Should I go SSD only?

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rustypixel

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I'm looking to put together a gaming rig that will be used strictly for gaming and as the plan stands I have a hybrid and an SSD planned but was thinking if I could/should go SSD only.
When I said strictly for gaming, I mean just that. No surfing, music, movies or anything else. Would it be better for me just to go SSD only? Also, would it be better to have separate SSDs for OS and games?

Thanks.
 
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dustinhunt78
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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I'm one of the biggest fans for SSD's. TRUST ME. LOL I will defend them til death. And while it may give you moderate better performance in gaming, the biggest benefit is faster boot times and faster data transfers. Having said that, I would still recommend getting a solid SSD like the Samsung 840 Pro and 840 EVO. SSD's are the future of computing.

Also, here is some good reading material on what you're wanting to know.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCgQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hardocp.com%2Farticle%2F2013%2F12%2F10%2Fhdd_vs_ssd_real_world_gaming_performance%2F&ei=XPgsU6TDH6e80gGVzYHQCw&usg=AFQjCNE1cn14-xfC38eQajuNDYIleeZNdw&bvm=bv.63556303,d.dmQ
 
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Robert Pankiw

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TL;DR: Have many games? Go HDD with SSD boot drive / most play games drive.
Money is no object / only play 1-2 games? Go SSD only.

Long version:
Depending on your budget, you'll want to remember, games take up a lot of room.
If I downloaded half of my steam library, I'd easily fill my hard drive (My HDD is pretty small). If you have the money to spend on a 512GB or 1TB SSD, then go for it, but that money would be more smartly allocated to a better graphics card, unless of course, you already have a top of the line GPU.

I tried an SSD in my laptop, but, being limited to SATA 2, I actually didn't notice a difference. (250GB Crucial M500 vs 7200RPM 2.5" HDD).

If you already can tell the difference between a system with and without, then get it. Otherwise, I'd reserve it for my boot drive and most played games.

You don't need multiple SSDs unless you want to go with a RAID 0 array to increase read / write speeds. You could instead simply partition a single SSD and the controller will do the rest of the work for you. Remember to leave some spare room to increase write speeds. A lot of websites will go into depth as to why that is the case, if you are wondering. I could link you some articles.
 
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dish_moose

dish_moose

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Depending on which games and how many you have, an SSD of at least 240 GB is needed. Some new games are 50 GB+. If you do play steam games, some of the ones you do not play as often could be stored on a mechanical drive. Steam games, for instance can just be copied from one drive to another when you need them.
-Bruce
 
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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The Samsung 840 EVO comes in a 960GB model. Granted it's 500 dollars, but it would get the job done. If you have a whole lot of games you can (as was suggested above) put your favorite ones on the SSD and place the rest on a fast HDD, such as the WD Black.
 
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rustypixel

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Thanks for the fast replies. I kind of chuckle when everyone talks about the amount of games they have. I last played games on a PC "back in the day" when I was a HUGE player of Unreal Tournament and Quake. That's all I played back then. I stopped playing in late 2001 and only recently (December 2013) started playing BF4. I am the type that will play/own no more than two games at any point. Right now BF4 is more than enough to keep me entertained and happy. Maybe later this year I'll get something else but I will never have a "library" of games like others here do.
I guess, then, it's safe to say that I can get away with a 128 GB for the OS (Windows 8.x) and a 250 GB for games?

Thanks again for the replies. Much appreciated.
 
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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128 and 256 for OS/Games will be no problem. IAfter you install the SSD, you will see your computer speed up like you never thought it could. The hybrid SSD's (even the "SSD part of the drive) doesn't even come close to a Samsung 840 EVO or 840 Pro. You will LOVE them.
 
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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128 and 256 for OS/Games will be no problem. IAfter you install the SSD, you will see your computer speed up like you never thought it could. The hybrid SSD's (even the "SSD part of the drive) doesn't even come close to a Samsung 840 EVO or 840 Pro. You will LOVE them.
 
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Alec Mowat

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A year ago, I had the same amount of games.

