Internal/External Hard Drive

[musicman691]

Originally Posted by bpsowner

Is it really important which company made the external drive? or what should I search for when I buy a new one? 7200rpm? Anything more?

The company can be important as there are some that aren't all that reliable. WD Caviar Black is one of the best. You want a drive with 7200 rpm speed minimum (there are several drives that spin at 10000 rpm); it must NOT be a green drive that goes to sleep or spins up and down in speed. As for interface stay away from USB2 drives. Esata, USB3, FW800 or Thunderbolt connection protocols are good. If you really want max speed get an ssd that either has esata or Thunderbolt connectivity.

[zedhed]

Important in the sense that the recommendations made by long time Pro Tools users are speaking from experience. Over the years we have found out what works best, in some instances the hard way..

Originally Posted by musicman691

If you really want max speed get an ssd that either has esata or Thunderbolt connectivity.

If you go this route, get some advice from those who use them around here. Again, there are some that work better than others.

[musicman691]

Originally Posted by zedhed

Important in the sense that the recommendations made by long time Pro Tools users are speaking from experience. Over the years we have found out what works best, in some instances the hard way..



If you go this route, get some advice from those who use them around here. Again, there are some that work better than others.

Darryl Ramm is the one for this. Haven't seen him around here for a couple of days.

[JFreak]

There are only three things that are important regarding external drives.
- interface. whether you want TB, FW800 or whatever
- drive that is inside, which usually is replaceable
- POWER SUPPLY

In my book, external drives that have non-locking external power bricks are considered useless on the road. That is just a disaster waiting to happen. If an external drive has an external power supply, its connector better be locking one. Look for the more expensive rack-mountable ones that have internal power supply and normal power cord.