[SOLVED] Strange HDD speed problem

[ArtMorte]

I have a WD 1TB HDD (for games, Windows is on SSD). About a month ago its read speed tanked; I noticed that audio and especially visuals really struggled to load in my games. Apex Legends wouldn't get past the launch screen animation, GTA V was a mess with half the audio missing and all sorts of visuals taking 10+ seconds to render etc. Running diagnostics on the drive showed all clear.

Now here's the strange part: I solved this issue once already. The solution was simply to unplug from the motherboard and reconnect the SATA III pin while changing the power plug-in to another one of the same cable. No idea why it worked.
Today the same problem reoccurred. The same plugging out & back in - again with the power pin changed - didn't work.

Anyone have a clue what's going on?
Is it a cable or HDD problem? I'd hate to buy a new HDD only to discover the cable is faulty. Although I'm thinking it's highly unlikely the cable would be faulty.
How can the read speed tank, but still operate, get fixed, and tank again?

Cheers

 

[thepersonwithaface45]

I would look into 2.5" SSDs as a possible upgrade to your system, they save a lot of space.
A thing to look at though would be how old is your HDD? It might be on it's deathbed if it's pretty old/ used heavily.

 

[ArtMorte]

I would look into 2.5" SSDs as a possible upgrade to your system, they save a lot of space.
A thing to look at though would be how old is your HDD? It might be on it's deathbed if it's pretty old/ used heavily.

It is about 7-8 years old, I do expect it's kind of breaking down. I just find it really strange how the problem was once fixed for a month by simply reconnecting the cables. I'm quite curious to learn more about this particular problem, if anyone can explain it.

 

[thepersonwithaface45]

In my experience, 7-8 years is a pretty average life time of a HDD. As for the cables, it could be just physically nudging the HDD itself and it correcting itself for a short while, but the mechanical moving parts can be pretty fickle. Maybe someone else has a more helpful theory though!