There's also HDDScan which is a single file Windows executable. Requires no installation, no bootdisks, no reboots. Hitachi FTool is quite capable tool and does have a wider support for certain PCI addon controllers. If you use a motherboard controller HDDScan is likely the easier way. http://hddgur...

Bluefront: "FWIW.....WD external USB "My Book" drives will spin down to zero rpms after a few minutes" I have no experience with WD externals. Maxtor OneTouches have some built-in spindown counter as well. The timer target value can be configured from some minutes to several hours of idling before ...

I use a 2.5" laptor drive (an old Hitachi Travelstar 12GN, 4200rpm, BB, 2-platter, 12GB) as a USB drive in a Mapower enclosure. 12GN uses so little power it spins up 99% of the time even without the split cable. Using split cable just makes it even more certain + allows use of drive with higher rpm....

Vicotnik: "Doesn't external USB HDDs spin down like any other HDD? Is it because it's USB and not IDE?" Most USB enclosures only transfer data and cannot relay STAND-BY commands from the host to the drive. Windows power management is a counter that is kept in computers RAM and the drives are spun d...

"I currently have two hard drives in my HTPC - a WD 4000KS which is fine but I also have an older Hitachi 160GB 180GXP series drive that has quite a bit of idle hum/resonance which I would like to replace." Hitachi 160GB 180GXP? There was a 180GXP but it was prior to Hitachi acquisition of IBM stor...

myself: "So, if the drive is a long-term investment, I'd probably stay away from MLII/DM16 as they might develop a nasty whine over time." Confirmed (unfortunately). I removed the 5400rpm Maxtor from it's OneTouch enclosure because it ran out of warranty. I noticed that when removed from it's enclos...

"You should look at the Samsung Spinpoint T HD301LJ 300GB or Western Digital Caviar SE16 3200KS. Both of these drives have 16MB of cache and should perform and sound very similar" Except most people experience that Samsung has a nicer idle while WD has the nicer seeks. They aren't similar, but they...

I'm not familiar with Samsung model codes so are those SATA or IDE? What controller are they plugged into? Mobo? PCI? WinAAM works on IDE drives and possibly on some SATAs. I didn't have luck with my mobo integrated SATA and a P80SD. Hitachi Feature Tool saw the drive and I made the adjustments with...

nick705, what you say is true. But interface can still be a bottleneck. Let me show why: HDD's internal transfer rate = 80 (on outer tracks) (limited by mechanics). Burst transfer rate = around 110...125 (limited by interface and cache electronics). Interface theoretical limit = 133 (limited by the ...

IDE channel can be saturated even today. Put a fast MASTER and a SLAVE on the same channel and them copy data from one to the other. Since some new 7200rpm drives have up to 80 MB/s sustained transfer rate, transferring data both ways (to and from memory) could be 2x 80 MB/s at maximum. 160 MB/s > 1...

Nearly 40 deg C on the enclosure is quite warm. The drive inside can be 10...20 degrees warmer because air inside the enclosure acts as a thermal insulator. I have actually made quite many temperature measurement for drives in USB enclosures. My 7K250 runs typically at 40 deg C in Mapower enclosure....

There's indications that Samsung hard drives' reliability is approximately average. Slightly below or even slightly higher, depending on how reliable to others were at the same time. While Samsungs aren't exceptionally reliable, they have lacked bad models. They are just "exceptionally average". Or ...

"No, this was a specific question about the new Seagate 7200.10 perpendicular drives which appear to run hotter than 'non-perpendicular' drives." Do you have some proof that it's the recording technology which makes 7200.10 hotter than "other" drives? Are you sure it has nothing to do with mechanic...

"The OP asked a specific question about a specific HDD not covered in the sticky." A specific HDD... aren't all specific HDDs equally specific? Should there be separate threads to each HDD model (i.e dozens of threads), leaving the sticky something irrelevant that should be ignored? If that was the...

There's a sticky, you blind man. http://forums.silentpcreview.com/viewto ... 3e4e1ee8bf

"Maxtor 320Gb 7200 RPM SATA2 16Mb" And which 320GB Maxtor would that be? DiamondMax 10 series (originally up to 300GB but might have 320GB added to the available variants) (3 platters). These are "typical" Maxtors: run hot and produce a heck of a racket (in standard configuration). The best thing a...

