Reduce re-encoding time with a bigger HD

[vikodin]

This may seem painfully obvious to some, but I've noticed a big improvement in reducing re-encoding times in TEMPGenc after installing a 120GB hard drive -- what used to take 6 hours now takes about 3. If you're making do with relatively small (<20GB) HDs, you'll notice big gains as well. Here are a couple of good deals on fat HDs, get them while they last ...


Staples.com - 120GB 7200rpm hard drive $80 (after rebate)
<http://www.staples.com/Catalog/Browse/Sku.asp?PageType=1&Sku=503796>
Maxtor brand and comes with a 1 year warranty. Price is $149.98, add something else small (like a box of paperclips for a few cents) then apply coupon code 23579 valid for $30 off $150. Free shipping too. And a $40 mail-in rebate <http://www.staples.com/Products/Rebates/03_29_03_Maxtor503796.pdf> is available.


Amazon.com - 120GB 8MB-cache hard drive $111 (after rebate)
<relocate.cgi?http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00007DX3I/>
Maxtor L01P120 120GB 7200rpm 8MB-cache hard drive for $171 at Amazon.com. Coupon code MAPAMEXCARDS gives $10 off. The purchase price is $161 with free shipping. And a $50 mail-in rebate is available.

[DJ Bobo]

Tha~t much speed gain? I don't believe it, I would even say, this is impossible.

[BoNz1]

Thats what I thought, too. Possibly the new hard drive has more RPMs than the last one, that could speed it up a little but it probably wouldn't be even noticable unless if your old one was very very slow. BTW, I love your avatar vikodin, thats harilious. :D

[2COOL]

You know what's faster? Using 2 physical hard-drives.

One with your source folder and the other with your destination folder. ;)

It would be really C:cool::cool:L if you had two 120GB 7200 RPM 8MB-cache hard drives installed.:D

[Hiro2k]

And you know whats even faster??? A RAID 0 array!

I bought a 100 GB 8MB cache WD. The speed increases was noticible, but not by 3 hours!

[dr.pauli]

It probably has something to do with the cache size on the disk also. Small disks, if I remember correctly, had relatively small cache, whereas the newer/bigger disks have large cache, some as large as 8MB.

[vikodin]

Okay I lied. I just wanted your approval. I'm actually averaging about 4.5 hrs, which still is noticeably faster than the 6. And yes, I had really decrepit HDs prior. Anyway my point being, if you can spare a hundred dollars you can add as many GBs to your system, and I think most ppl would find it a worthwhile expense. Especially if you're cursed with decrepit HDs.

http://www.gotapex.com/
http://www.hotdealsclub.com/
These are good sites for hardware deals, especially if you don't mind dealing with mail-in rebates ... I picked up a Cendyne 48x24x48 CD-RW the other day for $20. Woo.

[lamer_de]

I have a 40gb, 2x40gb as raid0 and a 120GB (with 8MB cache) and the speed differences when I'm encoding are 0. Nothing, nix, nada.

Quite obvious, as the hdd speed is not a limiting factor. I guess you'd have to encode at 400fps+ or so to notice a difference. Of course, the hdd has to read a frame from the source and has to write it to the destination file, but that's a very low amount of data per sec.

Well, maybe you're just lucky ;)

CU,
lamer_de