HiWire

Happy Birthday!

It's a backup of a backup, so I thought I'd try it... so far, so good. Have you noticed any trends in drive failure? I've been checking into the Backblaze reports periodically just to get an idea of trends in the market. I've been buying Seagate Exos drives lately and they've been problem-free so far.

D'oh! I meant RAID 0, 8TB. I'll have to switch it to RAID 1 when I get bigger drives.

I looked into a similar question (but for 3.5" hard drives) and ended up with the OWC Mercury Elite Pro Dual about a year and a half ago: https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/MED3ER0GB/ I put two HGST 4TB drives in there and it has been working well ever since, connected 24/7 as a backup 8TB, RAID 1 volume via eSATA to a Synology NAS. SSDs can work in these devices but speed will be limited by the controller or interface. Using something modern like Thunderbolt 3 or USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 will ensure there is no I/O bottleneck.

There are some negative reviews of the Sabrent box, so it makes me a little suspicious (it is also listed as out of stock on their website). I'd definitely have a backup of the data and test the RAID array if I got one – it doesn't seem to have any software so it's really up to your built-in macOS drivers. Also, there are some complaints the fan is loud. Their product page links to a different product on Amazon, the non-RAID version (DS-4SSD instead of DS-4RSS). I'm going to surmise that the RAID variant was too problematic so they discontinued it and they are selling the simpler, cheaper variant for now – one of the Amazon comments mentions using Windows Storage Spaces to run software RAID, but I'm not sure I'd rely on it. TL;DR: There are a bunch of low-priced "RAID" devices with poor reviews online... they probably use the same cheap JMicron controllers and they don't have the performance or data integrity of real hardware RAID devices (which usually cost hundreds of dollars). I think I'd get this instead – run 2 large 2.5" 5TB drives in RAID 1 for a total of 5TB and use this fanless enclosure because I trust OWC more than the other manufacturers: https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/MEMDC2KIT/

This might do the trick – detachable fan: https://www.sabrent.com/product/DS-4RSS/usb-3-0-2-5-4-bay-raid-supporting-hard-drive-ssd-docking-station-with-fan/ You'd lose half the storage using RAID 10 vs RAID 1, but RAID 10 can be faster in some cases.

Would you consider M.2 SSDs instead of SATA? This QNAP thing seems over the top with a Thunderbolt 3/10Gb Ethernet adapter: https://www.qnap.com/en/product/tbs-453dx

I picked up a 500GB Samsung T7 (non-touch) SSD drive for super cheap last year... the 1TB and 2TB are probably not as inexpensive, but they are some of the best and they go on sale from time to time. It comes with a regular USB Type-A cable as well as a Type-C cable for newer computers. Ditto on Mojave supporting 32-bit apps. You should be able to install and run Mojave on the external SSD you purchase without a problem (I've got Big Sur running on mine).

I forgot I have a Schiit Fulla 2 lying around... I'll give it a go if a pair of Senn 8** ever come around, in the name of headphone science.

Can a pair of Sennheiser HD 800 S be driven well by an amp under $1,000? I've lost track of how current headphone amps stack up... would pairing it with a piece of Schiit Magni be... Heresy?

I think their Momentum brand was trying to gain access to mainstream consumers. They made decent inroads with reviewers, but the high prices of the products meant a lot of prospective shoppers were going for cheaper or more "innovative" (flavor of the month) products. I bought a pair of HD 599 SE to recapture the feel of my first Sennheiser headphones, the HD 320: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/sennheiser-hd-320.21653/ It's not a pair of HD 600 (-1), but it was about 1/4 the price and it's easy to drive with portable players. When I think of Sennheiser, I think of well-engineered, high quality, neutral headphones that are usually lightweight and open design. They're not fashion-driven products, emphasizing function over form. I also have a pair of HD1 In-Ear (wired) headphones that I use with my phone. Slightly U-shaped frequency response, but in a pleasant way. Sennheiser planned to rebrand them as Momentums but the product never came out and they're becoming more difficult to find as inventory dries up.

Happy Birthday!

I hope Sennheiser can make it... Koss is still around, despite a few minor problems: https://www.jsonline.com/story/money/business/2019/01/29/koss-corp-loses-again-sachdeva-embezzlement-lawsuit/2709791002/

Any speculation on potential partners? I, for one, welcome our new Googleheiser overlords.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday!

Yes, I thought they'd sell more equipment during the pandemic for online classrooms, meetings, Zoom, music recording/performances, etc. I wonder if more mass-market companies like Logitech and Sony are undercutting them in various categories – the rapid shift to wireless products in the last few years may have caught more traditional companies off-guard.

Wow, this explains why they never released a follow-up to the HD1 In-Ear headphones.

Jar of Flies – Alice in Chains Yes, it was heavily overplayed, but this EP is full of beautiful music. And of course: Return to Forever

That's the most metal thing ever, short of literally precipitating the apocalypse with your epic brutal chords.

So... no to Yes? Thanks for the link!

Happy Birthday!

The Leftovers More than a little contrived, melodramatic, nihilistic, preachy, and silly(!) – just my cup of tea. Some odd parallels with the pandemic situation, so somewhat prescient.

Dying to Say This to You – The Sounds

Carboot Soul – Nightmares On Wax It's been a few years since I last listened to this one... Eldorado – Electric Light Orchestra