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February 16, 2007
Using a Hitachi T7K500 320GB with a Mac Pro
A Review of the Hitachi T7K500 Model HDT725032VLA360 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
By Arthur Whalem
Hitachi is currently selling the T7K500 320GB SATA 3.0Gb/s hard drive model HDT725032VLA360. AMUG found it listed at Newegg.com and thought it might provide an interesting review. The Maxtor Maxline III 7V300F0 is a great performing SATA hard drive when mounted inside the Apple Mac Pro and we wanted to know how the Hitachi T7K500 320GB model HDT725032VLA360 might compare.
Features
The Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 SATA 3.5" hard drive comes with a three year warranty. It provides a SATA 3.0Gb/s interface and a 16MB cache. This 320GB hard drive formats to 297.69 GB when initialized with an Apple Mac Pro. Hitachi lists the average seek time of the T7K500 as 8.5ms. Native Command Queuing is provided along with thermal monitoring, fly height control and SMART command transport for improved error correction. The Hitachi T7K500 320GB utilizes two 160GB disk platters with four data heads. The real question is how does it perform with an Apple Mac Pro?
Performance
In this test, an Apple Mac Pro 2.66GHz running Mac OS X 10.4.8 was used with the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360. The firmware version of the Hitachi 320GB used in this review is V54OA52A. The hard drive was mounted internally in the Mac Pro. DiskTester 10GB read and write tests were performed using a run area test. DiskTester 2.0 measures the combined performance of the hard drive and the Mac OS X operating system. It is a Terminal application which requires using a command line executable. Using the command: ./disktester run-area-test --chunk-size 128M --test-size 10G --delta-percent 10 DriveName, puts DiskTester 2.0 to work testing how the hard drive will perform when empty, 10% full, 20% full and so on. For comparison, this same test was also completed with a Maxline III model 7V300F0 and a Seagate 320GB model 7200.10 with firmware version 3.AAE.Apple Mac Pro Internal SATA Hard Drive Test
 Seagate 7200.10 320 GB ST3320620AS |
| Area Full | write | read | write | read | write | read |
| empty | 59.5 | 47.7 | 65.9 | 68.4 | 45.6 | 73.7 |
| 10% | 59.3 | 45.2 | 65.1 | 67.1 | 45.1 | 72.5 |
| 20% | 58.9 | 47.9 | 63.3 | 64.9 | 44.9 | 71.8 |
| 30% | 59.1 | 45.5 | 61.6 | 62.7 | 43.8 | 69 |
| 40% | 58.8 | 46.5 | 59.3 | 60.6 | 42.6 | 66.4 |
| 50% | 57.9 | 42.3 | 57 | 57.9 | 41.5 | 63.7 |
| 60% | 57.6 | 40.7 | 55 | 55.3 | 40 | 60.1 |
| 70% | 54 | 40.3 | 51.5 | 51.2 | 37.8 | 55.5 |
| 80% | 48.1 | 34.6 | 48.6 | 48.4 | 35.5 | 50.6 |
| 90% | 42.2 | 32 | 44.6 | 44.3 | 32.5 | 44.6 |
| 100% | 36.9 | 29 | 40.5 | 40.3 | 29.2 | 38.9 |
| Average | 53.9 | 41.1 | 55.7 | 56.5 | 39.9 | 60.6 |
| Size | 297.69GB | 279.08GB | 297.69GB |
The data above indicates that the 7V300F0 provides the best over all performance in this particular test. While the Seagate 320GB model 7200.10 hard drive provides great read speed, the write speed is limited to approximately 46MB/sec when mounted as an individual hard drive on the Mac Pro internal SATA bus. Seagate has a fix for this issue for every 7200.10 model except the 320GB. The Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 hard drive has a read speed limitation when mounted on the Mac Pro SATA internal bus. During several tests, the Hitachi T7K500 was never able to exceed a read speed of 50MB/sec. or a write speed of 60MB/sec. while mounted on the internal SATA bus of the Apple Mac Pro.
Based on the results above, the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 performs slower than the 7V300F0 in this DiskTester sequential performance test. The Hitachi T7K500 provides poor read performance and limited write performance when installed on the internal Mac Pro SATA bus. This seems to indicate that a firmware issue may exist between the Hitachi T7K500 and the Apple Mac Pro.
