IDE and SCSI...

[skip2mylou]

hey there, i need to know the difference between these two. is SCSI internal and IDE external? like "52X24X52 CD burner IDE", is it an external drive? thanks please advise.

- skip

[Xylob the Destroyer]

both are internal
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=scsi+ide&btnG=Google+Search

[redwudz]

ATA(IDE) drives are usually used internally. SCSI drives are now days mostly external. A lot of the older Macs used internal SCSI drives. They are fast. (And expensive, generally.)


IDE is properly called ATA:

Advanced Technology Attachment or called Parallel ATA is a disk drive implementation that integrates the controller on the disk drive itself. There are several versions of ATA:
ATA, also called IDE.
ATA-2, also called EIDE.
Ultra-ATA, also called Ultra-DMA, ATA-33, and DMA-33.
ATA/66ATA/100

http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/A/ATA.html

(And throw in SATA (Serial ATA) drives in the same group.


SCSI

Small Computer System Interface is a standard electronic interface between your computer and its peripherals(hard drives, CD and DVD Readers and Writers and other peripherals).
http://scsifaq.paralan.com/scsifaqanswers.html

[skip2mylou]

thanks very much. i wanted to get an external drive, is there any way of buying the internal drive but not installing it, instead having it connected thru some type of cable? thanks.

- skip

[redwudz]

That sort of describes an external SATA drive. You have full speed from the PCI bus, in that it can operate just as fast as an internal drive, but the drive is external. You need a SATA PCI card, preferably with an external connection. It's faster than Firewire and hot pluggable if you need to remove it.

Here's one site as a suggestion: http://www.satasite.com/external-sata-esata-products.htm

You can do a Google search for 'external SATA cases' (or drives) and find a bunch more. SATA drives are priced similar to PATA (IDE) hard drives, so the cost is reasonable. SATA can use a cable up to about 36 inches, so you have room to arrange the drive(s). SATA drives generally draw less power and run cooler than a comparable ATA drive.

Definitely a alternative to look into.

[waheed]

I got myself one of these:

http://www.drivecase.com/sadrenwioufo.html

Benefit is its supports both SATA and USB2.0 so it can be used on any PC. All you need is your buy an SATA drive for the enclosure.

The downside is that its quite difficult trying of get the SATA drive in as its tight in space and I dont understand why there is a molex power connector (supplied with SATA power adaptor) and not just SATA power connector. Other than that, it just as fast as an internal drive using SATA.

[skip2mylou]

o i see the enclosure allows it to be USB connectable right? thanks SOO much for the info, it is really helpful

[kschang]

You can get the enclosure itself (which contains the interface and the power supply) and put in almost any drive you want. Or you can get a purpose-built external unit. Those can be USB2 or Firewire, and sometimes, even SATA or SCSI (various standards of course).

Explain your needs and we'll be able to suggest something .

[skip2mylou]

o ok thanks. ok my needs are that i simply want an external CD drive (preferably CD burner) which connects via USB to my PC (preferably by USB 2.0). however while shopping, i saw that the prices were a bit high. i did however see some internal drives that were much less. so i was wondering if there was a way that i could connect the internal drive externally.

please advise. thanks.

[ROF]

I got myself one of these:

http://www.drivecase.com/sadrenwioufo.html

Benefit is its supports both SATA and USB2.0 so it can be used on any PC. All you need is your buy an SATA drive for the enclosure.

How hot does the case get with extensive usage? Is the fan quiet? I'm in the market for a few SATA external cases and I like the simplistic look of this casing. I can't stand those cases with all those flashy LEDs and such.

[waheed]

Tha fan is very quiet (I cant hear it). You can hear the hard drive activity when you first switch on, after that, its quiet, even when you're playing a movie from it.

It doesn't even get hot, just a little warm which is normal. The only reason I got this one compared with other SATA enclosures is that this one includes a USB 2.0 connection as well as SATA, so I can use it on virtually any PC or Laptop.

[ROF]

the usb connection won't get much use. I have other enclosures I use for working on client machines. thanks for the info. I think I'm going to get one of these to see how it works out.