WD5000AAKS: $130 after $10 rebate at Newegg (free 3 day ship too)

[mshan]

(saw this pver at Fat Wallet):

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a...tem=N82E16822136073&CMP=AFC-C8Junction

I think this is the new 3 platter design.

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: mshan

I think this is the new 3 platter design.

Is the 3-platter a new version? I recall the latest AT HDD review mentioning something about it. If its a new version, I wouldn't expect these to be the new versions. In fact, I'm pretty sure they'll be the old versions being unloaded by WD with the new versions being boxed as retail.

Not trying to thread crap, just something to keep an eye on. I'm having ongoing correspondence with a Newegg CSR about this exact subject. Without going into too much detail, I'm pretty convinced NE has some agreement with WD to buy/sell bulk excess stock at significantly reduced prices to Newegg. This is pretty normal of course, problem is the stock is old and potentially defective.

Long story short, I got a WD Raptor X 150 from NE 1st week of January. A month later I got a retail Raptor X at BB. Looked at the mfg dates and noticed a 1 year difference in mfg dates. No biggy normally, except the older drive is 2-3x louder than the newer one with a much different tone as well. Problem I have with Newegg is that most people would never know the difference and they've censored my review summarizing this despite publishing all of my previous reviews and even featuring some on the front product page......

 

[mshan]

AAKS should be the new, higher platter density designs.

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: mshan
AAKS should be the new, higher platter density designs.

Ah ok, if the platter density carries a new product designation there shouldn't be any confusion or potential conflicts. Sadly I have to do a bit more research nowadays on Newegg buys since they no longer carry the latest and greatest all the time.

 

[njcoig]

Originally posted by: chizow

Is the 3-platter a new version? I recall the latest AT HDD review mentioning something about it. If its a new version, I wouldn't expect these to be the new versions.

I'm having deja vu. I could swear I read this diatribe somewhere else already....

-N

 

[solo717]

all the model that have AA is the new verison, 160g per platter

 

[Gilby]

I'm having deja vu. I could swear I read this diatribe somewhere else already....

-N

Same guy.

As with all potential cranks, take his diatribe with a large grain of salt.

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: Gilby

I'm having deja vu. I could swear I read this diatribe somewhere else already....

-N

Same guy.

As with all potential cranks, take his diatribe with a large grain of salt.

Hmm? I must be missing something, I've mentioned the different drives a few times here and there, like the large BB Raptor X thread, but I didn't care enough to make one of the "OMG NEWEGG IS T3H SUCK" threads in General Hardware.

I do however, find it funny I get an e-mail out of nowhere from a Newegg CSR referencing a random product number. Plug it into their search function and it comes up Raptor X. Oh, he must've come across my negative review, which STILL hasn't been listed and decided to drop me a line.

In any case, I won't blindly purchase from Newegg anymore expecting the latest and greatest, I'll have to do a bit more research with a large grain of salt.

 

[randomlinh]

dammit.. why can't people offload some PATA goodness... some of us still have external drive cages that aren't SATA. Very nice price though... when the 1TB's start coming out....

 

[njcoig]

Originally posted by: chizow
In any case, I won't blindly purchase from Newegg anymore expecting the latest and greatest, I'll have to do a bit more research with a large grain of salt.

Whoops.

I just commented because as I read this thread, I thought I was losing my marbles, (I think you did a cut and paste job from another thread) not because I agree or disagree with your (or anyone else's) observation on this subject.

That's what I get for being a smart aleck. =)

-N

 

[Captante]

I bought a couple of these back in January & the manufactured-date was about a month prior to my purchase on both... they are quiet & very fast in RAID 1, beating out the 2 x 320gb Seagate 7200.10's (also in RAID 1) in the same system.

 

[chizow]

Originally posted by: Captante
I bought a couple of these back in January & the manufactured-date was about a month prior to my purchase on both... they are quiet & very fast in RAID 1, beating out the 2 x 320gb Seagate 7200.10's (also in RAID 1) in the same system.

Bleh, that's really annoying, but good to hear NE isn't just unloading all of WD's old Raptor stock (or god forbid, refurbs without saying as much). I'm also upset that I made it clear to potential Raptor buyers in that BB thread that the drive was excessively loud. Then people started reporting back saying the noise factor was largely overrated and their drives were no louder than the latest 7200rpm drives. I didn't realize there was such a huge difference in noise and production dates until a few days later once I was able to track down a Raptor at a local BB.

Anyways, now I'm pissed enough to move my boot drive to the newer drive and call up WD for an RMA. Still, would be interesting to see how many people who purchased Raptors from NE got old drives rather than new ones.

 

[regpfj]

If one doesn't like rebates, the same drive is linked over here for $134 shipped.

Originally posted by: chizowStill, would be interesting to see how many people who purchased Raptors from NE got old drives rather than new ones.

