Compatible USB Hard Drives

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Wed Oct 21, 2009 22:15

Thanks Tony and Ian.

Tony, it seems the WD 160G is an extinct species now.

Ian, I can get both the drives I mentioned at Officeworks, so I might check on their returns policy and see how I go. They are $88 and $97 there which seems to beat anything I can find online.

jillybean · Post by **jillybean** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 06:55

I found the WD Elements 320GB only worked "sometimes" in my P1 - had to use a powered hub to get consistent detection. The 250GB version works fine though - got mine at Dick Smiths as Officeworks only had the 320.

Jill

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 13:14

Hi Jill

Thanks for that. I've just checked and my local DSE still has the 250G at "clearance" price. I do have a powered USB hub floating around somewhere, but would prefer less clutter if possible!

crippstor · Post by **crippstor** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 06:59

Jan,

Mine is not the "essentials" it is the "elemnets" which I got from DSE for $87, and yes it works well on both my H! and P! without a powered hub.
Good luck

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 13:56

Hi Crippstor

Thanks for that clarification. Yep, that is the one I am getting, at the same price as you paid. Good to hear another confirmation that it works well with the P1.

crippstor · Post by **crippstor** » Fri Nov 20, 2009 22:49

As we know the WD Elements work quite well as a USB powered drive, so I thought I'd mention that the 640Gb version is available for $99 at The Good Guys...was reading some catalogues and writing a wish list whilst Mrs Crippstor is at her work xmas party

robynn · Post by **robynn** » Sat Nov 21, 2009 11:54

My husband has requested a 1T external USB HDD for use with our Beyonwiz DP-P1 for Xmas - has anyone had any experience with any current models - I have a budget of around $200.
Any suggestions welcome

ross · Post by **ross** » Sun Nov 22, 2009 12:15

robynn wrote:My husband has requested a 1T external USB HDD for use with our Beyonwiz DP-P1 for Xmas - has anyone had any experience with any current models - I have a budget of around $200.
Any suggestions welcome

Office Works have the Western Digital 1TB My Book Essentials for $149.

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Mon Nov 23, 2009 20:15

Grrr!
Got the WD Elements 250GB as mentioned earlier in this thread. I have used it successfully since purchase. However when I went to copy off a recording today, it was not being "seen" by the Wiz. Tried going into Setup with the intention of re-formatting it, but not recognised there either. I then tried a 4GB USB stick, and that was recognised OK. Checked the WD on the PC and it was OK there. Getting very frustrated now!

I had been trying on the front connection, so I thought I would try the one on the back. Voila, there it was. I copied off the recording, transferred that onto the PC, went back to the Wiz and re-formatted the WD hoping that would fix whatever is wrong, No such luck, the front USB will still not recognise the WD.

Any suggestions as to what might be wrong, or how I can fix it? While at least I know I can use it on the back connection, it is a real pain in the derriere to get access to it there, and so frustrating knowing it was OK a week or so ago.

IanSav · Post by **IanSav** » Mon Nov 23, 2009 20:37

Hi Jan,

If you have a powered USB hub you can give that a try. It should have enough juice to power the drive without taxing the Beyonwiz power supply.

Regards,
Ian.

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Mon Nov 23, 2009 21:09

Hi Ian

Thanks for replying. Yes I do have a USB hub. I was hoping to avoid using it though - more clutter!! I will certainly give it a try though. I am just frustrated as to why it would work one day and not the next! Also, others have confirmed that it works well on their machines. I am also rather mystified on the front/back issue!

IanSav · Post by **IanSav** » Mon Nov 23, 2009 21:13

Hi Jan,

I can't remember the details but I seem to remember a comment that the front and rear connectors get their power via different paths. For some reason the front connector sometimes appears to deliver less power than the rear connector. This reduction of power is often enough to trigger a drive failure on USB powered drives. (The powered USB hub will allow you to test the low power hypothesis.)

Regards,
Ian.

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Mon Nov 23, 2009 21:29

Hi Ian

Yep, just dug out the hub, and sure enough the front connector worked fine with that. Aaaargh!!! If I'd known I would have to end up with a hub anyway, I could have got a larger capacity one!!!

