Abstract: Devices are provided herein in a variety of examples that inhibit particle pickup and transport and mechanical vibrations and provide other advantages. In one illustrative example, an actuator assembly includes a base, an actuator disposed on the base, and a shroud disposed on the base around the actuator. The shroud includes one or more shroud walls disposed between the actuator and a flow channel exterior to the shroud. The shroud walls may include shielding walls that partially surround the actuator, radially curved shroud wall segments, fastener well shields that substantially separate an interior thereof from the actuator, and other aspects. A data storage device may have a flow path defined therein, and the shroud may be disposed around an actuator within the data storage device, providing a streamlined surface between the flow path and the actuator.