What's that clicking noise?
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From: Jolly Roger on 16 Dec 2009 19:20 In article <vilain-E176B7.12044516122009(a)individual.net>, Michael Vilain <vilain(a)NOspamcop.net> wrote: > In article <WvidnTS7UoMXurTWnZ2dnUVZ_vadnZ2d(a)earthlink.com>, > Paul Magnussen <magiconinc(a)earthlink.net> wrote: > > > Thanks to everyone, and especially to MH Myers, for responding to my > > original query. I bought a LaCie HD big enough to accomodate both my > > internal HD and the Western Digital (which was making the clicking). I > > also downloaded SuperDuper and paid my money down. > > > > I then partitioned the new disk according to the old disk sizes and > > backed both the old disks up with SuperDuper, which was trivially easy > > (although it took several hours). > > > > The Western Digital now no longer mounts at boot time. It shows in Disk > > Utility, but Verify and Repair are dimmed (although it looks as if I can > > erase it). > > > > Is it worth mucking about with DiskWarrior or Drive Genius (both of > > which I possess), or should I (as I guess) jus throw it out, and get yet > > another LaCie to back up the one I just bought? > > > > Paul Magnussen > > I bought a Western Digital 1TB drive at a local Fry's. I got terrible > transfer rates and finally couldn't see the device fresh out of the box. > Fry's took it back the next day. I'll never get another WD or Seagate > drive again. I find Western Digital drives to be very crappy. On the other hand, I can count on two fingers the total number of problems I've had with Seagate drives. -- Send responses to the relevant news group rather than email to me. E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my very hungry SPAM filter. Due to Google's refusal to prevent spammers from posting messages through their servers, I often ignore posts from Google Groups. Use a real news client if you want me to see your posts. JR
From: Nick Naym on 16 Dec 2009 19:35 In article jollyroger-FFDC80.18201116122009(a)news.individual.net, Jolly Roger at jollyroger(a)pobox.com wrote on 12/16/09 7:20 PM: > In article <vilain-E176B7.12044516122009(a)individual.net>, > Michael Vilain <vilain(a)NOspamcop.net> wrote: > >> In article <WvidnTS7UoMXurTWnZ2dnUVZ_vadnZ2d(a)earthlink.com>, >> Paul Magnussen <magiconinc(a)earthlink.net> wrote: >> >>> Thanks to everyone, and especially to MH Myers, for responding to my >>> original query. I bought a LaCie HD big enough to accomodate both my >>> internal HD and the Western Digital (which was making the clicking). I >>> also downloaded SuperDuper and paid my money down. >>> >>> I then partitioned the new disk according to the old disk sizes and >>> backed both the old disks up with SuperDuper, which was trivially easy >>> (although it took several hours). >>> >>> The Western Digital now no longer mounts at boot time. It shows in Disk >>> Utility, but Verify and Repair are dimmed (although it looks as if I can >>> erase it). >>> >>> Is it worth mucking about with DiskWarrior or Drive Genius (both of >>> which I possess), or should I (as I guess) jus throw it out, and get yet >>> another LaCie to back up the one I just bought? >>> >>> Paul Magnussen >> >> I bought a Western Digital 1TB drive at a local Fry's. I got terrible >> transfer rates and finally couldn't see the device fresh out of the box. >> Fry's took it back the next day. I'll never get another WD or Seagate >> drive again. > > I find Western Digital drives to be very crappy. Nothing to "find"...they _are_ crappy. ;) > On the other hand, I can count on two fingers Which two fingers? > the total number of > problems I've had with Seagate drives. When was the last time you bought one? -- iMac (24", 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM, 320 GB HDD) � OS X (10.5.8)
From: Jolly Roger on 16 Dec 2009 20:04 In article <C74EE6FE.4DBD5%nicknaym@[remove_this].gmail.com>, Nick Naym <nicknaym@[remove_this].gmail.com> wrote: > In article jollyroger-FFDC80.18201116122009(a)news.individual.net, Jolly Roger > at jollyroger(a)pobox.com wrote on 12/16/09 7:20 PM: > > > In article <vilain-E176B7.12044516122009(a)individual.net>, > > Michael Vilain <vilain(a)NOspamcop.net> wrote: > > > >> In article <WvidnTS7UoMXurTWnZ2dnUVZ_vadnZ2d(a)earthlink.com>, > >> Paul Magnussen <magiconinc(a)earthlink.net> wrote: > >> > >>> Thanks to everyone, and especially to MH Myers, for responding to my > >>> original query. I bought a LaCie HD big enough to accomodate both my > >>> internal HD and the Western Digital (which was making the clicking). I > >>> also downloaded SuperDuper and paid my money down. > >>> > >>> I then partitioned the new disk according to the old disk sizes and > >>> backed both the old disks up with SuperDuper, which was trivially easy > >>> (although it took several hours). > >>> > >>> The Western Digital now no longer mounts at boot time. It shows in Disk > >>> Utility, but Verify and Repair are dimmed (although it looks as if I can > >>> erase it). > >>> > >>> Is it worth mucking about with DiskWarrior or Drive Genius (both of > >>> which I possess), or should I (as I guess) jus throw it out, and get yet > >>> another LaCie to back up the one I just bought? > >>> > >>> Paul Magnussen > >> > >> I bought a Western Digital 1TB drive at a local Fry's. I got terrible > >> transfer rates and finally couldn't see the device fresh out of the box. > >> Fry's took it back the next day. I'll never get another WD or Seagate > >> drive again. > > > > I find Western Digital drives to be very crappy. > > Nothing to "find"...they _are_ crappy. ;) That's been my experience. > > On the other hand, I can count on two fingers > > Which two fingers? Does it matter? : ) > > the total number of > > problems I've had with Seagate drives. > > When was the last time you bought one? I purchased four of these in October and have nothing but good things to say about them: <http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148411> -- Send responses to the relevant news group rather than email to me. E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my very hungry SPAM filter. Due to Google's refusal to prevent spammers from posting messages through their servers, I often ignore posts from Google Groups. Use a real news client if you want me to see your posts. JR