I don't think this behavior is limited to NE. I got a "new" 250gb WD something or other at ZZF around christmas, 13 months after it was manufactured.

 

[Captante]

Originally posted by: chizow

Originally posted by: Captante
I bought a couple of these back in January & the manufactured-date was about a month prior to my purchase on both... they are quiet & very fast in RAID 1, beating out the 2 x 320gb Seagate 7200.10's (also in RAID 1) in the same system.

Bleh, that's really annoying, but good to hear NE isn't just unloading all of WD's old Raptor stock (or god forbid, refurbs without saying as much). I'm also upset that I made it clear to potential Raptor buyers in that BB thread that the drive was excessively loud. Then people started reporting back saying the noise factor was largely overrated and their drives were no louder than the latest 7200rpm drives. I didn't realize there was such a huge difference in noise and production dates until a few days later once I was able to track down a Raptor at a local BB.

Anyways, now I'm pissed enough to move my boot drive to the newer drive and call up WD for an RMA. Still, would be interesting to see how many people who purchased Raptors from NE got old drives rather than new ones.

Just to clarify, I snagged two of the 500gb WD's from the op back in January, not the Rapters ... they are however still quieter & faster then the Seagate 7200.10's.

 

[BK89]

Question about the rebate, what is #2 below (never heard of a WD claims form).

1) This completed WD rebate form.
2) Completed SelectWD claims form.
3) A copy of your invoice from Newegg.com showing the purchase of one (1) or two (2) 500 GB WD Caviar SE16 hard drives (WD5000AAKS) between
March 1 - 31, 2007.

 

[CloE]

are these faster than those old 36gb raptors? I have 2 in raid 0, running out of space but not sure could these SATA drives match the speed

 

[bob4432]

i am sure with a dense platter like that they will crank out ~65-70MB/s, which will probably be slower than your raid0 array, but it is still 500GBs and unless you have large files you will never notice the difference. if all you transfer are 1GB+ files you may notice a difference going to another raid0 array, but for smaller files - 100MB or so i think you will be fine.

 

[bob4432]

uuuggghhhh must resist....but i need another 500GB drive.....

 

[Spongey]

I got this drive a while ago, and I also happen to have the KS version. Overall, they are both very similar. The AAKS takes a bit longer to spin up, and in my opinion is a tad bit quieter. I haven't been able to test the performance since I have them in external cases, but as soon as I get my desktop working again I will.

Oh, another important note: The AAKS does NOT have a molex power connector. Only SATA. The KS has both. Keep that in mind when purchasing.

 

[craftech]

Chizow,

I am looking to buy a raptor yet my biggest concern is exactly what you mentioned above. I know the newer ones are quieter, but I don't know where to buy it. I am interested in the 74GB version and almost bought it from ClubIt, but removed it from the basket out of Newegg type hesitation.

I know you mentioned Best Buy, but is there an online vendor that you know would have current stock?

John

 

[MrNeutrino]

Make that two, Chizow.

In my case, I'm simply trying to figure out two things:

1. how much quieter was it during (a) idling and (b) heavy access compared to the older '150G' raptor you picked up from NE? Have you compared it to the 500G (KS/YS) version? As much as I want to get one of these, the silentpcreview.com reviews have me really concerned at the noise for this drive.

2. Is there some revision number you can look at on the outside of the box without opening the shrinkwrap (at a B&M store like BestBuy etc.), to figure out the version of the drive - the newer / quieter or the older / louder?

Thanks!

 

[bob4432]

how loud are your drives that are driving you all so nuts? i can't imagine them being that loud, is it the access noise? how quiet are your systems?

 

[MrNeutrino]

Originally posted by: bob4432
how loud are your drives that are driving you all so nuts? i can't imagine them being that loud, is it the access noise? how quiet are your systems?

Check this out to get a quantitative feel for 'how' loud these drives can be (don't know what version of the raptor drives this review used - didn't know there were two and that the newer was quieter...):

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article622-page1.html

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: MrNeutrino

Originally posted by: bob4432
how loud are your drives that are driving you all so nuts? i can't imagine them being that loud, is it the access noise? how quiet are your systems?

Check this out to get a quantitative feel for 'how' loud these drives can be (don't know what version of the raptor drives this review used - didn't know there were two and that the newer was quieter...):

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article622-page1.html

unfortuantely i don't have any drives that they have tested, but i think all of mine are much louder...., but i like to hear the hdd doing its job - but again, i currently do not run htpcs and the xbox360 hdd i have i can't hear, so without a led on it, i couldn't tell you if it is every doing anything, haha

 

[MrNeutrino]

Chizow,

Any thoughts / comments?

Would appreciate seeing how big a difference you (subjectively) noticed between the two drives.

Thanks.