IanSav · Post by **IanSav** » Mon Nov 23, 2009 21:40

Hi Jan,

An alternative to a USB hub connected to the front connector could be a short and good quality USB extension cable connected to the rear USB connector.

Another alternative could be to connect the powered USB hub to the rear connector, so it is hidden, and then use the extension cable to bring the powered USB connector to a more accessible location. This option removes any potential strain from the Beyonwiz power supply and should ensure ongoing reliable USB hard drive operation.

Regards,
Ian.

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Tue Nov 24, 2009 12:31

Hi Ian

Yes there are definitely options to get around it. I think it was just the inconsistency that annoyed me.

So, this morning, I turn on the Wiz, plug in the HDD to the front connector, and it is immediately recognised! When I had the problems yesterday, the machine was recording at the time. I did think then that maybe it couldn't cope with the two tasks at the one time. However, even when the recording finished, the problem was still there. I also put it into standby and back again, but without luck. I'm wondering now that if I had turned it off at the wall, would that have made a difference. Might try that if/when it happens again.

Anyway, long story short, it seems it is a bit touchy in this area, but I am extremely happy with this unit overall, and can certainly live with a couple of little idiosyncrasies, especially when it involves things that aren't everyday tasks.

Ian, thanks again for your suggestions.

IanSav · Post by **IanSav** » Tue Nov 24, 2009 12:36

Hi Jan,

It sounds like your drive and Beyonwiz are operating just on the borderline. Any increase in power use in the Beyonwiz is causing the external drive to not initialise/operate correctly.

Regards,
Ian.

Grumpy_Geoff · Post by **Grumpy_Geoff** » Tue Nov 24, 2009 16:31

Jan wrote:I am also rather mystified on the front/back issue!

I've a WD Elements 320GB drive and have the same front c.f. back USB port issue - I just assumed there was more power delivered to the rear port.

To save me leaning around to the back of the P2, I think I'll employ Ian's USB extension cable idea for the times when I need to plug the drive in, as I've got one gathering dust somewhere.

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Tue Nov 24, 2009 18:37

Hi Geoff

Maybe it's a Perth thing and our front connectors are just Waiting Awhile!

Grumpy_Geoff · Post by **Grumpy_Geoff** » Tue Nov 24, 2009 18:54

Jan wrote:Maybe it's a Perth thing and our front connectors are just Waiting Awhile!

LOL, yes, waiting 3 hours before connecting

jillybean · Post by **jillybean** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 06:04

Grumpy_Geoff wrote:To save me leaning around to the back of the P2, I think I'll employ Ian's USB extension cable idea for the times when I need to plug the drive in, as I've got one gathering dust somewhere.

I tried connecting a spare (longer) usb cable with my H1 (both usb ports at the back) some time ago but found that my 250GB WD Elements drive would not work on a longer cable. I didn't try an extension cable though so would be interested to know if this works for you.

Jill

IanSav · Post by **IanSav** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 11:22

Hi Jill,

Any extension cables used will need to be high quality and low loss. Any voltage drops across the cable are likely to exacerbate problems.

Regards,
Ian.

tonymy01 · Post by **tonymy01** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 11:40

But of course if it doesn't work without the extension cable, then an extension cable won't help

You can't create current out of thin air.

peteru · Post by **peteru** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 15:33

tonymy01 wrote: You can't create current out of thin air.

For that, you need thick air.

prl · Post by **prl** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 15:42

peteru wrote:
tonymy01 wrote: You can't create current out of thin air.
For that, you need thick air.

You'll have more luck if a bit of St Elmo's Fire is added.

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 16:19

Hi All

I don't know if this is Australia wide, but here in the West HN are advertising WD Elements160GB for $48. Just got one at Joondalup and they have heaps and heaps of them!

tonymy01 · Post by **tonymy01** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 16:58

holy toledo!! fantastic price, way way way way better than a silly flash stick! I use one of these for my work (originally purchased in the hope the 2.5" drive was IDE so I could upgrade my lousy work laptop drive.. it is 2.5" SATA though, oh well, still very useful!) when I copy dozens of ISO images of our software to customer severs, an absolute lifesaver (compared to carrying around reams of DVD/CDs and then having to still get physical access to something in their network to transfer, much easier to run cygwin, cygwin-X, putty SSH & filezilla, some of this from the drive itself, than to get physical access to a silly optical drive on their network).
Regards

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 17:43

Yep Tony, crazy price isn't it. Most decent 32GB USB sticks are well over $100 so why would you bother.

sub3R · Post by **sub3R** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 20:46

Thanks for the heads up Jan. In HN?s on-line ?Kickstart 2010? catalogue for NSW (8-Jan to 24-Jan) they list a WD 160GB My Passport WDBAAR1600ABK (not the 160GB WD Elements) for $48. This appears to be an older model as I can?t find this size on the WD website, but it still sounds like fairly good value for $48 when compared to a USB stick.

