I love mine. Haven't noticed any noise difference from it, which was an important consideration for me.
Love all of the extra space. Good luck with yours.
Love all of the extra space. Good luck with yours.
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Has anyone who has upgraded your stock HD to a 500GB Scorpio Blue regretted it?
- Thread starter jamesryanbell
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No regrets on the WD Scorpio Blue 500 gig drive at all. Does its job, and does it quietly. It's a solid drive, and it's damn affordable.
I got mine from Newegg with the combo deal where they included an external enclosure. I erased/formatted the drive using disk utility from my MBP, then used Carbon Copy Cloner to clone the internal drive. Once it was done, I tested it by booting from my external before actually swapping the drives. Really not too difficult. My original is intact in my desk in case I have to send the machine in to Apple at some point, as is my original 2gig RAM.
I actually bought a second 500gig (running externally) to use as my backup, and don't even use Time Machine anymore. I use CCC to do an incremental backup, basically a clone of my existing internal drive, which is set up to automatically run the task whenever I attach that particular external drive. No need to restore anything if my internal drive fails - just swap out drives, and I'm good to go. What I like about CCC is that you can assign different backup tasks to individual external drives, and when you plug them in, CCC knows what to do. With the prices of the WD500 gig Scorpio Blue drives, it's almost worth it to have several of them around.
I got mine from Newegg with the combo deal where they included an external enclosure. I erased/formatted the drive using disk utility from my MBP, then used Carbon Copy Cloner to clone the internal drive. Once it was done, I tested it by booting from my external before actually swapping the drives. Really not too difficult. My original is intact in my desk in case I have to send the machine in to Apple at some point, as is my original 2gig RAM.
I actually bought a second 500gig (running externally) to use as my backup, and don't even use Time Machine anymore. I use CCC to do an incremental backup, basically a clone of my existing internal drive, which is set up to automatically run the task whenever I attach that particular external drive. No need to restore anything if my internal drive fails - just swap out drives, and I'm good to go. What I like about CCC is that you can assign different backup tasks to individual external drives, and when you plug them in, CCC knows what to do. With the prices of the WD500 gig Scorpio Blue drives, it's almost worth it to have several of them around.
I installed the 500GB Scorpio blue and now have regrets.
I regret that I did not do it SOONER !!!!!!!!
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I regret that I did not do it SOONER !!!!!!!!
.
IT'S SARCASM.
Umm... OK. Given that you only said 6 words, how was anyone supposed to know?
Ditto, quite noisy like the fans almost on full blast - Its beginning to annoy me - is this returnable? I don't understand why some people say its quiet and others (like me) its loud.
I used SuperDuper. Copied my Mac to the new harddrive (via enclosure). then swap the HDs and viola, right where I left off.
http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html
best program if you require a BOOTABLE backup if your HD fails.
I regret not getting the 500GB blue instead of the 320gb 7200rpm. I need more space!!
In the last 2 months I've updated 2 mbp's to the 500GB scorpio blue. Very happy with them both. It's an excellent choice.
I did the swap this past weekend, from the 300gb 7200 RPM drive, mostly because I was getting a bit low on space. Honestly, it was a snap. Just Time Machine backup, pop in the new drive, Time Machine restore, done.
Going from the 7200 to the 5400 I honestly don't notice much of a difference at all, which is a definite nod to the WD drive. I expected it to be something I would really feel, but the only times that come close its literally a matter of a moment here or there. Plus, so far it has been extremely silent and feels cooler than the other drive (which now sits in my PS3).
Going from the 7200 to the 5400 I honestly don't notice much of a difference at all, which is a definite nod to the WD drive. I expected it to be something I would really feel, but the only times that come close its literally a matter of a moment here or there. Plus, so far it has been extremely silent and feels cooler than the other drive (which now sits in my PS3).
Nope, no spotlight, its loud all the time - yes it is louder then the Hitachi but obviously something that is loud is going to be louder than a near silent drive. If you want to know what I can hear set your fans to about 4000 and then leave it like this for a day and see if it doesn't annoy you.
If some who claims to have a near silent drive does this then we can finally settle whether some WD Blue drives are louder than others.
If I put my ear all of the way down on my palm rest I can hear my Scorpio Blue purring, but even then it is barely audible. I certainly cannot hear it over the ambient noise in the room.
Some drives may be "louder" than others, and some users may be more discriminating than others as well. Discussions like this will always be subjective based on the viewpoint of the one making the judgment.
Woof, Woof - Dawg
![pawprint.gif]()
Some drives may be "louder" than others, and some users may be more discriminating than others as well. Discussions like this will always be subjective based on the viewpoint of the one making the judgment.
Woof, Woof - Dawg
I run my fans at 2500 rpm as a default setting - which are fairly inaudible at that speed for the most part. If I set my fans at 4000 rpm, I can definitely hear them spinning up, and whining/whooshing. All the time my WD500gig Scorpio Blue is making no audible sound, unless I turn my fans way down, and put my head near my palmrest.
Put another way, when my fans are running at 4000 rpm for awhile... and I turn them back down to 2500 rpm - it gets real quiet. So...obviously my WD500gig Scorpio Blue is not making anywhere near as much noise my fans are at 4000 rpm.
Hope that clears that up.
I run my fans at 2500 rpm as a default setting - which are fairly inaudible at that speed for the most part. If I set my fans at 4000 rpm, I can definitely hear them spinning up, and whining/whooshing. All the time my WD500gig Scorpio Blue is making no audible sound, unless I turn my fans way down, and put my head near my palmrest.