"Yeah, APM is a really cool yet confusing feature." I agree about the confusiveness. The naming isn't very descriptive and sometimes the naming varies between documents. "Lower RPM Idle" for example is usually referred as "Lower RPM Stand-by". Apparently here's the power saving modes (highest power...

BOINC did it again. Left the computers running on Thursday. When I came back on Tuesday, both applications had crashed. Computer 1's BOINC manager said that (local) manager cannot connect to (local) BOINC client. Even rebooted the manager, no change. Rebooted WinXP. Manager appeared still empty. All...

Reading some more PDFs from Seagate website. Apparently they themselves don't know the power consumption figures of DB35. Datasheet says 12.4 watts when seeking, DynaPlay white paper says 8 watts. Datasheet says 8 watts on idle, DynaPlay says 6.9 watts. Datasheet says 9.2 watts on "consumer storage ...

"What about the Seagate DB35 series? These are 7200 rpm drives but they are being marketed specifically for DVRs." And since they lack load/unload technology, they most certainly lack low rpm idling. "Key advantages" from DB35 datasheet: • DynaPlay Technology delivers the storage industry's most ...

Since there isn't many 5400rpm (or 5760rpm or whatever) drives available and those who are don't have the top capacities, one might have to go for a 7200rpm drive. There is 300GB Maxtor MaXLine II and 300GB Maxtor DiamondMax 16 which are both 5400rpm. MaXLine II is with ball-bearings and while my 1-...

halcyon: "I need a bigger parallel ATA (IDE) connector 3,5" HD for my PVR box. Hitachi has pre-announced their Cinemastar 7K500 (7500rpm, 500GB) drive, but it's yet to hit retail." Felger Carbon: "The Hitachi Deskstar 7K500 is widely available. Same HDD without AAM (slowed seeks). Search "Hitachi 7...

"I guess I'll leave the setup as is then. Because the current seek noise is no different in my hand." Actually when properly decoupled, the noise should be less audible, mainly due to computer case absorbing some of the noise and also due to increased distance as you're likely to listen the drive a...

"1. By doing this method is it suppose to get rid of "all" the seek noise or reduce it?" Only reduce it. The reduction is greater than just using rubber grommets, but even perfect decoupling (which is actually impossible to create) will not eliminate all seek noise. Some of the seek noise is create...

"1. When you buy an OEM drive, are you really sure that it's brand new?" What exactly is an OEM drive? I interpretation of an OEM drive is a drive that has been relabeled for with Hewlett-Packard (or some other manufacturer's) stickers. Not many of the OEM drives are sold out on retail and at least...

EDIT: changed topic from "I'm considering joining (currently using BOINC)" to something a bit more informative. ______________________________________ I'm currently using BOINC but I've become a "bit" dissatisfied with BOINC client crashing (usually after finishing a WU) and thus BOINC Manager not b...

[OFF-TOPIC RANT] In a previous life (ahem.. well ok, it was 6 years ago) I didn't have a clue about how to properly build a computer. I somehow managed to add two WD drives right below the floppy drive without any kind of airflow (don't remember what case it was but for sure it was a crap). Not all ...

Ask if a well-known brand XXX is a good drive and someone will tell not to trust it... Well, maybe not if you ask if Seagate was reliable. Seagate isn't an exception in HDD reliability, it's just an exception when it comes to enthusiats' beliefs - people who buy Seagates seem to be more likely to bu...

OK, peteamer, let's address that as well (even though it's no doubt just a comic relief). The "glue" can hold the magnetic attached to the platter with a certain force. This is similarish to static friction ("stiction"). To slide a bit off we need centrifugal "force" (which isn't a force, but just i...

Nice analysis. I agree with D235hadow, Tibors et al.: there's no reason to reason to avoid mounting drives in (for example) 45 deg angle ...or if there is, at least it has nothing to do with gyroscopic effect. If there is some problems with uneven wear, the uneven wear of bearings would be at it's w...