| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
Tc
New Member
Joined: 05 Oct 2006
Posts: 15
|
 Posted: Mon Oct 09, 2006 12:10 am Post subject: |
 |
|
| eglow wrote: | I have just recently purchased an Intel Mac Mini to replace my G4 Mini and I have the same, annoying buzzing noise. It is not loud, but it is constant, and irritating.
By contrast, my G4 Mini is so quiet, I can barely tell that it is on.
I've opened the case, verified that everything is plugged in correctly. OS is running at the current latest, 10.4.8 and I've done the 15 second no power SMC reset... to no avail.
I'm fairly certain the noise is coming from the fan, and after checking this, and the Apple discussion forums, this seems to be a common issue with the Intel Mac Mini's. I'm trying to accept that the noise is "normal" but it is annoying enough that I've reverted back to the G4.
Hopefully, there is some kind of fix forthcoming... from what I can tell, trying to return it to Apple is going to be a mess. |
Well its considerably more powerful than the G4 so I suppose thats why there is a slight noise increase of the fan.
I dont notice it most times cos I have iTunes running.
Tc
_________________
My other pc is a Mac! |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
offa_broadway
Senior Member
Joined: 07 Oct 2006
Posts: 320
|
| Posted: Mon Oct 09, 2006 11:01 am Post subject: |
|
|
According to CoreDuo Temp, one of my favorite widgets, you're not going to hear anything above a whisper until the processor gets to 80 degrees celcius. Yeah, that hot. I thought it was a defect, but apparently, almost everyone else's CoreDuo does the same thing.
I sit not a foot away from my Mini, and the only reason I can hear it right now is the DVD drive is spinning doing a conversion of Pirates. 
_________________
~ OffaBroadway~
MacBook Core2Duo 2.0/1Gb Superdrive
MacMini CoreDuo 1.66/Superdrive - Sold
Logitech Z4-i Sound System
iPod Nano 1Gb, Black |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Copernicus
Member
Joined: 29 Apr 2006
Posts: 103
|
| Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 10:43 am Post subject: |
|
|
When I upgraded to a Core Duo from a G4, I did notice that the Intel mini got a lot warmer, and did have more fan noise. However, I've had the Core Duo running constantly for months now, and I've gotta admit that I don't hear anything unless I listen closely for it. (Although it runs warm, it doesn't seem to build up heat -- the fan never seems to have to spin up on me. Maybe I just haven't been pushing the machine hard enough.  )
In any case, the new Mini is still a Very Quiet machine... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
tallsimon
New Member
Joined: 17 Oct 2006
Posts: 3
Location: London, UK
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 17, 2006 12:45 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Don't buy a Mac Mini if you're remotely concerned about noise -- particualrly if you're used to a silent laptop. I've just bought one and am trying to exchange it with my dealer. The fan is on continously and sounds like a tiny hovercraft -- it's annoyingly loud and high-pitched. I'm sure I'll get nothign but grief from my dealer, but I just can't live with the noise and it's astonishingly loud when compared with my absolutely completely makes-no-noise-at-all PowerBook G4. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
K.C.
Member
Joined: 05 Jul 2006
Posts: 189
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 17, 2006 1:00 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I have a couple of the new Mini duo 1.66s and sit about 2 feet away from them. If the room is completely quiet I can hear them, but they're very quiet.
I'm wondering if there aren't different fans in different production runs that cause some Mini fans to be louder than others.
There's also the possibility that the same fan running at 50hz in the UK or Europe is louder than the when running at 60hz in the North America.
Whatever the story is you can't just make a blanket statement that all Minis have loud fans. They don't. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
tallsimon
New Member
Joined: 17 Oct 2006
Posts: 3
Location: London, UK
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 17, 2006 1:13 pm Post subject: Mac minis are noisy -- absolutely true against G4 laptop |
|
|
A G4 laptop has no fan. The Mac Mini has a fan.
Ergo it's noisier.
And thee are various reports of people finding it intrusively noisy.
I'll admit I like silence, and I admit that I'm comparing the Mini with my G4 laptop.
It's objectively true to say that a Mini is thousands of times louder than a G4 laptop, and if you're used to a queit laptop then teh Mini is noisy. If you're used to working in a server room, or if your hearing is mosh-mashed, then it isn't noisy.
I forked out good cash because I'm an Apple fan and the Mini looks fantastic. Now I'm stuck with a machine that has a noise level I find unacceptable, with little prospect of a pain-free swap for a diferent machine. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Copernicus
Member
Joined: 29 Apr 2006
Posts: 103
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 17, 2006 2:38 pm Post subject: Re: Mac minis are noisy -- absolutely true against G4 laptop |
|
|
| tallsimon wrote: | | If you're used to working in a server room, or if your hearing is mosh-mashed, then it isn't noisy. |
Ouch. Ok, I'll admit that I _am_ used to working in a server room, but I've also gotta say that it's been maybe two decades since I owned (or even touched) a computer that didn't include some form of active cooling. Among actively-cooled PCs, the Mini is quite probably the quietest you'll find.
(Are there any passively-cooled PCs left? All the laptops I see today have internal fans...) |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
K.C.
Member
Joined: 05 Jul 2006
Posts: 189
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 17, 2006 3:02 pm Post subject: |
|
|
tallsimon I wasn't directing my comment at you in particular. I just see so many posts on the net where people make totally subjective statements as though they were fact.
Unless you've heard all of the Mac Minis out there you cannot make a blanket statement about any aspect of them, no matter how many unsubstantiated posts you've read that you would like to support your opinion.
