External Hard Drive Video Storage at DVinfo.net

Jake McGlothlin · March 19th, 2010, 02:40 PM

I need another external hard drive. I am currently using a Western Digital 1TB (blanking on the model). I have not had any problems with it, but I want to back it up and have another storage location for video.

Is there any particular brand or model that is better than others for video applications?

Thanks.

Shaun Roemich · March 19th, 2010, 03:24 PM

I USED to be a big fan of LaCie but given recent external failures, I'd suggest G-RAID or something OTHER than LaCie or WD.

Mitchell Lewis · March 19th, 2010, 10:44 PM

Here's another vote for G-Technology G-RAID. I've been editing full-raster HD using a FW800 G-RAID 4TB drive. I'm surprised at how usable it is. I thought it would be way too slow....mostly due to the FW800 connection. (eSATA would be better).

Jake McGlothlin · March 20th, 2010, 10:42 AM

Thanks for the help guys. I'll have to look into that.

Devin Vaughn · March 20th, 2010, 08:30 PM

I recently got a G-Tech G-RAID after working with them at my last internship. I got the 1 TB model.

I think this website is where you can get them the cheapest.

Videoguys.com - G-Tech G-RAID 1TB (4th Generation)

Mike Juhl · March 21st, 2010, 12:40 AM

Just bought a G-Tech/ G-Raid 2TB (2 x 1TB Raid 0) drive today from the Apple store. Doing a little research prior to making the purchase revealed pretty good feedback from other users. I am currently transferring 450 GB of media files and it is fast using FW 800. Hope it holds up over time...

I also have a Fantom Disk 1TB raid that I have been using for a couple years and has been super reliable. Just needed more space now that I am working with HD and the associated ProRes 422 (HQ) files!

Bob Kerner · March 21st, 2010, 09:37 AM

Another vote for the G-drive. I bought one after my WD terabyte drive started behaving badly. The G Drive is built like a tank, and has 2 year warranty.

Jonathan Bufkin · March 21st, 2010, 10:00 AM

I use OWC (Other World Computing) drive enclosures pretty much exclusively. I have 14 one tb drives and they have been almost flawless.

Robert Lane · March 21st, 2010, 10:04 AM

I always recommend that instead of being tied to a "box" drive with a built-in and non-removable HDD that instead you look into getting a 2-4 bay HDD enclosure with hot-swap sleds. This allows you to not only setup a working RAID (if you need it for online work) or for offline storage. This way as your HDD's fill up you can simply swap out the HDD's themselves and not the entire enclosure/power supply and keep paying for things you don't need.

You need more storage, not redundant support hardware and that's the idea behind the DIY enclosure setups.

Check out Performance Upgrades; FireWire USB SATA Storage; Memory, more at OWC, they've got the best selection and customer service bar none and if you're not sure which option is best for you their sales staff is excellent in helping you make your own configuration.

If you don't want to go that route they also sell standalone external HDD's as well which outperform and outlast anything from G-Tech, LaCie, WD etc. Their OWC Mercury Elite Pro Aluminum has been an industry darling ever since it's release more than 5 years ago.

Jonathan Bufkin · March 21st, 2010, 10:17 AM

I agree with Robert about the hot-swappable feature. That's why I now use a universal drive adapter (Voyager by NewerTech- Hard Drive Dock for 3.5" and 2.5" SATA Devices provides high-performance and flexibility). I can work off of two "current project" drives in enclosures and archive using bare drives through my drive dock. Its cheaper than buying 2 drive bays such as a G-Raid or Drobo. Don't get me wrong, I would love to have a couple of those but I am not there yet.

Scott Brickert · March 25th, 2010, 06:17 PM

I'm using the Firmtek eSata connected, SeriTek/2EN2. Trays are down to $18 apiece at B&H. Just swapped out one drive for back-up, which goes back on the shelf once it's complete.

Tim Kay · April 29th, 2010, 09:38 PM

Hmm, interesting to hear ppl having problems with the Lacie Drives. Personally i'm now on my 3rd and (knock on wood) haven't had one problem.

Have 2 1tb drives - one main one mirrors and time machine. Recently it's not enough so I just picked up a Lacie 2tb drive and so far so good. I've made the mistake of editing a 4 min piece in FC6 with it (internal was full!) and it's been slow, but reliable.

