Internal 1TB Western Digital Scorpio Blue 5200 RPM - Worth speed sacrifice for Audio?

[PeteJames]

I and I'm sure many other audio fiends could really use that amount of storage space with a big music collection and sample libraries etc. I have a 1TB external which is now full and a 7200 drive in my Macbook Pro which is only 230GB and that's full. Apparently 12.5mm drives will fit in the MBP so it is an option. Also considering a 12.5 will fit in a unibody MBP wouldn't that mean any 9.5mm drive would be loose?

My only worry is going from 7200 to 5200. Is this a big issue for sample streaming or not really? I don't know if it will slow down my whole computer and make audio a pain or whether it will be perfectly fine?

If not I think the max I could get is a 500GB at 7200.
Whilst I'm at it any thought's on which drive is best to put in a unibody MBP? Quiet, Reliable, Fast & Big are obviously the key considerations.


If 5200 is not workable should I go for the Seagate Momentus or WD Scorpio Black or Something Else?

Cheers,
Pete

 

[Hellhammer]

Rounds per minute isn't everything that counts. The 1TB is made of three ~333GB platters while your 250GB is likely made of two 125GB platters. That's 166% denser than the 7200rpm drive but 7200rpm is only 38% more than 5400rpm. When the drive is denser, it has to spin less to read or write the same data because it can write more data per round.

500GB Scorpio Blue is actually as fast as most ≤320GB 7200rpm drives, just because of its density. 1TB should be even faster as it's even denser

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/scorpio-notebook-hdd,2109-4.html

Sure 500GB or 750GB 7200rpm drive is faster but the 1TB isn't slow.

 

[jlluna]

Not sure about the western digital 5200, But i have a 1tb 5400 Samsung hard drive installed in my Macbook pro 13" And Macbook pro 15" i5, And 17' Macbook pro And it works really well for me. Very happy with the speed.

 

[Capt Underpants]

I would never put a sample library on a 5400 RPM HD. Things are bad enough with a 7200 RPM HD.

 

[skiltrip]

When dealing with audio production, I usually just stick with 7200rpm drives all around.

That said, I used the stock 5400rpm drive in my MacBook Pro for quite a few months before I upgraded it to a 7200rpm, and I didn't actually have any issues. But streaming samples, you just want as much speed as you can possibly get, so I wouldn't bump down to 5400.

 

[davidlv]

OWC (and others as well I assume) has a 750GB 2.5" Seagate Momentus 7200RPM SATA 9.5mm Notebook drive with 16MB Cache available now. At $124.99, it sounds like a good compromise on speed and storage space.
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/hard-drives/2.5-Notebook/Seagate/SATA/7200RPM

 

[ihonda]

OWC (and others as well I assume) has a 750GB 2.5" Seagate Momentus 7200RPM SATA 9.5mm Notebook drive with 16MB Cache available now. At $124.99, it sounds like a good compromise on speed and storage space.
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/hard-drives/2.5-Notebook/Seagate/SATA/7200RPM

might have to pull the trigger on this 750. i have the 640 5400 drive now. for like $4 more you can get the bundle.. http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Seagate/YST9750420AS/

new egg has the stand alone drive for $111 shipped http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...48599&cm_re=750gb_sata-_-22-148-599-_-Product

 

[Hellhammer]

OWC (and others as well I assume) has a 750GB 2.5" Seagate Momentus 7200RPM SATA 9.5mm Notebook drive with 16MB Cache available now. At $124.99, it sounds like a good compromise on speed and storage space.
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/hard-drives/2.5-Notebook/Seagate/SATA/7200RPM

Overpriced. 100$ from various resellers

http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/products/laptops/laptop-hard-drives/ (click the Comparison Shop thing)