To SSD Or Not To SSD, That Is The Question

NomNom

NomNom

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I had a whole post about a page long explaining what I wanted to do, but mybb decided to log me in while doing so... :mad: so here's the condensed version:

Is this SSD any good for running my OS (Win 7) and 2 or 3 games one of them being Call of Duty Black Ops. Also why do SSD's use SATA 2, shouldn't they use SATA 3?

Product Page

I was under the impression that MLC SSD's are NOT for operating systems, and that SLC ones are the best in terms of installing your operating system on.

If that SDD isn't good enough for such things then I'm thinking of grabbing this: Product page

Any and all help is appreciated.
 
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So many people read way too many things on ssd. If you have the cash lying around get one.

MLC or SLC are awesome, just read and write that differs. If you just game and run windows then wait another or so pricing to come down, if you want a disgustingly fast pc get the ssd :D.

Nothing less than 128gb for games.
 
Yeah I like to make sure, then make double sure about something before going for it, I'm happy getting the 60GB one cause like I said I will only run my windows and 2 or 3 games off it, so the 60GB should be more than enough, so you say the SLC/MLC story really doesn't matter?
 
You don't need SLC...unless you run a server and need enterprise level gear. They offer long life and faster performance but at a hectic price premium...doesnt make sense for home use.

MLCs are perfectly fine...as long as you get a good one with trim support (most should nowadays).
 
I have 80gig intel g2 MLC ssd in my laptop and have no issues.

You really dont need slc for anything that isnt a server.

Most ssds don't need faster than sata2 speeds.
 
I am planning on getting a SSD myself.

Although I have wondered, is it possible to run it in RAID 1 with a standard SATA drive ? Or would it be too slow to keep up with the SSD?
 
HavocXphere said:
You don't need SLC...unless you run a server and need enterprise level gear. They offer long life and faster performance but at a hectic price premium...doesnt make sense for home use.

MLCs are perfectly fine...as long as you get a good one with trim support (most should nowadays).
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Qwikslver said:
I have 80gig intel g2 MLC ssd in my laptop and have no issues.

You really dont need slc for anything that isnt a server.

Most ssds don't need faster than sata2 speeds.
Click to expand...

Thanks guys so that's out of the window now, this SSD comes with the TRIM support, so I take it it's good?

Kuga said:
I am planning on getting a SSD myself.

Although I have wondered, is it possible to run it in RAID 1 with a standard SATA drive ? Or would it be too slow to keep up with the SSD?
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Afaik yes it is possible

How do I maintain the SSD? anyone here have a few tips for me?
 
I'll let you know how my MLC SSD is when I get it.... I'm sure its going to be pretty awesome, judging from what people have been saying, and the benchmarks...

I also thougth SLC was the way to go at first, (after reading reviews) but it's more than double the price of MLC.... Plus the current MLC's are faster than some of the older SLC's, so the only thing you should be worried about then is the lifetime of the MLC
 
Do you guys know if any new SSD are being released soon. I know Intel 310 SSD was released recently, but you can't seem to buy them.
 
My 2c worth:

I am also on the same path as NomNom...but I have this beast in mind for my workstation: http://www.ocztechnology.com/products/solid-state-drives/pci-express/revodrive.html

They seem to go for R3200 for the 120GB version...which I think ought to be sufficient for Win7x64 plus Adobe CS 5 Master Collection, MS Office.

My current 500GB drive is now down to 92GB used so 120GB x2 should work just fine methinks...anyone have any comments advice on this?

Hopefully this will help the OP as well...since I noticed the advertised size may not be 120GB due to the TRIM and caching etc.

Please correct me if I am wrong!
 
NomNom said:
this SSD comes with the TRIM support, so I take it it's good?
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Yes, its good. The early drives suffered from a pretty alarming crash in performance after a bit of use & if its almost full. Trim support (you need both hardware and OS support) fixes this...mostly.

Trim = a type of command

You need Win7 for trim to work. ;)

CriticalConsumer said:
My current 500GB drive is now down to 92GB used so 120GB x2 should work just fine methinks...anyone have any comments advice on this?
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Save yourself the 2nd drive and rather put the stuff you don't often need & isnt performance critical on a normal hdd.
 
For anyone considering a SSD now, I would recommend to hang on a bit longer.
The Sandforce 2 controllers (sf2000) are being tested as we speak, and should be launched in the coming month or two. This new controller is going the be the new bad boy on the block in terms of performance. Intel is another dark horse on the horizon working on their G3 SSD's... they are still very hush hush about their new SSD's being launched later this year.