Something to keep in mind; some on-line user reviews have reported not enough USB power for the WD 160GB Passport drive (if this is the same drive as advertised). Either a better quality USB cable or using the rear USB computer ports instead of the front USB ports generally solved the problem.

tonymy01 · Post by **tonymy01** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 21:21

I don't think the elements is the passport. The elements is a boring rectangular box with rubber ends. It works fine in my S1 front port.

Jan · Post by **Jan** » Sat Jan 16, 2010 22:22

Hi Dennis & Tony

Dennis - definitely the Elements, not the Passport. Just had a look at HN website and it is in their Red Hot Deals promotion. This is it. http://www.harveynorman.com.au/product/ ... hard-drive. I think most posters here seem not to have had any problems with this model. Limited testing so far seems to confirm that - "hot" machine, recording and still able to see and access the drive. However, as reported earlier in this thread, I purchased the 250 Elements a few weeks back and that is very temperamental. It is only seen by the Wiz when the Wiz first boots up and with nothing else going on. It's fine via a powered USB hub though.

Tony - the funny thing is, my 250GB is the oblong box with the ugly rubber ends, but this 160GB is completely different, matt black with shiny black surrounds. Quite pretty! (Not pink though).

The boxes they came in are completely different too. You would expect maybe different colours or something to differentiate the different capacities, but these are different sizes and shapes completely. Also, the cable is quite a bit longer on the 160GB.

sub3R · Post by **sub3R** » Sun Jan 17, 2010 10:46

Ah so that?s where it?s listed ? I only looked in the catalogues. Thanks Jan for clearing that up.

Tony (my01) commented that this model worked fine connected to his S1 - see his early post here.
The on-line user reviews also seem to be more positive than the 160GB Passport, so it sounds like it should be a good unit.

Regards,

borisg · Post by **borisg** » Sun Feb 21, 2010 13:14

I decided to copy some files my DP-P2 BW 320 gb hard drive to an external drive.I read through this forum to work out which drive to get - it was very helpful. My experiences may help others. I started with a 2TB WD My book essential. Plugged it into the power and BW via back USB. Turned on the BW and it recognised it. I copied a few files OK (it was preformatted to FAT32). However, I could not play any of the files. So I then plugged it into a PC with the plan to partition the drive into 2 (1TB each). Sadly, my PC (vista) would not recognise the drive and I wasted alot of time searching the WD site and other places trying to find a solution. In frustration, I returned it and got a 1TB my book essential (with smart drive). This was preformatted to NTFS. So my first step was to format it to FAT32 via my PC. This is where the fun begins. Windows (via disk manager) won't do it - it is limited to 32GB. Using DOS, via Start search: tying CMD & press CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER on the right to get into administrator and typing "Format /FS:Fat32 G:" did not do it. After a few hours I got the message the volume was too large. I tried for other utilities - the WD fat32 formatter would not install and also said it may not work on newer drives. I tried swissknife, but that didn't work and is apparently limited to 400GB. Finally downloaded FAT32formatter (a freebie with ability to make a donation). It picked up all my drives, It found my G drive, clicked on the 953 GB partition, chose quick format and after 15 seconds - Done - formatted to FAT32. I plugged it back onto the BW and copied a few files to it ( /Device1/Unit0_P1/). Worked beautifully. Plays back fine. It transfers at about 2 to 3 MB/sec. It means an SD 1 hour program of approx 2GB takes about 15 minutes to copy which is fine. I have copied 50 files somes as big as 6GB without issue. All have played back perfectly so I am pleased. I am impressed with this functionality.
Regards

bjh955 · Post by **bjh955** » Sun May 02, 2010 20:56

Can anyone assist ?