Now, thanks to Humble Bundle, I have about 140+ games. I've filled a 300GB array with mostly Steam games.

I would toss a 1 TB HDD in the system for storage, Windows + BF4 is going to bring you near 50 GB, that's almost half your disk space on a 128. If you get TitanFall at some point, you'll fill your drive.

You will end up with Disk Space issues in less than a year, with Windows Patching, Battlefield patching, your web browser, any proprietary software that needs to be installed.
 
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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Believe me when I say this: There is only one brand to consider when you want a high performance SSD. SAMSUNG. The 840 Evo and 840 Pro to be more specific. The 840 Evo is very quick indeed, but the 840 Pro is the king of all of them. If you doubt what I say, just use your web browser to look up some reviews on this. I had no idea at how effective that installation of a high performance SSD could make. It's CRAZY!
 
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Robert Pankiw

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840 Pro is second to last. I think you need to use your web browser.
In fact, the Evo (1TB) is faster than the Pro (512GB), but they both lose to SanDisk and Seagate.
 
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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Do a little research before you're so quick to judge. You are looking at ONE performance figure. Here is a FULL benchmark and comparison of the number one on your list (Sandisk Extreme II) and the Samsung 840 Pro. And if you were to judge by just one performance characteristic, judge by the most important factor of an SSD for gaming, which is the random speeds. The Samsung beats the SanDisk handily in this area, and has by far an overall better score..

http://ssd.userbenchmark.com/Compare/SanDisk-Extreme-II-240GB-vs-Samsung-840-Pro-256GB/1545vs1408

So do you want me to use my web browser some more?? Or perhaps you should use yours some more. Yeah.....it's like that. LOL And I don't usually get snippy, but when someone starts letting their slick mouth jump out ahead of what is clearly a lack of knowledge I kind of make an exception.
 
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Robert Pankiw

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I am not judging you, I am trying to help you to not be a blind fanboy of a single company. I don't think there is anything inherently wrong with being a fanboy, just being blind to what else exists is the issue I see.

According to Andrew Ku from Tom's, "Almost all of the operations [in loading a level from BF3] are sequential in nature, but the largest cluster consists of 128 KB chunks of information." Andrew says "72% of all operations are sequential".

I have other things to do today, if you want to keep discussing this in a civil manner, you can PM me. I'm sure the other people here will appreciate not getting spammed by either of us.

61923.png
 
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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You find me a FULL benchmark, not ONE particular stat that says that anything on your list is better performing than the Samsung 840 Pro and I will offer a formal apology, but I guarantee you that it won't happen. Anyone who knows anything about SSD's will agree that the 840 Pro is the best out there. To beat it, you have to go into the PCI-e SSD's, which go into the 1,000 dollar range and up. WAY up. There isn't a SATA SSD that can beat the 840 Pro in an overall comparison. You can waste your day trying to find one, but it won't happen.
 
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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You can keep pulling out charts which depict ONE aspect if you would like, but there are a LOT of areas where performance is graded. As I said, find an OVERALL review that places the 840 Pro out of 1st place and I will offer a former apology. But until then, I stand firm.
 
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rustypixel

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Such passion about SSDs! Thanks for the continued responses. The funny thing about all this is that I'm rather OCD about what this build will be for and what I will hold on it as far as amount of games. I can pretty much guarantee that I won't have more than two. Three absolutely tops. Now, seeing that I have yet to make any purchases I will probably be looking into two larger SSDs than what I posted earlier just to be a step a head. Although I have feeling that by the time I need upgrading the drives will be cheaper.
I've been poking around and it seems that there is nothing bad being said about the Samsung SSDs and those are more likely what I'll get. Not sure if I'll do Pro or not but it gives me something else to look into.
Thanks again for all the really good info on this thread. It's more than appreciated.
 
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dustinhunt78

dustinhunt78

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If you don't want or need to pay the extra for the pro, the 840 Evo is a VERY soldid drive, even notching out the Pro in some areas. No matter what you go with, I assure that you'll be happy with a Samsung SSD. I certainly am and can truthfully say that I have never ran into someone who dislikes them.

Good luck on your upgrade!
 
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