The present invention is a system for stiffening a voice coil of a magnetic disk drive. One embodiment of the present invention are stressed skins that interconnect with an upper portion and a lower portion of the voice coil such that they are flush with the upper and lower surfaces of the voice coil. The stressed skins are adhered or otherwise interconnected to the voice coil thus allowing for bending, twisting, torsional, and various other loads that generate vibrations that affect the head of an actuator assembly to be dampened. One embodiment of the present invention includes two stressed skins interconnected to a voice coil constructed of carbon composite wherein the space therebetween is filled with a foam to provide additional stiffness and damping.