Maxtor One Touch, user comments??? at DVinfo.net

Richard Alvarez · January 13th, 2006, 03:08 PM

Local store is running a deal on the Maxtor One Touch II, 300 gig external drives. These have the 16meg buffer, still run at 7200rpm. I'll be using the firewire port, not the USB

Anyone have any good/bad/indifferent experiences with this drive and editing?

(I cut on an Avid, but anyone's experience would be good to hear.)

Meryem Ersoz · January 13th, 2006, 03:15 PM

they seem to work just fine. i bought a couple on sale, one is already full, and have not experienced any notable problems with mac and FCP.

Jean-Francois Robichaud · January 13th, 2006, 03:36 PM

I have the 200GB version. Been carrying it around the world, connected to Macs and PCs with both Firewire and USB. I have had no problems with it, even when capturing/exporting DV with the drive connected by USB connection.

The only issue I had was when I was working in a non-ventilated enviroment and the temperature was in the high 90s: the drive got really hot and really slow, but when I turned the fan directly on it it got better.

Boyd Ostroff · January 13th, 2006, 04:21 PM

I have 4 of the 160GB models which are about 3 years old now. They have worked fine for me. Took two of them to Argentina this summer and captured/edited quite a bit of video on them...

Dan Euritt · January 13th, 2006, 06:15 PM

these latest maxtor drives are questionable... i had one die after less than 30 days of use, and it had a fan blowing cool air on it the entire time that it was running.

be sure and take a look at the warranty on any external drive package that you get, it's typically never more than a year long, but with some manufacturers you can get a 3-5 year warranty on the same drive, if it's bought seperately from the external case.

food for thought.

James Emory · March 1st, 2006, 06:27 AM

I just had a second catastrophic failure with my Maxtor 300 GB One Touch. I believe the first incident was because of an upgrade to XP SP2 where all of my data was lost but only visually. I was able to recover it with software, reformat it and everything worked fine. Yesterday, after several months of perfect operation, it failed again. It powers up and the drive is spinning but the blue light does not light and it is not recognized by my PC by using the firewire or USB ports. I also found out that Maxtor and probably most other manufacturers don't even repair these drives. If it's under warranty, as mine is, they will send me another drive. However, I found out that it will be refurbished. Great, another time bomb. Even though all refurbished units are tested to factory specs, there's no telling how many operating hours those used parts have on them so it's just a matter of time. Getting another drive is not my problem, getting my data back is! I am going to have to send it out to a data recovery company and this could get real expensive. Some places charge a reasonable flat fee to diagnose the problem and tell you what can or cannot be recovered with no further obligation beyond the diagnostic fee. Then there are others that won't charge anything to diagnose and report what is or is not recoverable. This is my third experience with failed drives and let me tell you, it ain't fun. I have hours and hours of rendered, composites and streaming media files trapped on this thing that will just take forever to reproduce. So, I don't have a choice but to send it out. I could kick myself for not backing up to CDs or DVDs because I do have CD burners. But after this, I think I will be investing in a DVD burner, probably Blue Ray with what I heard of 30+ GB discs. I just need something for backup that cannot mechanically or electronically fail!

Boyd Ostroff · March 1st, 2006, 06:36 AM

Can you pull the drive out and put into an internal bay? Might be worth a try for starters....

James Emory · March 1st, 2006, 06:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boyd Ostroff

Can you pull the drive out and put into an internal bay? Might be worth a try for starters....

Is that possible with this drive? I don't see how it could be. It has a special molded case with it's connector panel on the back. There is also a decal over one of the screws that says the warranty is voided if it is removed. Most reputable data recovery companies are certified to remove these and place and provide their own certificate with your drive to return it for warranty replacement. I think I'm going to send it to OnTrack. They are the industry leader in data recovery. The other company that I was considering was CBL. They will ship your drive there and back for free and diagnose for free! They sound very capable but I just haven't heard enough about them.

www.ontrack.com

www.cbltech.com

Boyd Ostroff · March 1st, 2006, 06:51 AM

Oh, I don't know.... never tried to open one of those models myself. I'd think it's a bit of a gamble for you at this point. Is it under warranty? If not then there doesn't seem much downside to prying it open. You could just as easily send the bare drive to a data recovery company but at least you'd have a (probably slim) chance of recovering it yourself.

