problem, it would actually cost me more then what i paid for the drive!

So i need to be sure the sound it produces when idle is not normal.

Since the computer that hosts it is used for music production i had the option to record the noises with professional microphones.

So it would be great if anyone with a similar drive would take a listen and compare it to there own drive. You need to remember that your computer might be overall much louder then mine, since it was designed with low noise in mind (only 3 x 120mm fans in the case at a very low speed).
So listen close so that the drivenoise might not be drowned in the noise of fans/harddrives etc.

http://download.yousendit.com/51575AA914A7DDE8

The file is a 1.6 mb large mp3 file.

What you hear is me putting a dvd inside the drive, closening the tray - the drive spins up, and then goes back to idle... And the constant clicking noise is in the background.. You might need to turn up the volume to hear it.

Thank you!

[Wesociety]

Instead of having them "look at it" and possibly charge a fee, why don't you just return the drive and buy a new one? (or exchange)

I can't compare your drive sound to another DVR-111 because I don't have one myself, but the noise does sound a bit annoying...

[TheWizard]

From what I can tell with my own DVR-111D, it's very quiet: no clicking noises, and barely a hush when it spins up. The only "clicking" noises I hear coming from my computer are when my hard drive is accessed, but it's the normal clicking. As long as the clicking sounds aren't coming from another piece of hardware in your PC, I would have the Pioneer replaced. As Wes pointed out, an exchange for the exact same drive should not be a problem; most vendors will honor this.