Odd clicking sound on iMac

HI
My Imac has started to make an odd clicking sound which comes and goes.  Intially it was totally silent so it is a bit disconcerting.  Any ideas.The machine is just about a year old.
Thanks

Before you do ANYTHING, backup your system. REPEAT BACKUP YOUR SYSTEM NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Then listen to the sounds in Failing hard drive sounds and see if your sound is like any of these, if it is take the system in for a new HD. DO THIS AFTER BACKING UP THE SYSTEM!!!!!!!!

Similar Messages

  • Clicking sound from iMac

    From time to time my iMac keeps freezing with the spinning ball for 5-20 minutes, and there is a loud clicking sound from the upper left hand side of the iMac.
    I have run hardware test, it took an hour or so, and there is nothing wrong with the harddrive. I have also reinstalles the whole system, but the problems are still there.
    What could it be?
    The serial number is inside the range for the Repair Extension Program for Video and Power Issues, but I dont know if it has anything to do with this.

    From time to time my iMac keeps freezing with the
    spinning ball for 5-20 minutes, and there is a loud
    clicking sound from the upper left hand side of the
    iMac.
    I have run hardware test, it took an hour or so, and
    there is nothing wrong with the harddrive. I have
    also reinstalles the whole system, but the problems
    are still there.
    What could it be?
    The serial number is inside the range for the Repair
    Extension Program for Video and Power Issues, but I
    dont know if it has anything to do with this.
    Okay, the same exact thing was happening to us. I was dreading the worse and backed up the important stuff. It was so bad sometimes that computer was becoming almost useless--naturally just out of Apple warranty. We took it to local shop and they checked and updated everything, and same things started when we got it home again. Another trip to shop and it ran fine there. The guy there said it was because too many wireless networks in our neighborhood were using the same default channel 6.
    Impossible, I thought, but turned Airport off on iMacG5 and ran ethernet cable directly to Netgear router. The problems ALL disappeared! I will change channel on router--as soon as I figure out how--and try Airport on G5 again, but meanwhile everything's great. I'm seeing spinning balls on older iMac in other room so should solve problems in there as well. Hopefully this info can be of some help.
    PS--Video and power issues are only for problems that are consistent--not intermittent as our G5 falls within same range.
    iMac G5   Mac OS X (10.4.8)  

  • Odd clicking sound from the speakers

    There's a clicking sound from the speakers all the time, even when I'm not playing music. My PowerBook is only 1 week old, and I haven't dropped it or anything. Does anyone know what this is? Whenever I plug in my earphones or speakers, the sound stops.

    I wish I knew. Having the same problem. Comes and goes. Presently it's happening and it BUGS. In the past I've tried disabling some of my extra scripts and software (especially extra preference panes), but you're probably not in the same boat there, having such a new machine.
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  • Odd Clicking sound

    I posted this to the older MBP Discussion board, and they had some thoughts, but one suggested asking over on this one since I have a newer MBP...
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    Thanks.

    Hi, could be your HD, my externals click as they search or write sometimes..
    Also could be a Fan that is out of alignment.. Call AppleHelp or take the computer into your local Apple Store or Approved Repair Agent..L

  • Intermittent Fan Clicking Sound on iMac 8,1

    I have an iMac 8,1 Intel Core 2 Duo 3.06 GHz that has developed a very small clicking in the fan. When I use iStat to speed up the fan, the noise is louder. Has anyone else had this problem, and if so do you think AppleCare would cover this? I do most of my work at night when it is quiet, and it is driving me nuts! Thanks.

    I am wondering if this is the clicking I am hearing on my new 27" iMac, coming from the lower left... almost like ticking...

  • Macbook Pro won't boot up makes clicking sound

    Hi.
    After upgrading to Firefox 4 on my 15inch 2006 Macbook Pro, it froze for over 5 minutes and began to make an odd repeated clicking sound. I tried force-quitting, but that wouldn't work, so I restarted it. Now it won't even boot up fully, it just makes a similar odd clicking sound (but not as frequently).
    However, the grey Apple screen does appear, along with the revolving wheel. It seems very odd though, as the light at the front of the machine goes out as soon as the machine attempts to restart, which suggests that something physical may have occured to some internal hardware.
    I even tried booting up in Safe Mode, but it is no different. Also, Caps lock and Number lock keys both appear to be working, so hopefully the keyboard is still functional.
    Does anyone have any ideas what may have happened. My Applecare expired about two years ago, so really need some assistance if possible.
    Thanks
    George

    First try booting from your OS X installer DVD.  If the computer boots into the installer then do this:
    Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions
    After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list.  In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive.  If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
    If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.
    After returning to the installer reinstall Snow Leopard.  This will not erase the drive.  Reinstalling takes from 45 minutes to an hour or so.

