Bootup noise

[FiveRings]

I just bought a new Acer Aspire AM5641. Everything on it seems fine and functional however for the first 30 minutes of operation it it sounds like it's booting up which can be irritable.
When I open up the System Configuration in the General tab is has the option of Diagnostic start-up (only loads basic devices and services) or Normal start-up (loads all drivers and services). Would switching to Diagnostic start-up change the noise at all.
If not the computer just loading too many things at start-up, what else could sound be coming from.

[Miz]

It's quite likely a fan going bad. It's noisy until it warms up.

While it's making noise, check the various fans. You can check the power supply fan by sticking something relatively soft through a vent in the top back of the tower to mometarily slow or stop the fan. I've used the eraser end of a pencil. If the noise changes or stops, you'll have found the culprit.

You can do the same with fans inside the case, one at a time. Just be gentle. If it's a fan going bad, you need the fan to keep working until you can replace it.

[FiveRings]

Originally Posted by Miz

It's quite likely a fan going bad. It's noisy until it warms up.

While it's making noise, check the various fans. You can check the power supply fan by sticking something relatively soft through a vent in the top back of the tower to mometarily slow or stop the fan. I've used the eraser end of a pencil. If the noise changes or stops, you'll have found the culprit.

You can do the same with fans inside the case, one at a time. Just be gentle. If it's a fan going bad, you need the fan to keep working until you can replace it.

I just tested to see, and it is not the fans.

The noise it is making is the same same noise the CPU makies when you open a large or a lot of programs. It sounds like a light clicking or skimming, sort of. It's not loud enough to hear from across the room. It isn't very loud, but it is just loud enough to hear.
I opened up the CPU and listened and I believe it is coming from the hard drive or the area right above the disk drive.

Again, for about the first 20 minutes of operation this noise is on, then stops after, what I think, everything has been booted.It also starts when I open up large programs.

I know this noise is normal in all computers but I was just wondering if there was a way to minimize it, since it seems that this is a result of many programs or applications being loaded.

[Miz]

A clicking noise is the classic sign of a failing hard drive. A hard drive should make a sound that's a cross between a whirr and a whine.

If the sound you're hearing has been present ever since you've had the computer, either it's that drive's normal noise or else the drive has been trying to fail since day one.

If it's the drive's normal noise then, no, I don't know any way of minimizing it other than replacing it with a quieter drive.

Trying to soundproof the case would only encourage heat buildup and that can give you far bigger (and more expensive) problems than the noise you're hearing now.