If you are considering a Revo SSD, I would suggest you do thorough research on the matter, because its not your simple plug in, install, ready to rock and roll hardware. I have the Revo X2 and love it, but its not like any other SSD I have ever owned.
Your normal Revo's are pretty much 2 x SSD's running in raid 0, and your Revo X2's are 4 x SSD's slapped together in Raid 0.

Revo's, because they run in Raid 0... do not support TRIM. (The only manufacturer that managed to get TRIM working on raided SSD's are intel, but it will only be mainstream when the Intel G3's hit the market, and you need specific AHCI controllers on your MB)... The Revo's however support a feature called "garbage collection" which is similiar to trim, but not exactly as good. The REVO's have very strict hardware requirements and I would strongly suggest that you check on the OCZ forums if your motherboard is one of the "revo friendly" motherboards. EVGA, gigabyte and some other manufacturers are suffering from horrendous instability issues which requires a BIOS firmware update. If you get that baby installed, you will sit and wonder, why the hell did'nt you get a SSD ages ago. Its really that good.

As mentioned, get a old fashioned spinner for your movies / old data storage, and only keep your most important games / OS / applications on your SSD if you go for anything smaller than a 120 Gig.
 
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Well you can get an SSD now, just don't spend all your money! Intel and other manufacturers will be refreshing their lineup veruy soon with 25nm SSD's, which would have higher capacities.
 
I gave quite a few optimizations, which I've all done with my SSD, but I actually had to move my AppData too, which done of the guides described like I posted here.

I just wanted to move my AppData folders to a different drive so that I can easily format without losing some of my data/logs. Read the following article to do that: http://www.computerperformance.co.uk/windows7/windows7_appdata.htm
So it's not an optimization of the SSD drive, but rather the way you sort your stuff on your PC. Like I always move my My Documents to a secondary partition too.

The new Intel SSD's really look promising, but I'm not sure when they'll be available.
 
Pada said:
I gave quite a few optimizations, which I've all done with my SSD, but I actually had to move my AppData too, which done of the guides described like I posted here.

I just wanted to move my AppData folders to a different drive so that I can easily format without losing some of my data/logs. Read the following article to do that: http://www.computerperformance.co.uk/windows7/windows7_appdata.htm
So it's not an optimization of the SSD drive, but rather the way you sort your stuff on your PC. Like I always move my My Documents to a secondary partition too.

The new Intel SSD's really look promising, but I'm not sure when they'll be available.
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Thanks Pada for all your help, I'm going to put all these guides together and print them out, I want to do this the right way first time, I'm also going to do that ACHP thingy in my BIOS apparently it's a must for SSD performance? so I'm going to follow your main optimization guide on that other thread, the step above with the appdata and BIOS SATA setting change, anything else? oh also I'm going to first fully update the firmware on this SSD, OCZ seems to have a utility to do so, I was also recommended to look on the OCZ community forums, not sure if I should follow your guides or there's :confused:

Here's OCZ's guide: http://www.ocztechnologyforum.com/forum/content.php?306-SSD-ABC-Guide

and here's the firmware update thread, god I think I should rather ask the guys I'm getting the SSD from to do the firmware update: http://www.ocztechnologyforum.com/f...?252-Firmware-and-Other-Downloads-(Read-Only)
 
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I am running 2 x Intel 80GB SSD's in RAID 0....never looked back - 160GB and nice speed.

Started off with the 1 x 80GB, it definately makes a massive difference to the general responsiveness of your PC! I wouldnt think twice about getting one it if you have the extra cash lying around!
 
Thanks Pornolio!!

Excellent advice @ Revo's - will checkout the OCZ forums. I do think the REVO x2 is awesome - where did you purchase your from? What size and how much?

As for storage of data / multimedia etc thats taken care of by a 4TB self built NAS...so no worries there. All I want to achieve with the REVO is get Adobe CS5 Master suite to run better as well as Win7 x64. I don't do gaming...so no worries there.
 
CriticalConsumer said:
Thanks Pornolio!!

Excellent advice @ Revo's - will checkout the OCZ forums. I do think the REVO x2 is awesome - where did you purchase your from? What size and how much?

As for storage of data / multimedia etc thats taken care of by a 4TB self built NAS...so no worries there. All I want to achieve with the REVO is get Adobe CS5 Master suite to run better as well as Win7 x64. I don't do gaming...so no worries there.
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Woohoo! My Asus Crosshair II mobo is supported! Looks like you and I have some chatting to do @ Pornolio :p
 
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