Oooooooooh, that is exactly like my first Elna, purchased in Fairbanks, Alaska and loved all these many years. My daughter now has it; and hers growls too. I had a repairman work on it one time, and it came back to me that way. Elna is supposed to be super quiet; and when I asked him about the noise, he told me it sounded alright to him. So I do hope you get a reasonable answer to your question so I can get the DH ahold of DD's machine.