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Buying a Hard Drive - Performance Questions

  • 16-06-2005 8:26pm
    #1
    Duffman
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,248 ✭✭✭


    Hi,

    I've just bought an Icy Box USB 2.0 external HD case (with shiny blue LEDs :D)

    Anyway, I need a drive for it. It will be used mainly for storage and I just have a few questions about what's availible.

    I was going to buy one of these WD drives on Komplett, ATA-100, 8mb, 7,200 rpm.

    But then I noticed Samsung and Hitachi drives that are also 8Mb/7200 but are ATA-133.

    There is also a 5,400 samsung drive, also ATA-133 but with 2 Meg cache.

    I'm just looking for opinions regarding performance.

    --As I'm using USB2 and the drive is mainly for storage (I might play with running linux from it) will opting for ATA-133 over 100, 8mb over 2mb or 7200 over 5200 make a difference at all?
    Or will USB2 just be a bottleneck anyway?

    --Anyone have a Samsung drive? I thought a 5,400 might be quieter which is important to me, although the specs show only a few decibels difference b/ween it and the WD 7200. If I opted for 5,200, think I'd notice the difference?

    Thanks for your help :).


Comments

  • #2
    Mutant_Fruit
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,943 ✭✭✭Mutant_Fruit


    5400RPM is quieter, slower and cooler than 7200. If its just for storage type purposes, i'd recommend one a 5400RPM samsung.


  • #3
    uberpixie
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,864 ✭✭✭uberpixie


    Duffman wrote:

    --As I'm using USB2 and the drive is mainly for storage (I might play with running linux from it) will opting for ATA-133 over 100, 8mb over 2mb or 7200 over 5200 make a difference at all?
    Or will USB2 just be a bottleneck anyway?

    --Anyone have a Samsung drive? I thought a 5,400 might be quieter which is important to me, although the specs show only a few decibels difference b/ween it and the WD 7200. If I opted for 5,200, think I'd notice the difference?

    Why bother running linux from an external? USB 2 would be a bottle neck.

    Why not just use a live cd of knoppix(or what ever) and run linux from a cd?

    Less hassle and messing around and you can even setup a small 1-2gig partiton on your main harddrive for use with knoppix to save settings and run programmes from if you really want to.

    Knoppix is the best way to dabble with linux and not break your pc.

    Knoppix will also recognise usb hardrives and be able to read any data on it even in NTFS. So why bother with running it on an external hdrive?


  • #4
    Mutant_Fruit
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,943 ✭✭✭Mutant_Fruit


    sound level (or is it intensity?) doubles every time you add 3 decibals. Therefore if the samsung is rated 3 decibals lower, then its half as noisy.


  • #5
    J-blk
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,906 ✭✭✭J-blk


    USB 2.0 will most definitely negate any benefits of a faster interface/cache - I have a similar setup (though the HD is in the cheapest Zynet 3.5" case that you can get from Komplett) and any HD placed in the enclosure simply does not perform the same as hooking it up to an IDE or SATA controller directly.

    As Mutant_Fruit said, if you are only going to use the drive for storage, then 5400RPM will be fine, though it won't make it too much quieter.

    I have 5 main HDs, including a Samsung Spinpoint P160 160GB. I'd say it's fairly quiet though I am not an audio professional obsessed with silence if that is what you need :) . My Seagate Barracudas 7200.7 (2 x 200GB) are also pretty good - only one I would stay away from is the Maxtor DiamondMax 9. I have an SATA 120GB Maxtor and it's the noisiest of all my drives...


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