I finally got around to replacing my Atari 8-bit's dead 1050 disk drive, which means the system is fully functional again.
I was sad to see the 1050 die, as it was the original model I'd grown up with, so it was like an old friend. I was also reminded quite how much I'd missed the noise that old disk drives make — for me, it's an important part of the old computer experience, and one that, sadly, you don't really get to experience with emulation. (That said, I believe ST emulator STEEM does have a "simulated disk drive" noise, but it's not quite the same!)
I dunno, it's a weird thing that I don't expect more modern gamers to understand, really, given how quiet today's consoles are. But I've always drawn peculiar comfort from the sound of disk drives through the ages, and this love stretches right back to the 8-bit era. The only disk drive noise I didn't like was that of the Atari 810; that actually used to frighten me as a child, because coupled with that drive's hideous gaping maw and its alarmingly industrial red activity lights, I found the whole thing a bit disturbing. The 1050, however… I came to associate that chook chook SNARRRK noise with good times, happy times; whenever I heard it, I knew that something I enjoyed was going to follow.
This is why I've liked certain consoles over the years for the strangest of reasons. People mock the Dreamcast's noisy GD-ROM drive today, but I loved it; it reminded me of the trusty old 1050. Likewise, I like it when I can hear the drive reading on systems like the PS2 and Wii — the original Wii has a particularly good drive noise.
The things you come to draw comfort from over the years are strange and wonderful, aren't they?
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