[Bubba Jones]

I posted a couple of weeks ago with this question, got some replies, but didn't fully answer my question and now it has been pushed further down the list. I do video work and some web design. I own a pismo 400 w/6gig HD. I wanted to know what HD would give me the best quality video.

i was told that internal drives will always be accessed faster, this makes sense. A couple of people recommended the IBM Travelstar 32GH (Model DJSA-232). But it only has 5100rpm vs. the VST firwire drives (7200 rpm) i was originally looking at.

I'm looking to spend $600-$900. Less is better, more is acceptable if need be. The barest minimum i need is 20 gig that functions the best. What specs truly define a fast hard drive for video work.

Also, i have been unable to find a price on the IBM travelstar or any other travelstar drive. I can find info a plenty, but no price.

Thanks in advance



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[MacNZ]

You want a fast and large drive!?
Anyway, ATA drives will be faster than Firewire and these are either available as internal drives or expansion bay drives. Expansion bay drives have the advantage of being able to keep your original drive and not have to shift data, although you need your media bay for DVD of course. http://store.powerbook1.com/
This site has a reasonable rang of drives. I think an 18GB media bay drive is only $499 which is pretty good and they claim they are the fastest you can get. i would still look into the IBM drives and see if you can find a price. i saw it somewhere the other day but can't remember where.....

[seanyepez]

Internal drives will be faster than external FireWire drives so long as they aren't native to FireWire. Most drives aren't native to FireWire, and are basically IDE drives with a FireWire connector affixed.

External FireWire drives will be faster once the drive communicates with the computer through FireWire, and FireWire alone. (This means that the drive will have to be native to FireWire.)

Internal drives are cheap and fast. I would reccomend the IBM drive (Model DJSA-232). Though the external drive will have a faster rotational speed, the conversion to FireWire does cost lost speed.

An expansion bay drive is pretty cool, too. They're cheaper than most external drives, are internally powered, and can be toted in the media bay.

It's really your choice. I would reccomend MCE's Xcar�t drives, but they run a little pricey, and the largest one offers only 18 gigabytes of storage. You can get their kit and install a regular 2.5-inch mobile drive in it, for a fully-functional - and extremely fast - 32 gigabyte hard disk drive. That's the option I would choose to use.

[tjcrebs]

From MacTech, a PR from Trans Intl.--anybody have experience with drives from these folks? Prices appear very good. Regards, T.
____
ANAHEIM, Calif., July 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Trans Intl. today announced the
online availability of two new high capacity 2.5 inch 30 Gb and 20 Gb hard
disk drives for expanding internal storage of Apple Powerbooks G3's and
ibooks.
With the availability of these new drives Apple Powerbook G3 internal
storage capacity can now be expanded up to 30 Gb and ibooks internal
storage up to 20 Gb, earlier these models was restricted up to 18 Gb and 12
Gb of storage space only.
These new drives has the industry's highest shock rating of 800 G/1 ms, as
well as the fast Ultra-DMA interface transfer rate of 66 MB/sec. The high
speeds and capacities of these drives help provide higher quality digital
audio and video, superior digital content creation capabilities, and
significantly faster processing for data-intensive multimedia and Internet
applications.
Specification and Features
Capacity: 30 Gb /20 Gb [Giga-byte]
Seek time : 12 ms
Spindle Speed: 4200 RPM
Cache buffer: 2 Mb [Megabyte]
Interface: ATA-4 [66 Mb/s]
Warranty : Three Years
Prices:
30 Gb ....$499
20 Gb ....$359
About TransIntl.com
Trans Intl. is a member of the Apple Developer Group and was founded in
1988. Trans Intl. designs and manufactures innovative and high quality
computer memory and mass storage products. Trans Intl. has a strong
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developing, producing and supporting products that anticipate the coming
needs of the ever-changing computer industry. For a complete product
directory and more information about Trans Intl., visit the company's web
site at http://www.transintl.com.

[EricDD]

seanyepez: when you say
"MCE's Xcar�t drives...You can get their kit and install a regular 2.5-inch mobile drive in it, for a fully-functional - and extremely fast - 32 gigabyte hard disk drive. That's the option I would choose to use....
do you mean an internal drive, ie the ibm travelstar or is that drive only a replacemt for the internal drive. in other words, can you take any internal drive and makeit a media bay? i would think yes as I have read that if you replace your internal drive, to take the old 6 gig and make it a media bay. but you just want to be sure. thanks. eric

[blot]

I have the MCE Xcaret Pro Media Expansion Bay Hard Drive and I put my original PB FW's 12Gb IBM Travelstar into it and replaced my internal with the 18Gb IBM Travelstar.

There is a difference with transfer rates and access speeds depending on whether you use the HD as an internal or in the expansion bay. I know because I use FWB HDT to test and format my drives.

With the drive in the expansion bay, it is limited to Multi-Word DMA Mode 2. When it is internal, it can be configured for Ultra DMA Mode 4.

