Tech Support > Computer Hardware > Desktops > Firewire VS. IDE
Firewire VS. IDE
Posted by ringo@kmfms.com on February 15th, 2005


I am curious (and yes I have Googled...), is there a marked difference
in performance between an internal DVD burner and an external DVD
burner attached via USB 2.0 or Firewire? Both USB and Firewire are
part of my new Asus MB....the burner would not be attached to a card
which is plugged into a slot.

Thanks

Posted by Pete D on February 16th, 2005


USB will generally be slower and Firewire will be about same. Some
manufacturers may implement USB better than others.

<ringo@kmfms.com> wrote in message
news:1108501031.522040.245940@g14g2000cwa.googlegr oups.com...


Posted by Richard Crowley on February 16th, 2005


ringo wrote ...
In my experience external drives (USB2 or Firewire) are very
significantly slower than internal, IDE drives.

External drives are fine for portability, but IMHO dreadfully
slow for everyday use.

You'll have to explain that one.


Posted by Hal on February 16th, 2005


<ringo@kmfms.com> wrote in message
news:1108501031.522040.245940@g14g2000cwa.googlegr oups.com...
CDR Info did a complete analysis of the Memorex Double Layer 16x DVD burner.
Here's a link to the stats and so forth:

http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Revi...rticleId=11368

Particularly interesting is this quote from the comparison section:

"(Editors Note: While many may have expected that we would have included the
Memorex DČ internal drive in our comparison, as it turned out the
differences between internal and external devices was so insignificant that
it would have proved fruitless.)"

My daughter and I each have one of these drives. Mine is internal and hers
is external. I agree with the comment from the editors note. Esssentially,
there's no perceptible difference between the two. Our computers, with the
exception of a couple of pieces of unrelated software, are identical. Also,
we both use Nero and TMPGEnc DVD as our primary burn software. We've used a
variety of different media and haven't had any problems with compatability,
etc.

Bottom line: If you need an external drive, I'd recommend the Memorex unit
that I've described. It's fast and, so far, quite dependable.

Best regards,

Hal Lowe
http://hals.vstoremarket.com (HaloweGraphics SuperStore)
http://www.halowe-graphics.com/tinc?...name=web_email
http://www.halowe-graphics.com/photo.html (free original video textures)
http://1and1.com/?k_id=7391019 (Best website host/great prices)




Posted by Hal on February 16th, 2005


<ringo@kmfms.com> wrote in message
news:1108501031.522040.245940@g14g2000cwa.googlegr oups.com...
CDR Info did a complete analysis of the Memorex Double Layer 16x DVD burner.
Here's a link to the stats and so forth:

http://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/Revi...rticleId=11368

Particularly interesting is this quote from the comparison section:

"(Editors Note: While many may have expected that we would have included the
Memorex DČ internal drive in our comparison, as it turned out the
differences between internal and external devices was so insignificant that
it would have proved fruitless.)"

My daughter and I each have one of these drives. Mine is internal and hers
is external. I agree with the comment from the editors note. Esssentially,
there's no perceptible difference between the two. Our computers, with the
exception of a couple of pieces of unrelated software, are identical. Also,
we both use Nero and TMPGEnc DVD as our primary burn software. We've used a
variety of different media and haven't had any problems with compatability,
etc.

Bottom line: If you need an external drive, I'd recommend the Memorex unit
that I've described. It's fast and, so far, quite dependable.

Best regards,

Hal Lowe
http://hals.vstoremarket.com (HaloweGraphics SuperStore)
http://www.halowe-graphics.com/tinc?...name=web_email
http://www.halowe-graphics.com/photo.html (free original video textures)
http://1and1.com/?k_id=7391019 (Best website host/great prices)



Posted by Gene E. Bloch on February 16th, 2005


On 2/15/2005, Richard Crowley managed to type:
He means the FireWire & USB ports are built in to the motherboard, not
on a PCI card.

Gino

--
Gene E. Bloch (Gino)
letters617blochg3251
(replace the numbers by "at" and "dotcom")


Posted by Richard Crowley on February 17th, 2005



"Gene E. Bloch" <spamfree@nobody.invalid> wrote in message
news:mn.82757d52164b4b7f.1980@nobody.invalid...
OK. but the relevence escapes me.


Posted by Steve Simpson on February 17th, 2005


Yes, even though USB2 & Firewire are supposedly capable of 400Mbit/s, I
generally find the maximum I can transfer files to an external HDD is around
200Mbit/s whereas a fast internal HDD like a WD Raptor can manage about
600Mbit/s



Posted by Gene E. Bloch on February 17th, 2005


On 2/16/2005, Richard Crowley managed to type:
I can not disagree with you :-)

Thanks for the extra insight...
Gino

--
Gene E. Bloch (Gino)
letters617blochg3251
(replace the numbers by "at" and "dotcom")


Posted by Moe on February 26th, 2005


ringo@kmfms.com wrote:
Everything said here is correct, however, firewire/USB 2 drives are
plenty fast for most DV applications and of course to swap files back
and forth.

The reliability factor in Windows XP especially with firewire is the
biggest problem I have in using them to edit directly, so I usually use
them to back up and swap files between my PC's. I have six of them in
dual firewire/USB cases, back facing me and plug and unplug them as
required. They work great!


MB


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