HD/Optical Drv same/diff IDE channels

[ponzan]

(I did search the forum for this, didn't find the answer)

I have 2 IDE Hard Drives (HD) a CDR-W and a DVD-CD player on my system. What is the best way to connect them with the standard 2 IDE channels ?

Don't want to add another IDE controller, nor change motherboard.
My system is multiboot, Win98 for gaming, Win 2K everything else.

I've heard that you better have your HD in the 1st IDE ch, the second as a slave, and the optical drives on the 2nd IDE ch.

Having a HD and an optical drive as a slave in the same IDE ch may compromise the HD functioning. There is the different ATA specs and others things that matters here.

But having the optical player and recorder in the same IDE ch compromises your on the fly copies.

So, how is this really ?

What are your opinions about this issues?

 

[ponzan]

joripe super pal: I get your point in relation with copies and getting away of buffer underuns, and moving files from one drive to the other, but are you sure it doesn't hurts the Hard Drive performance with system-application operations, while say playing also a CD to listen music or other plausible everyday situations ?
Just say you are sure, or better explain why you think so and I'll learn something. Can't say I know that much myself. Thanks.

 

[ponzan]

Thanks joripe. That's an honest answer and I have to agree that at the end you'll have to try and stays with whatever suits you.

I've try to read about this searching the net, most people nowadays says that you can, but you don't want to, put a cd or dvd drive with a hard disk on the same IDE ch. Nobody says exactly why or how that may degrade the hard disk function.

any other opinions there?

 

[shadoe_phantom]

ya all depends on what you want to do with your burners.
For myself, I never do on the fly burning, so I have 2 HDD on same IDE cable (one set as master & other as slave), then the CDRW is set as Master & my DVD-ROM drive as slave. This works best for my uses, but again I do not like using on the fly so works for me.
If you use on the fly, then as joripe & others suggest (optical drives as slaves to each HDD).

 

[ponzan]

Thanks shadoe- phantom.

Me too don't care much for on the fly copies and that's the way I have my system up to now; 2 HD in the primary IDE, boot HD master. On 2nd IDE ch comes the CDR-RW master and DVD-CD player slave.

But we are always seeking for the best configuration, and trying to learn and understand better this sleazy toys computers are.

If someone has something else to say here, please do it, this is what it's all about

 

[ryan5262]

i got mine set up One hard drive on each Ide as master... and my dvd drive on the same ide as my Os drive and my righter on the second ide with another Hard drive .. and that alows me to copy on the fly or just make it a bit easer when copying stuff