2X80 raid 0 or 1x 200 HDD?

Soldato
Joined
12 Dec 2002
Posts
2,950
What would be the better choice for speed, I know the two 80's would have less space but would it make much diffrence for games etc... with a Raid 0 setup??

Also Which HDD manufacture should I use:

1. Seagate (I like there 5yr Waranty - but I have been told they are very slow is this true?)

2 Samsung (Apparently much faster and quieter and about a quid cheaper lol)

3 Another manufacture

Thanx for any help
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Dec 2004
Posts
6,568
Location
London/Kent
Well, it's tricky. (R)AID0 has no backup of data and if one drive dies, the whole lot is lost. In this sense, there is a lot more risk involved in RAID0. It is undoubtedly fast though will make a difference in map loading etc for games.

If you do go for RAID0, make sure you backup often.

About the choice of drive, Segates are the most reliable and come with the most warranty. They aren't the fastest drives but they are by no means slow. TBH, there is very little difference between any of the drives. We are talking milliseconds here, something which you cannot measure in real terms.

The fastest and best all-round drives are probably the Hitachi's. 7K80's are good - in fact, I'm buying 4 for a RAID0+1 very soon.
 
Soldato
OP
Joined
12 Dec 2002
Posts
2,950
So would you say the Hitachi's are the best choice then, what is the reliability like on these drives? I hope they have Improved since the IBM Deathstars :D
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Dec 2004
Posts
6,568
Location
London/Kent
MeEsH BaKkA said:
So would you say the Hitachi's are the best choice then, what is the reliability like on these drives? I hope they have Improved since the IBM Deathstars :D
Have a look at my poll :). They are indeed much better since the IBM Deathstars. They are one of the fastest drives, most feature rich and one of the only 3 brands I trust in WD, Seagate and Hitachi.
 
Soldato
Joined
14 Jul 2005
Posts
3,810
Location
Woking
Whatever your choice, if you get a 200GB single drive, then just a warning that my 200GB Seagate is VERY loud. My 36GB Raptor seems quiet compared to it. When it's reading/writing i can hear it from outside my bedroom with the door closed :eek: The 160GB Seagate i had before it was silent though so it may only be the 200GB ones that are noisy.

The current 200GB 7200.9 Seagate on OcUK may be quieter than mine as mine's a 7200.8 version so i can't comment on it. If it was me making the choice though, i would go for a 250GB drive which are supposed to be quieter, a bit faster and cost less.
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Dec 2004
Posts
6,568
Location
London/Kent
mark1 said:
Whatever your choice, if you get a 200GB single drive, then just a warning that my 200GB Seagate is VERY loud. My 36GB Raptor seems quiet compared to it. When it's reading/writing i can hear it from outside my bedroom with the door closed :eek: The 160GB Seagate i had before it was silent though so it may only be the 200GB ones that are noisy.

The current 200GB 7200.9 Seagate on OcUK may be quieter than mine as mine's a 7200.8 version so i can't comment on it. If it was me making the choice though, i would go for a 250GB drive which are supposed to be quieter, a bit faster and cost less.
Yeah my 250GB seagate is quiet.
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Dec 2004
Posts
6,568
Location
London/Kent
Foxor` said:
my 250gb maxtor is ******* Loud man i wish i never got it :mad:

awsome rig btw smids!!
Maxtor's always are.

And thank you, but there are some with much better rigs than mine - although I am tweaing at the moment. 2GB RAM etc.

The Seagate 250GB was renowned for having the new 133GB platters which only required 2 instead of the normal 4 which is why they are so quiet.
 
Last edited:
Soldato
Joined
14 Jul 2005
Posts
3,810
Location
Woking
smids said:
Maxtor's always are.

And thank you, but there are some with much better rigs than mine - although I am tweaing at the moment. 2GB RAM etc.

The Seagate 250GB was renowned for having the new 133GB platters which only required 2 instead of the normal 4 which is why they are so quiet.
It's a shame i found that out AFTER buying my 200GB :(

Oh well..........
 
Man of Honour
Joined
27 Sep 2004
Posts
25,821
Location
Glasgow
smids said:
Maxtor's always are.

Maybe I'm deaf but I'm using 3 Maxtors in my PC just now and they don't seem loud, when seeking they are audible but I haven't taken a single measure to try to quieten them down and I do sleep in the same room as my PC without it affecting me :)

For the original question I'd probably just go with the single larger drive as it is less hassle and you aren't relying on two drives to perform as one, also the chances are slim that you will notice any real performance difference other than while benchmarking or if you work with large files often.
 
Back
Top Bottom