  • Clicking sound upon pressure.

    I've noticed that my 17" Macbook Pro makes an odd clicking sound when slight pressure is put in the general location of the hard drive. For instance, if I'm lying down, and the laptop is on my stomach, when I breathe in, it will make weird staticy, metallic clicking sounds. Anyone know what is going on?

    awrio wrote:
    For instance, if I'm lying down, and the laptop is on my stomach, when I breathe in, it will make weird staticy, metallic clicking sounds.
    Sounds like just the sort of situation where the SMS is likely to activate the head parking process briefly. Apple, of course, call these computers "notebooks" and stress that they are not "laptops". I hate to think what they would think if someone reckoned they were "stomach tops", though the actual performance detriment would no doubt depend somewhat on the general shape and rigidity of this particular element of the user's anatomy. Far too many stomachs that I have seen about the place certainly couldn't be said to have the requisite attributes of a "fixed, level, stable, surface", I'm afraid!
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    Rod

  • 1st gen iMac G5 resurrecting from the dead? (strange clicking sounds)

    I have a first gen iMac (pre-iSight) that I bought a few years ago brand new. But the past 8 months or so I've been having a very strange power problem where occasionaly pressing the power button does absolutely nothing... WAIT! I know you hear about this problem all the time but before you click 'back' I'll have you know I too have read countless of these types of power problems on forums, but this one seems different!
    Sometimes after unplugging, waiting for a few minutes, then replugging the power supply (while all other cords disconnected) it'll all of the sudden turn on. I recently checked inside the computer as one tutorial suggested to see if the first of 4 LED lights turn on when plugged in, and it does, meaning it's not power supply failure. The biggest problem with the whole thing is that is that the "unplug-then-replug"(sometimes upwards of 15 times) doesn't always work, and always seems to happen at varying degrees of inactivity depending on how long the computer has been off.
    I've been doing this for 8 months, afraid to turn my computer off not knowing for sure i'll get it back on (which can take up to a day sometimes). And my resurrection methods seem to be more and more futile, as today and yesterday i've had no luck. LASTLY -- and this really confuses me -- I usually hear a very faint but rapid clicking noise when I plug in the computer (before I even turn it on, never happens when it's actually on) after its been unplugged for a while. The sound seems to be coming from near the bottom of the computer, so I cant imagine that it's that dreaded "Hard-drive Death" symptom (since the hard drive isnt even running).
    Please, if you can, offer me some insight regarding these issues, I've looked everywhere and it seems I'm the only one having them! I'm almost to the point of gasp! actually finally going to the apple store and paying them to fix it.....

    Hmm, the fan? How would I go about checking that? I want to try everything I can.
    DEVELOPMENT: I got the computer on last night (using it right now)! I think it was off for almost exactly 24 hours since the last time I had it running. The most frustrating thing is that I don't really know what I did differently to get it to boot up again. That whole day I was just checking it about every hour or two, unplugging and replugging the power (at one point I opened the back and tried pressing those two tiny buttons under the fan, one is an internal power switch, and the other some sort of reset button, nothing noticeable happened with either, although the clicking sound that occasionally showed up hasn't reared its head lately). I think my computer is almost at its end, and now that its on I'm going to try my best to keep it running. One more slip into a coma and it might not make it out...

  • Weird clicking sound, iMac freezes or is dead slow, and turns itself off!

    I've had my iMac for a good 3-4 years, during which it has been fitted with a new hard drive.
    About a year ago, during watching DVDs, there was a weird click-clack sound for a good 10 seconds which was followed by the freeze. Sometimes it would go off, but sometimes the Mac would turn itself off like it had run out of juice. I thought it might've been a power issue.
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    Could this be a mere power issue? What can the clicking sound be a symptom of?
    I'm doing back-up in case the Mac completely shuts down, but I have hope for the machine yet!
    I have few months warranty left, keen to sort this out pronto! All comments warmly welcome.
    Anne

    As I was making the clone with SuperDuper, the process was halted by an error, and I found half of my stuff copied on the external hard drive. It had enough space, but it prompted a dodgy file in 'Frameworks' in the Library which stopped the process. It all looked very benign, and I checked the troubleshooting and it suggested to try again after restarting.
    What in fact had happened, was that ALL my music files had disappeared from my hard drive, none of my applications would work on my Mac, even Safari or iTunes, and I was left last night with the blue screen of death. These files were nowhere to be found, ANY of the hard drives.
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  • IMac won't turn on. Only a clicking sound and a grey folder with flashing question mark.

    iMac won't turn on. Only a clicking sound and a grey folder with flashing question mark.
    Help.

