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Upgrade pc SSD vs. Raid-0

DaSoul

DaSoul

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 15, 2010
Messages
2,827
Hi there,

i currently have wow installed on a single 32mb cache, 7200rpm SATA hdd and the loading times and for example dalaran lags as hell. (the rest of the pc is fine 8gb ram, quad core 4x3,7ghz, gtx 470)

Before i had a Raid 0 of 2xSATA 32mb cache, 7200rpm hdd's and that was a lot faster. I remember i had something arround 100-120 mb/s read/write.

Even cheaper SSD's often have more then 100 mb read/write and the access time is compared to a SATA very very short..but the price and capacity is bad.
So i googled a lot but can't find good information what to do.

Shall i buy one SSD for os + wow or shall i take 4 SATA drives and build a raid 0? To clear it up i am only looking for max performance i don't care about backup possibilities as there won't be any important data on this drives.

With my experience i know that from read/write spead a raid 0 of 4 hdd's can be very fast and would offer a lot more space.

Any experience or suggestions?

Thanks a lot!
 
get an ssd.

If you factor in noise, heat, power usage you simply can't beat ssd.

I would not go for any form of raid unless it is hardware raid... but that is way more expensive then the ssd solution. (software raid sucks... even on sata)
 
build a raid 0 with SSDs, i run 4x32gb in raid 0, and a 1tb wd black for storage.
 
Get a single SSD drive, and you are set. This way you know it will support trim and garbage collection. Also, ensure you are running Windows 7. If you don't have it, get it. If you want something NOW, and have a SATA III-capable motherboard as I do, you may want to look at the Crucial drives. They are ridiculously fast.

That being said, if you don't have SATA III, I'd recommend waiting a couple more months. I saw a leaked Intel roadmap here of the SSD tech they are releasing soon, and it looks like it may be worth it to wait. They are producing chips that are smaller, with higher capacity, for less money, that last longer. Winner winner chicken dinner.
 
SSD. Even a small one just for Windows, WoW; Any other frequently used programs you'd like to have at a nice fuller speed. It's a bigger impact if you ask me.
And as mezz said, noise, heat, power usage. It surpasses other things, and nowadays with the gfx card fans whirring, case fans whirring, cpu fan whirring. It's nice to have a lovely quiet SSD.
 
a raid of 4 ssd's? oO i am pretty sure it doesn't make any difference if it is 1 or 4 ssd's?!!!

Okay but for a ssd it is no problem if os + team speak + winamp/media player + wow are running the same time?
 
DaSoul said:
a raid of 4 ssd's? oO i am pretty sure it doesn't make any difference if it is 1 or 4 ssd's?!!!

Okay but for a ssd it is no problem if os + team speak + winamp/media player + wow are running the same time?
Click to expand...
It makes a difference. :-)
 
Raid for SSDs is pretty much a waste of time. Not to mention you won't get TRIM support. It's not like you'll need higher read/write speeds anyway, as the actual "speed" is in the near-zero MS access times.
 
It makes a huge diff, all depends what your doing. TRIM support is nice but with good garbage collection there is no need. Intel software raid drivers are starting to work on trim for raid also =)

When I bought the 4x drives... I needed about 100GB for my OS/Installs and a 128GB drive was more $ than 4x 32GB's so.... I can tell you on a onboard intel raid controller 3x ssd's cap the threw put. The 4th is just extra storage.

This is a speed test on my really dirty raid 0 (need to let it go idle and GC)

test.jpg
 
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SSD will not reduce your lag in Dalaran. But you will see a drastic increase in overall performance.

I am running the new G.Skill Phoenix SSDs. OS boot times, loading times, zoning/etc. in WoW are all super fast.

However, you will still get lag in cities and raids, because most of that stuff is handled by your video card and CPU.
 
WOW started without SSD in 12 seconds

WOW starts with SSD in 4 seconds
 
Joker76 said:
SSD will not reduce your lag in Dalaran. But you will see a drastic increase in overall performance.

I am running the new G.Skill Phoenix SSDs. OS boot times, loading times, zoning/etc. in WoW are all super fast.

However, you will still get lag in cities and raids, because most of that stuff is handled by your video card and CPU.
Click to expand...

Sorry but, no. A friend of mine has

core i7 970 oc'd
nvidia gtx 470
6gb ddr3 tri channel ram
and he had 2 500gb 32mb cache 7200 rpm drives...and about 20 fps in dalaran
now he bought the ocz revodrive x2 and has always everywhere 60 fps (v-sync)

and i read a lot that even with super sli system or the max cpu available it will lag in dalaran cause normal hdd's are to slow to load up all the player textures.
 
zomgmage said:
It makes a huge diff, all depends what your doing. TRIM support is nice but with good garbage collection there is no need. Intel software raid drivers are starting to work on trim for raid also =)

When I bought the 4x drives... I needed about 100GB for my OS/Installs and a 128GB drive was more $ than 4x 32GB's so.... I can tell you on a onboard intel raid controller 3x ssd's cap the threw put. The 4th is just extra storage.

This is a speed test on my really dirty raid 0 (need to let it go idle and GC)

test.jpg
Click to expand...

how much did your ssd's you are using in the raid cost you?

plz remember i only want to have it for wow...that's the main reason i think about buying one =)
 
DaSoul said:
Sorry but, no. A friend of mine has ...

and i read a lot that even with super sli system or the max cpu available it will lag in dalaran cause normal hdd's are to slow to load up all the player textures.
Click to expand...

Ok then, go buy the SSD and hope for the best. But I'm telling you that you will still lag in Dalaran.
 
DaSoul said:
and i read a lot that even with super sli system or the max cpu available it will lag in dalaran cause normal hdd's are to slow to load up all the player textures.
Click to expand...

This is definitely the case, assuming your CPU/RAM/Video are up to snuff. People who doubt this, perform this simple test. Hearth to Dalaran, and then look at your hard drive activity light. It's jammed on, and I have this problem even with 2x Raptor 150's in a RAID 0. That's why I'm dying to upgrade to an SSD... speaking of which, I think I'm gonna go order it on Newegg w/ my account there, so I can space out the payments over the next year :) WIN
 
Joker76 said:
Ok then, go buy the SSD and hope for the best. But I'm telling you that you will still lag in Dalaran.
Click to expand...

when i am in dalaran my cpu is like 20-30% on each core and the graphic card is sleeping too..like the example i wrote about with my friends pc, its the hdd.
 
If you're certain it's the HDD, then why post the question? You already have your answer, so buy the SSD.

In my personal experience with SSD, it did not eliminate lag in Dalaran. That's all I'm saying.
 
Bossland said:
WOW started without SSD in 12 seconds

WOW starts with SSD in 4 seconds
Click to expand...

yea true but 2 Euro = GB look here http://www.computeruniverse.net/products/90382094.asp
or that one http://www.computeruniverse.net/cupro/dest.asp?prod=90373477&id=14396 wich is real fast...

SSD are still too expensive and 80% of all SSD have slow controller wich makes them not that faster than a real fast Sata HDD with 10 000 rpm

I myself try to get a fast SSD atm but so i dont want to pay 200 Euros for a 160 GB SSD..

I rather wait the extra seconds a Program needs to load
 
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you guys and your new fangled technology. i'm perfectly happy waiting on my commodore 64 and it's tape drive. now get off my lawn.
 
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