Affordable b1tchin fast SSDs! :D

conzy

link

The read speed should be between 120 and 143MB/s, while the write speed should hit a quite amazing 80 to 93MB/s.

64GB is €229 here

*edit* 2 year warranty

Shiny

My god!

Bargain Alerts section !

Chosen

That's a great progress in the SSD market. Why can't I find anything about it on the OCZ website though?
Also, I don't speak german, can anyone tell if they're in stock? My mouse pointer is hovering around the cart button


EDIT: Bargain Alerts

savemejebus

They're saying stock expected in their warehouse in 3-4 days. I've bought from these guys in person before and it's a good shop (they sometimes have fantastic deals on fans, cpu and gpu coolers!) but it's almost always one of the most expensive of the german shops for hdds and stuff so i'd say that when hardwareversand get them in expect them to be a bit cheaper.

Also these guys wouldn't deliver to Ireland last time i tried. Maybe it's changed though.

conzy

Yeah I dunno if they ship to Ireland, Thats just the only MSRP i could find

For my new build I was planning on 2 640GB WD Caviars in RAID 0



200MB/s transfer speeds but mechanical latencies

I don't need that much storage but I want more speed... My Program Files is currently at about 35gigs with all my usual games and apps installed, and I have a 500GB WD Caviar for storage...

Am I suitable for SSD?

P.s Im currently using an XPS M1530 laptop, I could put the SSD in that too which would be nice...

Conar

2 x 32GB disks in RAID 0 would be a relatively cheap and fast way to go for your OS/Swap and a few programs.
I assume the failure rate on these drives is low enough to warrant RAID 0 for the OS?

PogMoThoin

Conar wrote: »

I assume the failure rate on these drives is low enough to warrant RAID 0 for the OS?

I've always used Raid 0 for my OS, but i'm always backed up

Conar

PogMoThoin wrote: »

I've always used Raid 0 for my OS, but i'm always backed up

Yeah I suppose it's just laziness that stops me and the fact that I never get up of my arse and buy a matching pair of drives.
What do you do for backups out of interest?
Clone job once a week dumped to a data drive?

Anyway, I checked the OCZ site for the MTBF on these drives.
2 Million hours.
Its less than twice that of the WD Raptor which is 1.2 million.
I would have expected more of a reliability increase considering there are no moving parts.

PogMoThoin

Conar wrote: »

Yeah I suppose it's just laziness that stops me and the fact that I never get up of my arse and buy a matching pair of drives.
What do you do for backups out of interest?
Clone job once a week dumped to a data drive?

Nope, I just don't use pc for storage as i got a server for that, all my music, vids & documents are shared to several pc's and laptops throughout the house. I install games in a seperate partion on another hd. I also just install what i need on a pc. I'm wiping my main pc next week and its just a matter of reinstalling the OS, drivers and a few progs and games. Some games will work without re-install, just create a path to them. Steam will work this way without re-install.

I'm closely watchin ssd's as a future upgrade tho

Conar

Just checked with MemoryC.com and they reckon they'll have them in stock in the next couple of weeks for a similar price to that German site.
They're in Celbridge so can be handy to collect.

Copy of conversation from MemoryC Live Chat:

Jakob Kristensen: we are getting the new OCZ range is as well
Jakob Kristensen: week after next we hope
Conor: Excellent
Conor: Any idea on the price?
Jakob Kristensen: it is not a mistake, the pricing for the original SSD range is still very high for some reason
Conor: Yeah, they were prohibitavely dear up to now
Jakob Kristensen: Not sure about price, but should not be far off what you have seen in Germany

Now excuse me while I look around for stuff to sell off for a pair of 32GB SSD's!

jesus_thats_gre

conzymaher wrote: »

200MB/s transfer speeds but mechanical latencies

http://hothardware.com/News/VelociRaptors_In_RAID_5_A_Case_Study_In_Speed/

skuzzb

From the looks of it, they might be cheap, but for a reason.....did a bit more research on them and came accross this on overclockers.co.uk

---

'Are you sure - I was a little surprised that SLC and affordable came in the same sentence so this would make sense.

MLC has something like 10,000 writes compared to SLC 100,000 writes.