From: Jolly Roger on 17 Dec 2009 11:01 In article <vilain-85D7AA.22544616122009(a)individual.net>, Michael Vilain <vilain(a)NOspamcop.net> wrote: > In article <jollyroger-1A7382.19045716122009(a)news.individual.net>, > Jolly Roger <jollyroger(a)pobox.com> wrote: > > > > > On the other hand, I can count on two fingers > > > > > > Which two fingers? > > > > Does it matter? : ) > > > > > > the total number of > > > > problems I've had with Seagate drives. > > > > > > When was the last time you bought one? > > > > I purchased four of these in October and have nothing but good things to > > say about them: > > > > <http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148411> > > The last one I had (1TB drive) died 15 days after I bought it which was > outside Fry's return-no-questions-asked policy (I should spent $30 for > the extended warrantee). So I had to wait 30 days for it to be repaired > by Seagate. Meanwhile, I'm without a back system. So I bought a LaCie > on line for less money (recommended by SuperDuper) and that's what I'm > using. I may hook the Seagate up and see if it dies, only to send it > back _again_, but I won't depend on it. It was also the 2nd Seagate > I've had go bad. The first one died within hours and Fry's took it back > (that's when I got the WD). > > So far, La Cie has my money. I'm sorry. I thought we were having a discussion about the quality of specific hard drive manufacturers. It seems that's not the case. My statement about Seagate's hard drives was about the hard drives themselves - not bundled external enclosures. ; ) LaCie does not make hard drives. That LaCie hard drive enclosure you purchased has a hard drive that may be of any number of make and model hard drives manufactured by other companies, including SeaGate. It is actually very likely, however, that your LaCie enclosure contains a cheaper brand than SeaGate, since LaCie typically picks the cheapest drives they can find for such enclosures do they can maximize their profit. So it's quite possible, even likely, the hard drive included in a LaCie enclosure does not have the standard 5-year or 3-year manufacturers warranty of a Seagate. Most of LaCie's enclosures seem to have 2-year warranties. So if it does fail during the third year, you may find you don't even have the option of getting it repaired by LaCie, much less whatever manufacturer actually made the hard drive inside. Further, with an external enclosure of any kind, you have additional potential defects, such as defective power supplies or cooling fans, to worry about. What happens if one of those stops working just after the warranty is expired? For instance, I recall a few years ago that a large software company for which I used to work purchased LaCie external hard drives for all employees needing more storage space. We saw so many power supply and cooling fan failures within the first two years, we had to switch to another brand! So LaCie naturally isn't the first brand *I* think of when purchasing a hard drive enclosure. Anyhow, the fact is defects do happen to *all* drive manufacturers. In my opinion, Seagate handled the situation very well if they allowed you to return the drive to them for repair or exchange without fuss. In fact, Seagate offers an advanced replacement service, where they ship a replacement drive via 2-day delivery before you send in your original drive to them. I don't see how it's Seagate's fault you chose not to use their advanced replacement service. -- Send responses to the relevant news group rather than email to me. E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my very hungry SPAM filter. Due to Google's refusal to prevent spammers from posting messages through their servers, I often ignore posts from Google Groups. Use a real news client if you want me to see your posts. JR
From: Nick Naym on 17 Dec 2009 22:09
In article jollyroger-B1BFEF.10015317122009(a)news.individual.net, Jolly Roger at jollyroger(a)pobox.com wrote on 12/17/09 11:01 AM: > In article <vilain-85D7AA.22544616122009(a)individual.net>, > Michael Vilain <vilain(a)NOspamcop.net> wrote: > >> In article <jollyroger-1A7382.19045716122009(a)news.individual.net>, >> Jolly Roger <jollyroger(a)pobox.com> wrote: >> >>>>> On the other hand, I can count on two fingers >>>> >>>> Which two fingers? >>> >>> Does it matter? : ) >>> >>>>> the total number of >>>>> problems I've had with Seagate drives. >>>> >>>> When was the last time you bought one? >>> >>> I purchased four of these in October and have nothing but good things to >>> say about them: >>> >>> <http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148411> >> >> The last one I had (1TB drive) died 15 days after I bought