Hard drives
- Thread starter micky
- Start date
price, noise, warranty... that's pretty much it.
also, depending on if it matters to you, does it have a SATA power connector only, or does it have a molex one too?
also, depending on if it matters to you, does it have a SATA power connector only, or does it have a molex one too?
All new harddrives are pretty much the same loudness, ie VERY quiet, and most are so quiet they'll be completely drowned out by the fans in most cases when idling. Noise would not be the deciding factor for me.
Instead, I'd look at performance. The harddrive is a very important factor in determining final system performance, as I/O activity is so INCREDIBLY slower than computing performance, particulary seeks. You want a harddrive that gives as good performance there as you can, as even a few ms in seek performance can mean many seconds of less waiting-time when the harddrive is busy.
Storagereview is your friend.
Particulary the Hitachi Deskstars are very fast, and the Raptor of course, though it hasn't been updated for quite a while now so the capacity is pretty low.
Instead, I'd look at performance. The harddrive is a very important factor in determining final system performance, as I/O activity is so INCREDIBLY slower than computing performance, particulary seeks. You want a harddrive that gives as good performance there as you can, as even a few ms in seek performance can mean many seconds of less waiting-time when the harddrive is busy.
Storagereview is your friend.
Particulary the Hitachi Deskstars are very fast, and the Raptor of course, though it hasn't been updated for quite a while now so the capacity is pretty low.I can vouch for the DiamondMax 10 (7,200 RPM,SATA/SATA-II, 16MB buffer, 300GB capacity). It's a good purchase due to the SATA-II support, meaning not only do you get SATA for today, but with the appropriate controller you get Native Command Queuing (NCQ) for more efficient transfers.
Note that the DiamondMax 10 250/300GB SATA drives with 16MB buffers are essentailly the same drives as the Maxtor Maxline III drives of the same specs. I believe this goes as far as simply being different labels for two markets and two price points. AFAIK DiamondMax 10/Maxline III are the only drives on the market that support SATA-II at the moment. MOre are sure to come as this interface is looking to replace the initial SATA implementation.
Note that the DiamondMax 10 250/300GB SATA drives with 16MB buffers are essentailly the same drives as the Maxtor Maxline III drives of the same specs. I believe this goes as far as simply being different labels for two markets and two price points. AFAIK DiamondMax 10/Maxline III are the only drives on the market that support SATA-II at the moment. MOre are sure to come as this interface is looking to replace the initial SATA implementation.
Bouncing Zabaglione Bros.
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There is actually a lot of difference in hard drive noise, but of course if your PC already sounds like a jet engine, you won't notice the difference. If you have made an effort to get your PC quiet, then hard drives could add significant levels of noise if you chose the wrong one.
Storage Review also gives noise levels on the drives and there is a wide range, so you can tell which ones will be noisy or quiet.
Storage Review also gives noise levels on the drives and there is a wide range, so you can tell which ones will be noisy or quiet.
Hitachi = IBM Deskstar that was nicknamed "Deathstar" because they died rather quickly. Has this changed since Hitachi bought the line?
I too am looking for a new SATA drive. Speed, noise and capacity are my issues in that order. It must be SATA as my other two drives are EIDE (PATA) and I've no more PATA connections.
I'm leaning toward the WD Raptor 74 GB but is seems kinda small by today's standards.
I too am looking for a new SATA drive. Speed, noise and capacity are my issues in that order. It must be SATA as my other two drives are EIDE (PATA) and I've no more PATA connections.
I'm leaning toward the WD Raptor 74 GB but is seems kinda small by today's standards.
Mize said:
It changed even back in IBM hands. The ACTUAL deathstar line was the GXP75 which became obsolete back in 01, and since then people just continued to blame every failed IBM drive on the deathstar phenomena either out of ignorance or malice.
Hitachi Deskstar 7k400. DAMN fast harddrive, and it has anti-vibration G-sensors, and headramps too of course to eliminate the sliding start-stop cycles of pretty much all desktop harddrives.
And to whomever who mentioned command queuing... It doesn't actually make a difference in ordinary desktop useage, and can in fact give a performance penalty instead. It's in other words a non-issue.