    Your iMac is actually turning ON as proven by the grey folder with the flashing question mark.
    The flashing question mark indicates that your system is unable to find a bootable volume. The clicking sound that you hear is probably coming from your hard drive while it tries to recalibrate. I suspect your hard drive has failed.
    What model imac do you have? If it's under warranty I suggest taking it in for service. Hopefully you've been maintaining a regular backup of your data as all users should. I lost my data once and it was a valuable lesson. I back up regularily now.
    If your iMac came with install disks then you can boot from them, choose your language when asked, then pull down the Utilities menu to launch the Disk Utility application. The Disk Utility application will allow you to verify whether your hard drive has an issue. Usually a clicking sound, assuming it's coming from the hard drive, is a sign of a bad hard drive.
    If your system has Lion installed then you can hold down the Command and R keys when you restart the system, then launch the Disk Utility application from the menu that appears.

  • 3 month old iMac produces little clicking sounds coming from the top

    As of today, my three month old iMac is started to make little clicking sounds! It comes from to upper side. There in the neighborhood of the iSight. What is this???? It sounds like a hard drive. Is the HD located near the camera? I need a silent computer because I record audio in front of it. That was the main reason I bought the MAC, three months ago, brand new out of the box.
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    Contact Apple and arrange for warranty repair.

  • Clicking sound that the iMac hard drive makes every 10 minutes or so when in Sleep Mode.

    My iMac is 2 years old.  I have noticed that when I put it to sleep, the hard drive makes a
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    I have since called Apple Support about the problem.  They did not solve it, but did offer to call back.  I was unable to be home for the call back.  I will call them again, but they did not seem to be aware of any "clicking" problems the iMacs were having.
    I timed the clicking noises while the iMac was in Sleep mode; it is every 2 minutes almost consistently. (Not the 5-10 I mentioned in my first post.) Also, it then has a slight "whirring" sound after the "click" or "ping" as if it is trying to process something.
    My iMac does not make the clicking/pinging noise while not in Sleep mode.
    I have searched the Net and these forums repeatedly trying to find someone who has had a similar "clicking" sound.  One fellow suggested his hard drive clicked in Sleep mode because it was looking for a printer.  That is not the problem I am having, since all printer jobs have been completed.
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  • Clicking sound when display goes dark on 24in iMac

    Hello all,
    I have the strangest problem with my iMac. Everything works perfectly with my 3.06Ghz 750GB HDD iMac (24 inch), except one small annoying thing. When the display turns off to save power (after 15 minutes or whatever it is set at), a faint clicking sound can be heard from the upper left hand side of the computer. It sounds like....the head of the hard drive moving back and forth, similar to a muted version of the optical laser movements that can be heard when a CD is being read. This has been happening for several months, maybe over a year now.
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    Robin I am not a tech and I do not know what is happening but that was happening to mine a few weeks ago.  I put off calling the tech because by pressing four keys I could get back in.  It finally went and they cannot even find my HD now.  Lost a lot of edited photos.  I now have a new 2T HD and am being backed up by time machine - but it cost me!!!  Mine is 3 years old and the tech told me that that is about par for the HD they make these days - again I am just quoting.

  • Imac 2011 click sound

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    Failing Hard Drive Sounds http://datacent.com/hard_drive_sounds.php
    Listed by drive manufacturer.  Click on the > next to the drive & you will hear the typical failure sound.
    How to Tell When Your Hard Drive is Going to Fail
    http://www.lifehack.org/articles/technology/how-to-tell-when-your-hard-drive-is- going-to-fail.html
    Grinding And Clicking – Symptoms Of A Failing Hard Drive
    http://pcperformancetools.com/getdata/grinding-and-clicking-symptoms-of-failing- hard-drive.html
    Failing Hard Drives
    http://losangelescomputerhelp.com/computer_networking_news/failing-hard-drives.h tml
    Some newer Macs use a technology called S.M.A.R.T. (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology) to attempt to detect problems with the hard drive that indicate it is about to fail, such as mechanical wear. If a SMART-equipped (SMARTReporter.app; Mac OS X 10.3.3 or later; at least one ATA, SATA or eSATA hard disk drive) computer detects that its hard drive is about to fail, it can warn you of this so that the data on the disk can be backed up.
     Cheers, Tom

  • 27" iMac starts up and stays on white screen and I hear a clicking sound from inside.

    I am starting up my iMac and it is frozen on the white screen and I can hear a clicking sound coming from inside?

    Hi,
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    At last but not at least, this type of problems could come from the mother board (hope this not to be your case).
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    :: Appletoch ::

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