Raid 0 Crucial M4 Sata3 512GB for M17x R3

Hi, how are you doing?
Im going to get the M17x R3, I have been thinking about upgrading to raid 0 Crucial M4 Sata3. I'm not sure if the M17x will be compatible with these SSD or not because the M17X only support Sata 2 while the M4 is Sata 3.
If the M4 worked on the M17X, would it reach its maximum read and write speed on the M17x?
thanks

 

M17x-r3 supports Sata 3, Not just sata 2, so it should work why raid 0 SSD's if i may ask? thats just total overkill in my opinion

 

well, raid 0 sdds will give me almost double of its speed. That will give me faster boot, faster loading...

 

You won't feel the difference in real world use. And Raid controllers don't support TRIM, so your SSDs in raid may degrade in performance over time.

 

sorry, what is trim? I have heard about this all the time but I don't know what it is

 

Wow, dual 512GB M4's in Raid 0 will be faster than bejesus. The R3 can handle 2 Sata III drives, but Port 0 performance is sometimes erratic, sporadically dropping back to Sata II transfer rates. Since array speed is limited by the speed of its slowest drive, it effectively becomes a Sata II array during such periods. The frequency of such events and their duration is apparently unpredictable or at least beyond my knowledge. The other issue to be aware of is that Trim still does not function on SSD's that are part of a Raid array. Certainly not fatal given the size of your SSD's and the garbage collection alternative, but a factor. I have a 256GB M4, and it has been flawless. I'm sure you will be delighted with your M4's, however you decide to configure them.

 

i'd save those money for more RAM and use those spare RAM to make a "RAMDisc" which 10x++ faster than any SSD

 

So, does the M17X R3 fully support SATA III or not? because the speed of the SSD M4 will be limited if it runs on SATA II port, that will be a waste of money.

 

it does... just one of the HD bays has issues with dropping back to Sata II speeds occasionally, the other bay is fine

 

how do i overcome this problem? should I upgrade to Raid 0 Sata 3 SSD?

 

im gonna quote the revelator from further up the page, "The R3 can handle 2 Sata III drives, but Port 0 performance is sometimes erratic, sporadically dropping back to Sata II transfer rates. Since array speed is limited by the speed of its slowest drive, it effectively becomes a Sata II array during such periods. The frequency of such events and their duration is apparently unpredictable or at least beyond my knowledge. "

this is your answer i wouldn't recommenced RAID 0 SSD's, id say just use a single SSD(in port 1) Because it won't drop in speed, and use port 0 for a 750gb or 1tb data drive

 

Perhaps it's a matter of semantics. The R3 has 2 Sata III ports, now and forever. But, from time to time, one of them (Port 0) does not function at full Sata III levels. So functionally you may not receive the full benefit of 2 Sata III SSD's on a 24/7 basis. If you've never had an SSD, the speed and responsiveness is incredible, but there is a practical limit for most people. Two 512GB M4's in Raid 0 will benchmark like crazy. But in practical application the difference between them and a single M4 will be subjectively negligible. I have an M4; I also have an old Intel X25-M which is less than half as fast as the M4. But in actual use, the difference is de minimus. IMO, you'd be better served with 1 M4 and a large HDD for data, games, music, storage, etc., although 512GB is a lot of room that will comfortably accomodate most needs.

Edit: You might take a look at this: http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/576313-m17x-r3-port-0-true-always-sata-6gb-s.html.

 

Please have a look at my latest update on this issue...

As of now, I am still on 6gbps on both ports.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/576313-m17x-r3-port-0-true-always-sata-6gb-s.html

 

I wouldn't use Raid SSD's. The erratic Sata II problem can sometimes be fixed by disabling LPM on both ports with a easy registry tweak. In my opinion, Trim is essential for the SSD. What it does is allow proper overwriting and cache wiping on your drive thus improving your SSD's lifespan. Enabling Raid removes this feature. For the sake of about 1 second improvement over boot times: 9secs vs 10secs you end up with two degrading SSD's.

 

The guy wanting two 512GB SSDs is worrying about a waste of... LOL

OCZ new line of SSDs, Octane, will have a 1TB variant. You could always buy that and bypass the problem all-together.

 

1TB SSD...holy. I want this.

How am I suppose to save any money with you guys suggesting all these toys?

EDIT: These drives are very interesting indeed...they use an Indilinx Controller. i will be reading the reviews and forums carefully