looking for external enclosure

[notanotheracct]

http://www.shop4tech.com/?go=view_item&id=4700&r=184

i'm about to jump on that but wanted to see if anyone could recommend something cheaper/better. i NEED usb/firewire, support for 300gb hd (larger is always better), and the enclosure only needs to be on for short periods of time, maybe like an hour max if that. i also picked this because of the good chipsets.

another small question i have is, for external enclosures, i've heard that their hd size is usually just limited by their power supply... does anyone know if plugging the power directly from the PC's PSU might fix issues like that?

 

[spitz10]

dont know if this is much help, but I recently got a HD enclosure from xpcgear for 13 bucks plus around 6 shipping. Works great. They usually have some for no more than 20 bucks, Id check it out.

 

[corkyg]

Originally posted by: notanotheract

another small question i have is, for external enclosures, i've heard that their hd size is usually just limited by their power supply... does anyone know if plugging the power directly from the PC's PSU might fix issues like that?

That is not true to the best of my knowledge. All 3.5" HDDs require the same amount of power. Good External drives all have their own power supplies - Neither USB or Firewire can supply that kind of power. Why put another drain on the computer's PSU? That defeats a lot of the purpose of having an external drive.

Your suggested case is OK - the combo of USB + Firewire always costs abit more than plain USB, and it is worth it, IMHO.

 

[notanotheracct]

Originally posted by: corkyg
That is not true to the best of my knowledge. All 3.5" HDDs require the same amount of power. Good External drives all have their own power supplies - Neither USB or Firewire can supply that kind of power. Why put another drain on the computer's PSU? That defeats a lot of the purpose of having an external drive.

well i've seen the same issue raised with dvrs as well where 2x 80gb drives or a single 500gb drive owuld work fine but 2x 500gb drives wouldn't power up. i've heard that starting around 400gb drives use more power... i remember seeing a non-case usb/ide adapter that powered the ide drive through usb but also had a second usb cord that could be connected to draw more power from the pc incase your drive required it. if everything i heard was wrong, i'd like to hear it.


and thanks for the site spitz10, i'll check around it.

 

[corkyg]

Suggest you look at the power requirement detailed specs for each drive. They do not vary by data storage size. Case histories involving individuals of unknown technical ability do not make for proof or evidence. That's how myths and old wive's tales get started.

For a really good case, check out NewEgg:
Case

Pick the one with combo USB and Firewire, and good cooling (aluminum) and a good power module and you won't go wrong.

 

[Zepper]

The running current on HDDs won't vary too much, but the starting current can. Takes more oomph to get two, three or four platters moving than it does just one. I added one more drive (160GB) to my machine which already had 3 and it brought the PSU to its knees on startup. I think it has a bit more startup draw than its rated 2A...

The USB to IDE adapter cable I got recently came with a PS that's rated at only 1.5 Amps - I'll soon be seeing if this drive can kill that too.

.bh.