Quality drive for under $150

[casualbuilder]

Hey guys, as i am just starting my research on this product, i would like some of you more "savvy" people to help. As stated in the thread, i am looking for a quality drive. Im not sure how to find the information on Asynchronous and Synchronous, but trust that people have found out which drives are such. I would prefer something in the realm of at least 60GB, since i will install windows7 64-bit, as well as a few of my most favorite games that i play most often. Any information would help, but please try to include the website link you found the product at so i can see all the info myself, or at least post price, manufacturer, and size of storage available.

Thank You!

 

[JohnnyLucky]

Is your computer a desktop pc, laptop, or notebook?

Is your motherboard SATA 2 3Gb/s or SATA 3 6Gb/s capable?

If your motherboard is not SATA 3 6Gb/s capable, are you planning on a motherboard upgrade in the near future?

Here is a link to one of many beginner guides to ssd's:

http://thessdreview.com/category/ssd-guides/beginners-guide/

 

[casualbuilder]

its desktop homebuilt, sata 3, windows7 64-bit.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

I went over to newegg.com and took a look at SATA 3 6Gb/s ssd's in your price range:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=100008120%20600038519%204017&IsNodeId=1&bop=And&Order=RATING&PageSize=20

The best bet would be the very popular Crucial M4 64GB ssd at the top of the list. At $114.99 it is below your budget of $150.00. It should be the new updated version with new firmware that actually improved performance.

Here is a link to a technical review of the new and improved version:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4712/the-crucial-m4-ssd-update-faster-with-fw0009

 

[casualbuilder]

ok, here is my last question. Would i get the same benefit of running RAID0 or RAID10 with 2-4 7200rpm hdd's?

I like the SSD for my OS, and again, the programs i run the most, as well as apps. I am wondering if it is worth taking up a slot for a much smaller SSD though, or if the gains would be minimal to running any of those 2 raid configurations.

 

[Chainzsaw]

You will not see the same benefit with a RAID0 setup with even 4 HDDs as with a single SSD. SSD's latency's are about 100-1000x's shorter than HDD's. Plus SSD's usually have a fast consistent speed - where's HDD's have a tendecy to slow down when transferring files to them.

The only benefit these days with a RAID0 or 10 setup would be the extra storage space.

Johnny's suggest for an SSD is a good choice.

 

[zaho0006]

RAID would give you higher read speeds than usual but you still wont get the random access times that are one of the SSD biggest benefits. Also I would never trust important storing data on a RAID 0 anyways, so the larger storage may not be as big of a benefit.

If you already have other storage I would suggest an SSD as a main drive, however if you need the space you could look into something like seagates momentus XT SSD/HDD hybrid drives. Never tried them personally but I've heard they feel like an SSD and you still get the extra space.

 

[casualbuilder]

never heard of them...huh. Ok, so data loss is of no real importance to me, as i can back up all of my "important" game save files onto a single 8GB USB drive. The main reason for this upgrade is speed. Increased Storage would be nice though, as i am looking to start a media library for movies. However, i have more than enough space for, i believe 5 drives, plus 2 hotswaps. So, with this in mind, would it be better to keep a smaller ssd, 30GB-60GB and run RAID10/RAID60? or, go with a much larger SSD, say a 80GB, spend some extra dough, and just run all my programs from that, and store all my media on a single (already purchased) 1.5TB HDD?

Ugh, the options!!!

 

[Chainzsaw]

Personally, I don't like RAID setups anymore, unless it is for pure back up purposes (RAID 5).

Since you are interested in speed - definately go with an SSD. It literally allows your progams to open in seconds rather than minutes (with certain programs of course).

 

[casualbuilder]

ok. Thank you guys!

 

[casualbuilder]

Next on this thread's "to do list"...which brands of SSD's do you recommend. Please include up to 160GB drives, as i will spend a little extra money now for this. TY!

 

[JohnnyLucky]

I see others have answered your question about ssd vs. RAID arrays while I was out to Lunch.

Among the SATA 3 6Gb/s 120/128GB ssd's the two best bets would probably be the Crucial M4 and the Intel 510. Both are relatively trouble free. Intel ssd's command a premium price so the M4 would probably be a better value, especially when it is on sale.

Currently newegg.com does not offer any SATA 3 6Gb/s 160/164 GB ssd's. I also checked the ssd database. Selection is limited due to a few problems and issues that popped up.

 

[casualbuilder]

This is what i've found, and i think i will settle on buying in a few weeks. Seems to fit the idea im looking for performance wise, and i think i can afford to strap a $230 SSD in my relatively high end system. Thanks for all the help guys, i will check on here periodically for updates until i buy, then i will close the thread.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148448

 

[Chainzsaw]

Good choice. Write speeds do not really matter on SSD's as most of the time you should be reading.

Make sure that your page file isn't located on your SSD - put your page file on your seperate HDD.

One more thing - once you get it, keep in my it's a good idea to keep at least 10-20% of your SSD free. It allows your SSD to last longer, even though most SSD's already have built in free space to compensate for bad flash cells.

 

[tcstech]

I would still go with the Crucial M4s. I can vouch for it as I dropped it into my Dell Inspiron Duo Netvertible and was able to get an insane speed boost.
Version I got was 64GB model and it cost 89.99 at buy.com with free shipping.

 

[casualbuilder]

What is a page file, and how do i locate it. I should keep this on my HDD?

 

[JohnnyLucky]

Page file is a Microsoft Windows feature:

http://blogs.technet.com/b/askperf/archive/2007/12/14/what-is-the-page-file-for-anyway.aspx

If you install Windows on the ssd, then the Windows page file feature is automatically installed on the ssd. With modern ssd's there is no need to move the page file to a hard drive. About the only thing you might want to do is check the "size" of the page file. The general consensus is that 1,000 is just about right.

 

[casualbuilder]

ok...wow, thats heavy. Ummm, so if i wanted to put it on my 1.5TB hdd, how would i do that?

 

[JohnnyLucky]

There is absolutely no requirement, benefit, or need to move the Windows page file.
Anyway, here ya go:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ssd-performance-tweak,2911.html

Windows Page File is on page 4 but I suggest you read the entire article.

 

[casualbuilder]

what do you guys think about this drive from ADATA:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211565

 

[JohnnyLucky]

It is okay for a SATA 2 3Gb/s ssd with a JMicron JMF612 controller. Price is below $1.00/Gb. However, it cannot compete with the new SATA 3 6Gb/s ssd's.

 

[casualbuilder]

umm, $1.00/GB? looks more like $1.79/GB. am i not doing that right?

 

[casualbuilder]

sorry, $1.40/GB

 

[JohnnyLucky]

sorry, $1.40/GB

aaaarrrrrgggggghhhhhh!!!!

With so many threads to respond to I got in a hurry and got the numbers mixed up. For some reason I was thinking $179.00 for 199GB