Personally gonna stick with them as they've been good to me over the years.

Shaun Roemich · April 30th, 2010, 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andy Dufrain

Hmm, interesting to hear ppl having problems with the Lacie Drives. Personally i'm now on my 3rd and (knock on wood) haven't had one problem.

I was a die hard LaCie fan until TWO of my enclosures died within a week of each other. My 8 or 9 year old 80GB FW400 enclosures are still running though, even though one of them was obviously mistreated in delivery and arrived with a cracked faceplate and making a "grindy whiny" noise.

Mitchell Lewis · April 30th, 2010, 06:46 AM

LaCie had a bad batch of power supplies that affected a large percentage of their D2 series drives. I'm sure they have fixed the problems and now they are probably reliable again. But it's hard to stay with a company that you've had problems with.

Andy - you'll probably be fine using them. :)

Greg Joyce · May 2nd, 2010, 12:09 PM

I agree with Robert about OWC and their Mercury Elite RAID setup. It's the first time I've set up a RAID myself and works well. I bought some RAM from them, too, with no glitches. And their prices are reasonable.

My only (very minor) complaints with the RAID setup with Hitachi drives: kinda loud drives, doesn't turn off automatically when I turn off the Mac, and there's a loud beep when it starts up. As I said, very minor.

Robert, that's an interesting archiving plan, and makes complete sense. Wish I had read your post before I bought a handful of external drives to use for archiving. What do you store the bare drives in when you shelve them?

Are there any downsides to the RAID-to-bare-archive-hard drives-on the shelf system?

March 19th, 2010, 02:40 PM	#1
Jake McGlothlin Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Bozeman, Montana Posts: 55	External Hard Drive Video Storage I need another external hard drive. I am currently using a Western Digital 1TB (blanking on the model). I have not had any problems with it, but I want to back it up and have another storage location for video. Is there any particular brand or model that is better than others for video applications? Thanks. __________________ “If people don’t occasionally walk away from you shaking their heads, you’re probably doing something wrong.” -John Gierach

March 19th, 2010, 03:24 PM	#2
Shaun Roemich Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Vancouver, British Columbia (formerly Winnipeg, Manitoba) Canada Posts: 4,088	I USED to be a big fan of LaCie but given recent external failures, I'd suggest G-RAID or something OTHER than LaCie or WD. __________________ Shaun C. Roemich Road Dog Media - Vancouver, BC - Videographer - Webcaster www.roaddogmedia.ca Blog: http://roaddogmedia.wordpress.com/

March 19th, 2010, 10:44 PM	#3
Mitchell Lewis Trustee Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Kennewick, WA Posts: 1,124	Here's another vote for G-Technology G-RAID. I've been editing full-raster HD using a FW800 G-RAID 4TB drive. I'm surprised at how usable it is. I thought it would be way too slow....mostly due to the FW800 connection. (eSATA would be better). __________________ Sony EX3, Canon 5D MkII, Chrosziel Matte Box, Sachtler tripod, Steadicam Flyer, Mac Pro, Apple/Adobe software - 20 years as a local videographer/editor

March 20th, 2010, 10:42 AM	#4
Jake McGlothlin Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Bozeman, Montana Posts: 55	Thanks for the help guys. I'll have to look into that. __________________ “If people don’t occasionally walk away from you shaking their heads, you’re probably doing something wrong.” -John Gierach

March 21st, 2010, 10:00 AM	#8
Jonathan Bufkin Major Player Join Date: May 2006 Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 253	I use OWC (Other World Computing) drive enclosures pretty much exclusively. I have 14 one tb drives and they have been almost flawless. __________________ Jon Bufkin focalpointcinematic.com

March 20th, 2010, 08:30 PM	#5
Devin Vaughn New Boot Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: United States Posts: 9	I recently got a G-Tech G-RAID after working with them at my last internship. I got the 1 TB model. I think this website is where you can get them the cheapest. Videoguys.com - G-Tech G-RAID 1TB (4th Generation)

March 21st, 2010, 12:40 AM	#6
Mike Juhl New Boot Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Richmond, WI. Posts: 13	Just bought a G-Tech/ G-Raid 2TB (2 x 1TB Raid 0) drive today from the Apple store. Doing a little research prior to making the purchase revealed pretty good feedback from other users. I am currently transferring 450 GB of media files and it is fast using FW 800. Hope it holds up over time... I also have a Fantom Disk 1TB raid that I have been using for a couple years and has been super reliable. Just needed more space now that I am working with HD and the associated ProRes 422 (HQ) files!

