SSD "which controller?" list - Page 13

rdamage · 1st March 2012, 3:57 PM

Any brand or size SSD that you can buy locally you can get on Amazon. Crucial M4 128gb just happens to be a very decent SSD at the best value price right now and considerably cheaper on Amazon than anywhere else.

The only issue buying a Crucial or any SSD on Amazon is a slightly delayed delivery, about 10 days in my experience and possibly a little more difficulty for warranty if needed.

You probably save around $40 including freight sourcing the M4 on Amazon vs local like PCCG.

gregpolk · 1st March 2012, 4:02 PM

So it should perform better than anything you could get locally at that price, so if I'm happy with the wait it's probably the best bet? Any other good drives that would be even cheaper that I should check out on Amazon?

There seem to be a rather ridiculous number of different drives, even from a single brand like OCZ.

aznpsuazn · 1st March 2012, 4:10 PM

Paid for mine 14th, arrived 29th (Yesterday). Live in Sydney.

rdamage · 1st March 2012, 4:11 PM

There is no definitive answer with SSD's, it can be a mindfield. New brands & models are constantly coming out, firmware revision fixing bugs, some SSD's more compatible with various hardware, some SSD controllers perform better in certain tasks etc.

The thing with the Crucial M4, at least compared to other brands and controllers, is that for most of us it is a rock solid performer and to date has had the least amount of issues. I wouldn't buy an SSD regardless of price, (except in an immanent natural disaster price hike), until you are actually ready to utilize it.

m3k · 1st March 2012, 4:19 PM

the intel 520 series arn't too much more expensive, and it performs drastically better than the competition and holds sustained writes and reads, doesn't just burst data temporarily to hit big numbers for advertising.

rdamage · 1st March 2012, 4:26 PM

There is still an element of unknown (reliability) with the Intel 520, it is a Sandforce based SSD after all.

BigBADBenny · 2nd March 2012, 9:53 AM

Crucial is a good bet reliability-wise.
Find the best price, install all the firmware updates and you're good to go!
http://preview.tinyurl.com/85p7j6s
And of course check out dealer websites for specials...

BigBADBenny · 2nd March 2012, 10:05 AM

This just in from OWC:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/7pkevej
If you need the SATA III speed AND reliability OWC's custom Sandforce 2000 SSD's are the best, backed by a great guarantee and warranty.

I use these AND the Crucials

OWC 6G 240GB as boot/apps in Mac Pro
Crucial M4 64GB X4 in Angelbird Wings PCIe RAID0 card (800/400 R/W)
Crucial M4 256GB MacBook Pro 3,1 (maxes out the SATA1.5 bus

)

congoh · 16th March 2012, 5:00 PM

For those looking for reliability and speed.

$179 including shipping for Intel 520 120gb OEM (they include free SATA cable + bracket)

http://www.centrecom.com.au/game/pro...ducts_id=57085

I'm not sure what OEM warranty period is for SSD.
Typically, OEM usually have 1yr warranty as it's intended for use in systems (This is from 2.5" HDD in laptops).

This may not have 5yr warranty like the retail ones so buyer beware.

Update: I sent an e-mail asking about warranty. Response I received is OEM and retail both have same warranty period of 5yrs.

millsy_c · 24th April 2012, 3:51 PM

Can't decide between Force 3, Intel 320/330/520 or the M4! Argh! Haha. Thinking the M4 as it's random read is faster and that's what I'm mainly interested in as I'm planning on loading things off it, not write things to it

Extra 2 years of warranty on the intel is tempting though...

The Mafia · 24th April 2012, 8:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by millsy_c

Can't decide between Force 3, Intel 320/330/520 or the M4! Argh! Haha. Thinking the M4 as it's random read is faster and that's what I'm mainly interested in as I'm planning on loading things off it, not write things to it

Extra 2 years of warranty on the intel is tempting though...

Force3 - Shit
Intel 320 - Old
Intel 520 = Sandforce = Bluescreen
Crucial M4 = Good. Best value. Fastest. (Don't bother with dodgy benches of Vertex 3)

The Marvel Controller has better small reads and writes which is better than any Sandforce solution.

