Apparatus and method for reducing generation of acoustic noise in a disc drive. A multi-layer disc drive housing structure includes a housing layer, a plurality of rigid damping layers and a corresponding plurality of interposed visco-elastic damping layers. Characteristics of the various layers are selected by evaluating hypothetical models each having first, second and third theoretical layers, at least one of which is a composite layer made up of multiple layers. Loss factor profiles are evaluated in relation to housing layer resonant frequency to provide an optimum multi-layer structure.