Vertex 2 difference that E model makes? Which is better?

[Dougx1317]

I have two Vertex 2 60GB SSD's. They were in RAID 0, but they are now broken. OCZ is more than willing to replace them since they are under warranty, but they are trying to replace them with different models. My question is, which model is better? Should I be happy or sad about the change?

What I have: OCZSSD2-2VTXE60G

What I'm getting: OCZSSD2-2VTX60G


An article that explains these models, but is not clear on which one is better.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ocz-vertex-2-25nm-ssd,2867.html

 

[adampower]

The 'old' one had 34nm NAND. The new one will most likely employ 25nm NAND. Which is better? The 34nm. Do you have a choice? No. Should you be sad? Not really. RAID 'em and go.

 

[Dougx1317]

I already have the "E" version, but I'm having trouble figuring out if that is the 34nm or 25nm. I have read conflicting articles. If the E version is the 34nm, I can try to complain. I haven't sent them back yet, so it would be easy for them to ensure I get the same model I send in. I just want to make sure that the E version is what I want.

Can anyone confirm that the E version is the 34nm?

This review implies the opposite. If the Non-E version is 34nm, than I have nothing to complain about.
http://www.storagereview.com/ocz_vertex_2_25nm_review_oczssd22vtxe60g
"As indicated in the table, models with the "E" in the last half of the model number are those with 25nm flash... although that isn't what we found. "

 

[groberts101]

what firmware came shipped on the original drives? If you started out with 1.28 or later.. you have 25nm drives.

A few 1.28 shipped drives had 34nm and 1.27 or prior had 34nm. The bigger concernt there should be.. what "broke" them?

If you did not have 1.32 or later firmware updates running on the drives then you most likely panic locked them due to many known issues.

The replacement 25nm drives give up about 15% in the incompressible write speed if you had 34nm but are about the same speed with more easily compressible data(such as an OS volume would use). Also consider the possibility that you had drives running only half the normal channels and the replacement drives will be much faster despite having 25nm nand.

Read here to understand what you had and what you'll get in return.
(oops.. link goes here but the OCZ forum is down for maintenance right now so I'll have to come back and link it tomorrow for you).

 

[Dougx1317]

One of the drives won't even show up in the BIOS, and the other one has damaged sectors that won't even allow me to use it. I plugged the second one in long enough to see that it is 55.90GB and to see the OCZ ToolBox says it is 34nm. It sounds like that is what I will want to receive back, right?

As to why they broke, I'm not completely sure. They were running my OS in RAID 0, and I suddenly got the BSOD. I turned my computer on long enough to back up important files. Then it wouldn't even start. I deleted the RAID array and tried to reformat the drives, but they don't really work. The OCZ technician didn't really ask questions before he accepted the RMA.

Also consider the possibility that you had drives running only half the normal channels and the replacement drives will be much faster despite having 25nm nand.

What do you mean by half the normal channels?

 

[adampower]

The channel thing seems the opposite to me. My understanding is as follows:

34nm NAND - 4GBit dies
25nm NAND - 8GBit dies

60GB drive needs 8 dies for 34nm and only 4 for 25nm.

Therefore, a controller with 8 channels could be completely populated with 34nm NAND but only half so with 25nm NAND.

However, I'm not the expert here. I'm just a roaming forum weirdo trying to keep up so my next build can be great.

 

[Dougx1317]

I just talked to an OCZ rep. He said that I will be receiving the 25nm drives, but they will have the full size and performance due to their die size. Apparently the two are not related? I tried to argue with him, but he was convinced that I would be receiving drives that are 25nm with 55.9GB after formatting. We'll see if is true.

 

[popatim]

toms did a story on the 25 vs 34 nand flashs
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ocz-vertex-2-25nm-ssd,2867.html