Put another way, when my fans are running at 4000 rpm for awhile... and I turn them back down to 2500 rpm - it gets real quiet. So...obviously my WD500gig Scorpio Blue is not making anywhere near as much noise my fans are at 4000 rpm.
Hope that clears that up.
When your fans run at 4000, thats the sound my WD blue makes all the time (I have istat showing the fans at around 1998 so its not the fans). I went back to the original Hitachi - wow what a difference (in sound).
I accept people have different tolerances for noise, I am also of the opinion that some drives make more noise than others, to me this drive was too noisy & therefore distracting. I am returning it - not quite sure what to replace it with though.
I upgraded about 3 months ago and I have a loud drive. It sounds like a fan is on all the time - not 4000rpms though - but I can corroborate that it is the drive itself and not the system fans. istat has the fans still idling at 1995 - 2000rpms and I believe if you get your ear really close, you can tell the sound is only coming from the hdd area.
I didn't think I cared about sound when I made the upgrade, but it certainly does get a little annoying in a silent room. However, the price was right, the speed was faster than my stock drive, and having ample room makes it overall a positive upgrade.
Is the Time Machine backup/restore process necessary? I was planning to replace the HDD the second I get home from the Apple store, and it seems like there isn't anything I'd need to backup on a brand new machine. Can I just put in the new HDD and install OSX from the DVD without having to deal with Time Machine?
Sure... if you don't want anything off your old HDD... go for it!
Enjoy your drive!
You can always put your old HDD in an enclosure and pull the data off later
Woof, Woof - Dawg
I went through the exact same experience has you, I took the WD drive out, returned it and got a refund.
The WD Scorpio Blue is noisy!!
My experience is pretty much the same...
I just installed the 500 gb WD Scorpio Blue last night and sure enough (as others have also reported) its making an annoying clicking sound every 10 seconds or so as its parking it's heads. The spinning sound is also a lot louder than the stock 320 gb Fujitsu. People in a less quiet environment might not be bothered but in my case it is not acceptable. I've just re-installed the much quieter stock Fujitsu 320gb this afternoon and moved the Scorpio Blue to an external case for backups.
I wish I had discovered the following thread before I ordered it last week!
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/673001/
My experience is pretty much the same...
I just installed the 500 gb WD Scorpio Blue last night and sure enough (as others have also reported) its making an annoying clicking sound every 10 seconds or so as its parking it's heads. The spinning sound is also a lot louder than the stock 320 gb Fujitsu. People in a less quiet environment might not be bothered but in my case it is not acceptable. I've just re-installed the much quieter stock Fujitsu 320gb this afternoon and moved the Scorpio Blue to an external case for backups.
I wish I had discovered the following thread before I ordered it last week!
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/673001/
Hi Carl... I'm thinking that there must be some sort of sample variation and some drives are clearly louder than others... and it's probably a similar situation with other brands. Mine isn't silent, but it's barely noticeable (and I'm not deaf either) and I don't get the clicking sound with head parking, or during read/write activities. Chances are if you get a loud one the first time, you'd be as likely to get a quieter one with an exchange.
Also, my typical laptop usage is mobile lots of the time, and often using headphones...so there's one thing, but I'm also at my desk in a quiet office with no headphones half the time. If I try to listen for it (maybe it's like seeing reflections is a glossy screen - some can tune it out, some can't...) I can tell I have a drive there, but it just seems normal and okay to me. Nothing that comes close to annoying. I have to think that even taking individual tolerances for noise, etc into consideration, I have a fairly quiet sample.
Good luck with the Seagate, maybe that'll be the trick for you. And get a good, professional quality screwdriver and torx driver so you don't strip the heads on your new screws. The good ones have nice, edgy drive tips with a good 'bite' to them. Don't ever rely on those cheap little screwdrivers that come with some components - they're junk.
Also, my typical laptop usage is mobile lots of the time, and often using headphones...so there's one thing, but I'm also at my desk in a quiet office with no headphones half the time. If I try to listen for it (maybe it's like seeing reflections is a glossy screen - some can tune it out, some can't...) I can tell I have a drive there, but it just seems normal and okay to me. Nothing that comes close to annoying. I have to think that even taking individual tolerances for noise, etc into consideration, I have a fairly quiet sample.
Good luck with the Seagate, maybe that'll be the trick for you. And get a good, professional quality screwdriver and torx driver so you don't strip the heads on your new screws. The good ones have nice, edgy drive tips with a good 'bite' to them. Don't ever rely on those cheap little screwdrivers that come with some components - they're junk.
pdxflint, I see in your sig you have an older 2.2 MBP, whereas myself and others who are dissatisfied with the WD Scorpio Blue have new machines. The problem with the WD Scorpio Blue may simply be an incompatibility with Apple's power saving scheme (on the new machines), part of Apple's strategy to squeeze out more battery life. (I'm just guesing here)
In my case there are 2 issues with the WD Scorpio Blue;
1. the main problem is the sound of the head parking followed by a brief increase in the whirring sound, which repeats every 10-15 seconds or so. like a motor-boating effect that is very annoying. This is only heard during periods of low activity when the hard drive is not being utilized. (i.e web browsing without iTunes or youtube).
2. the general whirring noise was slightly louder, sounding a lot like the cooling fan running at low speed.
IMHO, most people would find this unacceptable, but it may only be those with new machines that experience the problem.
I have moved the Scorpio Blue into an external case for backups, and it is not making the clicking noise of the head parking, and is acceptably quiet overall, so that confirms that there is nothing wrong with this drive.
I realize it may be a PITA to do this, but have you tried installing the drive in your mb?