I am attempting to connect a WD 'Elements' 500MB USB External Hard drive to my P1. Whilst it was alraedy formatted to FAT32 I have erased it and reformatted the drive. In each circumstance the BW will not recognise the drive when it is powered and connected to either the front or rear USB ports. Error messaged indicating that the drive is not connected when attempting to copy files to it are received. "Unable to add folders to Root Directory", when attempting to copy files ??

From the comments in this post seems that this WD drive is one that would work with the BW. Anyone able to indicate to me what I might be doing wrong or set me on the path of how to coirrectly set the drive up ?

The USB ports on the BW work w OK with thumb drives... ?? so I am not understanding what the issue is then with the USB Hard drive ?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

BJH955

Gully · Post by **Gully** » Sun May 02, 2010 21:36

Are you talking about a 3.5 or 2.5 drive?

Are you using a power supply with it?

bjh955 · Post by **bjh955** » Sun May 02, 2010 21:45

Gully,

Thanks for prompt response. It is an elements 3.5" externally powered. (Silver rectangular case with rubber blocks each end). Have also tried connecting it with a powered USB hub. Same issue.

BJH955

tonymy01 · Post by **tonymy01** » Sun May 02, 2010 22:02

did you try to copy to a folder?

bjh955 · Post by **bjh955** » Sun May 02, 2010 22:37

Tony,
No folders visible on Drive. Before connecting the drive I created a Test folder. That cannot be seen when device is connected. Tried to copy a recording via the BW . Sought to create a new folder on the Drive via the BW presented with error message similar to "cannot create folder in root directory of HDD".

Issue seems that the Drive, although powered, connected and formatted in FAT32 format via "FAT32 Formatter" is not being recognised by the BW. Is there a setting or something I have to enable on the BW ? If so where do I do that ? Otherwise should I simply try another drive ? Perhaps one from the My Book series from WD ?

BJH955

IanSav · Post by **IanSav** » Mon May 03, 2010 10:29

Hi BJH955,

What happens if the drive is connected and properly powered up and then you restart the Beyonwiz? Does the drive appear correctly?

Regards,
Ian.

bjh955 · Post by **bjh955** » Mon May 03, 2010 19:38

Ian,

Thanks. This appeared to be the step I was missing. Re-started BW with the drive powered and connected. BW can now see the WD HDD. Seems I may have been expecting too much for a powered up BW to recognise the device by just plugging it in to the USB input and turning the HDD on. (very unlike what happens with USB memory stick)

Problem now solved Thanks to everyone who had some input in assisting. It was has been very much appreciated.

Bryan

ChrisD · Post by **ChrisD** » Fri Jun 04, 2010 13:15

IanSav wrote:Hi BJH955,

What happens if the drive is connected and properly powered up and then you restart the Beyonwiz? Does the drive appear correctly?

Regards,
Ian.

What's the significance of powering up the HDD first? I've been using a spare ext HDD, coincidently the same welland case & WD HDD mentioned towards the start of the thread, and it has been very problematic. I've found it only works under the circumstances you've described above but even then it's still quite unreliable (and is now just being downright weird). I was coming to the conclusion that there was something funky with the caddy's power supply but it seems to be quite a common issue/solution that now I'm not so sure.

IanSav · Post by **IanSav** » Fri Jun 04, 2010 14:11

Hi ChrisD,

Welcome!

ChrisD wrote:What's the significance of powering up the HDD first?

This eliminates any potential issues for synchronisation of the USB attach/detach messages for those users who don't follow the Beyonwiz on-screen prompts precisely.

If the external device is not attached or detached as prompted by the Beyonwiz UI then the Beyonwiz loses the ability to see the device. Powering up the Beyonwiz with the device attached and running is a good clean way to eliminate these potential operational issues.

Regards,
Ian.

ChrisD · Post by **ChrisD** » Fri Jun 04, 2010 17:04

Thanks for the welcome Ian. And the prompt reply.

