SOLVED New Hard Drive to replace the one that got FRIED!

[Mychael]

Lastest PC mag over here compared the 3 caviar drives (amongst other ones) however as far as the WD drives go, they mentioned the green was the quietest but (not unexpectedly) the slowest of the 3. The black was faster then the green but not as quiet and did run warmer but still within specs and the blue fell somewhere in between the two. They also rated the drives performance in short read/write blocks/bursts and large file writes but I don't have those specs to hand.
However it was mentioned that people will mistakenly assume a given drive to be faster across all paramenters of it's use but that is not neccessarliy the case and some drives can score well in burst read/writes but not so good in large file transfers and vice versa.

 

[TorrentG]

I have a 1 TB Black. It's not very audible at all. I hear the psu fan if anything and not really any of my 3 WD drives. The case is right next to me too, at ear level.

 

[catilley1092]

I've heard (or read) others say the same, that the Caviar Black is quiet. Perhaps I need to contact WD, it has a five year warranty, and I registered it after purchasing it from Newegg.

Also, I've read that Newegg's shipping methods (especially with hard drives) can cause damage itself, this was a complaint on their site (user's ratings). The Caviar Black arrived to me in a slightly beaten up box, with only a minimal amount of cushioning to protect it. It was wrapped in bubble wrap, but the foam "peanuts" were loosely packed, making it easy for the drive to move around.

While this may or may not have been the problem, the fact remains that the drive is too noisy for it's price and WD's (as well as consumer's) ratings. When I get my Samsung drive setup and going, I'll contact WD on the issue. That's the best that I can do.

Cat

 

[TorrentG]

Nah. The shipping will not damage the drive. I bought mine from there as well and received it the same way. People say the weirdest things on Newegg with relation to products. It boggles my mind sometimes and others, provides a decent laugh.

If the drive is not powered on as in shipping, nothing can really damage it short of intentionally destroying the package.

 

[Mychael]

Cant't remember the exact figures but a HDD when not powered up has some huge shock rating. Something in the order of 100g's. Still just 'cos you can drop a drive doesn't mean ya should. I've completely gone off mail order purchases for that reason.

 

[catilley1092]

I'm glad that's the case, because I had concerns over the free shipping that Newegg offers. Evidently, I received a bum drive. Opinions vary, some says that performance drives are sometimes noisy and warmer than the standard ones. That's why I didn't contact Newegg at the time of purchase.

Like I said, as soon as I get the Samsung going, and the data on the Caviar Black moved to the Caviar Blue that I'm now running, I'll contact WD to get a RMA #.

Thanks TorrentG, for letting me know about this. If yours are quiet, then mine should be, too.

Cat

 

[Mychael]

My old Raptors were certainly more noisey and ran warmer but they run at 10,000 rpm.

 

[catilley1092]

Cant't remember the exact figures but a HDD when not powered up has some huge shock rating. Something in the order of 100g's. Still just 'cos you can drop a drive doesn't mean ya should. I've completely gone off mail order purchases for that reason.

It would be nice to get off of mail order for me, too. But there's few choices here to purchase drives from. Best Buy is here, but they are too expensive for me. In order to get the best price, you have to (in most cases) get it delivered to your door.

And another thing to keep in mind, the products were shipped to the merchant in one way or the other. So the product was mailed (or shipped) at some point, even to a retailer.

Cat

 

[Mychael]

True but when you buy over the counter you can see the product in the shop.. It's certainly not the cheapest way to buy things but I'm getting old and cranky (sigh) and just like the convienience.

 

[catilley1092]

It is more convenient to some to run to the retailer, especially if you need it on the spot. But I don't, and it's not easy for me to leave home, so I do a lot of my family's (my spouse & I) shopping online. Not just computer parts, but clothes, home furnishings, and even one of my meds arrive by a carrier of some sort (mail, UPS or FedEx).

I've saved a lot of money, as well as wear & tear on our car, by online shopping. Plus, it's good for the environment, too.

Cat

 

[Mychael]

Yeah, driving is a pain. I research what I want first, then log on to my usual store and see if they carry the item I want. Then order it online, get it billed to my account and the send me a text msg to say when the item is arrived and I can go collect it.
If it's something I can't locate myself I get my tame Geek to go to one of his wholesalers and try to get it for me.

 

[TrainableMan]

You know every harddrive that comes from a store had to be shipped as well; they just probably came on a palette the entire journey, while shipped items are separated from the palette at the first hub. It really depends how the packages are treated. I remember when I worked part-time at UPS an entire palette fell over in the truck and whatever those items were on top probably got knocked around on that fall more than some individual packages we had loaded by hand.

This first spinrite I have here was shipped from a company in California and it had been inside two Styrofoam ends but it was OEM so no box and they hadn't filled the shipping box with enough bubbles so it had come apart and was rolling around on the bottom of the box. I was a bit concerned and also torqued that they were so careless but it seems to work fine and it is a very fast, quiet, and relatively cool drive. I have it external in an esata Thermaltake Blacx so I can actually touch the entire top half of the drive and though you shouldn't move it when on (I generally avoid touching it at all for fear of the effect of static electricity) but I could definitely touch it without being burned.