In the next table, each hard drive was mounted using a Sonnet Tempo E4P and the same DiskTester performance test was run again with the Mac Pro 2.66 GHz computer. The Tempo E4P utilized the Mac Pro driver version 2.1 and was mounted in slot 4 while configured as an eight lane (8x) PCIe interface. The performance data in the table below demonstrates that the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 and the Seagate 320GB provide much better results when mounted on the Sonnet Tempo E4P SATA host adapter.Mac Pro External Tempo E4P SATA Hard Drive Test
 Seagate 7200.10 320 GB ST3320620AS |
| Area Full | write | read | write | read | write | read |
| empty | 72.7 | 73.2 | 69.2 | 69.6 | 73.2 | 73.7 |
| 10% | 70.6 | 70.9 | 67.9 | 67.9 | 72.2 | 72.5 |
| 20% | 70.5 | 70.9 | 65.6 | 65.5 | 71.6 | 71.8 |
| 30% | 69.8 | 70 | 63.7 | 63.6 | 68.8 | 69 |
| 40% | 66.7 | 67.1 | 61.2 | 61.2 | 66.1 | 66.3 |
| 50% | 62.9 | 63.2 | 58.7 | 58.7 | 63.4 | 63.6 |
| 60% | 58.8 | 59.1 | 56.2 | 56.2 | 59.8 | 60.1 |
| 70% | 54.3 | 54.6 | 52.1 | 52.1 | 55.1 | 55.5 |
| 80% | 48 | 48.2 | 48.9 | 49 | 50.3 | 50.6 |
| 90% | 42.1 | 42.3 | 44.8 | 44.9 | 44.4 | 44.6 |
| 100% | 36.8 | 36.9 | 40.6 | 40.8 | 38.6 | 38.9 |
| Average | 59.4 | 59.7 | 57.2 | 57.2 | 60.3 | 60.6 |
| Size | 297.69GB | 279.08GB | 297.69GB |
When mounted on the Sonnet Tempo E4P the Maxline III 7V300F0 provides the slowest DiskTester results until the hard drive is 80% full. At that point, the Hitachi T7K500 becomes the slowest performer of the three hard drives compared in this test.
I wanted to find out how a single Hitachi T7K500 would perform with three 7V300F0 hard drives in a four drive direct connect stripped RAID set. The DiskTester results are slightly different when the Hitachi T7K500 is used with the 7V300F0 hard drives instead of using four Maxline III 7V300F0 hard drives. However, the averages are the same and the performance difference is so small that it is hard to classify the T7K500 as slower with this combination.Mac Pro 4-Bay Tempo E4P Striped RAID Test
| Area Full | write | read | write | read |
| empty | 276 | 276 | 276 | 276 |
| 10% | 271 | 269 | 272 | 269 |
| 20% | 264 | 262 | 263 | 261 |
| 30% | 254 | 254 | 259 | 257 |
| 40% | 251 | 249 | 249 | 247 |
| 50% | 236 | 234 | 234 | 232 |
| 60% | 227 | 226 | 227 | 226 |
| 70% | 209 | 209 | 209 | 207 |
| 80% | 201 | 199 | 198 | 197 |
| 90% | 178 | 178 | 180 | 179 |
| 100% | 152 | 152 | 153 | 152 |
| Average | 229 | 228 | 229 | 228 |
| Size | 1.09TB | 1.09TB |
Staying with a single hard drive model when configuring striped RAID sets provides optimal performance. However, this substitution test allows us to see that the Hitachi T7K500 performs as fast as the Maxline III 7V300F0 through most of the test.
I was also interested in how the Hitachi T7K500 320GB would perform in a 5-bay SATA PM enclosure with four Maxline III 7V300F0 models. The results show that when configured as a SATA PM striped RAID set with four 7V300F0 hard drives the Hitachi T7K500 will slightly reduce the read performance while slightly increasing the write performance. These striped RAID set tests are simply for performance evaluation. In real world usage users should utilize the same hard disk models within a striped RAID set.Mac Pro 5-Bay SATA PM E4P Striped RAID Test
| Area Full | write | read | write | read |
| empty | 210 | 246 | 211 | 244 |
| 10% | 211 | 246 | 213 | 244 |
| 20% | 211 | 246 | 212 | 243 |
| 30% | 212 | 245 | 213 | 244 |
| 40% | 211 | 245 | 213 | 243 |
| 50% | 212 | 241 | 213 | 244 |
| 60% | 212 | 246 | 213 | 244 |
| 70% | 212 | 245 | 213 | 243 |
| 80% | 212 | 240 | 213 | 241 |
| 90% | 212 | 219 | 214 | 222 |
| 100% | 179 | 189 | 176 | 188 |
| Average | 209 | 237 | 209 | 236 |
| Size | 1.36TB | 1.36TB |
The bottom line is that the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 hard drive is a nice performer when mounted on a Sonnet Tempo E4P with an Apple Mac Pro. However, if you mount the Hitachi T7K500 on the internal Mac Pro SATA bus the performance deteriorates considerably. As the Seagate 320GB and the Hitachi T7K500 320GB both have performance issues with the internal Mac Pro SATA bus, it seems that the Mac Pro is fussy about which hard drives will perform well when mounted on the internal SATA bus.
