Audio HDD recommandations

[Heabow]

Hi

I need another HDD for my audio work in PT (session, files, etc.). I used to buy the Samsung HD103SJ but it seems that it is not available anymore. I need a MAC OSX compatible one, 1To or 2 To and prefer USB to FW. I'm thinking about the Seagate Central 2To (3.5", 7200trs/min). Have you something else great and not too expensive to recommand? Thanks.

 

[JeffTD]

It's generally cheaper to buy a drive + enclosure separately, and you get better control of what cable format you'll be using, too.

 

[mva801]

I've long been a user of OWC drive enclosures. The mercury elite pro has usb3 or firewire, and you can swap out whatever HDD you want. Never had a single problem with them and i've had almost every client for the last 6+ years buy their drives from OWC.

www.macsales.com

check em out.

 

[LeSedna]

+1 for the enclosures. I switched to a thunderbolt HDD for the sake of building a full thunderbolt setup (my whole setup is available to my laptop with a single thunderbolt cable and automatically turns on when it is plugged) but my latest HDDs were normal HDDs put inside my own enclosures. They cost nothing, and in case of any problem it is simple to switch HDDs or access them. In case the cable or plug breaks, all you need is change the box which cost nothing again.

EDIT : have a look at the Backblaze blog, they are a backup company and they communicate a lot on their setup. Recently they mentioned a couple HDDs they have selected for their performances and reliability after extensive testing (they always have a test rig to experiment with their next upgrade without risking real data), I have no idea which one they are, but if they are good for a company which orders thousands of them and have them run 24/7, they are probably good for a studio !

 

[Heabow]

Thanks guys. Yes, the idea is to buy a drive and a separate enclosure, just like I used to do but the Samsung drives I used until now was obviously higly recommanded for audio work and I don't find it anymore in (web)stores so I'd like to know what you guys use (brand, model)

 

[xTomx]

Got a couple G Drive Minis, 7200 RPM, bus powered, daisy chain able, USB3 + FW800

 

[Heabow]

Just found this one today with this box. I prefered to get a WD black instead of a Seagate. I got much bugs within PT lately, probably caused by VMR or another Slate product, and maybe my old HDD is guilty too... Don't know really if an HHD dedicated to audio data can make PT bug and crash.

 

[JeffTD]

probably caused by VMR or another Slate product

Probably? That's an interesting way to spell "definitely".

 

[LeSedna]

How would the HDD make your software crash ? CPU, I get it, but how would storage make PT crash ?

 

[egan.]

How would the HDD make your software crash ? CPU, I get it, but how would storage make PT crash ?

bad sectors perhaps.

 

[Heabow]

Probably? That's an interesting way to spell "definitely".

 

[Heabow]

How would the HDD make your software crash ? CPU, I get it, but how would storage make PT crash ?

As I said, I don't know. But I had some weird issues caused by weird things in the past (another computer, etc. tho) so nothing is really surprising for me now!

 

[Pedro Teixeira]

Sorry to jump into the thread but are there any similar products out there like the g drives? I find them quite expensive for what they really are, just seem to be charging loads for design of the enclosure

 

[mva801]

Sorry to jump into the thread but are there any similar products out there like the g drives? I find them quite expensive for what they really are, just seem to be charging loads for design of the enclosure

OWC has the elite pro mini. Basically the same thing. Similar prices, but you can get just the enclosure from them and stick in your own 2.5" drive.

FWIW I've had issues with bus powered drives running on PTHD. Soon as I added a separate power supply, issue gone.

I like the mini bus powered drive for non-audio applications. If you're running them all day they tend to get a bit hot and need a separate power adapter anyway.