I can confirm 100% these are MLC. The prices are pretty similar to what's currently available from the likes of Transcend/Super Talent etc. Far too cheap for SLC and easy now to see why'

---

So the price might be good but im not sure if these will beat the MTRON's.....hopefully the guys on overclockers.co.uk are wrong!!!


http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17891069

Chosen

Hehe pure ignorance: MLC chips top at around 20-25Mb/sec. I find it more believable that the prices have dropped, that the speed is indeed 120-140Mb/sec and that OCZ is telling the truth when they're saying it's SLC, than saying that it's MLC because it's cheap and the advertised speed is fake.

Conzy: people tend to pay too much attention to transfer rates. Transfer rates are good when you are copying large files around and that's about it.
You can take 5 normal 7200rpm disks, put them in RAID0 and get 300Mb/sec read speed, but it's still going to feel as slow as any 7200rpm drive.
And anyone who switched from a 7200rpm disk to a 10000rpm Raptor, knows where the improvement came from: the lower access time (due to the higher rpm).
Now, if you noticed the improvement when going from 12ms to 7ms, imagine going to 0.1ms
It's the access time that makes the difference in the OS and in making everything feel snappy, and that's why I can safely say that my next purchase will be 1 large SSD drive, probably 128Gb and most probably OCZ
Also, I couldn't care less about the writes and the rest of worries about the SSDs. When I first saw decent speed SSDs in a shop, it was last August and they cost 1200 for 32Gb. I bought my first one in January (32Gb) for 450, and they now cost 149 euros.
I can tell you for sure that in two years when the OCZs SSD's warranty will expire, I will probably be using a 200 euro 512Gb SSD and my 32Gb OCZs will be hanging around in my room, like spare floppy disks

skuzzb

Chosen wrote: »

Hehe pure ignorance: MLC chips top at around 20-25Mb/sec. I find it more believable that the prices have dropped, that the speed is indeed 120-140Mb/sec and that OCZ is telling the truth when they're saying it's SLC, than saying that it's MLC because it's cheap and the advertised speed is fake.

I hope your right!

Ya think the prices will stay static for another few months while the likes of sandisk and samsung try to catch up or is this the start of us seeing these become the norm in all PC's?

Also would you go for 2 x 32gigs or 1 x 64 gig? How big is the RAID-0 advantage?

Chosen

skuzzb wrote: »

Also would you go for 2 x 32gigs or 1 x 64 gig? How big is the RAID-0 advantage?

1 big disk is better. The RAID0 will only offer higher transfer rates, which as I said before is not what makes your OS and applications feel faster - low latency does, and 1 SSD can offer this.
And when Intel gets in the game and drags the prices down, you can throw 1 64 or 1 128Gb SSD in your old laptop and make it snappy, while it's going to be more difficult to get rid of smaller disks.

Conar

Chosen wrote: »

1 big disk is better. The RAID0 will only offer higher transfer rates, which as I said before is not what makes your OS and applications feel faster - low latency does, and 1 SSD can offer this.
And when Intel gets in the game and drags the prices down, you can throw 1 64 or 1 128Gb SSD in your old laptop and make it snappy, while it's going to be more difficult to get rid of smaller disks.

Wouldn't the higher transfer rate be a benefit to loading large game maps etc though?

Though you are right about getting rid of them.
Much easier to sell off a 64GB than 2 x 32GB's

EDIT: Actually it would also make a big difference for the small files.
Yes latency is key with small files, but in RAID 0 you can read from 2 disks at once thus increasing the speed you can read those small files by up to 100% (obviously not quite 100% with overheads).
So I think I'll still stick with my plan of getting 2x32GB's and taking the hit on having to keep them or have difficulty selling them.

I need to sell a few bits to afford them cos I'm constantly broke but if I can sell off all my 360 games, a raptor and a K800i phone I might be able to get the money together in a couple of weeks.
If I do get them and someone else gets the 64GB/128GB ones we can compare tests.

ricka05

OCZ to Crash SSD Party With $259 64GB, $479 128GB Models


http://www.dailytech.com/OCZ+to+Crash+SSD+Party+With+259+64GB+479+128GB+Models/article12248.htm


I just got my samsung F1 640gb , so Ill wait till christmas to get one for myself....
I would need a large - 128 gb drive for windows plus games and leave some space jus in case....

L31mr0d

does anyone think we could put a bulk order in somewhere for these? I'd be interested in one of those 128GB models if I could get it for around €350.

If we get enough people here wanting them i'd say it'd be possible.

I could probably ask around my friends also.

Conar

I'd be in for that.
If we got 10 people together someone would have to give a discount.

Chosen

Well, I stand corrected: this looks like a very improved MLC
Either way I don't mind, so long as it performs as advertised and costs €150/32Gb

astrofool

coming in stock here now: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/productlist.php?groupid=701&catid=14&sortby=nameAsc&subid=910&mfrid=12

Chosen

OCUK I'll pass.
Don't want to experience their "customer services" again...

savemejebus

so if it's not MLC the question becomes is it a worthwhile purchase?

conzy

hmmmmmmmmm

I was hoping on going low budget for my next rig and I dunno if the SSDs are cheap enough yet :P But my last rig had a Raptor and going back to a 7200rpm drive might feel like to much of a downgrade... I'm also trying to make a completely silent rig so thats another + for SSD

savemejebus

SSD for os & samsung F1 for storage - fast and silent

conzy

I dont trust the Samsung F1s Way too many reports of failures and DOAs... I prefer the Western Digital 640gig drives, Got two for my server and they are quiet and very fast

I'm on holidays and its too hot to go outside now so I priced my new PC I can afford the 64GB OCZ drive so I think I will go for it!

Sapphire Radeon 4870
OCZ 64GB SSD
Corsair HX620
Thermalright Ultra Extreme
Thermalright HR-03
Western Digital Caviar 640GB

I already have:

Q6600
Abit IP35 Pro
4GB of 1000mhz OCZ Platinium
Case

savemejebus

I don't know what to believe about the F1's. A mate of mine has 2 and swears by them. I also read that a number of the failure reports on US forums were exaggerations, with people running incompatible testing software on them.

Not pushed either way though, I'm happy with my WDAAKs 500gb drives personally

Nforce

No problems with my F1's here;)

Conar

DABS have them listed now.
None in stock yet though obviously.

http://www.dabs.ie/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=55VK&SearchType=1&SearchTerms=OCZSSD2+1C64G&PageMode=3&SearchKey=All&SearchMode=All&NavigationKey=0

Anyone have an employee discount in DABS that wouldn't mind buying in bulk? :P

Inquitus

L31mr0d wrote: »

does anyone think we could put a bulk order in somewhere for these? I'd be interested in one of those 128GB models if I could get it for around €350.

If we get enough people here wanting them i'd say it'd be possible.

I could probably ask around my friends also.

I'd be in for this L31mr0d

conzy

I would be interested in a group order of the 64GB model

awhir

conzymaher wrote: »

I would be interested in a group order of the 64GB model

ya me too if i get a laptop.

L31mr0d

i'd be interested in ordering a 128GB model, or if the order requires the drives all be the same then 2 64GB models

Conar

Seems like a few are interested. Maybe a post in the bargain section would have a few more signups too.
Anyone know where or how we could get it together though?

Chosen

Conar wrote: »

Anyone know where or how we could get it together though?

I'd say we start by expressing interest to e.g. MemoryC, as regardless of where we will order from, the shop will have to prepare for the demand.

Conar

Chosen wrote: »

I'd say we start by expressing interest to e.g. MemoryC, as regardless of where we will order from, the shop will have to prepare for the demand.

Yeah, good idea. They can be collected then too so no need for shipping charges.
They still don't have them in stock.
I'll ask them tomorrow.

L31mr0d

WHAT THE FRACK???

are these the same ones we're talking about here?

http://www.memoryc.com/externalharddrives/ocz64gbsolidstatessd.html

64GB OCZ SSD Solid State Drive = € 906.29

EDIT: My bad, these are the older ones. I'll start scouting around to see if anywhere has the new ones in stock that accepts bulk orders

Conar

L31mr0d wrote: »

WHAT THE FRACK???

are these the same ones we're talking about here?

http://www.memoryc.com/externalharddrives/ocz64gbsolidstatessd.html

64GB OCZ SSD Solid State Drive = € 906.29

EDIT: My bad, these are the older ones. I'll start scouting around to see if anywhere has the new ones in stock that accepts bulk orders

I just spoke with MemoryC over live chat.
They said that they would be able to give a bulk discount but can't discuss prices till they get them in stock and have their pricing structure sorted.
They hope to take delivery later in the week.

