Raptors...Really Worth It???

[St4t1c]

is there a noticable difference in speed??...cause in the same money i could get easily a 200gb drive with 7200rpms...is it getting too hot??

i was thinking of bying a raptor & boot windows from it...will it make a difference?

thnx!

[ElectronVTEC]

I've had mine for about 8 months I think and to this day I don't regret buying it. Lightning quick bootup, app loading (from .exe files on HDD, OS), level loading in most games, etc... I would probably splurge for the 74G if it were out when I bought mine, but my 36G still keeps me happy. But, I am now looking for a 200+ for storage/backup. I say go for it, mine's been a great drive! Todd.

[St4t1c]

thnx for the reply...must be a blast this drive...

have you noticed if its gets hot when using it???

[Nightfall84]

thnx for the reply...must be a blast this drive...

have you noticed if its gets hot when using it???

Just keep a fan pointed at it; keeps it cool. I have the 74 gig version... I too do not regret buying the drive. In fact I wish I had two to create a striped RAID array :D

[breadman]

I just got mine completely installed. It's being passively cooled with a Zalman Heatpipe thingy.

I <3 it. :p

[RandysWay]

You'll notice a HUGE difference with a Raptor. I got a 74GB model and I've never regret it.

[St4t1c]

thnx a lot...

i'll go for one!

[djnes]

I have two 36GB ones in two different machines....and the only think I'd trade them for is the 74 GB version. They don't run very hot if your case is designed well. It's yet another rason why I prefer Coolermaster cases.

[ehZn]

I have two 36GB ones in two different machines....and the only think I'd trade them for is the 74 GB version. They don't run very hot if your case is designed well. It's yet another rason why I prefer Coolermaster cases.

Or a Lian-Li with 3x80mm, a 120mm and a couple vantec tornados...never have to worry about keeing anything cool :D

I love my raptor as well...my windows boot time is almost half what it was on my old p4 system.

[breadman]

http://host48.hrwebservices.net/~re-elec/images/dsc00083.jpg

:love:

[phixt]

Depends whether speed or storage+price is more important to you. I had a spare 80GB 7200rpm drive laying around so I use that for storage now since I ran out of space on my Raptor 36GB within a few weeks. The Raptor is noticeably faster and runs quiet (for me) although make sure you cool it somehow. You should run any drive cool if you want it to last.

I'd either get a Raptor 74GB or a 36GB + some other drive, you'll be happy. Check out the [H]ot Deals, there have been some great prices on both Raptors lately.

[defakto]

I love my raptors, i have two, don't run them in raid 0 but it's the difference between driving a ford and then driving a porche

[PS-RagE]

My workstation (http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=759071&highlight=workstation) has four 74G Raptors in RAID 10 with 3Ware Escalade 8506. I can do a search of my "Documents" folder looking for specific text within the files and get results in seconds. Very impressive indeed

[dandragonrage]

74GB sure. Avoid the 36GB.

[I(illa Bee]

edited out this message.... conflicting intrest

[EnderW]

http://host48.hrwebservices.net/~re-elec/images/dsc00083.jpg

:love:

nice, is that the WD secure link SATA cable thing?

and I'm guessing the whole package mounts into a 5.25 bay?

[St4t1c]

whats that WD secure link sata cable???

what does it do?

thnx!

[phixt]

whats that WD secure link sata cable???

what does it do?

thnx!
From WD's site:
"SecureConnect™– provides a 500 percent stronger cable-to-drive connection than first-generation SATA hard drives and cables. Also ensures backward compatibility with legacy SATA cables and backplanes."

Nothing too exciting, just a more durable connection.

[XyliX]

74GB sure. Avoid the 36GB.

Is there eny difference on the two drives except the size? I was thinking of buying two 36GB drives and use them in RAID 0 setup instead of bying one 74GB drive.

EDIT: The price of two 36GB drives is about the same as one 74GB.

[USMC2Hard4U]

The best computer purchase in years i made was my dual raptors in Raid 0

by far the most performance increase i ever noticed

[breadman]

nice, is that the WD secure link SATA cable thing?

and I'm guessing the whole package mounts into a 5.25 bay?

It is the secure link thing. Someone said it was worth every penny and so far I guess it has been. :o

It mounts into a 5.25 drive bay. Tight fight, but ZERO noise from this thing. It is dead silent. :)

[trust_no1]

Is there eny difference on the two drives except the size? I was thinking of buying two 36GB drives and use them in RAID 0 setup instead of bying one 74GB drive.

EDIT: The price of two 36GB drives is about the same as one 74GB.


The 74Gb outperforms the 36Gb. Do a search on Google for a few reviews.

and I've seen a lot of benchmark and research saying RAID 0 isn't all that great anyway.

http://anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=2101 <- I thought it was worth reading, very informative :)

[phixt]

Is there eny difference on the two drives except the size? I was thinking of buying two 36GB drives and use them in RAID 0 setup instead of bying one 74GB drive.

EDIT: The price of two 36GB drives is about the same as one 74GB.
This has been debated quite a bit right here on the [H]. My opinion/conclusion is that the 1x74GB is the obvious choice...it's simpler to set up, twice as reliable, and at least as fast for the average performance user as a 2x36 Raid0. Way faster seek time for sure on the 1x74.