Which SSD is best for Intel Smart Response Technology?

[Aiid0z]

Hello,

Between now and the end of the year i will be buildings a PC and have decided on the z68 chipset. With this chipset comes the choice to use the new intel smart response technology, when an SSD is used for caching and the normal mechanical HDD for storage. I dont know which brand of SSD to choose, and i will only need a 64GB SSD maximum. This is my planned build:

- Asus P8Z68-V Pro
- Corsair H80
- Cooler Master HAF X
- i7 2600K
- Western Digital Caviar Black 2TB
- Corsair HX750
- Asus GTX 570 DCII
- G.Skill Ripjaws X 8GB 1600MHz



All help will be appreciated, thanks.

 

[vigilante212]

SSD caching only supports up to 40 gb drives, so you will lose the extra storage space. Also Running the SSD as your boot drive for your OS is still faster then Caching.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

If you are going to purchase a SATA 3 6Gb/s 64GB solid state drive, then Intel Smart Response Technology (ssd caching) is not necessary. According to Intel you would be better off and experience better performance if you installed Windows 7 and your software applications on the ssd instead of the hard disk drive. It makes more sense to to get the full benefit of the ssd instead of using it as a cache for a hard disk drive.

When Intel devloped SRT, they envisioned using a small 10GB to 20GB ssd as a cache for one hard disk drive. It was meant for individuals who could not afford a larger capacity ssd.

Starting mid-October and continuing through November a number of brand new ssd's will become available. It might be worth waiting a little bit to see how things play out.

 

[Aiid0z]

So it would be much better if i used the SSD as a boot drive and windows 7?

 

[JohnnyLucky]

Yes! Absolutely!

Windows 7 will use up somewhere around 21GB on the ssd. It depends on the configuration. That still leaves room for some software applications. If you are a gamer you could load one or two of your most favorite games. If you have more games store them on the hard drive. You can always swap the games.

 

[Aiid0z]

Best answer selected by Aiid0z.

 

[Aiid0z]

Thanks for the help really appreciate it.

 

[Aiid0z]

One more question, which brand of SSD do u recommend for a SATA 3 6GB/s and 64GB?

 

[JohnnyLucky]

Right now the Crucial M4 is very popular. Compared to some of the other brands it is relatively trouble free. The M4 did have a problem but Crucial issued a firmware update that not only fixed the problem but also improved performance:

http://thessdreview.com/latest-buzz/crucial-m4-ssd-firmware-update-0009-posted-tests-display-definite-performance-increase/

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

The Samsung 470 is a SATA 2 3Gb/s ssd with an excellent track record. Recently Samsung announced their brand new 830 SATA 3 6Gb/s ssd will be available about the middle of next month. If it is as stable and reliable as the 470, then it should do well. The problem is we'll need to wait a couple of months for a track record to be established.

http://thessdreview.com/our-reviews/samsung-pm830-256gb-sata-3-ssd-review-make-way-for-incredible-performance-lower-prices/

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4863/the-samsung-ssd-830-review

The third ssd is the Intel 510 but it is not really suited for gaming.

 

[Aiid0z]

I was just looking at the crucial m4 and it seems like a great SSD so until the Samsung 830 SSD comes out and reviews are out, i think this crucial one is the best choice.

Once again, thanks for the help.