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JMicron Returns: The JMF667H Controller On Four Reference SSDs

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It's rare that we get the chance to test SSDs before they hit production. But after waltzing with Silicon Motion's SM2246EN platform last year, JMicron offered us a handful of reference drives with different types of flash, all driven by the new JMF667H.

How We Tested JMicron's Reference SSDs

Our consumer storage test bench is based on Intel's Z77 Platform Controller Hub paired with an Intel Core i5-2400 CPU. Intel's 6- and 7-series chipsets are virtually identical from a storage perspective. We're standardizing on older RST 10.6.1002 drivers for the foreseeable future.

Updates to the RST driver package occasionally result in subtle performance changes. They can also lead to some truly profound variance in scores and results as well, depending on the revision. Some versions flush writes more or less frequently. Others work better in RAID situations. Builds 11.2 and newer support TRIM in RAID as well. Regardless, results obtained with one revision may or may not be comparable to results obtained with another, so sticking with one version across all testing is mandatory.

Test System Specs

Power Testing LaptopLenovo T440s, 8 GB DDR3, Windows To Go 8.1, ULINK DevSlp Test Platform
ProcessorIntel Core i5-2400 (Sandy Bridge), 32 nm, 3.1 GHz, LGA 1155, 6 MB Shared L3, Turbo Boost Enabled
MotherboardGigabyte G1.Sniper M3
MemoryG.Skill Ripjaws 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR3-1866 @ DDR3-1333, 1.5 V
System DriveIntel S3500 480 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: 0306
Drive(s) Under Test128 GB JMicron JMF667H Test SSD L85C Flash, SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: 417a
Drive(s) Under Test256 GB JMicron JMF667H Test SSD L85A Flash, SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: 417a
Drive(s) Under Test128 GB JMicron JMF667H Test SSD A19 Flash, SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: 423a
Drive(s) Under Test256 GB JMicron JMF667H Test SSD A19 Flash, SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: 423a
Comparison DrivesTranscend SSD340 256 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: SVN235
Comparison DrivesPlextor M6e 256 GB M.2 PCIe x2, Firmware: 1.00
Plextor M6S 256 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: 1.00
Plextor M6M 256 GB mSATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: 1.00
Adata SP920 1024 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: MU01
Adata SP920 512GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: MU01
Adata SP920 256 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: MU01
Adata SP920 128 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: MU01
Crucial M550 1024 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: MU01
Crucial M550 512 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: MU01
Intel SSD 730 480 GB SATA 6 Gb/s, Firmware: L2010400
Samsung 840 EVO mSATA 120 GB, Firmware: EXT41B6Q
Samsung 840 EVO mSATA 250 GB, Firmware: EXT41B6Q
Samsung 840 EVO mSATA 500 GB, Firmware: EXT41B6Q
Samsung 840 EVO mSATA 1000 GB, Firmware: EXT41B6Q
SanDisk X210 256 GB, Firmware X210400
SanDisk X210 512 GB, Firmware X210400
Intel SSD 530 180 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: DC12
Intel SSD 520 180 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: 400i
Intel SSD 525 180 GB mSATA, Firmware: LLKi
SanDisk A110 256 GB M.2 PCIe x2, Firmware: A200100
Silicon Motion SM226EN 128 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: M0709A
Crucial M500 120 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: MU02
Crucial M500 240 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: MU02
Crucial M500 480 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: MU02
Crucial M500 960 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: MU02
Samsung 840 EVO 120 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: EXT0AB0Q
Samsung 840 EVO 240 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: EXT0AB0Q
Samsung 840 EVO 480 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: EXT0AB0Q
Samsung 840 EVO 1 TB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: EXT0AB0Q
SanDisk Ultra Plus 64 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: X211200
SanDisk Ultra Plus 128 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware X211200
SanDisk Ultra Plus 256 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware X211200
Samsung 840 Pro 256 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware DXM04B0Q
Samsung 840 Pro 128 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware DXM04B0Q
SanDisk Extreme II 120 GB, Firmware: R1311
SanDisk Extreme II 240 GB, Firmware: R1311
SanDisk Extreme II 480 GB, Firmware: R1311
Seagate 600 SSD 240 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: B660
Intel SSD 525 30 GB mSATA 6Gb/s, Firmware LLKi
Intel SSD 525 60 GB mSATA 6Gb/s, Firmware LLKi
Intel SSD 525 120 GB mSATA 6Gb/s, Firmware LLKi
Intel SSD 525 180 GB mSATA 6Gb/s, Firmware LLKi
Intel SSD 525 240 GB mSATA 6Gb/s, Firmware LLKi
Intel SSD 335 240 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: 335s
Intel SSD 510 250 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: PWG2
OCZ Vertex 3.20 240 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: 2.25
OCZ Vector 256 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: 2.0
Samsung 830 512 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: CXMO3B1Q
Crucial m4 256 GB SATA 6Gb/s Firmware: 000F
Plextor M5 Pro 256 GB SATA 6Gb/s Firmware: 1.02
Corsair Neutron GTX 240 GB SATA 6Gb/s, Firmware: M206
GraphicsMSI Cyclone GTX 460 1 GB
ChassisLian Li Pitstop T60
RAIDLSI 9266-8i PCIe x8, FastPath and CacheCade AFK
Power SupplySeasonic X-650, 650 W 80 PLUS Gold

