Best external HD for PB?

[jaeshellz]

Hey guys, i've read some posts about how important it is to backup your files and i have yet to do so and i've had my first mac (12inch g4 pb) for about a year and half.

So i was wondering, what is the best hd i can get without paying an arm and a leg. Simply to backup my files and also to put my movies and music so my powerbook can have some free space.

I'm pretty much a newbie in the aspect of external hd's so please feel free to school me on it, thanx guys.

 

[puckhead193]

i love my lacie.. why do people say they are loud,i barely notice when its on. But search the forums there's almost a billion thread on this

 

[jaeshellz]

Lacie, huh? What size is yours? and are externals hd's reasonably loud?

 

[redAPPLE]

the 1 tb lacie is LOUD.

(words cannot express how loud).

 

[redAPPLE]

Lacie, huh? What size is yours? and are externals hd's reasonably loud?

http://www.lacie.com

 

[puckhead193]

Lacie, huh? What size is yours? and are externals hd's reasonably loud?

http://www.lacie.com/products/family.htm?id=10007

Some people comment on Lacie being very loud but i don't notice.....i have 250 GB..... with triple interface cause i wanted all the options to connect it to my computer(s)

 

[Counterfit]

I have an OWC Mercury Pro, and it's only as loud as the drive inside, which for the two complete ones I bought from them, is very quiet, but the drive I bought separately is LOUD.

 

[solaris]

I recommend LaCie as well. I'm a happy owner of a 500GB one myself.
Depending of your storage needs and portability you have two options.

1. A portable 2.5" disk, which dont need an external power supply.
You get them up to 100GB (or maybe 120).
Example: http://www.lacie.com/products/product.htm?pid=10558

2. A desktop 3.5" disk, which need an external power supply.
They come in all kind of sizes and shapes, from 80GB to 2TB.
Example: http://www.lacie.com/products/product.htm?pid=10059


Perhaps you can tell us a bit more what you need and your budget?

 

[jaeshellz]

hey Solaris, okay well i make beats. I'm into music production so besides that i also have alot of music albums that take up alot of space on my Powerbook so i just wanted something to throw all the stuff i have on my pb into an external hd. As for as price range, i could probably go to 200, maybe a lil more. Just something really simple that i could use as storage and back up my files that won't crash.

school me people, u guys are smarter than I am..

 

[lanray]

2nd the Lacie

I have a 160GB Lacie external HD, and I like it. I don't notice the noise of it, really. My PB is louder with the fan blowing. Heck, the highway outside is louder than the HD. Anyways. No problems, nice drive.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

I've never had any problems with Seagate Barracudas. Quitet and reliable disks. For external storage I recommend the Firewire/USB2 combo drives. A 500GB version should be right aroung the corner, maybe causing the 400GB to drop a bit in price...?

 

[BlueRevolution]

1. A portable 2.5" disk, which dont need an external power supply.
You get them up to 100GB (or maybe 120).
Example: http://www.lacie.com/products/product.htm?pid=10558

I'm looking at outfitting a mobile video editing station myself, and wondering... what's the most storage you can get in a group of bus-powered drives? this includes daisy-chaining and doing a RAID array. I'd by plugging the PowerBook into a cigarette lighter power inverter so battery drain is a moot point. I know the manufacturers say that daisy chained drives need external power sources to operate, but can you at least chain 2 together and have them operate properly? 300 GB of storage doesn't really cut it for hardcore editing.

 

[telecomm]

Just got my second WD hard drive.

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=107

Haven't had any problems, and it comes with Retrospect Express, which has served my backup needs. The brushed aluminum finish and the blue power light look really cool next to a PB as well.

This one's not firewire, though, so that might be something you'd want to consider.

 

[liquidh2o]

have had good experiences with external lacie drives. Never used a dual drive setup, but the singles are great.

 

[adk]

If you're only backing up your PB hard drive and don't need any extra storage, an 80-100GB external hard drive can be had for pretty cheap. Just make sure to get a firewire drive, that way if your internal hard drive ever crashes you can boot from the external.

