MacBook Pro really lagging

[tomf]

I have the 512GB Crucial SSD (had their 120GB before), works great and trim-enabled under 10.10.5. I use the 1TB HGST 7200rpm HDD, single platter so still a 7mm. The optical adapters all take 9mm max I think.

I think I'm going to go for the Samsung evo 850 500gb ssd and at least a 1tb hdd.
What does single platter mean?

Thanks

 

[simonsi]

What does single platter mean?

Sorry - it means there is a single disk spinning so it is thin - 7mm - most high capacity drives of 1TB when I was looking were two disks within the drive stacked, so they had to be thicker, hence the Seagate 1TB that was nearly 12mm thick.

The 1TB HGST is an excellent drive and being 7200rpm means the data rate is as high as you are going to get from an HDD at the moment.

 

[tomf]

Sorry - it means there is a single disk spinning so it is thin - 7mm - most high capacity drives of 1TB when I was looking were two disks within the drive stacked, so they had to be thicker, hence the Seagate 1TB that was nearly 12mm thick.

The 1TB HGST is an excellent drive and being 7200rpm means the data rate is as high as you are going to get from an HDD at the moment.

Yes I'd want 7200rpm for sure. Is there any advantage to having multiple platter hdd?
Would 9mm be my limit in terms of size for a late 2011 Mbp 13"?

I don't want to be having trouble screwing the bottom back on.

 

[simonsi]

Single platter is better, higher bit density means more data per second passes under the heads so faster read write.

9mm is the max for the optical adapters I have come across, bigger also gives clearence problems in the HDD bay.

 

[tomf]

Single platter is better, higher bit density means more data per second passes under the heads so faster read write.

9mm is the max for the optical adapters I have come across, bigger also gives clearence problems in the HDD bay.

Thanks for the advice and info simonsi

 

[tomf]

When you remove the optibay drive you will need an adapter to mount the HDD/SSD, it will also provide the connectors to plug into both the HDD and optical drive cable from the MBP.

The optical drive is a lot bigger than a 2.5" HDD/SSD so the adapter provides a secure mounting as well as connectivity.

Example here

Do i need to buy a IDE to sata caddy? Or a sata to sata caddy?

Buying the caddy is a bit of a minefield,I don't know what I'm looking for really?

Thanks

 

[CoastalOR]

Do i need to buy a IDE to sata caddy? Or a sata to sata caddy?
Buying the caddy is a bit of a minefield,I don't know what I'm looking for really?
Thanks

You want SATA. See my post in your Caddy thread.

 

[simonsi]

Do i need to buy a IDE to sata caddy? Or a sata to sata caddy?

Buying the caddy is a bit of a minefield,I don't know what I'm looking for really?

Thanks

To mount the HDD in the optical bay instead of the optical drive you need an optibay or similar adapter, they are all SATA-SATA.

If you want an external USB caddy to mount the HDD as an external drive, you need a USB-SATA caddy for a 2.5" drive OR one of the caseless adapters that will temporarily connect USB to SATA

 

[tomf]

To mount the HDD in the optical bay instead of the optical drive you need an optibay or similar adapter, they are all SATA-SATA.

If you want an external USB caddy to mount the HDD as an external drive, you need a USB-SATA caddy for a 2.5" drive OR one of the caseless adapters that will temporarily connect USB to SATA

Ah thanks, yes it will be in the machine.

Also, am I right in thinking that the optical bay caddy doesn't affect the speed of the drive?

I only ask because the hgst 1tb drive is 6gb/s and the optical bay in my mbp is 6gb/s (checked to make sure)
So if I connect the 2, it should show a link speed of 6gb/s regardless of what caddy I use?

 

[simonsi]

Also, am I right in thinking that the optical bay caddy doesn't affect the speed of the drive?

I only ask because the hgst 1tb drive is 6gb/s and the optical bay in my mbp is 6gb/s (checked to make sure)
So if I connect the 2, it should show a link speed of 6gb/s regardless of what caddy I use?

Not sure how much interface electronics there is in the caddy TBH, I would say it could potentially affect the speed you can achieve, I used a Titan brand and it certainly passes through the full SATA3.

BUT you are talking about the HGST HDD, it can't ever achieve SATA1 rates, let alone SATA3 so if you are putting that drive in the optical bay you will get the highest data rate the drive is capable of, irrespective of the link being negotiated as SATA1/2/3. The link speed only comes into play if you have an SSD in the optical bay as I do.

 

[tomf]

Not sure how much interface electronics there is in the caddy TBH, I would say it could potentially affect the speed you can achieve, I used a Titan brand and it certainly passes through the full SATA3.

BUT you are talking about the HGST HDD, it can't ever achieve SATA1 rates, let alone SATA3 so if you are putting that drive in the optical bay you will get the highest data rate the drive is capable of, irrespective of the link being negotiated as SATA1/2/3. The link speed only comes into play if you have an SSD in the optical bay as I do.

Ohhhhh right ok. I think I understand now. may I ask why the hgst hdd drive says sata3 on it? That confuses me lol

 

[simonsi]

Ohhhhh right ok. I think I understand now. may I ask why the hgst hdd drive says sata3 on it? That confuses me lol

Because its compatible with SATA3 interfaces. It doesn't change the physics surrounding mechanical drives, where the max data rate is set by the number of bits physically passing under the head as the disk rotates. That is why 7200rpm drives are faster than 5400rpm (like for like), and bigger capacity drives are generally faster than lower capacity, assuming the same number of platters, as the bits are physically closer together on the disk.

That HGST is big, single platter and 7200rpm so about as fast a data rate as you can get in a commercially available drive. But still only ~80MB/s.

 

[tomf]

Because its compatible with SATA3 interfaces. It doesn't change the physics surrounding mechanical drives, where the max data rate is set by the number of bits physically passing under the head as the disk rotates. That is why 7200rpm drives are faster than 5400rpm (like for like), and bigger capacity drives are generally faster than lower capacity, assuming the same number of platters, as the bits are physically closer together on the disk.

That HGST is big, single platter and 7200rpm so about as fast a data rate as you can get in a commercially available drive. But still only ~80MB/s.

Ok but I thought my mbp optical drive says 6gb/s , so surely that is a sata3 interface?. Learning more and more now. I'm sure the drive will be fine, I just like to understand what's going on.

 

[simonsi]

Ok but I thought my mbp optical drive says 6gb/s

In System Info? Yes that means its a SATA3 interface, the Optical drives are way slower than even an HDD so normally negotiate the speed down to 1.5Gb/s (SATA1 speed). Don't confuse interface speed with actual data rates the device can achieve...

 

[tomf]

Thanks for explaining it starting to get it I think. Needs some time to sink in lol but it's getting there.