Why would one of my HD's transfer data 3 times faster than another?

[soarwitheagles]

As long as its not powered on, go ahead and use a stick pin. I've done it before, and its fine.

To use compatibility mode (same as in every other MS OS):
Right click the shortcut > Properties > compatibility > place a checkmark in the box that says "Run in compatibility mode for X" and pick an OS from the dropdown.

Carn,

Thanks for the insights. I've heard of that compatibility mode since Windows Vista but I never could figure out how to use it. I'll try that stick pin in a moment. EDIT: Yeah, my wife gave me a safety pin and it worked perfect. Is anyone here sure that is a limiting jumper on the Maxtor?

Cache is all fine and good, but what are your RPMs? if its 5400 vs 7200 that might explain it... but that is a huge difference so several things might be at work here... do the hard drives all connect to the same controller?

House, thanks for your post. I believe all my HD's at the moment are the 7200 rpm'ers. I checked carefully before buying and made sure to stay away from the 5400's.

Thanks for your concern.

Soar