I haven't ordered my extra HD yet because my stepsister also needs a new DVDrom and Newegg has one for 17.99 and I was going to order them together. But I first need to check if her computer has a sata connection otherwise the DVDrom won't suit her needs.

I did pick up the 8GB Corsair rubber-encased flash drive they had on sale through the 31st for $20 with a $10 mail-in Visa gift card rebate. And I had my brother order one for my nephew, too. I already got mine (nephews will be here after the holiday) and I will mention that even through the rubber coating this flash drive gets a lot warmer than my 8GB plastic HP flash drive. Both of them include an LED indicator light but I don't really think of an LED as being a big heat producer.

 

[mauricecanada]

So util forum

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Maurice Canada

 

[catilley1092]

I've heard (or read) others say the same, that the Caviar Black is quiet. Perhaps I need to contact WD, it has a five year warranty, and I registered it after purchasing it from Newegg.

Also, I've read that Newegg's shipping methods (especially with hard drives) can cause damage itself, this was a complaint on their site (user's ratings). The Caviar Black arrived to me in a slightly beaten up box, with only a minimal amount of cushioning to protect it. It was wrapped in bubble wrap, but the foam "peanuts" were loosely packed, making it easy for the drive to move around.

While this may or may not have been the problem, the fact remains that the drive is too noisy for it's price and WD's (as well as consumer's) ratings. When I get my Samsung drive setup and going, I'll contact WD on the issue. That's the best that I can do.

Cat

Last week, I got a RMA on the 750GB Caviar Black, I sent it to WD, yesterday my claim was approved. My replacement drive is on it's way by 2 Day Air. WD has outstanding customer service & a fast turnaround.

The really good thing about the deal was this, instead of the one I sent back, they are replacing with a 1TB Caviar Black (WD1001FALS). By not returning it to Newegg from the beginning, I done myself a huge favor.

Nibiru recommended this drive to me in April, I knew it had to be good for him to post it for me.

For the second time over this drive, Thanks Nibs! :top: Now I have two 1TB drives.

Cat

 

[Nibiru2012]

Good deal Cat! Western Digital has a very good reputation, and their customer service is excellent.

You're starting to catch up to me now. I am at a total of 2.62TB now.

 

[catilley1092]

If only I had the cash to spare, I had the chance to buy a Seagate FreeAgent 1.5TB backup drive for $99, with free shipping (with supplied code). Being that I already have a Seagate drive, and registered it, they sent me an email last week with the offer.

Oh, how I was fighting within myself over this. I'm a highly compulsive shopper, especially over these deals. 1.5TB for $99 is a great deal. But I've spent a lot on computers lately, I'd say around $600 this year alone, mostly on drives, a printer, and a TechNet subscription.

I had to delete the email, or I would have made an excuse to buy it. Really, with what I already have, the 1TB Caviar Black will be mostly for backup anyway. I have enough drives. What I really need come the spring, would be a later model Athlon X2 processor. I know that my MB will support a faster & more recent one, and it would probably cost less than $100. Dual Core Athlon X2's aren't that expensive, it's a matter of finding the right one for me. I have the 3250e installed now, it'll support the 3xxxe through 6xxxe, whatever that means, but the "e" has to be there. That's what my MB specs reports.

It probably would provide the power for me to run a performance folding client. With what I have, it'll run, but won't meet the deadline, so all that I'll be doing is banging what cores I have for zilch. But I'll find a way do make it a little more powerful w/o breaking the bank. It's probably the last upgrade it'll handle. I was considering a 512MB video card, but I believe mine is integrated into the MB. I'm not 100% positive, but I read somewhere that it is. I'll need to check.

Cat

 

[Nibiru2012]

I hereby diagnose you with a severe case of "upgradeitis" a chronic condition which afflicts certain computer users.

Symptoms may include excessive system parts purchases, subscribing to various e-tailers hot deal emails, slightly crossed eyes from viewing too many e-tailer emails, upset spouses, neglected children and/or pets.

Dr. Nibs prescribes a week off, a six-pack of a good imported beer, and a couple of home-rolled smoking accessories. Kick back, hug the spouse, kiss the dog, pet the kids and enjoy life!

 

[catilley1092]

Those couple of home-rolled smoking accessories sounds real good! But imported beer, I've never been able to drink it. When I did drink, it was Bud Ice, ten to twelve 24oz cans per day. Where I bought it, it was cheaper that way. Plus, Bud Ice has high octane to it.

But I can no longer drink. My doc gave me a choice, I could either stop drinking (oh, so good with those Oxy's), or have my pain meds along with my Valium & Xanax cut off. My decision was an easy one.

What happened was, I got sick, and he gave me a urine test, checking my kidneys, and found the presence of alcohol in me. This was in 2006, right before my fusion.

But he didn't tell me that I couldn't smoke, and it's one of my favorite pastimes. Although sometimes, I can't really feel it, the way I did before. I guess taking an 80mg Oxy every eight hours, followed by two 4mg Dilaudid every four hours, one of those totem pole (2mg) Xanax every six hours, and a 10mg (blue) Valium as needed for cramps, would cause your senses to be somewhat dulled, to say the least.

And that's why the doc doesn't want me drinking, it may kill me. But the smoke is fine. And oh, if I were only a single man, the young babes that I could easily attract.

Cat