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Fireball Plus As vs DiamondMax Plus 45

LXi

Diamond Member
A tough choice here, but need a decision quick. Quantum Fireball Plus AS, or Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 45? Im looking at the 40-45Gig models, which are about the same price. What would you pick? Please dont throw in the IBM drive, thank you.

Edit My old title sucked.
 
I read the review over many times. The AS has better transfer rates, and its a little bit cheaper. The choise is still hard though.
 
oh the AS is cheaper?

I would have thought the DMax+45 would be the cheaper.

Hmm go with the maxtor because quantum is being sold to maxtor?
hehehe

That is a tough choice...I think I'd take the Dmax+45 personally but that's just becuase I've used Maxtors in the past and they've performed very well for me.
 
Im gonna say the Maxtor myself. I havent used the fireball but I have a 30GB Diamond Max Plus 45 and it runs great, its fast, and its quiet. Plus you have the option between performance and noise.... and you really dont lose much performance at all with accoustic managment on....
 
Also with Maxtor buying out Quantum's harddisk division, you gotta wonder if Quantum would still give proper support on their drives. I'd rather take the Maxtor then.

I have Maxtor DM+ 40 drive, which I dont really like, cause it makes a irritating rotational whine! I dont know if it's the same with DM+ 45 drives? Btw, not all people notice the whine. My girlfriend says that she can't hear it? Maybe she is just scared that I want to buy a new harddisk! 😉
 
<<The Quantum has a $35 rebate. No one has mentioned it, so I thought I would.>>

Thats why I said I can get it for a lower price.

Personally, Im a proud owner of 6 Maxtor hard drives, including the beloved DiamondMax Plus40. I was going to wait for the DiamondMax Plus60, but I figured I need a hard drive right away and the Fireball Plus AS might as well be it. Im pretty sure Maxtor will support the Quantum leftovers, because they're really generous about services and warranties. After all I figured I probably should try something other than Maxtor. Sorry if I sounded like ignoring all your suggestions. Here are the prices:

Fireball Plus AS $180 w/ $35 rebate and $10 coupon (buy.com)
DiamondMax Plus 45 $172

 
In MY experiences Maxtor is MUCH more reliable than Quantum. In fact, my fathers computer at work just had its Quantum 25GB die a few days ago. I have used/sold about 7 Maxtors and all of them are still working perfectly.
 
Not sure why you dont want to hear about IBM's. They are certainly at least as good as either of the other two. Decoy on the FS/T board is selling new IBM 75GXP 45 gig drives for $150. Quite a deal IMHO.
 
DiamondMax 60 Plus drives are available, I got 2 of them a week or so ago. Check your local CompUSA. Probably not much a difference between the AS and 60 Plus.
 
I believe they only had 60GB versions. I got them at cost from a friend who works there, I think they retailed for $300, but I'm not positive about that.
 
Damn... $100 for 20Gigs, Im not sure if its worth it.

The Fireball Plus AS is $248 with a $40 rebate on buy.com.
 
i did say maxtor
i have own Maxtor and Quantam HD
the Quantam HD has to go back for RMA
both of my Maxtor 6800 13gb and Maxtor plus 40 40gb are very quiet and relaible and cheap too.
by the way Quantam is so loud
 
Yes, that is weird. The IBM GXPs are the fastest, quietest drives I've ever seen. The fact that you can get it for LESS money that the other two make it a no brainer IMHO. I bought 2 of the Quantum LM's (a 20 and a 30 gig) from buy.com because of the cheap price after coupon and rebate. They are ok. Not as fast as my IBM and a hell of a lot noisier. HD Tach shows my IBM @ max STR of 38 MB/S. The Quantum's only do 25. Big difference. Why not get the best for less? I know you said you aren't interested in the IBM. I wont say anymore on it. Good luck on your choice.
 
I got the Maxtor from Staples for $139. Ordered the 40 GB drive for $179 with $40 coupon and they sent the new 45 GB DM+. I definitely vote for the Maxtor...if only for its quietness....although speed-wise its no slouch either. Couldn't be happier. Never thought I'd get this big a performance boost from upgrading from my IBM 7200 DJNA.
 
LXi,

If the LM series of drives are still available, they have higher performance ratings than the AS series by Quantum. I own the 30 gig version of this drive and it's easily the fastest and most reliable I've ever owned. I got it for $88 back when they had a $30 coupon on buy.com and $30 MIR so I got a steal on it. For the price you'll pay, you can't pass up the Quantum drives. This drive outperforms my roommate's IBM GXP as far as reliability and seek times go, at least in real world usage. I haven't done benchmarks, but I really don't need to to notice the speed differences. Either way, the Maxtor is a decent drive, but the Quantum is the superior of the two.

divinemartyr
 
chuckieland:

The Fireball Plus AS is comparable to the competition in acoustics, the DiamondMax Plus45 is pretty quiet too.


oldfart:

Please, I noted not to throw it in. I acknowlege the IBM is the fastest and probably the best deal for me, I know how much you guys like your IBMs, I understand they're very good, but I dont want to be a &quot;me too&quot;. Second, to be a brave soul, I want to be the first Fireball Plus AS beta tester, dispite the disappointing review. The thing will be for storage and I doubt I'd see any difference if I had gone IBM. Shown in the reviews, for STR, the 75GXP is about 37.2MB/sec, the Fireball Plus AS is 35.3MB/sec.


divinemartyr:

Plus LM is not available above 30GB, I need a 40-45GB.
 
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