I came to the same conclusion regarding the clean start but I was always puzzled why the wiz was so fussy with this drive that the PC always recognised (it wasn't without issues mind you which is why I'm now suspecting it's mostly a power supply problem). Combined with both running out of space and somehow stuffing up the file system of the extHDD so that only the wiz can see all the files now (that's a real head scratcher but will take a novel of a post to explain properly) I was looking at getting a new extHDD (a 1TB WD Elements drive). That is until I saw Bryan's posts describing the same issues I had experienced.

Is it quite normal for this start up procedure to be needed or is it simply a case of pot luck if you find a drive that your wiz likes?

Regards,
Chris

prl · Post by **prl** » Fri Jun 04, 2010 17:06

ChrisD wrote:...
Is it quite normal for this start up procedure to be needed or is it simply a case of pot luck if you find a drive that your wiz likes?
...

It's not normal. I never have any problems like that with the two WD MyBook drives I use with our Beyonwizes.

bjh955 · Post by **bjh955** » Fri Jun 04, 2010 17:28

So as all are aware, My original questions about connecting an Ext. HDD arose out of my testing smaller HDD before purchasing a larger 1.5TB drive.

I have now purchased a 1.5TB WD External hard drive. It has been successfully re-formatted to FAT 32, connected to the BW and starts automatically on start up of the BW, Shuts down on closure of the BW and also partially shuts (Sleeps) if not being accessed. It all works pretty well

One bug being I can't see how much space is left on the EXT HDD but at 1.5 TB it will take me a while to fill it or even tax its capacity top any extent. As others have experienced with the BW, transfer rates are fairly slow (takes a while to copy files) but that is more to o with the BW processing capacity. Overall I pretty happy with the BW and the recent attachment of a 1.5 TB drive.

ChrisD · Post by **ChrisD** » Fri Jun 04, 2010 18:36

prl wrote: It's not normal. I never have any problems like that with the two WD MyBook drives I use with our Beyonwizes.

Thanks Peter. I didn't think it should be normal. The flash drives that I've been using and a 2.5" passport drive have all been recognised correctly (the 2.5" caused a crash when I tried to playback a DVD folder from it but that was expected).

Thanks for the update Bryan. I'm glad to hear that your new WD drive works well. I saw the 1.5TB on sale at DSE the other week and was very tempted.

prl · Post by **prl** » Fri Jun 04, 2010 18:42

ChrisD wrote:... the 2.5" caused a crash when I tried to playback a DVD folder from it but that was expected ....

That's not what I'd have expected. "Unsupported Format" when you tried to play it, but not a crash.

ChrisD wrote:I saw the 1.5TB on sale at DSE the other week and was very tempted.

You'd be on the bleeding edge there. I don't think that anyone's tried a 1.5TB drive on a Beyonwiz yet. I think that it's limited to 1TB, though perhaps two volumes each less than 1TB may go better.

ChrisD · Post by **ChrisD** » Sat Jun 05, 2010 13:59

prl wrote:That's not what I'd have expected. "Unsupported Format" when you tried to play it, but not a crash.

I came across that with the problematic 3.5" drive but not the 2.5". The 2.5" would not spin up off the front USB port but worked off the back one. When I tried to play the Video_TS folder it started playing but quickly began to stutter before freezing completely, locking out all user controls. I can't recall if it shutdown itself or if I held the power button but it didn't shutdown cleanly. The point that it failed was pretty much at maximum bitrate so I put it down to either the connection not keeping up or more likely the drive drawing too much current for the PSU. I tried the same folder using the powered 3.5" drive and it played back fine. I'm using the .301 firmware if that makes a difference.

Regarding the 1.5TB, Bryan (bjh955) said a few posts back that he's using one successfully so hopefully he can keep us updated as it starts to fill up more.

prl · Post by **prl** » Sat Jun 05, 2010 15:46

ChrisD wrote:...
Regarding the 1.5TB, Bryan (bjh955) said a few posts back that he's using one successfully so hopefully he can keep us updated as it starts to fill up more.

Sorry, I missed that one. Sounds good, then.

TurkeyTom · Post by **TurkeyTom** » Thu Jul 08, 2010 16:06

Had a bit of a look around and it seems the smallest WD My Book these days is 1TB. Makes it difficult if the BeyonWiz doesn't like them!

Anyway, looks like I will have to buy one and test it out.

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Experience with WD My Book essential 1TB and 2TB

Issues with WD Elemts 500MB USB hard drive

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