 

[CanadaRAM]

I'm looking at outfitting a mobile video editing station myself, and wondering... what's the most storage you can get in a group of bus-powered drives? this includes daisy-chaining and doing a RAID array. I'd by plugging the PowerBook into a cigarette lighter power inverter so battery drain is a moot point. I know the manufacturers say that daisy chained drives need external power sources to operate, but can you at least chain 2 together and have them operate properly? 300 GB of storage doesn't really cut it for hardcore editing.

Eh?
There is no way in the world I would try putting together a buss powered drive RAID...
1) If you have a power inverter, power the drives directly.
2) If you value your data, don't do RAID, esp. not buss powered....!!
3) If you have a power inverter, use desktop drives. If you are using desktop drives, you could choose a LaCie or other brand that has built-in hardware RAID with 2 drives in one case.
4) If you are concerned with sustained capture rates, don't put the camera and the drive on the same Firewire buss... there's like, no point in RAIDing a single FW 400 or 800 port when you are also streaming DV through the same controller chip, so get a PC Card Firewire 800 interface for the drives.

 

[jsalzer]

EZQuest

Heya - I have two (one for work and one for home). One is the Lacie 500GB. It was a refurb and the price was right.

But, my favorite is the EZQuest hard drive. Why?

1) Polycarbonite shell - it's sturdy, it's pretty, and it takes a banging.
2) Ball-bearing fan. None of this "relying on the aluminum to spread out the heat" garbage.
3) It has two Firewire ports so I can daisy-chain if I need to.

You definitely want Firewire so you can make a bootable drive (comes in handy when your internal drive fails.)

The newest version of SuperDuper is wonderful!

But, don't forget - even if you do a daily backup, you still want to back up to DVD every once in a while so you have true fall-back points.

Good luck!

 

[jaeshellz]

thanks for the info...

I don't think i can back up onto DVD cause my powerbook is a regular combo drive, not super drive.

Looks like i might purchase a Lacie. What other external HD's have firewire support?

 

[ilnyckyj]

Get either a Lacie drive, or even better, buy a nice seagate drive, and put it in an external enclosure.

 

[Counterfit]

http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other World Computing/NPFW7160GB/
That should suit your backup needs more than adequately. It's FireWire 400, which is bootable, (FW800 adds cost and since the 12" PB doesn't have it...)

2) If you value your data, don't do RAID, esp. not buss powered....!!

Er, I assume you mean RAID 0, which is striping only, so if one drive goes down, you can kiss your data goodbye. RAID 1 (and others) are mirroring, which duplicate the data on multiple drives for safety.
Wiki Clicky

 

[2nyRiggz]

yup lacie is for you buddy...back up right now man!


Bless

 

[Synapple]

I have a Lacie 30GB USB and a Lacie 160GB Firewire.

The former I can barely hear and only when the drive is spinning; the latter I always hear, even when the drive is not spinning. I find the high pitch of the noise to be extremely annoying.

I agree with ilnyckyj: buy a seagate and put it in a nice external enclosure.

 

[MatthewCobb]

No noise LaCie

I have a a Lacie 160GB Firewire [...] I always hear, even when the drive is not spinning. I find the high pitch of the noise to be extremely annoying.

I have the same, but no problem, no high pitch noise, no complaints - highly recommended. Looks like there's some variability! Main point is get a disk with Firewire 400 with two ports. And then to BACK UP REGULARLY!

 

[Synapple]

I have the same, but no problem, no high pitch noise, no complaints - highly recommended. Looks like there's some variability! Main point is get a disk with Firewire 400 with two ports. And then to BACK UP REGULARLY!

Yes, there is indeed some variability! Some friends of mine have the exact same drives and reported that they are not noisy at all... at least, not to the degree where they would find them annoying.

Totally agree on the Firwire 400 with two ports advice

 

[devman]

the 1 tb lacie is LOUD.

(words cannot express how loud).

Quite right! I own one and it is terrible.

Now, some people in this thread are taking what many of us have said about the 1TB drive and applying that to ALL La Cie drives. That's not the case. Myself and others have only been harping about the 1TB drive.

FWIW I have two 2.5" La Cie portables that I use on my PB - a 40GB and an 80GB - and they are both fine and quiet and I have no hesitation recommending those drives.

With regards to the La Cie 1TB drive my advice is plain and simple. DO NOT BUY ONE.