Confused about different Western Digital drives

[Ronin13]

X-bit Labs just did a '500GB HDD Shootout'. In their conclusion, they say: 'Western Digital: the two drives from this company were the stars of this review'.

So I'm thinking about going with a WD drive instead of the Seagate 7200.10 I had planned for my next build.

The questions:

The enterprise drives (like the RE2 WD5000YS from the test) are priced pretty similar - especially the lower capacity models - to their SE16 counterparts and judging from the above mentioned test it seems they're a little bit faster.

1: Any reason not to go with an enterprise model? How about noise levels?

2: The RE2 WD5000YS seems a little faster than the SE16 WD5000KS. Would a RE WD3200YS have the same advantage over a SE16 WD3200KS? (Note, it's a RE and not a RE2.)

In on-line shops here in Denmark I've recently seen SE16 drives show up with a different model number, being more expensive than the older SE16 models. For instance, I can get a SE16 WD3200KS for $118 and a SE16 WD3200KSRTL2 for $150.

3: I can't find the 'WD3200KSRTL2' product code on WD's site. Does anyone know what the addition of the 'RTL2' means?

 

[Howard]

1) They use TLER. Noise levels should be about the same.

 

[Ronin13]

Originally posted by: Howard
1) They use TLER. Noise levels should be about the same.

Do you mention 'Time Limited Error Recovery' as a reason not to go with an enterprise drive (for a single drive, desktop rig)?

What negative effect would TLER have? Is it even on when not in a RAID setup?

 

[Boyo]

I believe the RE models are built for servers and RAID setups. The WD home page lists the differences between the two. I have a WD 320GB SE16 and a WD 250GB RE16 as my eSATA. I bought the RE accidently but decided to keep it. There is absolutely no difference in noise levels between the two drives. I think the RE has a longer warranty too.

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: Ronin13

Originally posted by: Howard
1) They use TLER. Noise levels should be about the same.

Is it even on when not in a RAID setup?

I believe so, but I'm not 100% sure.

 

[Old Hippie]

Is it even on when not in a RAID setup?

Yep and AFAIK you can't turn it off. It limits the time your HDD will seek for info. All the reviews that I read said if ya have a choice on a non-raid set-up, stay away.

 

[ICBM]

Judging from the xbit article, I would go for the RE2. The price difference is a couple of bucks, and you get a better drive. I have three RE2 500GB drives right now, no complaints, and I feel better about their quality versus the regular drivers (whether true or not). Basically the way I look at it, they are supposed to be built for tougher conditions, and they appear to be faster, so why the heck not. As far as noise is concerned, they are pretty quiet, since I can't compare to the SE16, I can't help you out there, but I am extremely pleased with the drives.

 

[Bobthelost]

Originally posted by: Old Hippie

Is it even on when not in a RAID setup?

Yep and AFAIK you can't turn it off. It limits the time your HDD will seek for info. All the reviews that I read said if ya have a choice on a non-raid set-up, stay away.

Everything i've read says that it won't make the slightest bit of difference.

I'd be looking at the enterprise ones myself, the extra warranty is nice.

 

[AMDZen]

Instructions http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/message...hp?catid=18&threadid=660910&lastpage=1

On turning TLER off. I bought one of these today so I'll let you know if this works

 

[Auric]

Got working linky to WDTLER.zip?

WD search is teh funneh. Usually the results come up with the image of some pensive dude but sometimes it just fails with "Can't find that document ANYWHERE! Arrrgggg!!", accompanied by an appropriately bewildered dog.

 

[Old Hippie]

Originally posted by: Auric
Got working linky to WDTLER.zip?

Makes two of us wantin' to know.

 

[snooby]

Originally posted by: Old Hippie

Originally posted by: Auric
Got working linky to WDTLER.zip?

Makes two of us wantin' to know.

A link was posted in that FW thread yesterday.
http://rapidshare.com/files/2821776/WDTLER.zip.html

If anyone has tried using this utility, please let us know if it worked. Thanks!

 

[Auric]

Thanks. I'll follow up how it works.

 

[bruceb]

The KS in the drive means it is for a Desktop PC
The RTL2 is not defined on the WD site, but it sounds
like it was a Retail version and not an OEM Model of the drive

 

[Auric]

Welp, it works (ooh, shocker... not really).

I just posted @ fw:

Note that while the "On" batch sets both Read & Write to 7 seconds, the factory setting is actually r7 & w0 (write disabled).

So, if for normal use you choose to disable both (or more accurately disable Read and leave Write disabled) then later want to configure for RAID use, be sure to then set Write appropriately rather than blindly enabling it.

 

[Old Hippie]

Originally posted by: Auric
Note that while the "On" batch sets both Read & Write to 7 seconds, the factory setting is actually r7 & w0 (write disabled).

So, if for normal use you choose to disable both (or more accurately disable Read and leave Write disabled) then later want to configure for RAID use, be sure to then set Write appropriately rather than blindly enabling it.

I'm gonna include this note with the utility, just in case I forget.
Thanks Auric, Nice Job. :thumbsup: