Transfer speeds on external hard drives

[Prot]

Will I get suitable transfer speeds to play video files on an external drive that is USB 2.0 or Firewire? I have both.

I'm running out of room on my current hard drive (SATA) and an external has the benefit of portability.

TIA

[HARRYSPADGE]

Yes, should be no problem.

I have an external firewire hard drive which I use to store video files on and I have no problems when playing these.

[waheed]

I have always been told that firewire is more stable and practically faster than USB 2.0

So best option would be to use firewire when playing videos.

[Prot]

I've heard the same thing, waheed. Even though USB 2.0 is slightly faster, Firewire offers a continous stream making it a better choice over all. I'll try and get Firewire if possible.

[VenGeanCe]

guys just a question?can we mount graphic card or tv tuner card on usb2.0 cause i've heard that it gives crappy performances from both.is this true?

[snafu099]

guys just a question?can we mount graphic card or tv tuner card on usb2.0 cause i've heard that it gives crappy performances from both.is this true?

Not true!

I have two usb capture devices, both provide excellent quality.
ADS Instant Dvd 2 (no tv tuner)
Compro VideoMate Live (built in tv tuner)

The usb interface is not a problem provided the capture device and the software used are good.

[lgh529]

I have a couple of external drives and would not recommend capturing to them, but playing from them is OK.

It seems that when I have tried writing to the external (both exhibit this behavior) that when the bufffer fills up, you can't write anything until the buffer gets emptied. So what happens is that you capture fine for about 20 seconds, and then it crashes.

But like I say, playing videos that are already stored on the external drive is usually not a problem.

[VERVE]

Don't know how u operate..as in how u use each drive u got.

but if u do it the right way: meaning

1 AV dedicated drive (capturing)
2 Export dedicated drive and backup
3 OS drive

If this is the case, make sure ur AV drive is the SATA, not the USB2/Firewire external.

Use the external for Export and archiving only..it is never recommended to use it as ur capture source drive.

VERVE

[ofbarea]

guys just a question?can we mount graphic card or tv tuner card on usb2.0 cause i've heard that it gives crappy performances from both.is this true?

There are a few USB graphic cards and they do have crappy performance. Check this review: Sitecom USB 2.0 VGA Adapter

Good quality tuner cards should be OK.

[VenGeanCe]

@ofbarea ty for link.i did find some usb2.0 compatible capture cards but just wanted 2 know whether the 480mbps speed offered by usb2.0 is used by the card cause i've read many reviews that usb2.0 cards r not advisable for capturing purpose.so what's ur opinion on this?

[pfh]

USB 2 is fine, provided your system is setup correctly and it's not some low end POS.