WD Easystore External Discussion

Had an old 2TB drive fail (HDS722020ALA330). It had 52,000 hours on it, so I guess I got my money's worth out of it, lol. At any rate, checked BB website, and they are back at $199.99 again. Bummer. Guess it will be another couple of weeks before it goes back down to $159.99 again. I got a $100 and a $40 gift card from the last batch I purchased, so hopefully they will go on sale again before they expire!
How'd you get a gift card for buying these drives?
 
I signed up for a BB credit card and I guess that is the reason. I normally get like a$5 or $10 gift card when picking up a 8TB drive, but I guess buying them on a BB CC give you a better reward? I plan to pay of the balance in full each month, so was a nice surprise bonus I wasn't expecting. I have until 4/14 to claim the rewards, so I'm sure they will go back on sale before then.
 
I signed up for a BB credit card and I guess that is the reason. I normally get like a$5 or $10 gift card when picking up a 8TB drive, but I guess buying them on a BB CC give you a better reward? I plan to pay of the balance in full each month, so was a nice surprise bonus I wasn't expecting. I have until 4/14 to claim the rewards, so I'm sure they will go back on sale before then.
Strangely they never send me any cards, despite having bought a bunch of these drives (though I don't have a CC with them...just a rewards zone account). Not sure what that's about
 
I bought a couple of these back in early september @$170 each and just tonight I shucked the drive and tried to install it in my PC. The PC will not boot up with the drive plugged in. The drive has a red label on it. Any idea what would make it cause the computer not to boot? I get past the bios screen but then thats it.

edit: I got it to boot by plugging the sata connector into a 2 port sata controller in a pcie-2x slot. Perhaps the old motherboard just can't support the drive? Seems strange but I have seen stranger things before I guess.
 
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Strangely they never send me any cards, despite having bought a bunch of these drives (though I don't have a CC with them...just a rewards zone account). Not sure what that's about
log into your reward zone account and see if you have any rewards. They have a time limit on them so they will expire.
 
log into your reward zone account and see if you have any rewards. They have a time limit on them so they will expire.
I'll call them this week. Apparently my online account is not the same as my rewards account (except for when I order on line). I still don't know why they didn't send me coupons in the mail. They have my address.
 
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I got two EFAX reds from the two I have shucked so far. Albuquerque NM best buy.
 
are you sure EZZX if yes that is not actually a red or he8 like the emaz... or efax or efzx drives

If memory serves ezzx was one of the first run of drives and are white label BLUE/GREENS. the Emaz is the one with the 3.3 volt reset feature and is a HE8 ultrastar hgst drive

EZZX = Blue/Green non Helium drive initial run circa 2015 june to feb 2016 High failure rating.
EFZX = Red label Made in China 128mb cache Feb 2016-nov 2016
EFAX = Red label PRO? HELIUM DRIVE Nov 2016-AUG 2017 256 MB cache Made in Thailand
EMAZ = Enterprise HGST Ultrastar HE8 256MB cache AUG 2017 - Has 3.3v reset feature enabled

Is the EMAZ confirmed?

I purchased two from Montebello, CA today. Made in Thailand, verified they're EMAZ... did I get the Enterprise HGST? Are the Enterprise HGST more rare and sough after vs the WD Red?
 

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Yes you did no they are not rare the ones highly desired are the wd red efax or the Thailand red efzx the least desired are the ezzx and Emaz and China made efzx

The least common are efzx not made in China.

The Emaz are not bad drives they are about as fast and equivilant to the efax drives but they have the 3.3v power disable reset feature turned on and that makes using them difficult as they require the 3.3v line to be removed or for the psu to support the feature. A Molex to sata adaptor will also work but some backplane and most consumer grade psu will trigger this feature causing the drive to not spin up.
 
Picked up another one of these drives today at the Best Buy in Lancaster, PA. It's a Red 256mb EFAX drive, made in Thailand, dated July 29th, 2017. Serial starts with 7SGRE.
 
