Need a 3.5" external harddrive enclosure

godbreath · Post by **godbreath** » Mon May 25, 2009 9:03 pm

Right now I have a seagate 500gb external harddrive case
right when i got it, the eSata port does not work, and the customer service was horrible telling me to just use the usb port and putting the case as solved
and now, I was streaming a 1080p movie, and the harddrive overheated twice and froze
i am assuming the harddrive inside still works and just the external enclosure is bad
what is a good 3.5" external enclosure that has firewire usb and eSata?
i dont really need all 3 but I would like to have it
i have been looking at the antec mx-1 - is this a good enclosure?

bkh · Post by **bkh** » Tue May 26, 2009 8:02 pm

The MX-1 is a good enclosure except that its fan is not quiet. I use one for backups, but would not be willing to listen to it for long periods of time.

Ramses · Post by **Ramses** » Wed May 27, 2009 12:34 am

I am using a Vantex NexStar 3 with a WD Green Power 1TB inside. All connections included: eSata, Firewire 400/800 and USB 2.0, all cables provided. Plus it's fanless, only cooled with its metal body (except the ends which are made of plastic). Works well and looks good ...except for fingerprints!

kunaakos · Post by **kunaakos** » Wed May 27, 2009 5:19 am

I used to have a vantec hdd enclosure, it's basically the same as the nexstar 3, but with different design (matte finish, different shape), but can't find any info on it. It was IDE, and had both usb and firewire connectors. It was a great performer, it cooled the drive well, the speeds were a lot better than with my 500gb WD mybook. But it was really noisy. It almost aplified drive noise... when placed on the pc case, or a hard wood desk, it even got worse...But at least I never forgot to turn it off

now I use a mybook, and I think it's ok. Never had any overheating or crashing problems. But mine is the simple version, without firewire or esata. An an external drive on usb is painful. especially with small files, or applications running off it.

I'd suggest returning the drive, and getting another sample, if possible. If not, then vantec, the model ramses recommends. They're by far the best I've tried. But having to turn the disk off manually is a PITA - the WD turns itself off when idle, or unplugged.