March 21st, 2010, 09:37 AM	#7
Bob Kerner Major Player Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: New York Posts: 388	Another vote for the G-drive. I bought one after my WD terabyte drive started behaving badly. The G Drive is built like a tank, and has 2 year warranty.

March 21st, 2010, 10:04 AM	#9
Robert Lane Go Go Godzilla Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Scottsdale, AZ USA Posts: 2,823 Images: 15	I always recommend that instead of being tied to a "box" drive with a built-in and non-removable HDD that instead you look into getting a 2-4 bay HDD enclosure with hot-swap sleds. This allows you to not only setup a working RAID (if you need it for online work) or for offline storage. This way as your HDD's fill up you can simply swap out the HDD's themselves and not the entire enclosure/power supply and keep paying for things you don't need. You need more storage, not redundant support hardware and that's the idea behind the DIY enclosure setups. Check out Performance Upgrades; FireWire USB SATA Storage; Memory, more at OWC, they've got the best selection and customer service bar none and if you're not sure which option is best for you their sales staff is excellent in helping you make your own configuration. If you don't want to go that route they also sell standalone external HDD's as well which outperform and outlast anything from G-Tech, LaCie, WD etc. Their OWC Mercury Elite Pro Aluminum has been an industry darling ever since it's release more than 5 years ago.

March 21st, 2010, 10:17 AM	#10
Jonathan Bufkin Major Player Join Date: May 2006 Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 253	I agree with Robert about the hot-swappable feature. That's why I now use a universal drive adapter (Voyager by NewerTech- Hard Drive Dock for 3.5" and 2.5" SATA Devices provides high-performance and flexibility). I can work off of two "current project" drives in enclosures and archive using bare drives through my drive dock. Its cheaper than buying 2 drive bays such as a G-Raid or Drobo. Don't get me wrong, I would love to have a couple of those but I am not there yet. __________________ Jon Bufkin focalpointcinematic.com

March 25th, 2010, 06:17 PM	#11
Scott Brickert Major Player Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Crested Butte, CO Posts: 576	I'm using the Firmtek eSata connected, SeriTek/2EN2. Trays are down to $18 apiece at B&H. Just swapped out one drive for back-up, which goes back on the shelf once it's complete. __________________ Scott Shot-By-Scott

April 29th, 2010, 09:38 PM	#12
Tim Kay Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: SF & LA Posts: 195	Hmm, interesting to hear ppl having problems with the Lacie Drives. Personally i'm now on my 3rd and (knock on wood) haven't had one problem. Have 2 1tb drives - one main one mirrors and time machine. Recently it's not enough so I just picked up a Lacie 2tb drive and so far so good. I've made the mistake of editing a 4 min piece in FC6 with it (internal was full!) and it's been slow, but reliable. Personally gonna stick with them as they've been good to me over the years. __________________ Event Production Services \| Video Production San Francisco

April 30th, 2010, 06:46 AM	#14
Mitchell Lewis Trustee Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Kennewick, WA Posts: 1,124	LaCie had a bad batch of power supplies that affected a large percentage of their D2 series drives. I'm sure they have fixed the problems and now they are probably reliable again. But it's hard to stay with a company that you've had problems with. Andy - you'll probably be fine using them. :) __________________ Sony EX3, Canon 5D MkII, Chrosziel Matte Box, Sachtler tripod, Steadicam Flyer, Mac Pro, Apple/Adobe software - 20 years as a local videographer/editor

May 2nd, 2010, 12:09 PM	#15
Greg Joyce Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 106	another vote for OWC I agree with Robert about OWC and their Mercury Elite RAID setup. It's the first time I've set up a RAID myself and works well. I bought some RAM from them, too, with no glitches. And their prices are reasonable. My only (very minor) complaints with the RAID setup with Hitachi drives: kinda loud drives, doesn't turn off automatically when I turn off the Mac, and there's a loud beep when it starts up. As I said, very minor. Robert, that's an interesting archiving plan, and makes complete sense. Wish I had read your post before I bought a handful of external drives to use for archiving. What do you store the bare drives in when you shelve them? Are there any downsides to the RAID-to-bare-archive-hard drives-on the shelf system?