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  1. #1
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    * Raptor or SATAII + Raid-0 for home pc?

    Hello,

    Ok, I've been searching google but everyone has different opinions.

    I'm trying to build a new home pc, not a server. I want a fast HDD setup. By fast, I mean fast loading for applications, fast boot time etc. I'm not really interested in copying DVD files everyday.

    I guess I'm interested in access time of the drives. 4 ms, 8 ms etc. But throughoutput is also important for boot times, right? What about windows? What about antivirus scan times? Programs freezing due to I/O overhead?

    I'll also get a data storage disk, a 500 GB one. That's not open to negotiation. I'm only searching for OS disk, which will make my pc faster I hope.

    So I have a few options. These are the possible configurations I can buy from my local store. I'm not in US, so we don't have everything here.

    Option 1: WD Raptor 74 GB, $185
    Option 2: WD 160 GB SATAII x RAID-0, $52x2 = $104

    So, which one is better for OS bootup, program load times, antivirus scan times etc? Sorry, I have no option of raid-0 of raptor drives. Too costly. No SCSI either.

    I'm still open to suggestions, which does not include buying a raid card. I'll have to use on board raid if necessary.

    Extra info: I'm getting a Q9300 processor with 4 GB ram.

    Thank you!
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  2. #2
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    What is the model number of the drives in Option 2?
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  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Harzem View Post
    Option 1: WD Raptor 74 GB, $185
    Option 2: WD 160 GB SATAII x RAID-0, $52x2 = $104
    I'm going to say it won't matter.

    I have an amd 6400 with 4 gb of ram... heck, it is so fast that I never wait on anything.

    The processor you are talking about is just as fast, or maybe faster (depends on which fanboy you ask amd or intel).

    I'd more than likely go with the raptor if my money was burning a hole in my pocket. I don't care for raid on consumer boxes... I've never great success over the long run with that setup. Of course that was many years ago, I'm sure things are much better now.

    But for speed, I'm not sure it will help. I can't imagine my computer being much faster than it is and it has a regular 320 gb hd running at 7200. It is amazing...
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  4. #4
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    i'd get 4 raptors and raid10 that mother.

  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by ub3r View Post
    i'd get 4 raptors and raid10 that mother.
    then I'll get a 100 mbit connection hooked up to this box.
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  6. #6
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    If your data is not valued, go with 2x 160GB RAID0 setup. It would be faster than a single 74GB 10k raptor.
    Anyway, I would recommend this setup: install the OS on 36GB 10k Raptor and use the second drive to store your data.
    If you're interested in access time of the drives, then use SSD drive. You will enjoy with 0 ms access time and unbelievable price!
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  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by ub3r View Post
    i'd get 4 raptors and raid10 that mother.
    As I already said, even raid-1 of 2 raptors is too costly, unless someone suddenly decides to buy my 3 templates in my portfolio in the same day

    Quote Originally Posted by VINAX View Post
    If your data is not valued, go with 2x 160GB RAID0 setup. It would be faster than a single 74GB 10k raptor.
    Anyway, I would recommend this setup: install the OS on 36GB 10k Raptor and use the second drive to store your data.
    If you're interested in access time of the drives, then use SSD drive. You will enjoy with 0 ms access time and unbelievable price!
    I'd love to get a 36 GB raptor but the smallest one I could find here is 74 GB

    The data is not valued. It's the operating system, and I don't store valuable data on C: drive. I can format C: anytime and lose nothing.

    Quote Originally Posted by Mike V View Post
    What is the model number of the drives in Option 2?
    I don't know, the online store doesn't list. All I know:
    160GB 8MB SATA2 7200RPM NCQ HARDDISK
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  8. #8
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    Simply try to buy a new hard drive with 10000 rpm... its available on WD site....

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Harzem View Post
    The data is not valued. It's the operating system, and I don't store valuable data on C: drive. I can format C: anytime and lose nothing.
    So go with RAID0 setup. It will give you very good reading speeds.
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  10. #10
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    Raptors are overhyped nowerdays. Several years ago I would reccomend them, I would only reccomend the 150GB Raptor X's now.

    Without looking at the specs in terms of access times, modern drives are as fast or even faster than the 36GB Raptor, and equal to the 74GB. The difference you will see is very minimal.

    I have a 500GB WD Caviar SE drive in my PC with 4GB Ram and a Core 2 Duo E6400. I do a lot of mucking about in VMWare and without RAID or a Raptor I get no IO slowdown whatsoever.

    If your getting a Raptor purley for the boot speed factor, scrap mechanical drives and get a SSD.

  11. #11
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    SSD is way too costly for me for now.

    I think I'll go with a Raid-0 250x2 GB SATA2 with 16 MB cache each. Should be fast enough for the operating system

    Thank you all for your responses. They've been very helpful for deciding.
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  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Harzem View Post
    SSD is way too costly for me for now.

    I think I'll go with a Raid-0 250x2 GB SATA2 with 16 MB cache each. Should be fast enough for the operating system

    Thank you all for your responses. They've been very helpful for deciding.
    I would avoid the raid-0. Sure it improves disk i/o but at a substantial cost/risk factor. With raid-0 you double the probability that a drive will fail and with raid-0 a single disk failure will yield an unbootable system and complete data loss.
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  13. #13
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    I'm not afraid of data loss, as I said, I can format C anytime and I only lose 6 hours of firefox ect application installation.

    And I'm running my current PC on a 80GB IDE drive for the last 5 years without a single disk error. New SATA2 drives shouldn't be that bad after all.
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  14. #14
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    Setting up a raid 0 is kind of like investing a stock. You know it's going to fail one day, it's just a matter of when it'll fail, and how frequently it'll fail after that.

    If you do go with this, make sure to stress test those drives before setting up the raid. I'd recommend you boot rescue mode linux, create a single partition, and use 'dd' to fill it up to 50gb, and check 'dmesg' to see if you notice any errors. Also, run an extended smart test on both drives.

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