Ice009 · 25th April 2012, 6:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Mafia

Force3 - Shit
Intel 320 - Old
Intel 520 = Sandforce = Bluescreen
Crucial M4 = Good. Best value. Fastest. (Don't bother with dodgy benches of Vertex 3)

The Marvel Controller has better small reads and writes which is better than any Sandforce solution.

I want to order an SSD tonight so that it ships tomorrow. As for capacity I'm looking for a 120 - 128GB size drive. I was looking at these SSDs from PCCG :

Intel 520
Crucial M4
OCZ Vertex 4

Why is the Crucial that much better than the Intel? Are small reads and writes more important? I was reading a review at Anandtech and they said the Sandforce Bluescreens are mostly fixed in regular SSDs, and the Intel 520 has an in house firmware from Intel that supposedly is even better than what other manufacturers are using from Sandforce.

The Mafia · 25th April 2012, 8:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ice009

I want to order an SSD tonight so that it ships tomorrow. As for capacity I'm looking for a 120 - 128GB size drive. I was looking at these SSDs from PCCG :

Intel 520
Crucial M4
OCZ Vertex 4

Why is the Crucial that much better than the Intel? Are small reads and writes more important? I was reading a review at Anandtech and they said the Sandforce Bluescreens are mostly fixed in regular SSDs, and the Intel 520 has an in house firmware from Intel that supposedly is even better than what other manufacturers are using from Sandforce.

There are increasing reports of the intel 520 bluescreening.

Crucial M4 is bullet proof. Cheap, regular firmware updates, no bluescreens, and faster than vertex 3.

Vertex 4 is brand new, a tiny bit risky but I think they have a lot going for them because they are basically a M4 anyway.

But, OCZ's reliability has been pretty shitty too, so I dunno.

Look, my opinion - Crucial M4 has "felt" faster than all of the SSDs that I have used. And I haven't had one fail yet.

millsy_c · 25th April 2012, 9:35 PM

Yeah based off some more extended reading the M4 looks the goods.
Used one at a friends place and it felt faster than my current vertex 2.
Will the random reads be effected by my lack of sata 3? I know they won't saturate it bandwidth wise just not sure if anything else comes into play

The Mafia · 25th April 2012, 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by millsy_c

Yeah based off some more extended reading the M4 looks the goods.
Used one at a friends place and it felt faster than my current vertex 2.
Will the random reads be effected by my lack of sata 3? I know they won't saturate it bandwidth wise just not sure if anything else comes into play

Nope, not at all

When random reads exceed 300mbps then it might be an issue but they aren't even close really.

You'll only notice the limit of your sata connection if you are benchmarking or doing large sequential transfers all the time.

1st March 2012, 3:57 PM	#181
rdamage Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Manly, Australia Posts: 3,310	Any brand or size SSD that you can buy locally you can get on Amazon. Crucial M4 128gb just happens to be a very decent SSD at the best value price right now and considerably cheaper on Amazon than anywhere else. The only issue buying a Crucial or any SSD on Amazon is a slightly delayed delivery, about 10 days in my experience and possibly a little more difficulty for warranty if needed. You probably save around $40 including freight sourcing the M4 on Amazon vs local like PCCG. __________________ FordXR5turbo.com \| i7 3770k\|Corsair H100 with Noctua NF-F12\| Asus P8Z77-V Premium \| 2 x Zotac GTX680 SLI\| 32GB Corsair Vengeance \| SSD's - 1 x Samsung 840 Pro 256gb, 1 x Samsung 830 256gb, 2x Crucial M4 128gb,1 x Crucial M4 mSata 128gb, \| HDD's - 1 x 3TB Seagate ST3000DM001, 1 x WD WD30EZRX 3TB HDD \| Seasonic ~~Platinum 1000~~ X1050 Gold Series\| Corsair 650D Case

