OCZ Vector 256gb vs. Samsung 840 PRO 128gb

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auburn

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My new Samsung 840 PRO has been one huge disappointment. I find its advertised speed (530mbs read) is right-on, but hardly enough for me to feel any happier with it than I was with my old OCZ Vertex 3 (90gb), which felt way faster. Even with everything installed the right way, firmware up to date and a 4.4GHz OC in my i7 3770k, this drive feels frustratingly slow. So I'm looking into switching back to OCZ once again.

Question is, will the 256gb Vector surpass the 128gb 840 PRO?

The advertised speeds say so, but I keep finding benchmarks that show the Vector's speed way below its supposed tops. Can any ssd user ascertain the Vector lives up to its promised speeds of 550mb max read, 530mb max write and 100k IOPS random read and 95k IOPS random write?

Thanks in advance for your attention. I would hate to throw away any more money on ssds than I already have. :heink:
 
Solution
dgingeri
I can tell you for certain none of these drives live up to their specs. Remember, there are three types of lies: white lies, statistics, and marketing. This happens to be two at once: marketing statistics.

I have the Vertex 4, both 256GB and 128GB. I was just using them as an example. The Vector is a slightly updated and faster version of the Vertex 4, with the same type of flash memory.

With all SSDs, empty and a new file system, they will show the specs they are advertised with. However, when putting data on them, they do change characteristics. With the Vertex 4, it cruises at 535MB/s reads completely empty on an Intel 6Gb controller. On mine, where the OS resides, it transfers at about 330-350MB/s. Writes are slower...
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The Q6660 Inside

The Q6660 Inside

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The Vector should work wonders too. Make sure you have the current 840 Pro connected to a SATA3 cable and port.
 
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auburn

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It is! I have an ASRock z77 extreme4: the PRO is connected to the SATA_1 grey port. The Magician benchmark indicates it hits the 530mb read said to be its max speed. Even so the 840 PRO has been a big letdown so far, speed-wise. Especially when compared to my old Vertex 3, which puzzles me.

I just want to be 100% sure (or as close to it as possible) that the 256gb Vector will blow the smaller PRO out of the water before I go for it.
 
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The Q6660 Inside

The Q6660 Inside

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Well, if it hits the speed, it seems odd. I would disable AsMedia mode in the BIOS under storage configuration before you think it is bad, the Vector might too suffer from that.
 
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auburn

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Disabling AsMedia (it was set to AHCI) in the BIOS causes for my secondary HDD not to show up in my computer. Other than that I don't notice too much of a speed improvement.
 
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The Q6660 Inside

The Q6660 Inside

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Renable it, I am not sure the Vector will be a large improvement, perhaps it is your Port, try the other grey port.
 
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auburn

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Well, I changed my secondary HDD to a non-AsMedia port and detection went as it should. Now, running the rig with everything connected as it should be AND AsMedia disabled, I can say things feel considerably faster. So thank you so much for the suggestion! It's good to see there's still room for improvement, even if the 840 PRO still feels slower than my previous Vertex 3.

Not sure what to do about the Vector. Advertised speeds seem way above the 840 PRO 128gb. I'd really love to hear it from some Vector users if the deal lives up to those advertised specs or that's just OCZ bluffing.
 
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g-unit1111

g-unit1111

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I have a Vertex 4 which is based on the same controller as the Vector and it's a great drive, I don't really know any specific read - write times based on the 840 Pro because I don't own one, but I would definitely recommend it.
 
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dgingeri

dgingeri

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You're probably running into the caveat of getting the smaller capacity version: fewer flash channels. Reads will be as fast as the bigger capacity drives, but writes will be considerably slower. A 256GB version will be considerably faster, no matter which you get. the Samsung 840 Pro everyone is raving about is the 256GB version, which uses all 8 channels, while the 128GB version only uses 4. I figured this out in the Vertex 4 days. I have both the 128GB and the 256GB versions, and the 256GB is noticeably faster, although not to the degree of the 840 Pro.
 
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auburn

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You have both 128 and 256gb Vertex 4 drives, you mean? Or Vector? Because I'm aiming for the Vector, which is advertised at 550mb/s max read. That should be higher than the 840 PRO 256gb 540mb. If you're talking about the Vector then I guess it doesn't live up to its specs, just as I feared.

I figured the larger drive would be an improvement. Thanks a lot for confirming that and pointing out the reason why. :)
 
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dgingeri

dgingeri

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I can tell you for certain none of these drives live up to their specs. Remember, there are three types of lies: white lies, statistics, and marketing. This happens to be two at once: marketing statistics.

I have the Vertex 4, both 256GB and 128GB. I was just using them as an example. The Vector is a slightly updated and faster version of the Vertex 4, with the same type of flash memory.

With all SSDs, empty and a new file system, they will show the specs they are advertised with. However, when putting data on them, they do change characteristics. With the Vertex 4, it cruises at 535MB/s reads completely empty on an Intel 6Gb controller. On mine, where the OS resides, it transfers at about 330-350MB/s. Writes are slower, always. Here's Sansung's site links for the two versions of the 840 we're talking about:

256GB - http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/memory-storage/MZ-7PD256BW (Notice Read speed shows 540MB/s while writes show 520MB/s)

128GB - http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/memory-storage/MZ-7PD128BW (Notice Read speed shows 530MB/s while writes show 390MB/s)

The 128GB version is quite a bit slower, as I said.

Now, OCZ's number are going to be specced out differently than Samsung's numbers.

http://ocz.com/consumer/vector-7mm-sata-3-ssd/specifications

They show the 128GB version with very similar numbers as the Samsung 840 Pro, along with similar numbers on the 256GB models of each.

The "painfully slow" number you're experiencing are likely a result of slower writes than your older Vertex 3. The 90GB Vertex 3 used 6 flash channels, giving it slightly better write speeds than the 128GB 840 Pro. A 256GB model, either the Samsung 840 Pro or the Vector, will give you about the same performance overall.

Above all that, a caching SATA/RAID controller, like an LSI 9271 or a Dell H710, would probably give you far better performance improvement than anything. However, that would cost you some serious money.
 
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auburn

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Quite frankly, just as long as I can get the same wonderful performance my Vertex 3 provided I'll be a happy camper. Then, if it isn't too much to ask of a newer drive, perhaps a small improvement in performance. But the former is truly all I aim for.


I just can't thank you enough for this. FINALLY someone provides me with a logical explanation as to why the newer 840 PRO delivers worse than my Vertex. So (just to be ridiculously 100% sure) you're telling me in either 256gb model the 6 flash channels will be enabled and so work just as well as the Vertex used to, correct?

Then I guess it's back to the much pondered question of which is the fastest ssd, the Vector 256gb or the 840 PRO 256gb. Any input on the matter? At the moment speed is my #1 priority.
 
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dgingeri

dgingeri

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With a 256GB model, you'll have 8 channels. It will be faster than the Vertex 3, but not by that much. You'll definitely notice it, but it won't be groundbreaking.

Both the Vector and the 840 Pro are at the top of the performance list, swapping places depending on which benchmark you run. I doubt you'd be able to tell which one a system has. They're right about equal. The Samsung is $20-25 cheaper.
 
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auburn

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Well, I guess that question is fodder for another topic. For the time being I'm very glad to learn a switch to a 256gb model SHOULD make a difference. Plus, thanks to your information I finally know why the 128gb PRO isn't living up to my expectations. Thanks a million times over. You've been incredibly helpful. :)
 
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