What do you think of the Raptor HDD?

tinkering · § #1 11-28-2009, 06:00 PM

Are the old IDE Raptor 10K RPM HDDs worth getting still? Are they REALLY that loud? The one I found is 74GB. I heard some use them only for the Operating System; then use a SATA for files? Maybe I don't even need more than 74GB with that GA-7VAX with an overclocked AMD Athlon XP M?

python134r · § #2 11-29-2009, 12:53 AM

Depends how cheap it is? Currently, the newest crop of 7200rpm drives are just as fast if not faster then the old legacy raptors. The newer drives such as Wd Black caviar 640gb can be had for 75.00 plus free shipping from the egg and they had a black friday sale for $50.00 each but sold out.
I currently use 2 x 26gb raptors in raid0, while quick the newer WD drives and other makes are faster period.

I see you have a older platform machine, a 74gb raptor will be fine as long as the cost is cheap, otherwise a newer 7200 would be a better choice.

If I caught the sale I would of replaced the 2 old raptors with 2 wd 640's and sold both old raptors for $50.00 or so for a net cost for the new ones ~$100.00 or less depending on which sale I caught.

Does your mobo support Sata? You could always use an adapter I guess. Tell you the truth the 1 74gb raptor is all you need for that old rig.

ozzy983 · § #3 11-29-2009, 02:23 AM

Hard drives are starting to catch up to the raptors, but I really only see it with Sequential transfers, not in access time. Haven't seen a 7200 RPM that can do 8.9 AT. Lowest I've seen is about 12ms. That is what always has made the raptors more appealing; they are faster with day to day operations, but other drives, especially drives with large caches, may out perform them with large file transfers.

YMMV, based off the motherboard and other components as well; to me though, if you can get them cheap, go for it; if not, consider Solid state.

tjdehya · § #4 11-29-2009, 06:37 AM

The old raptors are loud if you just stick them in a case like you wouild a normal drive, however if you put some padding where the drive makes contact with the case then they are as quiet as any other drive.

I agree with Ozy983 post above.

tinkering · § #5 11-29-2009, 10:44 AM

I was wrong apparently it is not an IDE; it is Western Digital Raptor WD740 74.3GB 10K RPM SATA1 HDD. He wants $50 CAD. Here is the add:

Original SATA1 Raptor, this is one loud hard drive with a fast seek time. Western Digital claims average read and write times of 4.5ms and 5.9ms respectively. Average latency is 2.99ms while the track-to-track seek time is 0.6ms. Hasn't been used since mid 2008, 30 day defects warranty (noise isn't a defect its a feature...).

I will have to buy that PCI SATA adapter for the old board (was thinking of that anyway). I could keep my eyes out for a $50 caviar or something if I need a second drive?

tinkering · § #6 11-30-2009, 03:04 AM

I guess this Raptor's birthday is 2003 but it hasn't been used for a year or 2 but that still gives it 5 years of use. If those were 24/7 years it could have substantial miles on it?

He also said, "It has 1 8K Bad Block." Does that mean this thing could be a big headache? I offered $30 CAD and he accepted. Maybe it isn't worth the bother???

Bearded Frog · § #7 11-30-2009, 02:29 PM

I wouldn't buy a raptor drive anymore. I've got the SATA1 150GB with the stupid window viewing thing on it (oh boy I can see the drive working if it wasn't in a drive cage inside my case...). I like the drive and it has gotten some good use but I would not buy it again if I were buying today.

For example my seagate 1.5tb (dont buy a seagate though), is apparently a faster drive than the raptor. Even if access time isnt quite on par its basically at least as fast and far far cheaper per GB. I even read an article about someone setting the 1.5tb seagate to a 300gb mode and it was leaps and bounds faster than a new gen raptor.

If you want something faster just go SSD. Right now it just doesnt make sense to go raptor with the SSD or newer HD route there.

I will say this the loudness thing is completely overrated though. Ive never noticed it over anything else in the system and I have the window one which is supposed to be the loudest.

tinkering · § #8 12-01-2009, 12:53 AM

What is 'SSD' exactly? Will the Caviar Black work in my old GA-7VAX board with a PCI IDE to SATA adapter card?

tinkering · § #9 12-01-2009, 12:58 AM

What is 'SSD' exactly? Will the Caviar Black work in my old GA-7VAX board with a PCI IDE to SATA adapter card? What is the difference between the Caviar Black and the Caviar Blue etc.? Will I feel the difference in my old board. I am going to overclock that AMD Athlon XP M when the parts get here.