If it is under warranty then you would be risking the cost of buying another drive. OTOH, if you aren't happy with their drives do you really want them to replace it?

But if you aren't comfortable with opening it up then of course you should just send it somewhere.

James Emory · March 1st, 2006, 07:06 AM

Well, it is under warranty and I think this is way over my head. It has got to be something with the electronics. Remember, I got my data back before because it was just software related and my PC at least recognized it and accessed it but you just couldn't see any of the files. This time the PC just doesn't even see it at all with any of the ports and the power light doesn't work. So I don't think it would matter if it was internally or externally mounted. As far as not being happy with their drives, I know about the inherent risks with drives from any manufacturer. My first drive failure was with an IBM SCSI drive. As you know they are expensive but statistically reliable. I bought two more after that failure and have had no issues. SCSI drives also come with a 5 year warranty! I think it's just a calculated risk that we all take when buying these kinds of components. We've all heard IT people say back up your data no matter what. Maxtor admitted that brand new drives could go bad within the first 30 days or they could last for years. I really do think it's a calculated risk and one that's worth it. Look at PCs and OSs, that is the best example of something that is never completed and we are doing the R&D for all of these manufacturers for free! Who would have thought that so many people would have bought into a product that is never completely finished? I have seen others, including yourself, that have used these drives for a while with no issues so I will give them another chance. They're just too affordable not to. I am definitely going to get my warranty replacement drive and probably buy another new one and if this happens again, that will probably be it for Maxtor products.

Greg Boston · March 1st, 2006, 07:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by James Emory

Well, it is under warranty and I think this is way over my head. It has got to be something with the electronics. Remember, I got my data back before because it was just software related and my PC at least recognized it and accessed it but you just couldn't see any of the files. This time the PC just doesn't even see it at all with any of the ports and the power light doesn't work. So I don't think it would matter if it was internally or externally mounted. As far as not being happy with their drives, I know about the inherent risks with drives from any manufacturer. My first drive failure was with an IBM SCSI drive. As you know they are expensive but statistically reliable. I bought two more after that failure and have had no issues. SCSI drives also come with a 5 year warranty! I think it's just a calculated risk that we all take when buying these kinds of components. We've all heard IT people say back up your data no matter what. Maxtor admitted that brand new drives could go bad within the first 30 days or they could last for years. I really do think it's a calculated risk and one that's worth it. Look at PCs and OSs, that is the best example of something that is never completed and we are doing the R&D for all of these manufacturers for free! Who would have thought that so many people would have bought into a product that is never completely finished? I have seen others, including yourself, that have used these drives for a while with no issues so I will give them another chance. They're just too affordable not to. I am definitely going to get my warranty replacement drive and probably buy another new one and if this happens again, that will probably be it for Maxtor products.

James,

What Boyd is saying and what I was also going to suggest, is that the drive itself may be fine. The interface electronics built into the enclosure may be failing. Internally, the drive is no different than one you would buy and install as an internal unit. That's why we were wondering if you could remove the drive from the enclosure and install directly inside your pc. I understand if this is not in your comfort zone, but don't give up on your data that quickly.

-gb-

James Emory · March 1st, 2006, 07:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Greg Boston

James,

What Boyd is saying and what I was also going to suggest, is that the drive itself may be fine. The interface electronics built into the enclosure may be failing. Internally, the drive is no different than one you would buy and install as an internal unit. That's why we were wondering if you could remove the drive from the enclosure and install directly inside your pc. I understand if this is not in your comfort zone, but don't give up on your data that quickly.

-gb-

Oh, I'm not going to give up. I've got to get the data back. Yes, I too thought and hoped that it could just be an external problem with the electronics. That's why I ask Maxtor why they couldn't just replace what was bad. They and the recovery people all said the same thing which makes sense from their end. It is not cost effective for them to service the drives but to replace it and not with a new one but a refurbished unit. It's like a revolving door! No wonder they're gazzillionaires. It's no different than the auto parts industry though.