L31mr0d

Conar wrote: »

They hope to take delivery later in the week.

but I want them now

Hopefully HWV will have them in stock soon also

Also, how are people going to go about mounting these? Can we get a bulk order on 3.5" brackets?

conzy

DIY ofc Bit of aluminium, bish bash bosh job done

Or velcro if you fail at engineering

MooseJam

I'd be interested in one of these too though they are only 220 on dabs, might just buy one there

zod

Surely the 32GB version is plenty for the OS ?

My Vista ult install is 7.9GB and with 3.5GB RAM mirrored into a page file thats only 12GB .. so still leaves plenty for apps .. all the data can go on the other drives yeah .. or am I missing something ?

Also if I'm not a gamer will this make that much difference to me .. I find Vista sluggish sometimes so would like to make it snappier ..

L31mr0d

zod wrote: »

Surely the 32GB version is plenty for the OS ?

My Vista ult install is 7.9GB and with 3.5GB RAM mirrored into a page file thats only 12GB .. so still leaves plenty for apps .. all the data can go on the other drives yeah .. or am I missing something ?

Also if I'm not a gamer will this make that much difference to me .. I find Vista sluggish sometimes so would like to make it snappier ..

You should always have at least 20% of your disc free for defragmentation.

So if you do the maths, 32GB is actually going to be ~31GB ( 32x0.9766) after the conversion from base 10 to base 2. Then you'll lose around 8% more to NTFS formatting, giving you 28.75GB, of which you should keep at least 20% free, giving you 23GB's now with your 3.5GB page file and conservative Vista install of 7.9GB's you are left with only 11.6GB of usable space for your media and programs.

Conar

L31mr0d wrote: »

You should always have at least 20% of your disc free for defragmentation.

So if you do the maths, 32GB is actually going to be ~31GB ( 32x0.9766) after the conversion from base 10 to base 2. Then you'll lose around 8% more to NTFS formatting, giving you 28.75GB, of which you should keep at least 20% free, giving you 23GB's now with your 3.5GB page file and conservative Vista install of 7.9GB's you are left with only 11.6GB of usable space for your media and programs.

On an SSD you wouldn't actually need to run a defrag though as fragmented files aren't such a big issue when there is such a low response time.
I'd still want more than a 32GB disk though.

skuzzb

Defragging wont be needed at all becuase there is no point in having files close together as there is no needle movement to reduce on the hard-drive and any portion of the drive can be accesed at the same time. Infact de-fragging could be damaging due to the reduced amount of read/writes on MLC drives compared to SLC.

Im in for a 64GB if we can get them for under €200

I would advise a 64GB drive anyway, firstly its not that expensive compared to the 32GB and secondly you would want all your apps on the OS drive aswell so that could add up fairly quickly, especially if you want a few games on there too.

Conar

MemorC have the 128GB listed. Though not stocked until tomorrow.
Once they have the 64GB ones I'll ask them about a bulk order.

http://www.memoryc.com/products/description/128GB_OCZ_Core_Series_SATA_II_2_5-SSD_Solid_State_Drive/index.html

Conar

MemoryC just added the 64GB model.
The best I could get them to drop to is €180 +vat. Thats €217.80 inc vat.
No real saving to justify a bulk order there.
You'd be better off just ordering from DABS so you had a straight forward RMA if needed.

Anyone have any other ideas for a bulk order or will we give up on that?

L31mr0d

I think I might be getting mine from dabs as I have a few other items to get also.

Also, defragmentation is still needed for SSD drives, its no longer needed for optimizing the position of files on the platter but making the files contiguous has been proven to make SSD drives faster.

How are people going to be mounting these?

MooseJam

Is anyone using these for their OS, is there a noticeable improvement over a standard drive, does everything open up instantaneously , really snappy like , is it worth 200 yoyos ?

Cuddlesworth

L31mr0d wrote: »

How are people going to be mounting these?

Duck tape.

skuzzb

L31mr0d wrote: »

How are people going to be mounting these?

Two kittens on each side and some zip ties.