Bearded Frog · § #10 12-01-2009, 09:00 AM

SSD is Solid State Disk. If you don't have SATA on you board though it really would be a waste of money. something that converts IDE to sata would be equally a waste of time as it would cut the bandwidth to IDE speeds. The Black is the higher end drives I believe. At IDE speed I wouldn't get too concerned with hard drive speeds as IDE is pretty far behind these days. You could always get a PCI sata card but it would probably be better to just get a better system..

texun · § #11 12-07-2009, 12:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinkering

Are the old IDE Raptor 10K RPM HDDs worth getting still? Are they REALLY that loud? The one I found is 74GB. I heard some use them only for the Operating System; then use a SATA for files? Maybe I don't even need more than 74GB with that GA-7VAX with an overclocked AMD Athlon XP M?

I'll offer my experience with the 74g Raptor.

I put mine through some heavy use for a couple of years, but it was much louder than I liked and I wasn't up to modding the bay or trying to silence it. It was also filling up so I opted for a new WD Black 640 and I haven't regretted it for a second. I did a fresh install on the Black, which always feels fast at first, but after a year of use haven't felt as though I took a speed hit by removing the Raptor.

My benchmarks are long gone, but IIRC the WD Black did about as well or better than my Raptor in most tests. At the time I bought my Raptor it was a great drive, and still is, but I personally wouldn't go back because I don't find it has the value it had back then - not over the WD Black series anyway.

Power users may find justification for it but I'm not a true power user. I do some occasional video\audio editing and play a few games now and then.

I'm not trying to turn you away from the Raptor. It's a very good drive if that's what you want.

tinkering · § #12 12-07-2009, 02:22 AM

Is that the WD Caviar Black 640 you speak of? python134r holds it in high regard too. I came across one a while back. I should look again to see if it is still there. Even if using a PCI IDE to SATA adapter card, with this old GA-7VAX board, doesn't give me the full benefit of the potential speed of the WD Black, I will still have a half decent SATA HDD to use when I upgrade to a new board. I might go that way, or if I find a lesser unit for a smokin price I will cross the SATA v/s SSD bridge when I get to a new board. Thanks a bunch.

**Bryan** · § #13 12-07-2009, 02:25 AM

SATA through pci bus is not a good thing and really not worth it when paired with raptors.

If your planning on going up to a motherboard with sata2 onboard, then it would be something to look at.

Poci · § #14 12-07-2009, 02:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinkering

I was wrong apparently it is not an IDE; it is Western Digital Raptor WD740 74.3GB 10K RPM SATA1 HDD. He wants $50 CAD. Here is the add:

Original SATA1 Raptor, this is one loud hard drive with a fast seek time. Western Digital claims average read and write times of 4.5ms and 5.9ms respectively. Average latency is 2.99ms while the track-to-track seek time is 0.6ms. Hasn't been used since mid 2008, 30 day defects warranty (noise isn't a defect its a feature...).

I will have to buy that PCI SATA adapter for the old board (was thinking of that anyway). I could keep my eyes out for a $50 caviar or something if I need a second drive?

I was scratching my head at first when i saw this. I was questioning the existence of IDE raptors.

In any case I love my raptors, I do not think they are loud at all, certainly not enough to go over the sound of my 8800GT at full speed or even my dual silverstone fans that move over 100CFM of air.

As far as access time, dont get your hopes up. I have the revised ADFD modles which are supposedly better and according to benchs my acess time is around 7-8 ms which is still not bad. But the burst speeds are where these drives shine.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinkering

What is 'SSD' exactly? Will the Caviar Black work in my old GA-7VAX board with a PCI IDE to SATA adapter card?

SSDs seem great on paper, but in reality their performance degrades over time. Which is why I dont even bother with them and Im sticking with my raptors.

texun · § #15 12-07-2009, 03:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tinkering

Is that the WD Caviar Black 640 you speak of? python134r holds it in high regard too. I came across one a while back. I should look again to see if it is still there. Even if using a PCI IDE to SATA adapter card, with this old GA-7VAX board, doesn't give me the full benefit of the potential speed of the WD Black, I will still have a half decent SATA HDD to use when I upgrade to a new board. I might go that way, or if I find a lesser unit for a smokin price I will cross the SATA v/s SSD bridge when I get to a new board. Thanks a bunch.

Yep... that's the one.