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Despite a rocky history of failures, I recently grabbed a Seagate Barracuda® 1.5 TB 7200.11 SATA. For only $83, why not?

I plan to pop this drive in an external enclosure and swap it between my laptop and desktop. I have never dealt with any eSATA devices before and have a few questions.

My Abit IP35-E doesn't have any eSATA ports, so my first question is if it is possible to use this cable to connect the external enclosure to an internal sata port? I know that if I did this, I would still need to use a regular esata-to-esata cable to connect to my laptop.

Secondly, I have no idea what enclosure to get and would like some recommendations. The only things I need are an eSATA/USB connector and support for this drive. I am looking to spend around $20-30 for the enclosure. Feel free to make some suggestions!

first of all, get one made of metal/aluminum to dissipate heat and it should have a powered fan, as opposed to one made entirely of plastic and/or without a fan. it should also include an eSATA bracket you can stick in an unused PCI slot on your computer, making your cable question irrelevant.

(links go to Newegg.com)
Take a look at this one $30. Questionable eSATA compatibility issues (read 1-star reviews, they are spooky). If you're strapped for cash, feel like gambling on eSATA, and don't want to spend an extra $10, this is for you.

Here's a great one for $40 (includes eSATA bracket, like the other one, but a better quality enclosure). I'd spend the extra $10 and get this one.



My only concern with both of those is compatibility with a 1.5TB drive. Some of the reviews claim it is OK. Still something to consider... maybe someone else has some experience. It's possible the homepage for both enclosures has updated their compability and newegg is lagging behind, or the max-size compatibilities are just irrelevant, since they work with all modern drives.

For IDE, I love the AMS enclosures, but I don't have much direct experience with the eSATA/USB2.0 enclosures.

I have the Vantec NST-360SU linked above. The eSATA connection works fine. It's running to a bracket connected to the internal SATA ports on my motherboard (ICH10R). In general, you need the "R" version of the Intel southbridge (with the latest drivers) in order to enable AHCI which in turn gives you hotswap support. I'm pretty sure the Nvidia drivers support AHCI too. Otherwise, it will still work in regular IDE mode, just without hotswap (I've used it both ways).

With regards to your question about the cable -- the enclosure comes with everything you need.

In retrospect, I really should have got the 2.5" version instead. 3.5" drives are too fragile, get too hot, are significantly bigger/heavier, need an external power supply, and make too much noise/vibration.

I have been very happy with my AZiO ENC311SU41 Aluminum 3.5" eSATA + USB 2.0 case.
It also comes with the eSata PCI bracket, and runs $30 + S/H at Newegg.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6817106097

I have one of these. So far I really like it.

I personally like the idea of using an metal external case with lots of cooling holes and without a fan, less things to fail that way.

I am pretty sure that hotswapping will not work with my mobo. I think the IP35e-pro will, but not the -e flavor.

N_4_7_3 wrote:

I am pretty sure that hotswapping will not work with my mobo. I think the IP35e-pro will, but not the -e flavor.

I'm a little confused by this response... you understand we gave you the best options available, right?

I use several of the Vantec enclosures linked earlier in the thread, both at home and work. I have not had any problems with them; however the lack of a fan may be a concern if the drive you are planning to use with it tends to run hot. I do not know what the power consumption of the Seagate 1.5TB drive is, so I can't say how suitable this enclosure would be for it.

computron9000 wrote:

N_4_7_3 wrote:

I am pretty sure that hotswapping will not work with my mobo. I think the IP35e-pro will, but not the -e flavor.

I'm a little confused by this response... you understand we gave you the best options available, right?

Yea I understand that. Looking now, I believe I was trying to make some point. Maybe I was just stating that fact. I don't remember really and that post is out of place. I think I meant to extend on it more but I left for class and just hit post.

Anyways, I appreciate all the responses. I suppose if these cases don't support my HDD, I can always just send them back.

Thanks... let us know what enclosure you picked and how it works?

For drive-swapping, consider something like the StarTech HSD100SATBK Trayless SATA Drive Bay, mounted in a 5" bay in your PC.

The drive becomes a plug-in SATA device. No potential eSATA/AHCI hassles. No drive-carrier involved in the trayless design. No whiny 40mm fan.

Simple operation (below procedure assumes PC is configured for IDE compatibiliy mode):
- insert drive in bay.
- power-on PC.
- perform your task at SATA speed.
- power-off the PC.
- remove drive from bay.

I have one and highly recommend it.

Hope this helps!

seagate drives run hot
i would go with caviar green to pop in an external case
but for 1.5tb you got yourself a good deal
the HP media drives use seagate and I have been happy with mine until i took it apart