Slow transfer from external drives???

I frequently am transfering .ISO files from one external drive to another, and the transfer speeds, of about 6.02MB/s, seem horribly slow to me. I am hoping someone can help me figure out what is wrong here, or if this is normal.

The drives are two WD My Passport SE 500gb portables. Both are supposed to be USB 2.0. I have multiple USB ports both front and rear on my machine. I have been using the front ports, as this is a HTPC, and the rear ports aren't as easy to reach. I did try moving one drive to a rear port today, and it made no difference though. I have USB 2.0, from what I have read on here. I don't know if all ports have 2.0, or not. Not sure how that works. Here is what Device Manager shows me:

-Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
-Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
-Standard OpenHCD USB Host Controller
-Standard OpenHCD USB Host Controller
-Standard OpenHCD USB Host Controller
-Standard OpenHCD USB Host Controller
-Standard OpenHCD USB Host Controller
-USB Composite Device
-USB Mass Storage Device
-USB Mass Storage Device

And seven -USB Root Hub

 

Windows 7, recently updated. Not sure what SP.

Custom build.

GIGABYTE GA-MA785G-UD3H
AMD phenom 9650 quad 2.3Ghz
2Gb OCZ PC2 8500 dual channel

Not sure on chipset drivers. Using avast antivirus

 

If all else fails, you could try removing the drives from their USB cases and go eSATA - either two separate enclosures or a hot-swap "toaster" style docking station.

If you have an open SATA port on the mobo, simply install an eSATA backplane in the case - some eSATA drive enclosures include both the backplane and eSATA cable or you can purchase them separately at sites such as Newegg. If you have to use the drives on other USB only PCs (like a notebook), buy an enclosure that has both USB and eSATA connections.

Based on theoretical (read: unrealistic) maximum transfer speeds, USB 2.0 is 480MBs; eSATA is 3GBs. In addition, there are usually fewer drivers involved in eSATA transfer equaling fewer places for a bottleneck to develop.

Hope this tip helps.