ThaiLife Posted February 1, 2010 Share Posted February 1, 2010 I have a spare 350GB internal SATA HDD , that I want to use as an external HDD , ive seen many enclosures for sale at my local IT mall, ranging from around 1,000 Baht to 4,000 Baht . having never done this before is there any tips or comments you can give on what to look for in an external HDD enclosure , I really don't want to spend too much if possible, also is there a '' Cheap Charlie '' way of converting my internal SATA HDD for external use with out an enclosure ? Thanks TL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoonman Posted February 1, 2010 Share Posted February 1, 2010 also is there a '' Cheap Charlie '' way of converting my internal SATA HDD for external use with out an enclosure Not really, unless you want to run the Sata and power cables out the side of your Box, alternatively fit an E-sata card, will still need to power the HDD though but this does not really make the drive "portable" as any other machine would need a similar set-up. Easiest way it to grab a caddy (External enclosure) Ive used these ones in the past Vantec 3.5" Nexsar enclosure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaiLife Posted February 1, 2010 Author Share Posted February 1, 2010 also is there a '' Cheap Charlie '' way of converting my internal SATA HDD for external use with out an enclosure Not really, unless you want to run the Sata and power cables out the side of your Box, alternatively fit an E-sata card, will still need to power the HDD though but this does not really make the drive "portable" as any other machine would need a similar set-up. Easiest way it to grab a caddy (External enclosure) Ive used these ones in the past Vantec 3.5" Nexsar enclosure. Thanks for the advice, it seems the Vantec is the way to go , Ive used Invade before , and very happy with the results . TL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaParent Posted February 1, 2010 Share Posted February 1, 2010 You need a Y-cable. plug one end into the HDD and the other to the USB of your computer, 100 Baht Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beggar Posted February 1, 2010 Share Posted February 1, 2010 You can get a good external enclosure for 3.5 " with FAN and USB2/SATA to USB2 for about 800 Baht. I have 3 of them and this for years. Don't take one without fan. If you want to have more speed then you have to go to eSATA or even USB3. Don't think you will get the internal drive speed with USB2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welo Posted February 1, 2010 Share Posted February 1, 2010 Some hints on finding the right case for you: Cases support either SATA or IDE harddisks - this is the internal connector, you need SATA of course. Not sure SATA1 or 2 really matters, I think not. Performance is still the same, especially with external cases, but somebody pls correct me if I'm wrong. You can go for any combination of external connectors available: USB2, Firewire, eSATA.Most cases come with USB2 only (the cheapest solution and the most compatible one - works on all modern computers without special drivers no matter what OS). If you wanna go for speed you might choose a case with both USB2 and eSATA. USB2 for compatibility and eSATA when connected to your PC. Some better equipped PCs and even Laptops come with an eSATA connector, but many computers will require an addon card (PCI for desktop PCs or Cardbus for Laptops). If your PC already has an eSATA connector I recommend to go for a USB2+eSATA case since it should be not much more expensive and it will give you excellent performance. In any other case you can probably safe the money for the extra addon card and go with USB2 only.I personally bought one with eSata, maybe will buy an addon card later - for now I just run on USB2.Firewire is... well, Firewire. Mac users might like it better go for USB2.0 which is more common. The more expensive case often come with media player or media server functionality, some with network support. These are pretty nice and useful toys, but also come at a price. While a fan helps keeping the harddrive temperature low, I personally find the noise from the fan sometimes annoying. I am not sure the fan is really necessary. Doesn't the harddisk get hotter inside a desktop PC case with all the other heat producing components than when running in a single external case? 3.5" cases always come with an external charger and cannot run from USB power alone (this works with 2.5" laptop harddrives only) Maybe you wanna check for a charger with a more standard connector - I had a (quality) case once with a weired PS2 like connector and had a hard time finding a replacement charger back then. You will find many different brands that all offer good quality cases made of aluminum or whatever. The controller chips used inside do all offer similar performance nowadays when it comes to USB2 performance. Maybe there is a difference with eSata controllers but I honestly doubt it. welo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoonman Posted February 1, 2010 Share Posted February 1, 2010 (edited) PattayaParent, please tell me how one would connect a 3.5" Sata HDD to a USB port using a 100b Y-Cable ??? Edited February 1, 2010 by Spoonman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welo Posted February 1, 2010 Share Posted February 1, 2010 PattayaParent, please tell me how one