Wich one is the best 120 GB hard disk ?

[Thor_Sevan]

Wich one is the best 120 GB hard disk ?

- SEAGATE 120GB 7200RPM IDE 8.5MS 8MB ATA100 OEM HD 1YR
- SEAGATE BARRACUDA ATA V 120GB 7200RPM IDE 9.4MS 2MB ATA100 OEM 1YR
- WD CAVIAR 120GB INT ATA/100 HD 3.5LP 9MS 2MB 7200RPM OEM
- MAXTOR DIAMONDMAX PLUS 9 120GB 7200RPM 2MB 8.5MS ATA133 QUIET
- MAXTOR 120GB 7200RPM 8MB 9.3MS ATA133 OEM QUIET *3YEAR WARRANTY

Can someone tell me why some come with 3 years and others 1 year warranty ?

I am searching in this priority order:
1- Speed
2- Low noise and low heat

Of course, I want something that won't break soon

Thanks a lot !

Thor_Sevan

 

[DaveSimmons]

The average Maxtor does better on noise than the average WD, put WD offers slightly better performance.

You can find somebody to say "brand X" is awful, so take anyone's warnings about brands with a grain of salt.

www.storagereview.com if you want to dig deep, or just be lazy and get the Maxtor with 3-year warranty for a good balance between noise and speed.

 

[StraightPipe]

www.storagereview.com

3 year warranty drives cost a little more, but have 3 year warranty (estimated average shelf like is 5 years)

people opinions dont count, because everyone knows somebody who has had a drive crash in a week, and another who has got one from 10 years ago.

thats why SR is good, takes averages and makes benchmarks.

 

[Thor_Sevan]

I have found a nice review here LINK.

I'll look later on storagereview.com
Untill now it seems that maxtor is as fast as WD (in general) but has lower noise and heat production.
Thor_Sevan,

 

[KentuckyBlue]

I have both the Western Digital 120GB special edition 8mb and the Maxtor 120GB 8mb drive. I really can not tell much difference in noise between the two. Western Digital has slightly lower access time, but the Maxtor gives me higher sisoft sandra scores. Maxtor had 38,000 the last time i ran it. Best drive I have ever owned. I get that high of score and the two are not in raid formation.

 

[Ausm]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
The average Maxtor does better on noise than the average WD, put WD offers slightly better performance.

You can find somebody to say "brand X" is awful, so take anyone's warnings about brands with a grain of salt.

www.storagereview.com if you want to dig deep, or just be lazy and get the Maxtor with 3-year warranty for a good balance between noise and speed.

I agree with Maxtor.

Ausm

 

[Goi]

Why no Hitachi IBM 180GXP? I'd take that over any of the above-mentioned. If not, then I'll take the WD for speed and the Seagate for noise levels. I wouldn't touch Maxtor with a 10' pole.

 

[Tab]

Originally posted by: Goi
Why no Hitachi IBM 180GXP? I'd take that over any of the above-mentioned. If not, then I'll take the WD for speed and the Seagate for noise levels. I wouldn't touch Maxtor with a 10' pole.

I wouldn't touch a Deathstar with a 10' footpole Anyway, I say go with Seagate.

 

[Thor_Sevan]

Thanks for the replies.

I read about the 180 GXP, its a fast drive indeed but the quantum and WD seem faster.
I currently have an IBM 60 GXP 60 GB that is still very fine. Any other argument for the IBM ?

Right now I hesitating between Quantum and WD.

Thor_Sevan

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

8mb cache makes a huge difference

 

[wetcat007]

Top seagate one

 

[Goi]

Thor_Sevan, the 180GXP 120GB 8MB is at least as fast as the WD1200JB 8MB cache if not a lot faster, and what you're selected on top there is the 2MB one, which is a lot slower. The 120GB version of the WD Caviar SE is the slowest of the lot, their 80GB ones are faster. Somehow the 60GB or 80GB platters doesn't do much for the 120GB version, they're still as slow as the 40GB/platter versions, which isn't very fast at all. The 180GXP should handily smoke it.

 

[synapse02]

thought id offer my 2 cents...

I have to agree with Goi to a degree... Back in the day maxtor drives were really bad to be nice... I worked at a computer store for a few years and I bet half of the maxtor drives we sold came back dead. Obviously they have made great improvements or ppl would not be so fond of them now. Ive read quite a bit of good about their newer drives. Im still not sure im ready to make the jump of faith, but they make cheap IDE drives that support UATA133 which is what im looking for...

I use to be a dieHard fan of IBM drives. A few years ago they were the standard for performance and reliability. But, about a year ago or so, IBM had a bad run of drives or was pushing too hard for performance.. I know quite a few ppl that had IBM drives lock up solid.. I havent heard much on the reliability of the new Hitachi/IBM drives...

