I'm looking to buy a new, fast disk. Capacity is secondary as I don't need that much storage space.
I was thinking of something in the 100-150 USD price range. I'm currently thinking about buying Seagate 500GB 7200 32MB SV35.

What would be your advice?

I think you are way off. I suggest a 10k Western Digital Raptor. If you want to wait a few weeeks, get the Velociraptor. I've got a 15k Seagate SAS drive in my computer at work (QX6700 @2.66ghz) and a 10k Raptor in my computer at home (Q6700 @3.33ghz) and for what I do mainly which is compile C++ code (around 4 million lines) my computer at home builds the project in less time despite the slightly slower drive. What I can tell you is that when I use a 7200RPM drive, it takes noticeably longer.

I've been wondering if it's worth it. Where would I be able to notice the increased speed, actually?

What's the difference between Raptor and Raptor X, by the way?

Raptor X has a clear case so you can actually see the drive.

Rapter looks like your regular run in the mill drive. That's it.

Wow, what a waste of money.

Still, I'm interested in the boost the raptor provides. I assume it affects system loading times and such...but are there any other benefits? In gaming, for an instance?

Faster loading times and saving times. They are good for boot drives.

Yep, fast OS loads, fast file copies (R/W rates) and if you are using it for anything photo/video/code compiling/audio conversion or sampling...great drive. Small capacity, yes, but those wanting one usually understand the compromise.

The next best thing in a single drive is SCSI in most cases, although there are a few 7200rpm drives that compete with the Raptors in different benchmarks. A cheaper 'non-Raptor' solution is 2 larger 7200rpm SATA drives in RAID 0.

So you'd say it's worth it?
I still have my old ATA hdd, but I'd consider buying the 74GB Raptor if it was...

I have a 74gb Raptor and have never filled it. But, at the same time, I usually only load a few apps and just 4-5 games. Going from ATA to a Raptor will be a huge difference. Its just always arguable how much difference a Raptor makes vs an ordinary 7200rpm 16/32mb cache drive with a lot more storage space.

As far as gaming performance, eh, you won't see any benefit in-game, you might be able to load them a little faster (especially if you have ISOs and load them HD-to-HD) and you might load maps, etc a little fast.

The money could be better spent on more RAM or a better CPU/GPU than a Raptor if you are doing an upgrade and see more performance benefits. But, they are fast for what you need them for and when you need them. The question you need to answer yourself is: how much benefit is 1-2 seconds of wait to me?

Well, yeah - I'm exceeding my budget as it is. But the disk will be the only part of my new computer which isn't getting an upgrade. So that's why I'm still undecided...

My advice:

Get a bigger sized 7200rpm SATA drive (16-32mb cache) for less, spend the money you would've used for the Raptor to bump up something else.

I think you would see better performance from upgraded CPU/GPU/RAM vs. a Raptor, since they directly impact gaming, etc, whereas the Raptor only impacts load times and by only a second or 2.

Fair enough.

But which disk should I pick then? That Seagate 500GB 7200 32MB SV35 I first mentioned perhaps?

I thought the newer high aureal density drives (like the WD 640GB AAKS) out-perform the older 36/74/150GB raptors on everything but access time? Take a look at some benchmarks and reviews before you go with an old tech raptor.

The newer 300GB Velociraptor is another story though. It's the new performance king but will be beyond your $100-150 budget.

That was my own argument; that the newer 7200rpm drives often perform just as well in many benchmarks as the raptors, so its harder to justify them now.

I will agree with that...plus 2.5" form size with a special disk cooler for mounting in 3.5" bays. Neato.

So which disk would you recommend to me, rubix?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 822148288R

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822148309

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822136076

I would say anything along these lines will get you good price/performance. If you drop in drive size, your cost will drop as well. Honestly, if you are getting SATA, make sure its at least a 16mb cache and you will be fine. Perpendicular technology is nice.

Tom's has benchmark comparisons for hard drives as well, if you want to see how drives stack up in different tests.

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts [...] n,674.html

If you're looking for improvements in games don't expect much from a new hard drive. Your framerate isn't going to get any higher.

For non-raptor drive, the WD 640gb drive is pretty speedy.

Yeah, but he doesn't want to continue to use his old ATA drive with new hardware, either. HD won't help in-game, but most SATA drives will work well for anyone not wanting to drop money on a raptor.

How about SATA II Seagate400GB 7200 16MB ES with perpendicular writing?

I am using this HDD in one of my PC's
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822148309
It is Fast and quiet. Seek and Write faster than 150 raptor. Check it out
for your self.

That disk looks nice, rsetter1 !
Are there models as fast as this with larger capacity, though?