I'm not going to do this because it is under warranty but if I was to remove it from it's enclosure, then what? If it is something complex like the interface I would have to have proprietary parts wouldn't I? Then I would have to have the knowledge of how to fix it. Surely it couldn't be as easy as removing it from the case and plugging it in as an internal. Are you suggesting that it is a typical drive chassis and that the external ports on the case just plug into standard ports on the drive chassis like on a typical drive. In other words, do you think that this casing is for cosmetics and the drive inside has typical connections? Thanks.

Greg Boston · March 1st, 2006, 07:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by James Emory

Are you suggesting that it is a typical drive chassis and the external ports on the case just plug into standard ports like on a typical drive. In other words, do you think that this casing is for cosmetics and the drive inside has typical connections? Thanks.

Not just suggesting, but 99% positive. The drives are just regular IDE drives. What the enclosure does is provide power for the drive, and via a commonly used chipset, translates the IDE interface into external firewire and usb ports to transfer the data to the host. There is nothing special about the drive inside the enclosure. You can go to your local electronics store and buy just an enclosure to mount the drive into. You wouldn't need to try to 'fix' the enclosure, it is virtually disposable from a cost standpoint.

But, to be completely sure about the drive, I would try to mount it into the pc even temporarily just to verify its operation. The only thing you might have to change is a jumper on the drive that determines whether it is the master or slave device on the IDE bus it's connected to. If you already have a second hard drive in your pc, then it would be easy to unplug that one and plug this one in its place just to see if it still works. If so, get a new enclosure and you're back in business.

-gb-

James Emory · March 1st, 2006, 08:14 AM

Like you suggested, I think a fuse has popped or something has happened after the drive to the interface and that's why the power light doesn't work and the ports don't work. The drive still powers up and spins and the fan still runs. So you're saying that this drive possibly docks with pins or jumper wires from the external panel ports, both firewire, USB and power to the drive? If I was to remove it, I should be holding a rectangular drive with no special circuit boards just like any other?

Greg Boston · March 1st, 2006, 08:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by James Emory

If I was to remove it, I should be holding a rectangular drive with no special circuit boards just like any other?

That is correct. The special circuit board is part of the enclosure. It translates the standard IDE interface into FW and USB.

From the rest of your post, it sounds as if your +12VDC is working but maybe not the +5VDC. If true, that would be solved with a new enclosure.

-gb-

January 13th, 2006, 03:08 PM	#1
Richard Alvarez Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: San Mateo, CA Posts: 3,840	Maxtor One Touch, user comments??? Local store is running a deal on the Maxtor One Touch II, 300 gig external drives. These have the 16meg buffer, still run at 7200rpm. I'll be using the firewire port, not the USB Anyone have any good/bad/indifferent experiences with this drive and editing? (I cut on an Avid, but anyone's experience would be good to hear.)

January 13th, 2006, 03:36 PM	#3
Jean-Francois Robichaud Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Montreal, Canada Posts: 142	I have the 200GB version. Been carrying it around the world, connected to Macs and PCs with both Firewire and USB. I have had no problems with it, even when capturing/exporting DV with the drive connected by USB connection. The only issue I had was when I was working in a non-ventilated enviroment and the temperature was in the high 90s: the drive got really hot and really slow, but when I turned the fan directly on it it got better. __________________ JF Robichaud

January 13th, 2006, 03:15 PM	#2
Meryem Ersoz Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 3,015	they seem to work just fine. i bought a couple on sale, one is already full, and have not experienced any notable problems with mac and FCP.

January 13th, 2006, 04:21 PM	#4
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	I have 4 of the 160GB models which are about 3 years old now. They have worked fine for me. Took two of them to Argentina this summer and captured/edited quite a bit of video on them...

January 13th, 2006, 06:15 PM	#5
Dan Euritt Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Carlsbad CA Posts: 1,132	these latest maxtor drives are questionable... i had one die after less than 30 days of use, and it had a fan blowing cool air on it the entire time that it was running. be sure and take a look at the warranty on any external drive package that you get, it's typically never more than a year long, but with some manufacturers you can get a 3-5 year warranty on the same drive, if it's bought seperately from the external case. food for thought.