System Software and Drivers

Operating SystemWindows 7 x64 Ultimate
APIDirectX 11
GraphicsNvidia 314.07
RST10.61002
IMEI7.1.21.1124
Generic AHCIMSAHCI.SYS

Benchmark Suite

ULINK DriveMaster 2012DM2012 v980, JEDEC 218A-based TRIM Test, Protocol Test Suite
Test Specific HardwareSAS/SATA Power Hub, DevSlp Platform
Tom's Hardware Storage Bench v1.0Intel iPeak Storage Toolkit 5.2.1, Tom's Storage Bench 1.0 Trace Recording
Iometer 1.1.0# Workers = 1, 4 KB Random: LBA=16 GB, varying QDs, 128 KB Sequential, 16 GB LBA Precondition, Exponential QD Scaling
PCMark 8PCMark 8 2.0.228, Storage Consistency Test
PCMark 7Secondary Storage Suite
Topics
SSD
Storage
9 Comments Comment from the forums
  • blackmagnum
    JMicron vs. Silicon Motion: Fight of the Underdogs - Coming next issue!
    Reply
  • Snipergod87
    Page 6: "For every 1 GB the host asked to be written, Mushkin's drive is forced to write 1.05 GB."

    Mushkin drive?, To much copy paste.
    Reply
  • koolkei
    guys. please take a look at this
    http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/6052/kingfast-c-drive-f8-series-240gb-ssd-review-cheapest-tested-240gb-drive-so-far/index.html

    that's an actual SSD using this controller, and the price is........ a little more than surprising...
    Reply
  • pjmelect
    I remember their USB to IDE SATA chip. It caused data corruption every 4 GB or so when transferring data via the IDE interface. I have always been wary of their products since then.
    Reply
  • tripleX
    "But we're not going to use theoretical corner cases (the sequential and random 4 KB benchmarks we just ran) to crown one configuration a winner and another a loser."

    A corner case is not sequential and random benchmarks. It is an engineering term that means, according to Wiki:

    A corner case (or pathological case) is a problem or situation that occurs only outside of normal operating parameters—specifically one that manifests itself when multiple environmental variables or conditions are simultaneously at extreme levels, even though each parameter is within the specified range for that parameter.
    Reply
  • g00ey
    JMicron has always made pretty shitty products so I won´'t buy any of these anytime soon...
    Reply
  • 2Be_or_Not2Be
    I, too, find it hard to want to purchase a drive from a manufacturer with such a lackluster history.

    One part of this article that also doesn't make sense: "Why four channels and not eight? Efficiency is one key motivator. Fewer channels facilitate a smaller ASIC, which can, in turn, be more power-friendly." Compare the size of the PCB to one like the Samsung 850 Pro. They aren't saving much in real estate (they are actually bigger than the Samsung boards), so it makes it hard to believe they're saving much in power here.
    Reply
  • biohazard918
    Jmicron returns: this time its personal!
    Reply
  • gsxrme
    No Mushkin Chronos!? Wa we don't want to make Samsungs butt hurt? Com'on Toms!
    Reply