I just picked 5 and 4 of them are white EMAZ, and one is RED. Those white ones won't power up with my Norco SS-400 HDD, but they are working fine with Supermicro hot swap
 
I just picked 5 and 4 of them are white EMAZ, and one is RED. Those white ones won't power up with my Norco SS-400 HDD, but they are working fine with Supermicro hot swap
3.3v reset mode is being triggered stupid feature that has no business being active in this use. you can fix by removing the 3.3v rail you may need to disassemble the dock it seems it has some sort of dc-dc converter inside you will need to cut the traces going to each drive bay for the 3.3v rail

Serial-ata-connector.gif
 
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3.3v reset mode is being triggered stupid feature that has no business being active in this use. you can fix by removing the 3.3v rail you may need to disassemble the dock it seems it has some sort of dc-dc converter inside you will need to cut the traces going to each drive bay for the 3.3v rail

View attachment 67541


I think I have to remove the third pin from the drives themself, can't do it with the dock.
 

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I think I have to remove the third pin from the drives themself, can't do it with the dock.
I can't look now, but I'm pretty sure someone posted about using a type of tape over the pins on the drives instead of disconnecting the wire. May be something you should search the thread for, or maybe it was at reddit I don't know. Unless you're planning on swapping drives around all the time, this may be a safer and less destructive way to address the issue.
 
I can't look now, but I'm pretty sure someone posted about using a type of tape over the pins on the drives instead of disconnecting the wire. May be something you should search the thread for, or maybe it was at reddit I don't know. Unless you're planning on swapping drives around all the time, this may be a safer and less destructive way to address the issue.
i have seen mods where the traces on the drive are cut like i posted in the pin out the 3 pins by the leg of the L need to be deleted doesn't really matter how or where. Conformal coating or tape or even prying up the fingers and removing them or cutting the traces...

Arryo can you post a pic of the other side of that board it is looking like the power rails are separated to each side of that pcb as all i see is a great big ground plane
 
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i have seen mods where the traces on the drive are cut like i posted in the pin out the 3 pins by the leg of the L need to be deleted doesn't really matter how or where. Conformal coating or tape or even prying up the fingers and removing them or cutting the traces...

Arryo can you post a pic of the other side of that board it is looking like the power rails are separated to each side of that pcb as all i see is a great big ground plane


here you go
 

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here you go
that does look exceptionally difficult you would need to desolder and remove 3 pins from the 4 connectors unless those 2 jumpers do anything related to power features.

However i have an idea take a sharp metal probe and lift the 1st 3 pins on the power side out of the guide and bend them back and forth to break them off deeper in the connector. It will solve the issue and 3.3v is not used for hdd anyway alternately it will involve removing each connector the bottom slot looked like it was connected via c18 maybe to fix that slot c18 being removed would do...
 
that does look exceptionally difficult you would need to desolder and remove 3 pins from the 4 connectors unless those 2 jumpers do anything related to power features.

However i have an idea take a sharp metal probe and lift the 1st 3 pins on the power side out of the guide and bend them back and forth to break them off deeper in the connector. It will solve the issue and 3.3v is not used for hdd anyway alternately it will involve removing each connector the bottom slot looked like it was connected via c18 maybe to fix that slot c18 being removed would do...

you mean this power cable?

https://goo.gl/images/YhLRUA

that box uses those 2 power cables
 
you mean this power cable?

https://goo.gl/images/YhLRUA

that box uses those 2 power cables
I'm sure Lunas will chime in, but that's the typical 4 pin peripheral connector, commonly called a molex connector. They supply only 12v and 5v, so obviously the circuitry on the board is delivering the 3.3v, so you can't just pull one of the cables out on those connectors. You are going to have to modify the board or the drives I think in order to use them together. Here's an album with photos and directions to the tape method I mentioned before https://imgur.com/r/DataHoarder/BFdmB
 
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you mean this power cable?

https://goo.gl/images/YhLRUA

that box uses those 2 power cables
Yes in typical case those cables would fix the issue but the dock itself has some power delivery and is for some odd reason is providing 3.3v

You will need to manually cut the 3.3v lines on the dock or drive or populate that dock with non Emaz drives.
 
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Hey, question.

I have two of these 8TB WD Red Externals.

Can I shuck them even after they are full of movies?

