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My laser printer (Brother MFC-8500) makes a screeching sound when it prints. See details for more info. Causes?

I know it is NOT the fan. Also, the screeching doesn't start when the paper is auto fed into the print area, either from the top feeder or the tray feeder. The screeching seems to begin when the actual printing begins. Could this be emanating from the DRUM cartridge or from the TONER cartridge? It sounds like its coming from that area. Any insights are welcome. Thanks.

Public Comments

1. The toner/drum cartridge is certainly a possibility. I run into that problem quite often with HP laserjet printers. Often times when you open and close the access covers, the printer will run a cycle test of everything in the mechanics of the printer, including the toner/drum section, and you should hear the noise at that time. If it does make noise when you open and close the access cover, you can try removing those components and see if the sound stops when a certain component is removed, and returns when that part is put back in by closing the access cover. If the printer doesn't cycle if a component is removed, then you'd have to replace those components with another one, either new or known working ones, to see if the problem changes. Another real possibility that can also cause a noise when it actually starts to print, is the laser scanner assembly polygon motor. If the noise doesn't happen when you open & close the access cover, then that will be your most likely suspect as the polygon motor only spins up when it is ready to scan the drum to place an image on it, which would coincide with the timing that you see when the print is ready to go on the paper. The fix for that would be to replace the laser scanner assembly or buy a new printer (laser scanners could be pricey). Best of luck.