SATA3 Does it live up to the hype?

[absic]

Hi,

Dark Mantis raised a point in a thread regarding the rated v actual speeds of SATA3 over SATA2 especially when it comes to the claims of 4x faster when in RAID mode.

This raises a very valid point and rather than have items scattered throughout the forum under both the Intel and AMD headings, which can be very hard to find, I thought it might be a good idea to start a single thread where users could post their views, experiences and real life speeds obtained so that a fuller picture could be obtained regarding this subject.

So please post your SATA3 highs and lows here. If there is a lot of real negative feedback, rather than anecdotal, then Gigabyte will have to do something. If there is a lot of positive feedback then maybe there isn't an issue at all.

[Dark Mantis]

I agree, it makes sense to have a proper organised debate on a very real issue such as this. After all Gigabyte is actually using the "hype" of the SATA6 speed to help sell their products and as far as I have seen so far it is definitley in contention. I must admit to not having actual figures to hand so far (but that will change soon) but purley based on subjective analysis the Marvel controlled SATA 6 is slower, especially when hooked up to a RAID0 configuration, than the Intel ICH10 SATA2 ports.

I would just like to clear up one issue that confuses things slightly. The accurate description of the new SATA speed is SATA6. This was decided by the governing body so as not to be confused with SATA2 which is 3 Gbs. A lot of people were calling the latest incarnation SATA3 which although makes sense being the 3rd series. 

[absic]

would just like to clear up one issue that confuses things slightly. The accurate description of the new SATA speed is SATA6. This was decided by the governing body so as not to be confused with SATA2 which is 3 Gbs. A lot of people were calling the latest incarnation SATA3 which although makes sense being the 3rd series.

A quick search on the internet will show you that it is actually SATA 3.0 however some people inside the industry are trying to call it SATA 6 Gbit/s with reference to its speed.

Ooo, I do like being pedantic...... sometimes! 

[Dark Mantis]

would just like to clear up one issue that confuses things slightly. The accurate description of the new SATA speed is SATA6. This was decided by the governing body so as not to be confused with SATA2 which is 3 Gbs. A lot of people were calling the latest incarnation SATA3 which although makes sense being the 3rd series.

A quick search on the internet will show you that it is actually SATA 3.0 however some people inside the industry are trying to call it SATA 6 Gbit/s with reference to its speed.

Ooo, I do like being pedantic...... sometimes!  

Yeah, me too! I just wish that they would make up their bloody minds and fix a name for good and maybe even let everyone know also. Just can't wait until I'm, a HERO too. I won't make ANY mistakes then

[absic]

So please post your SATA3 highs and lows here. If there is a lot of real negative feedback, rather than anecdotal, then Gigabyte will have to do something. If there is a lot of positive feedback then maybe there isn't an issue at all.

Just realised that apart from posting your own findings it would also be helpful if you can post any links you have regarding this subject too.

thanks

[absic]

Came across this link whilst browsing the internet that, if you haven't already read it, makes interesting reading. It was published in February 2010.

http://www.hardocp.com/article/2010/02/20/sata_6gbs_on_your_new_motherboard/2

[Dark Mantis]

A very interesting read, absic115. All in all it jsut about sums up what we have been sayiong all along about the Marvell 6Gbs and the Intel ICH10 3Gbs chips. Just goes to show how the Marvell chips and firmware need sorting out.

[Dark Mantis]

Once I get my motherboard returned from Gigabyte UK I will do some more acccurate testing of the throughput of the different ports. At the mopment I had the Western Digital Blacks(6Gbs) set up as RAID0 on the Marvell SATA3 ports but this would seem to be a poor choice so I will probably move them to the Intel ICH10 ports which are only SATA2 but I think faster. We shall see. I intend to move the SSD drive to the Marvell port as AHCI to get the best out of it. My only concern is whether the Marvell ports actually pass the TRIM commands on to the drive or not. All you can test is that TRIM is enabled. If anyone has any ideas please post them here.