March 1st, 2006, 06:27 AM	#6
James Emory Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Atlanta, Georgia Posts: 1,892	I just had a second catastrophic failure with my Maxtor 300 GB One Touch. I believe the first incident was because of an upgrade to XP SP2 where all of my data was lost but only visually. I was able to recover it with software, reformat it and everything worked fine. Yesterday, after several months of perfect operation, it failed again. It powers up and the drive is spinning but the blue light does not light and it is not recognized by my PC by using the firewire or USB ports. I also found out that Maxtor and probably most other manufacturers don't even repair these drives. If it's under warranty, as mine is, they will send me another drive. However, I found out that it will be refurbished. Great, another time bomb. Even though all refurbished units are tested to factory specs, there's no telling how many operating hours those used parts have on them so it's just a matter of time. Getting another drive is not my problem, getting my data back is! I am going to have to send it out to a data recovery company and this could get real expensive. Some places charge a reasonable flat fee to diagnose the problem and tell you what can or cannot be recovered with no further obligation beyond the diagnostic fee. Then there are others that won't charge anything to diagnose and report what is or is not recoverable. This is my third experience with failed drives and let me tell you, it ain't fun. I have hours and hours of rendered, composites and streaming media files trapped on this thing that will just take forever to reproduce. So, I don't have a choice but to send it out. I could kick myself for not backing up to CDs or DVDs because I do have CD burners. But after this, I think I will be investing in a DVD burner, probably Blue Ray with what I heard of 30+ GB discs. I just need something for backup that cannot mechanically or electronically fail!

March 1st, 2006, 06:36 AM	#7
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	Can you pull the drive out and put into an internal bay? Might be worth a try for starters....

March 1st, 2006, 06:51 AM	#9
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	Oh, I don't know.... never tried to open one of those models myself. I'd think it's a bit of a gamble for you at this point. Is it under warranty? If not then there doesn't seem much downside to prying it open. You could just as easily send the bare drive to a data recovery company but at least you'd have a (probably slim) chance of recovering it yourself. If it is under warranty then you would be risking the cost of buying another drive. OTOH, if you aren't happy with their drives do you really want them to replace it? But if you aren't comfortable with opening it up then of course you should just send it somewhere.

March 1st, 2006, 07:06 AM	#10
James Emory Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Atlanta, Georgia Posts: 1,892	Well, it is under warranty and I think this is way over my head. It has got to be something with the electronics. Remember, I got my data back before because it was just software related and my PC at least recognized it and accessed it but you just couldn't see any of the files. This time the PC just doesn't even see it at all with any of the ports and the power light doesn't work. So I don't think it would matter if it was internally or externally mounted. As far as not being happy with their drives, I know about the inherent risks with drives from any manufacturer. My first drive failure was with an IBM SCSI drive. As you know they are expensive but statistically reliable. I bought two more after that failure and have had no issues. SCSI drives also come with a 5 year warranty! I think it's just a calculated risk that we all take when buying these kinds of components. We've all heard IT people say back up your data no matter what. Maxtor admitted that brand new drives could go bad within the first 30 days or they could last for years. I really do think it's a calculated risk and one that's worth it. Look at PCs and OSs, that is the best example of something that is never completed and we are doing the R&D for all of these manufacturers for free! Who would have thought that so many people would have bought into a product that is never completely finished? I have seen others, including yourself, that have used these drives for a while with no issues so I will give them another chance. They're just too affordable not to. I am definitely going to get my warranty replacement drive and probably buy another new one and if this happens again, that will probably be it for Maxtor products.

March 1st, 2006, 08:14 AM	#14
James Emory Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Atlanta, Georgia Posts: 1,892	Like you suggested, I think a fuse has popped or something has happened after the drive to the interface and that's why the power light doesn't work and the ports don't work. The drive still powers up and spins and the fan still runs. So you're saying that this drive possibly docks with pins or jumper wires from the external panel ports, both firewire, USB and power to the drive? If I was to remove it, I should be holding a rectangular drive with no special circuit boards just like any other?