The history of the drives has changed quite a bit... Really i have no idea how to choose between Seagate, WD, Maxtor or IBM... Ive read a few reviews on different drives.. and scores can range quite a bit depending on the configuration of the rest of the system...

 

[Hanzou]

I have a 80GB WD w/8MB cache and it seems pretty damn fast. It is also almost silent as most of the time I cannot hear it, and that is only on a quiet night with no music on and my fans running really low. even then it is hardly noticable.

 

[Goi]

Perhaps the situation is different over on our shores than in USA, but Maxtor is currently regarded over here as being the most unreliable of the major HDD manufacturers, while Hitachi/IBM, WD and Seagate are good.

Performance wise, with HDTach, the WD1200JB, regardless of whether its 'C', 'D', 'E' or 'F' revision, performs worse than its 80GB 'D' or 'E' sibling. The former delivers only a max transfer rate of around 50MB/s, dropping to 30MB at the end, while the latter delivers close to 60MB max at the beginning. also, the later 'E' and 'F' revisions seem to have a problem with burst speeds, never exceeding the 80MB/s max of the HDTach chart.

 

[magomago]

The way i see it is simple:

Maxtor=WDD

When i went to purchase a 160 gig Maxtor @ frys I saw that it had a ONE YEAR warranty...btw this was of the 8 meg cariety

Then I saw a 200 gig WD for 20 bucks more but a three year warranty

I went WD because they have the longer warranty...if it craps out within 3 years I'm safe- if it doesn't...big whoop

I have a 4.3Gig WD that got sooo many bad sectors after a year of use that I swore them off
Then I got a 20 gig Maxtor and I loved it - especially b/c it was quiet

I gave WD another try with my 80 gig SE and I love it...its just as quiet for me and its running fine soon ready to be one year old... and it has a three year warranty

If Maxtor would do that then I would buy their drives but they decided to drop it.

To me realiablity between both are the same - they both sell so much they are going to have their lemons...and that is why stuff like a 3 year warranty matters

 

[Gozu]

Well, you're missing the 8Mb barracuda in your list. That would have been my strong recommendation. I have been striving to achieve a low noise pc for a while and went as far as buying a $170 padded case. But the HD whine of my 100Gb WD and my 120Gb 8Mb WD was still bothersome. In the end, I took both of them off my main pc and plugged in a 160Gb 8Mb barracuda V in there. Awesome HD, very low noise and low heat. Now, the noise is bearable at night when I'm trying to sleep. If you're not going to sleep with your computer on or if it's not in the same room or if you're a heavy sleeper, then go for the maxtor or the WD (both 8Mb). They're quite faster than the 2Mb ones (as long as you keep them defragged and have PLENTY of free space. I think you need around 30% free to achieve optimal performance).

 

[Thor_Sevan]

Thanks for the replies everyone.
I checked and it seems that MAXTOR is also offering a 3Y warranty for the :
Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 9 120GB Hard Drive (6Y120P0), ATA133, 8.5 ms, 7200 RPM, 8 MB Cache, Fluid Dynamic Bearing Motors - (3Y)

I agree its a hard decision to take. They all look good !

Thor_Sevan

 

[slicksilver]

anything that has three years warranty

 

[themanwithapc]

Originally posted by: Thor_Sevan
Thanks for the replies everyone.
I checked and it seems that MAXTOR is also offering a 3Y warranty for the :
Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 9 120GB Hard Drive (6Y120P0), ATA133, 8.5 ms, 7200 RPM, 8 MB Cache, Fluid Dynamic Bearing Motors - (3Y)

I agree its a hard decision to take. They all look good !

Thor_Sevan

I live in the Uk and use the same drive in my PC, and can only swear by it. It's EXTREMELY quite, is quite fast and to top it off has a good warranty. Also it is cheaper than most of the other brand names of similar performance.

A piece of advice, don't buy the Hitachi IBM 180GXP. I had thought that these were good, until my friend who works in a computer shop told me that they are poor quality, as he has had 2 die on him in the last year.

 

[Thor_Sevan]

I did a compare here at storagereview.com:
LINK

it seems that the IBM 180 GXP with 8 MB cache is the fastest, the WD 1200 JB (the 120 GB model with 8 MB cache) is the loudest and that MAXTOR comes exactly between the two

Thor_Sevan

 

[Thor_Sevan]

Here, I added the Seagate baccacuda 7200.7 drive:
LINK

Its the most quiet drive but not the best in terms of performance.

Thor_Sevan

 

[Lonyo]

It's mostly down to personal preference.

I have decided I like Western Digital, and have never had them fail on me, hence my future purchases will be WD, unless something goes wrong with one of them, in which case I may reconsider.

 

[Thor_Sevan]

Question: I see that some HD's are Serial ATA (SATA150), will that work on my GA-7VRX motherboard ?

Thanks

Thor_Sevan

 

[Goi]

If you have an adaptor, or if your mobo supports SATA, it will work.