would connect a 3.5" Sata HDD to a USB port using a 100b Y-Cable ??? ...and so that it actually works Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaiLife Posted February 1, 2010 Author Share Posted February 1, 2010 Thanks Guy's for the comments and advice , its much appreciated , I was also wondering about the Y-Cable option, can any one tell me more Please Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d0ndela Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 It's not an option to put it simply. You can get cables to use for it, but it has nothing to do with y-cables. You need a data recovery cable set, which consists of a cable that goes from SATA/IDE to USB and one power adapter which supplies power for both SATA and IDE drives. But it's messy and is not meant for permanent solutions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 HD inside a computer case has airflow from fan at all times to remove the heat - in an external case the case has to remove the heat and will become very hot with normal HD. Dedicated external drives seem to be designed for less heat. I would put the extra drive in computer if you can as will run cooler and much faster without any extra noise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaiLife Posted February 2, 2010 Author Share Posted February 2, 2010 HD inside a computer case has airflow from fan at all times to remove the heat - in an external case the case has to remove the heat and will become very hot with normal HD. Dedicated external drives seem to be designed for less heat. I would put the extra drive in computer if you can as will run cooler and much faster without any extra noise. i really want to use this spare HD as an external unit so I can move it to and from different computers so as far as I can see an external HDD enclosure with a fan , may give more cooling , but generates some fan noise an enclouser with out a fan may provide some cooling from the metal enclosure its self, but no noise from an internal fan ? TL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaParent Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 PattayaParent, please tell me how one would connect a 3.5" Sata HDD to a USB port using a 100b Y-Cable ??? Shove one end into the connector of the HDD and the other 2 into the USB ports of your computer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaParent Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 It's not an option to put it simply.You can get cables to use for it, but it has nothing to do with y-cables. You need a data recovery cable set, which consists of a cable that goes from SATA/IDE to USB and one power adapter which supplies power for both SATA and IDE drives. But it's messy and is not meant for permanent solutions. I have one of these sets of cables and it works for 3.5 and 2.5 inch HDDs. You're right, cannot do it with Y-cables alone, my IT guy misinformed me. When I asked him to show me the cables he uses to connect our laptop HDDs to a desktop he showed me the cable, but did not tell me it needs the enclosure also! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 You are taking the power from the two USB ports but it is not a recommended method as many 3.5 inch drives have a high requirement for power - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beggar Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 I never saw an enclosure for a 3.5 " drive that takes the power from the USB cords. So the danger might be minimal to kill the USB controller of the computer. But China is big Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaParent Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 ^ and ^^ If you're both referring to the post from d0ndela You need a data recovery cable set, which consists of a cable that goes from SATA/IDE to USB and one power adapter which supplies power for both SATA and IDE drives. But it's messy and is not meant for permanent solutions the set I have doesn't take the power from the USB, there's a separate power supply, and there's no enclosure. As he/she says it's not meant to be permanent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoonman Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 ^ and ^^If you're both referring to the post from d0ndela You need a data recovery cable set, which consists of a cable that goes from SATA/IDE to USB and one power adapter which supplies power for both SATA and IDE drives. But it's messy and is not meant for permanent solutions the set I have doesn't take the power from the USB, there's a separate power supply, and there's no enclosure. As he/she says it's not meant to be permanent. So you have a Sata to USB lead and running a seperate powersupply.....interesting. Got any pics of the powersupply, Iam curious as to how this is set up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beggar Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 (edited) You need a data recovery cable set, which consists of a cable that goes from SATA/IDE to USB It cannot be only the cable. You need an interface translating the data from IDE/SATA to USB. You could connect an external SATA drive with a SATA cable to a SATA port - just be careful when you stop it so that you do not lose data. But IDE/SATA to USB port with a cable only? Are you sure? Edited February 2, 2010 by Beggar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaParent Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 ^ and ^^If you're both referring to the post from d0ndela You need a data recovery cable set, which consists of a cable that goes from SATA/IDE to USB and one power adapter which supplies power for both SATA and IDE drives. But it's messy and is not meant for permanent solutions the set I have doesn't take the power from the USB, there's a separate power supply, and there's no enclosure. As he/she says it's not meant to be permanent. So you have a Sata to USB lead and running a seperate powersupply.....interesting. Got any pics of the powersupply, Iam curious as to how this is set up. If I can remember the name of it I'll be able to find the website. Otherwise I'll try to dig it out from my stuff under the stairs when I get home tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaParent Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 You need a data recovery cable set, which consists of a cable that goes from SATA/IDE to USB It cannot be only the cable. You need an interface translating the data from IDE/SATA to USB. You could connect an external SATA drive with a SATA cable to a SATA port - just be careful when you stop it so that you do not lose data. But IDE/SATA to USB port with a cable only? Are you sure? Me? No!! I just copied that post from d0ndela, I don't know how it works to be honest, jsu tthat it does! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoonman Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 (edited) All i can say is it sounds dam_n messy, sooooooo much easier just to whack the HDD in a seperate enclosure, as for the heat issues mentioned above...... Only turn it on when you need to use it and you will not have any issues, leave it on 24/7 and you may cook the HDD. THaiLife, where are you located, if your near Pattaya I have a couple of WD Mybook enclosures kicking around that I removed the HDD's from..... you can have one for Half a Dozen Big changs !!!! Edited February 2, 2010 by Spoonman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d0ndela Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 Plenty of those around. We use some different models for data recovery. See attached picture for box and un-boxed. The power supply on the right goes to 4 pin male internal power cable, and the set comes with a cable from 4 pin internal power female to 15 pin SATA power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoonman Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 Thanks for that Dondela, I understand how it works now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welo Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 On the fan issue: I've been some reading on that matter and didn't find any conclusive article. If the noise doesn't bother you a fan is surely a good thing in a hot climate such as Thailand's. Overheating can definitely decrease the life time of many PC components. If the fan really bothers you later you could probably disconnect its power source and see if the harddrive gets too hot However, I wonder whether the cases with fan are constructed in a way that the airflow can actually go around the whole casing, not just blow at one end. Btw many of the cases sold do not have a fan, neither has mine and never had one with a fan ever. welo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d0ndela Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 This one has an 8cm! fan slot in the enclosure, I've never seen it "live" but usually the bigger the fan the less noise it makes. And you are right, most enclosure boxes are made out of heat transferring materials, just like passive CPU/VGA coolers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaParent Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 (edited) You need a data recovery cable set, which consists of a cable that goes from SATA/IDE to USB It cannot be only the cable. You need an interface translating the data from IDE/SATA to USB. You could connect an external SATA drive with a SATA cable to a SATA port - just be careful when you stop it so that you do not lose data. But IDE/SATA to USB port with a cable only? Are you sure? Me? No!! I just copied that post from d0ndela, I don't know how it works to be honest, just that it does! SOHO USB Easy IDE http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SOHOUSB-EASY-IDE-USB...105237001r19450 Edited February 2, 2010 by PattayaParent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beggar Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 (edited) ALL those cables have a controller interface build in. You can see the box for it. It is impossible to connect such a HD to a USB port without controller. IDE/SATA and USB are completely different worlds. The difference to an enclosure is that there is no box for the HD. The rest is the same. Edited February 2, 2010 by Beggar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welo Posted February 2, 2010 Share Posted February 2, 2010 (edited) This one has an 8cm! fan slot in the enclosure, I've never seen it "live" but usually the bigger the fan the less noise it makes. Nice one! Link is broken though, here a tiny url redirect. That fan makes definitely sense. I wonder about the fan efficiency of enclosures like this welo Edited February 2, 2010 by welo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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