Copy/Duplicate TestsIn this test, the HDT725032VLA360, 7V300F0 and the Seagate 320GB 7200.10 hard drives each contain the same 29.3 GB of data on them and they were each mounted as boot drives inside a Mac Pro 2.66 GHz with 3GB of memory running Mac OS X 10.4.8. A 4.25GB folder (containing two video files) was copied to and from a Seagate 250GB four drive striped RAID set (930GB). The copy time was recorded along with the time to repair permissions and duplicate the 4.25GB folder on each drive. Xbench and DiskTester readings of the hard drive performance and the overall computer performance were recorded.
| Mac Pro 2.66 GHz | HDT725032VLA360 | 7V300F0 | Seagate 320GB |
| Copy 4.25GB to RAID | 1:18 minutes | 1:04 minutes | 1:00 minutes |
| Copy 4.25GB from RAID | 1:14 minutes | 1:04 minutes | 1:36 minutes |
| Repair Permissions | 7 seconds | 7 seconds | 7 seconds |
| Duplicate 4.25GB | 2:19 minutes | 2:21 minutes | 2:37 minutes |
| Xbench 1.1.3 Disk/Overall | 67/162 | 116/187 | 54/149 |
| DiskTester 10GB Read/Write | 48.7/58.7 | 65.5/62.4 | 71.8/48.7 |
As you can see in the performance data above, the Maxline III 7V300F0 was a little faster than the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 in each test except the duplicate test. The Hitachi T7K500 is more than 15% slower than the Maxline III 7V300F0 when copying data to and from the striped RAID set. The slow read performance of the Hitachi T7K500 while mounted on the Mac Pro internal SATA bus impacts the results. The slow write performance of the Seagate 320GB model 7200.10 when mounted internally also impacts its performance results. The only hard drive in this test without a handicap is the Maxline III 7V300F0. As a result, it provides the best over all performance of the three hard drives tested when mounted on the Mac Pro internal SATA bus.
Random AccessIn this test, an Apple Mac Pro 2.66GHz running Mac OS X 10.4.8 was used with the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 to measure random access performance. QuickBench 3.0 was used to randomly read and write data across the hard disk. In order to obtain a value that users can duplicate each test was run with 100 cycles. This was done three different times for each test. The middle result was selected and reported in the chart below. As random performance results can fluctuate, I would factor in a margin of error of +/- 5% when comparing results in this table. This same test was also run with a Maxline III model 7V300F0 and a Seagate 320GB 7200.10 hard drive with firmware version 3.AAE for comparison.Apple Mac Pro Internal SATA QuickBench 3 Random Test
Seagate 7200.10 320GB ST3320620AS |
| Size | write | read | write | read | write | read |
| 64k | 94 | 54 | 108 | 64 | 101 | 25 |
| 128k | 114 | 91 | 118 | 61 | 126 | 36 |
| 256k | 127 | 51 | 90 | 92 | 140 | 33 |
| 512k | 132 | 59 | 60 | 57 | 140 | 49 |
| 1024 | 44 | 56 | 68 | 60 | 35 | 49 |
| Average | 102.2 | 62.2 | 88.8 | 66.8 | 108.4 | 38.4 |
| Size | 297.69GB | 279.08GB | 297.69GB |
The results above reflect that the Hitachi T7K500 provides good overall random access results.
The QuickBench 3.0 random read performance results for the Seagate 320GB 7200.10 are considerably lower than the Maxtor and Hitachi models but the average random write score is remarkably high.Now lets see how the same random access QuickBench 3 tests compare when using the Sonnet Tempo E4P SATA host adapter to mount the hard drives with the Apple Mac Pro.
Apple Mac Pro Ext. E4P SATA QuickBench 3 Random Test
Seagate 7200.10 320 GB ST3320620AS |
| Size | write | read | write | read | write | read |
| 64k | 108 | 38 | 106 | 52 | 97 | 16 |
| 128k | 124 | 26 | 116 | 62 | 127 | 20 |
| 256k | 129 | 31 | 85 | 84 | 142 | 34 |
| 512k | 129 | 45 | 59 | 54 | 134 | 47 |
| 1024 | 68 | 52 | 69 | 57 | 67 | 57 |
| Average | 111.6 | 38.4 | 87 | 61.8 | 113.4 | 34.8 |
| Size | 297.69GB | 279.08GB | 297.69GB |
While mounted externally with the Sonnet Tempo E4P, the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 provides very good random write performance.
