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Old 08-11-2020, 12:00 PM
gapminder gapminder is offline
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Default External drive recommendation

I'm about to upgrade from PT First to a licensed version so I can use an external drive. Can someone recommend an optimal type and/or brand? SSD vs HDD etc?

I got a western digital passport backup drive, but I don't know if I'd have to initiate the encryption feature to use it, etc. Looking for recommendation.

I'm running windows 10.0.18362.959, 8Gb RAM, and AMD 3.10 GHz chip.
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Old 08-12-2020, 01:25 PM
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albee1952 albee1952 is offline
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Default Re: External drive recommendation

There are 2 important details to consider;
#1-the speed of the drive(5400 rpm, 7200 rpm or SSD)
#2-how the drive connects to the PC(USB 2, USB 3, Thunderbolt, eSATA, etc).

The Passport is fine for backups, but I would not run sessions directly from it. Before we can give you the best advice, let me ask about the PC. Is it a laptop? If so, check with the maker and see if they offer a drive caddy that could replace the optical(DVD) drive and hold a second internal drive. That would give the best performance(especially with a good SSD). If its a desktop computer, odds are really good that it has room inside for anywhere from 1 to 6 extra internal drives on SATA connections(this is another option with great performance). Also, if its a fairly new PC, check to see if it has space for one of the newer Nvme solid state drives(those tend to have the fastest speed of all AFAIK).

If external is your only option, look at the computer and see what available ports you have. eSata and USB 3 connections will give good performance, but don't skimp on the drive itself. These days, there's little reason to get anything other than an SSD. Samsung 840/850 EVO/PRO are all really solid performers. OWC also makes some good ones(I run several Samsung drives internally and I also have 2 1TB OWC drives which are SSD with USB 3 connections). You could also get a USB 3 drive case and stuff it with your choice of SSD.

1TB is the smallest I would use for recording(but bigger is usually better) If you do have a desktop PC, SSD's might need an adapter to mount but those are cheap($10-20) so a 2.5"SSD can mount in the space that fits a 3.5"(full-sized) spinning drive.
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Old 08-12-2020, 01:41 PM
Darryl Ramm Darryl Ramm is offline
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Default Re: External drive recommendation

Quote:
Originally Posted by gapminder View Post
I'm about to upgrade from PT First to a licensed version so I can use an external drive. Can someone recommend an optimal type and/or brand? SSD vs HDD etc?

I got a western digital passport backup drive, but I don't know if I'd have to initiate the encryption feature to use it, etc. Looking for recommendation.

I'm running windows 10.0.18362.959, 8Gb RAM, and AMD 3.10 GHz chip.
You don't have to "use an external drive". If your computer already has a fast internal SSD (i.e. a NVMe M.2) drive just use that. Just put your sessions there. All the Avid doc about using separate drives is badly out of date and does not apply with fast NVMe SSDs.

As for an external drive you don't give any details of your computer. Hopefully it has a USB 3.1 Gen 2 connections. Then small SSDs like the new Samsung T7 may be a great choice. Does it have slower USB 3? Faster Thunderbolt 3? We cannot guess.

WD passport drives are likely to be slow 5400 RPM drives and you should not plan on using those for anything except backups... and even for that they tend to be painfully slow.

There is no way I'd use a HDD for anything except long term backups/archives. Your should be looking at SSDs.
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