1st March 2012, 4:11 PM	#184
rdamage Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Manly, Australia Posts: 3,310	There is no definitive answer with SSD's, it can be a mindfield. New brands & models are constantly coming out, firmware revision fixing bugs, some SSD's more compatible with various hardware, some SSD controllers perform better in certain tasks etc. The thing with the Crucial M4, at least compared to other brands and controllers, is that for most of us it is a rock solid performer and to date has had the least amount of issues. I wouldn't buy an SSD regardless of price, (except in an immanent natural disaster price hike), until you are actually ready to utilize it. __________________ FordXR5turbo.com \| i7 3770k\|Corsair H100 with Noctua NF-F12\| Asus P8Z77-V Premium \| 2 x Zotac GTX680 SLI\| 32GB Corsair Vengeance \| SSD's - 1 x Samsung 840 Pro 256gb, 1 x Samsung 830 256gb, 2x Crucial M4 128gb,1 x Crucial M4 mSata 128gb, \| HDD's - 1 x 3TB Seagate ST3000DM001, 1 x WD WD30EZRX 3TB HDD \| Seasonic ~~Platinum 1000~~ X1050 Gold Series\| Corsair 650D Case

1st March 2012, 4:19 PM	#185
m3k Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 520	the intel 520 series arn't too much more expensive, and it performs drastically better than the competition and holds sustained writes and reads, doesn't just burst data temporarily to hit big numbers for advertising. Last edited by m3k; 1st March 2012 at 4:22 PM.

1st March 2012, 4:26 PM	#186
rdamage Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Manly, Australia Posts: 3,310	There is still an element of unknown (reliability) with the Intel 520, it is a Sandforce based SSD after all. __________________ FordXR5turbo.com \| i7 3770k\|Corsair H100 with Noctua NF-F12\| Asus P8Z77-V Premium \| 2 x Zotac GTX680 SLI\| 32GB Corsair Vengeance \| SSD's - 1 x Samsung 840 Pro 256gb, 1 x Samsung 830 256gb, 2x Crucial M4 128gb,1 x Crucial M4 mSata 128gb, \| HDD's - 1 x 3TB Seagate ST3000DM001, 1 x WD WD30EZRX 3TB HDD \| Seasonic ~~Platinum 1000~~ X1050 Gold Series\| Corsair 650D Case

2nd March 2012, 9:53 AM	#187
BigBADBenny Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 9	'my first SSD' Crucial is a good bet reliability-wise. Find the best price, install all the firmware updates and you're good to go! http://preview.tinyurl.com/85p7j6s And of course check out dealer websites for specials...

1st March 2012, 4:02 PM	#182
gregpolk Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Brisbane Posts: 6,334	So it should perform better than anything you could get locally at that price, so if I'm happy with the wait it's probably the best bet? Any other good drives that would be even cheaper that I should check out on Amazon? There seem to be a rather ridiculous number of different drives, even from a single brand like OCZ.

1st March 2012, 4:10 PM	#183
aznpsuazn Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 1,322	Paid for mine 14th, arrived 29th (Yesterday). Live in Sydney.

2nd March 2012, 10:05 AM	#188
BigBADBenny Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 9	This just in from OWC: http://preview.tinyurl.com/7pkevej If you need the SATA III speed AND reliability OWC's custom Sandforce 2000 SSD's are the best, backed by a great guarantee and warranty. I use these AND the Crucials OWC 6G 240GB as boot/apps in Mac Pro Crucial M4 64GB X4 in Angelbird Wings PCIe RAID0 card (800/400 R/W) Crucial M4 256GB MacBook Pro 3,1 (maxes out the SATA1.5 bus )

16th March 2012, 5:00 PM	#189
congoh Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Melbourne, not too far from Monash Uni. Posts: 3,760	For those looking for reliability and speed. $179 including shipping for Intel 520 120gb OEM (they include free SATA cable + bracket) http://www.centrecom.com.au/game/pro...ducts_id=57085 I'm not sure what OEM warranty period is for SSD. Typically, OEM usually have 1yr warranty as it's intended for use in systems (This is from 2.5" HDD in laptops). This may not have 5yr warranty like the retail ones so buyer beware. Update: I sent an e-mail asking about warranty. Response I received is OEM and retail both have same warranty period of 5yrs. Last edited by congoh; 17th March 2012 at 8:27 PM.