These are specific methods of data transfer and basically what it means is that the drive operates fastest when it is internal. I did benchmarking tests with my Travelstar 18Gb both in the expansion bay and PB internal connection with significant speed differences.

Eric, you guessed right.

Bubba, I really can't tell if the 7200rpm drive you're looking at would be faster in terms of data transfer rates as I don't have any FW drives for benchmarking comparisons.

Regards

[blot]

Okay, I did some looking around...

VST advertises a Data Transfer Rate (Typ) 12.5MB/Sec and Data Transfer Rate (Max) 16 MB/Sec for their FW Ext Drives (IBM).

That particular drive on IBM Storage page should have a typical transfer rate of 14.1 to 23.5MB/Sec. That means some overheads incurred.

My Travelstar 18GT 4200rpm (internal) benchtest results are Sustained read 11420KB/sec and Sustained write 12672KB/sec.

My guess is that with a 5411rpm internal drive, you may get about the same data rates as per the ext FW drive.

BTW, over here in Singapore, the 32Gb Travelstar is not available yet. However, the 25Gb Travelstar (5411rpm) DARA-225000 can be purchased for S$996 or US$586 (depending on exchange rates).

[EricDD]

So what's the better way? To upgrade the internal and make the old one a media bay or use the larger new drive as a media bay. probably a dumb question. Does it come down to what you plan to use the space for, ie video capture vs. ordinary storage. Thanks. Eric

[blot]

The largest and fastest HD that one can afford as the internal HD should give the best data transfer rates for now until native FW HDs arrive. Partition it as required and this should allow for sufficient space for software installation and scratch disk space for whatever you're doing, e.g. video editing...

Get the MCE Xcaret and chuck your old HD in it for backup or storage. The other option is to see if anyone else is willing to buy it.

[wlonh]

these are REPOSTS due to the fact that the poster of the topic having pasted his post all over the fora, i am consolidating the responses:

blot
Member
Posts: 7
Registered: Jun 2000 posted 06-30-2000 10:59 PM ��� ���� ��

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If money is no object, perhaps the IBM Travelstar 32GH (Model DJSA-232) would be a nice internal HD replacement for the Pismo. As it's name suggets, it is a 32Gb HD. Check out this link (http://www.storage.ibm.com/hardsoft/diskdrdl/travel/tr32gh.htm).
As for myself, I've been using a Travelstar 18GT for almost a year now (moved it from a Lombard to Pismo) with no problems.
I have no experience yet with any external FireWire HD as I don't really like to carry external devices around.
Regards.
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seanyepez
Moderator
Posts: 437
Registered: Dec 1999 posted 07-01-2000 06:44 AM ��� ���� ��

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External FireWire drives - for the most part - are IDE or SCSI drive run through a FireWire converter. I wouldn't expect faster than what one would expect from an IDE or SCSI notebook drive.
Internal drives are for sure your fastest and in most cases your most cost-effective bet today. Later on, one might buy a true FireWire drive. But again, for now, the internal drive is the cheapest solution, as I said earlier.
I, too, will reccomend the IBM drive if you have the cash. It is an awesome hard disk drive; it spins relatively fast for a notebook drive, and its density is unsurpassed.
IP: Logged

EricDD
Member
Posts: 4
Registered: May 2000 posted 07-01-2000 01:54 PM ��� � ��

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check out http://www.2-pop.com. great site devoted to fcp but good overall info. specifically the board for fcp and powerbooks. Eric
IP: Logged

Bubba Jones
Member
Posts: 7
Registered: May 2000 posted 07-01-2000 06:43 PM ��� ���� ��

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Thanks blot and seanyepez. Good info, two other questions to go with it. One, do either of you work with video? Second, the IBM has only 5400 rotational speed, but the VST firewire drives i've been looking at are 7200 rpm. I know some tech stuff, but i'm really just a filmaker who has picked up some computer knowledge along the way. Isn't the rotational speed the biggest factor in how fast the hard drive seems to work?
Thanks much.
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seanyepez
Moderator
Posts: 437
Registered: Dec 1999 posted 07-01-2000 08:09 PM ��� ���� ��

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Yes, I work with video. Check the DV forum, because I'm in Hong Kong and if I don't pack up my laptop now I'm going to miss my flight back home.
I'll post when I get back, perhaps, but there are many helpful people there.

[Bubba Jones]

So blot, by the 18gig MCE and i can use it as my true internal drive and the casing is simply the same thing as their expansion kit whic i can use for my 6 gig?

thanks in advance

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[blot]

Bubba,
I'm not sure about that, cos I bought my 18Gb first and then the expansion kit.

If you are buying the 18Gb MCE, you may want to check if it is an IBM drive that they are including.

[seanyepez]

Reposting sucks. All the information gets all over the place, and is too hard to keep track of. The bottom line is: don't repost.