Size, Power, Heat & Weight
The Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 formats to a size of 297.69 GB on a Macintosh. The Seagate 320GB 7200.10 model also provides a formatted volume size of 297.69 GB. The Maxtor 300GB Maxline III 7V300F0 formats to 279.16 GB. According to the Kill-a-Watt electricity usage monitor, the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 hard drive is the most energy efficient of the three hard drives. The Hitachi T7K500 draws significantly less power during the initial hard drive startup phase and also uses slightly less power while idle.
The heat test was completed while each hard drive was mounted in bay #1 of a Mac Pro 2.66 GHz. A second Seagate 320GB hard drive was mounted in bay #2. Each hard drive was rotated into bay #1 of the Mac Pro for this test and configured to copy data for 90 minutes. At the end of each test the temperature was displayed using Hardware Monitor 4.1 and recorded in Fahrenheit. The Seagate 320GB model 7200.10 hard drive created the most heat. The Maxline 7V300F0 and the Hitachi T7K500 both measured 116.6 degrees Fahrenheit at the end of the heat test. Mounting the Hitachi T7K500 hard drive in bay #2 of the Mac Pro will provide better cooling capability as that bay provides more air circulation. The ambient room temperature during these tests was 74 degrees Fahrenheit. The results are provided in the table below.
| Power Usage in Watts | HDT725032VLA360 | 7V300F0 | ST3320620AS |
| Startup | 21 | 26 | 30 watts |
| Idle | 7 | 8 | 8 watts |
| Copying | 11 | 12 | 11 watts |
| - | |||
| Heat Test - 90 min. Copy | 116.6 | 116.6 | 118.4F. MP Bay 1 |
| Weight in ounces | 20.8 | 21.8 | 20.8 ounces |
| Format Size in GB | 297.69 | 279.08 | 297.69 GB |
This article was designed to find out if the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 hard drive provides enhanced or similar performance levels compared to the Maxline III 300GB model 7V300F0. The 7V300F0 is a favorite for many Apple Mac Pro users as it provides great performance when mounted on the internal Apple Mac Pro SATA bus.The results of these tests indicate that the Maxline III 300GB model 7V300F0 provides faster sequential read and write performance than the Hitachi T7K500 when mounted internally in an Apple Mac Pro. However, when the Hitachi T7K500 is mounted on the Sonnet Tempo E4P, the Hitachi 320GB is able to out perform the Maxline III 7V300F0. If the Hitachi T7K500 firmware could be updated to work properly with the Apple Mac Pro internal SATA bus it would probably provide much better performance.
During these tests the Hitachi T7K500 model HDT725032VLA360 was very quiet. In fact, it was a little quieter than the Maxline III and the Seagate. Both of these hard drives are also quiet yet the Hitachi T7K500 seemed quieter. The energy efficiency and the cooling capability of the Hitachi T7K500 hard drive is exceptional. If the performance of the Hitachi T7K500 hard drive did not slow while mounted on the Mac Pro internal SATA bus it would be an interesting option for Mac Pro users.
Pros
Provides 297.69 GB of hard drive space.
Performs faster than Maxline III 7V300F0 when using E4P.
Slightly faster random access write performance than 7V300F0.
Provides high sequential performance with Sonnet Tempo E4P.
Two T7K500's in RAID-0 "fixes" Mac Pro SATA bus Read speed limit.
Includes a three year warranty.
Can be found on sale for less than $90.
Very quiet and energy efficient.
Cons
Needs Firmware update for full speed on the Mac Pro internal SATA bus.
49MB/sec. Read speed limitation on Mac Pro SATA internal bus.
60MB/sec. Write speed limitation on Mac Pro SATA internal bus.
Two T7K500's in RAID-0 on Mac Pro SATA bus still has Write speed limit.
The Seagate and Maxline III models provide a 5 year warranty.
Hitachi T7K500 gets 3 AMUGs out of 5!
Mac Pro users that are looking for a high performance 3.5" hard drive for use with a SATA host adapter will find the Hitachi T7K500 provides energy efficiency, good cooling characteristics and quiet acoustics. The T7K500 provides very good performance results when paired with a SATA host adapter. With that said, users should also know that the Hitachi T7K500 provides limited performance when mounted on the Apple Mac Pro internal SATA bus.
The current performance provided by the Hitachi T7K500 when connected to the Mac Pro internal SATA bus is slow in comparison to using it with a SATA host adapter. As a result, I cannot recommend the Hitachi T7K500 for internal Mac Pro usage. With the completion of this article, it is clear to me that the without a firmware update, I will not be using the Hitachi T7K500 on the internal Apple Mac Pro SATA bus.
Company Information:
Hitachi Global Storage Technologies
3403 Yerba Buena Road
San Jose, CA 95135 USA
Phone: 888-426-5214
http://www.hitachigst.com/
Copyright 2007
Arizona Macintosh Users Group, Inc.
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