The last 5TB WD I cracked up was encrypted and had to save the guts to access the data. Which was a pain in the ass.

Thanks in advance
 
Hey, question.

I have two of these 8TB WD Red Externals.

Can I shuck them even after they are full of movies?

The last 5TB WD I cracked up was encrypted and had to save the guts to access the data. Which was a pain in the ass.

Thanks in advance
I have shucked 3 one was an Emaz none were encrypted
 
How is the speed on these drives? I am looking to put together my first NAS unit.

It seems like way too many issues with resets and custom cable/modifications, for me anyways.
 
A piece of tape works fine for the 3.3v mod FYI. I'm using a molex to sata now but used scotch tape trimmed with an exacto knife originally.

The only problem was the tape would come off eventually if you swap the drive frequently, you just need to trim a new piece.
 
Hey, question.

I have two of these 8TB WD Red Externals.

Can I shuck them even after they are full of movies?

The last 5TB WD I cracked up was encrypted and had to save the guts to access the data. Which was a pain in the ass.

Yes if it's an Easystore. Not if it's a My Book.
 
How is the speed on these drives? I am looking to put together my first NAS unit.

It seems like way too many issues with resets and custom cable/modifications, for me anyways.

Most HDDs will saturate most home networks for transfers. What you have to think about is file type, is it media? Or small often access files? If it's media etc you will never notice, and faster drives will not do anything to help as it's maxed out the network already. Another factor is user count and how many people will be accessing the drive at a single time, this can bottle net lots of drive, even fast ones outside of an SSD.
 
Most HDDs will saturate most home networks for transfers. What you have to think about is file type, is it media? Or small often access files? If it's media etc you will never notice, and faster drives will not do anything to help as it's maxed out the network already. Another factor is user count and how many people will be accessing the drive at a single time, this can bottle net lots of drive, even fast ones outside of an SSD.

GB Ethernet with a decent switch

Just me, myself, I.
 
tl;dr Which link to the OP is the one to get? They're both $150ish and some extra platter drives wouldn't be a bad thing.....
 
3.3v reset mode is being triggered stupid feature that has no business being active in this use. you can fix by removing the 3.3v rail you may need to disassemble the dock it seems it has some sort of dc-dc converter inside you will need to cut the traces going to each drive bay for the 3.3v rail

View attachment 67541

I can't look now, but I'm pretty sure someone posted about using a type of tape over the pins on the drives instead of disconnecting the wire. May be something you should search the thread for, or maybe it was at reddit I don't know. Unless you're planning on swapping drives around all the time, this may be a safer and less destructive way to address the issue.


On the SATA Power connector, cover pin 3 to block reset mode, or you can possibly cover all 3 3.3V pins to be sure to block voltage in case all 3 are tied together.

This guy used Fisherbrand tape, I recommend using Kapton tape if you can lay your hands on it.

Beats cutting into newly shucked hard drives, in case you want to be able to RMA them down the line.

Reddit Thread:
Imgur Album: https://imgur.com/a/BFdmB#RVp8xvn
 
On the SATA Power connector, cover pin 3 to block reset mode, or you can possibly cover all 3 3.3V pins to be sure to block voltage in case all 3 are tied together.

This guy used Fisherbrand tape, I recommend using Kapton tape if you can lay your hands on it.

Beats cutting into newly shucked hard drives, in case you want to be able to RMA them down the line.

Reddit Thread:
Imgur Album: https://imgur.com/a/BFdmB#RVp8xvn
it also beats modifying the backplane... and yes all 3.3v pins need to be isolated as they are tied together...
 
Crap. Just bought a Mybook 8TB on AMZ warehouse deals a few days ago but haven't opened. For shucking purposes, wonder if I'm better off returning and getting the Easystore.

Is one model of these externals more known for requiring 3.3v mod, or is it pretty much both ship with drives requiring it now?
 
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Crap. Just bought a Mybook 8TB on AMZ warehouse deals a few days ago but haven't opened. For shucking purposes, wonder if I'm better off returning and getting the Easystore.

Is one model of these externals more known for requiring 3.3v mod, or is it pretty much both ship with drives requiring it now?

They;re all the same at this point, basically a lottery.
 
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