WD Scorpio 2.5-inch Hard Drive Problem - Please Read

[lkwchoi]

Hey hardware gurus,

I've got a problem with my "WD Scorpio 2.5-inch EIDE Hard Drives 80 GB, 100 MB/s, 8 MB Cache, 5400 RPM" I just purchased. It's in an external casing.

I've tried to google this problem but I'm not sure how I can say it with only key words: When I put a .rmvb file (a movie) into the harddrive from my laptop harddrive, it seems like the file loses information or data. I can try playing it on from the troubled harddrive or move it back to the original, but the movie is still "screwed up". By "screwed up" I mean that as the video progresses part of the movie stalls and I have to skip it, which leads me to my conclusion that data becomes missing or the drive can't find that part of the data. Note that this only seems to happen with .rmvb files; other video files seem to work fine. (i.e. .avi)

Before noticing this problem I've used Diskeeper to defrag the drive, I wonder if this caused a problem with the MFT file not being able to find certain parts of data.

I've downloaded and used Western Digital's Data Lifeguard Tool's to search for bad sectors and to do full erases (write zeroes) and reformat numerous times. However, the drive still does this.

Other information is that it is NTFS while my laptop drive is FAT32.

I wonder if I should return this drive for another one...if they find that nothing is wrong with this they'll charge me 15% of the original cost, so I'm hoping some gurus can give me their insight!

 

[SomeJoe7777]

Tell us about the .rmbv file. How long is the video running time (minutes), and how large is the file (MB) ?

Also, what interface is being used for the external drive? USB?

 

[lkwchoi]

Tell us about the .rmbv file. How long is the video running time (minutes), and how large is the file (MB) ?

Also, what interface is being used for the external drive? USB?

Hey bud, the enclosure is NST-260U2-BK using USB 2.0. It uses two USB's to power up the harddrive.

The .rmvb file runs for 1h30m using 405mb. I have tried using similar length and similar sized files with same outcome. However, now you got me thinking, I have smaller .rmvb files and they run fine. If that is true, why is that the case?

 

[SomeJoe7777]

Try this: Copy the file to the external hard drive, then copy it back to the laptop's internal drive. Does the file then play OK?

If so, then the file isn't getting corrupted on the drive. I would suspect the enclosure and/or the USB interface.

 

[lkwchoi]

Try this: Copy the file to the external hard drive, then copy it back to the laptop's internal drive. Does the file then play OK?

If so, then the file isn't getting corrupted on the drive. I would suspect the enclosure and/or the USB interface.

I have tried that before. "I can try playing it on from the troubled harddrive or move it back to the original, but the movie is still "screwed up"." The file changes when I move it to the drive. When I move it to the laptop drive to play it's different.

 

[SomeJoe7777]

Well, it's either the drive itself or the USB enclosure that's corrupting the file. At this point, there's really only one way to test:

- Take the drive out of the enclosure
- Put it in a desktop with a 3.5" -> 2.5" IDE adapter
- Test file transfers there

If that works, it's the enclosure. If not, it's the drive.

 

[lkwchoi]

Well, it's either the drive itself or the USB enclosure that's corrupting the file. At this point, there's really only one way to test:

- Take the drive out of the enclosure
- Put it in a desktop with a 3.5" -> 2.5" IDE adapter
- Test file transfers there

If that works, it's the enclosure. If not, it's the drive.

Okay, I don't have that adapter but I'll find another enclosure to try it in.