Alright... I have a horrible screech. I'm talking banshee screech, the souls of the departed crying out from hell.
Not kidding.

I know it's coming from my A/C compressor.
It happens when the A/C's off, too. Not all the time, but sometimes.
The pulley doesn't seem to wobble, either...
So does this mean it's just the bearings, not the clutch?
I'm BROKE, so I need to figure out what to do -- $35 to replace the bearings, $135 to replace the clutch assembly (bearings included), or like $350 to replace the compressor (clutch assembly and bearings included; most of the cost comes from having it evac'd).
I think I just need the bearings, but I'm just checking.

Video:
(Warning, careful with the volume)

 

To me it sounds like the belt is too loose. When it's a bearing it gives more of a grinding sound. You can remove the belt and spin all of the pulleys. The should a spin nice and smooth. If any of them feel rough and not smooth then more then likely you have a bad bearing. Also check the belt for any cracks or glazing. If it shows any cracks or glazing replace it. What ever you do, DO NOT spray the belt with any belt dressing. That stuff is mnot made for serp belt and will cause the to fail prematurely. BTW, The belt on the 4.0 has to be stupid tight.

 

My belt is already stupid tight, and feels like it's in good condition, though I've yet to remove it. I guess I could remove it and check it out, and maybe tighten it a bit, but it's a pain to get the tools and area I need to work on my car, so I'm trying to do this all in one shot.

Also, already knew that about the belt dressing... Saw someone make that mistake once -- made the squeaking 5 times worse. Thanks for the warning, though.

The sound seems to be coming solely from the A/C compressor, too.
I have a minor squeak too, which I think is the idler pulley, but disregard that for now.

 

If you can't take everything apart right now. You can get some spray lube and spray each of the pulley bearing area one at a time to make sure that it is only coming from the a/c. Jsut make sure on to get any of the lube on the belt. Also take a straight edge and line it up to the ac pulley and to the others to make sure that it's not misaligned. Let us know what you find.

 

Sounds like a plan... Will do.

 

I've got the same problem and it's obviously not the belt. You guys are giving B.S. replies to this. It's honestly like you guys have never worked on a car before. My little sister can give this kind of advice. I'm pretty disgusted.