We loved it! This is my first rock tumbler. I bought it to polish beach agates. I ran mine in the kitchen. Heat-wise: the tumbler didn’t get hot (not sure if they can). Sound-wise: I would say this rock tumbler is fairly quiet, though not silent. If you like the ambient noise produced by a sound machine then you may really like the sound. My husband, who cannot live without ambient noise, loved the sound produced by this rock tumbler!