The only time I got beeps out of a hard drive is when I was using some software to clean up a computer systems software and when the computer booted from the disk I would get a beeping from the hard drive and it was not able to be accessed. I tried a different version of the software and all was well.
Each of us who work on computers on a regular basis tend to like one brand over another. I like Seagate drives better than Hitachi. The following link is for one that they sell here at iFixit. In my own computer I use One HP and Two Seagate drives. Good product and good warranty. But most any SATA drive will work fine in your computer.
http://www.ifixit.com/Apple-Parts/500-GB-7200-RPM-Seagate-SATA-Hard-Drive-New/IF107-071-1
Long story short. Mayer has been doing this for a long time. I have been doing this for a long time. Both of us do it for a living. We contribute here to help those how ask. iFixit provides this forum for you and others to ask and receive answers. You need to decide who to listen to. No things do not always go as planned. But those are not the norm. In 16 years I have only had One computer with the Beeping hard drive and it was one put in by Apple when the computer was new. It is owned by an Ad Agency and works fine except with that one piece of software.
Good luck and do not be worried. I give you high marks for getting out there and doing your own stuff. If more folks would do that the cost of taking it in to fix may drop.