it which was >> outside Fry's return-no-questions-asked policy (I should spent $30 for >> the extended warrantee). So I had to wait 30 days for it to be repaired >> by Seagate. Meanwhile, I'm without a back system. So I bought a LaCie >> on line for less money (recommended by SuperDuper) and that's what I'm >> using. I may hook the Seagate up and see if it dies, only to send it >> back _again_, but I won't depend on it. It was also the 2nd Seagate >> I've had go bad. The first one died within hours and Fry's took it back >> (that's when I got the WD). >> >> So far, La Cie has my money. > > I'm sorry. I thought we were having a discussion about the quality of > specific hard drive manufacturers. It seems that's not the case. My > statement about Seagate's hard drives was about the hard drives > themselves - not bundled external enclosures. ; ) > > LaCie does not make hard drives. That LaCie hard drive enclosure you > purchased has a hard drive that may be of any number of make and model > hard drives manufactured by other companies, including SeaGate. ....which offers the advantage of dealing with a single vendor in case of product failure, instead of two vendors pointing fingers at each other if you buy the platter and enclosure separately and "roll your own." > It is > actually very likely, however, that your LaCie enclosure contains a > cheaper brand than SeaGate, since LaCie typically picks the cheapest > drives they can find for such enclosures do they can maximize their > profit. Fact, or surmise? > So it's quite possible, even likely, the hard drive included in > a LaCie enclosure does not have the standard 5-year or 3-year > manufacturers warranty of a Seagate. LaCie offers its own warranty, which doesn't seem to reflect or parallel that of the platter manufacturer. > Most of LaCie's enclosures seem to have 2-year warranties. My d2 Quadra came with a 3-year warranty. > So if it does > fail during the third year, you may find you don't even have the option > of getting it repaired by LaCie, much less whatever manufacturer > actually made the hard drive inside. Further, with an external enclosure > of any kind, you have additional potential defects, such as defective > power supplies or cooling fans, to worry about. What happens if one of > those stops working just after the warranty is expired? > > For instance, I recall a few years ago that a large software company for > which I used to work purchased LaCie external hard drives for all > employees needing more storage space. We saw so many power supply and > cooling fan failures within the first two years, we had to switch to > another brand! So LaCie naturally isn't the first brand *I* think of > when purchasing a hard drive enclosure. > > Anyhow, the fact is defects do happen to *all* drive manufacturers. In > my opinion, Seagate handled the situation very well if they allowed you > to return the drive to them for repair or exchange without fuss. In > fact, Seagate offers an advanced replacement service, where they ship a > replacement drive via 2-day delivery before you send in your original > drive to them. I don't see how it's Seagate's fault you chose not to use > their advanced replacement service. I got my 750 GB LaCie d2 Quadra in September 2008 at the same time I bought my 750 GB Seagate Barracuda and Icy Dock enclosure. I've been using one as my TM backup device, the other partitioned for my SuperDuper! clone and an archive of stuff I should've tossed eons go. ;) FWIW, I did my homework before buying. I was attracted to Seagate because of its long-time reputation and market longevity; I researched the 750 GB drives available at the time and found that the particular model being offered -- a "new and improved" version of an older model that had wonderful reviews -- had very good initial reviews. Wanting to get a second drive as well, but hesitant about buying two identical drives (to avoid "putting all of my reliability-and-performance eggs" in one basket), the LaCie d2 Quadra caught my eye. I had previous experience with a LaCie USB drive that worked out well (I used it with my old OS 9 iMac, and I'm still using it with my current iMac), and still had the phone number of one of the lead LaCie techs there who I had spoken with when I first got that drive. So I contacted him, and asked if he knew which platters were being used in the d2 Quadras currently being shipped. He didn't, but quickly found out, and got back to me indicating that the current lot leaving their warehouse were built with a Samsung Spinpoint. I researched the particular model, and found that it compared favorably and competed directly with the Seagate. So far, I've been happy with both of my purchases -� similar overall costs, performance, and ratings. However, I will say this: Soon after I got my Seagate, users started to report a whole slew of problems with it; similarly, complaints about the Samsung also have risen noticeably. I attribute such problems to the loss of both quality control as well as material quality as manufacturing has moved offshore and the economy has gone down the toilet. My point is really two points: 1. If you do enough homework, you always can determine what boxes are in the box you're buying, before you buy it. 2. The quality of whatever you buy depends not only the upon the vendor -- be it a manufacturer or assembler -- but upon the vendor's vendors and suppliers. -- iMac (24", 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM, 320 GB HDD) � OS X (10.5.8) |