I own a server room but I work at this desk and I can assure you I couldn't do it without the ability to hear very well.
 |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
tallsimon
New Member
Joined: 17 Oct 2006
Posts: 3
Location: London, UK
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2006 2:27 am Post subject: Amusing standard of proof -- all Mac Minis? |
|
|
K.C., I think I know where you're coming from re unsubstantiated data, but I think you're, as you might say, off base.
Let me state teh case again:
If you compare a Mac Mini with a G4 laptop -- which is what I, and others who find the Mini noisy are doing -- the Mac Mini is noisy. There's no ifs or buts. It is literally, quantifiably, measurably, scientifically, thousands of times noisier than a G4 laptop. That is irrefutable and a no-brainer.
And given that the Mini looks like an attractive replacement or second-computer option for people used to QUIET, SILENT, FAN-LESS, laptops it's a shame that Apple haven't put a sticker on the front that says, "by the way this computer has a fan and is much LOUDER than the other COMPLETELYT SILENT laptops that made us famous".
Maybe that could be Steve's new t-shirt? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Tc
New Member
Joined: 05 Oct 2006
Posts: 15
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2006 2:57 am Post subject: Re: Amusing standard of proof -- all Mac Minis? |
|
|
| tallsimon wrote: | K.C., I think I know where you're coming from re unsubstantiated data, but I think you're, as you might say, off base.
Let me state teh case again:
If you compare a Mac Mini with a G4 laptop -- which is what I, and others who find the Mini noisy are doing -- the Mac Mini is noisy. There's no ifs or buts. It is literally, quantifiably, measurably, scientifically, thousands of times noisier than a G4 laptop. That is irrefutable and a no-brainer.
And given that the Mini looks like an attractive replacement or second-computer option for people used to QUIET, SILENT, FAN-LESS, laptops it's a shame that Apple haven't put a sticker on the front that says, "by the way this computer has a fan and is much LOUDER than the other COMPLETELYT SILENT laptops that made us famous".
Maybe that could be Steve's new t-shirt? |
My iBook makes an awful noise when it's hot! It has got a fan in it.
Noise is subjective. There is an old saying, A camels fart is outrageously loud when comparing it to the flutter of a butterflys wings.
Tc
_________________
My other pc is a Mac! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
K.C.
Member
Joined: 05 Jul 2006
Posts: 189
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 18, 2006 3:23 am Post subject: Re: Amusing standard of proof -- all Mac Minis? |
|
|
| Tc wrote: | | Noise is subjective. |
As are opinions. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
johnr
New Member
Joined: 09 Oct 2006
Posts: 6
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2006 4:47 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I have had a 1.66 Duo and now a 1.83 Duo Mini (Actually, I still have both). I have no custom solution for placing my Mini, so it sits at the edge of my desk . The hum does seem quite loud but then I fire up my PC and realize that it is actually much quieter than any PC I've built in the past 5 years .
Besides, if it becomes an issue that is what the 1 year guarantee is there for
I meant to add that the 1.83 seems a touch louder than the 1.66 but I'm sharing a power supply between the two so can't do a compare at the moment. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Sparkstack
Member
Joined: 09 Mar 2006
Posts: 176
Location: Naperville, IL
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2006 5:14 pm Post subject: Re: Mac minis are noisy -- When incorectly put together... |
|
|
| tallsimon wrote: | | A G4 laptop has no fan. |
Er, sorry, but yes it does.
| tallsimon wrote: | | The Mac Mini has a fan. Ergo it's noisier. |
Nope. None of mine are noisier than the G4 Powermac i had.
I have a question for you. Is your Mini a standard build or is it a build to order? I.E did you have any extra memory fitted / bigger HD, etc, ANYTHING that requires the case opening?
If you did, it's quite possible that the person who fitted the above items neglected to reconnect the HD sensor cable when reassembling the case. The result of which is that the fan runs at full speed all the time and sounds like the machine is about to take off..
_________________
Mac mini 1 (UK Media Centre) : 1.42 PPC @ 1.75, 1GB Memory, 80G HD
Mac mini 2 (US Media Centre) : 2.0 CoreDuo, 2GB Memory, 240G HD
Last edited by Sparkstack on Wed Oct 25, 2006 8:57 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
jb
Senior Member
Joined: 19 Aug 2006
Posts: 390
Location: An Island called Vancouver
|
| Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2006 5:52 pm Post subject: Re: Mac minis are noisy -- absolutely true against G4 laptop |
|
|
| tallsimon wrote: | A G4 laptop has no fan. The Mac Mini has a fan.
Ergo it's noisier.
|
My G4 laptop (iBook) certainly does have a fan. Dosn't come on much, but when it does you can hear it.
jb.
_________________
mac mini 2.53 Intel core2Duo 4GB
15" MacBook Pro 2GB x2
12" G4 iBook 1.25GB |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Tc
New Member
Joined: 05 Oct 2006
Posts: 15
|
| Posted: Wed Oct 25, 2006 2:05 am Post subject: Re: Mac minis are noisy -- absolutely true against G4 laptop |
|
|
| jb wrote: | | tallsimon wrote: | A G4 laptop has no fan. The Mac Mini has a fan.
Ergo it's noisier.
|
My G4 laptop (iBook) certainly does have a fan. Dosn't come on much, but when it does you can hear it.
jb. |
Mine too! It only came on a few times during the summer but it was a strange, unsetteling sound!
Tc
_________________
My other pc is a Mac! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
FAQ 
Search 
Memberlist 
Photo Gallery
Register
Profile 
Log in to check your private messages 
Log in 
