MARVELL SATA3 problem

[absic]

By setting up a RAID 0 array on the Marvell 9128 Chip using SATA2 HDD's I have managed to get approximately 2X faster speeds and the system, so far, seems to be a very happy bunny. When I can afford to invest in a couple of SSD's I will be looking for 4X speed but until then and with the limitations of Mechanical Hard drives, I will live with the 2X speed that I have now got.

I think this may be a good opportunity for Gigabyte to prove the capability of their board. Most of the customer may not have enough to buy several SSDs but I think Gigabyte has the budget to do so. Why doesn't Gigabyte perform some tests using SSDs and show us that the advertised 4x is true or is close to truth?

If Gigabyte would like to send me a couple of SSD's I would willingly carry out the tests for them!  

I am afraid that I would have to agree and the fact that Gigabyte did indeed mislead by advertising 4x the speed of SATA2 by using RAID0 SATA3 which is NOT realistic at all is not wholly the issue. It more boils down to being badly sold the Western Digital SATA3 hard drives which are not really suitable for RAID! Although they don't make this fact well publicised.  

That's the real problem!

As I stated:

The big issue here is once again with the way things are being advertised. ....and the old caveat "Buyer beware" springs to mind.

[Dark Mantis]

Quite right!

I honestly thought that putting SATA3 6GB/s HDD's onto the SATA3 ports, would result in an overall system improvement....wrong!

I would like to say regarding this quote from absic that if there is no improvement by using SATA3 drives or ports what is the point of having them?

[onemilimeter]

If Gigabyte would like to send me a couple of SSD's I would willingly carry out the tests for them!  

Gigabyte UK can buy several SSDs and do the test and publish the results but it will be more convincing if the results are published at this forum by third-parties. If the cost of SSDs is too high to give them free then Gigabyte may consider to lend them to absic1 and Dark Mantis to do the test. In my opinion, Gigabyte will not loose anything. This is a golden opportunity for Gigabyte to clear this "4x" doubt. You may write to runn3R your proposal (as I did in the past) and I believe runn3R will give a serious thought about it.

[Dark Mantis]

I am sure that absic and I would both be more than happy to do the testing for Gigabyte and relay the results to this forum. So if you're reading this runn3R here's your chance.

[absic]

Quite right!

I honestly thought that putting SATA3 6GB/s HDD's onto the SATA3 ports, would result in an overall system improvement....wrong!

I would like to say regarding this quote from absic that if there is no improvement by using SATA3 drives or ports what is the point of having them?

To be honest DM I don't think there is any point in using Mechanical SATA3 6GB/s HDD's at the moment.
Once again we are beta testing for the manufacturers and spending our hard earned cash for the pleasure of doing so!  

I am sure that absic and I would both be more than happy to do the testing for Gigabyte and relay the results to this forum. So if you're reading this runn3R here's your chance.

Yes, I'm up for it!

[Dark Mantis]

Yes, I am sure you are right again. Just a sad state of affairs when companies can't be honest with their potential customers.

[absic]

It's all a question of semantics.

I don't think Gigabyte are lying about the 4X Speed with RAID 0 on SATA3. Where they fall down is in the fact that they don't make it clear HOW this can be obtained.

The situation with the the Western Digital SATA3 HDD's I will address with them and update you of their (if any) response!

[Dark Mantis]

I still have had no reply from them. They say 24 hours but it has gone past that already.

[absic]

On a tip off from a friend I went to the Gigabyte site this morning and guess what I discovered. A little change has been made to the blurb about the capabilities of my motherboard that weren't there before! (http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3263&dl=1#ov)

It now says:
* SATA3 RAID 0 4x performance is a maximum theoretical value. Actual performance may vary by system configuration.
* SATA3 SSDs are not recommended for use in RAID 0 mode on Marvell SE9128 ports.

In the UK we have a term for this kind of thing it's called: "Closing the stable door after the horse has bolted."

So maybe I was wrong about the SSD drives too or maybe you should only use SATA2 devices on SATA3 controllers. I think this area needs to be addressed pretty quickly and clear guidlines given!

It might also be worth checking the specs for your own Mobo's as they might have been changed too.

It's a sneaky thing to do Gigabyte and I am less than impressed by this back door approach to covering up your mistakes, although I am pleased that you are now making things a little clearer for future customers. I bought my motherboard on the strength of the claims you made initially and you have been less than honest. I think a general apology would be in order to all of us who bought boards on the strength of your initial advertising and the claims it made. It doesn't cost anything , it's good for your soul and as customer's it would help make us feel better about the whole situation.

[Fatman]

It is because of this sata 3 marvel issue that has stopped me from buying this board. I have a i7 965 extreme and  a set of corsiar dominator 2000 C8 ram. I just need a board and I can't seem to make up my mind with getting the UD7. I would too so much like an answer to these issues. 

[F5BJR]

exacttly the same for my GA-X58A-UD5

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3304#ov

* SATA3 RAID 0 4x performance is a maximum theoretical value. Actual performance may vary by system configuration.
* SATA3 SSDs are not recommended for use in RAID 0 mode on Marvell SE9128 ports.

Pierre

[absic]

It is because of this sata 3 marvel issue that has stopped me from buying this board. I have a i7 965 extreme and  a set of corsiar dominator 2000 C8 ram. I just need a board and I can't seem to make up my mind with getting the UD7. I would too so much like an answer to these issues. 

From the digging I have been doing regarding this subject and from my own experience the issue isn't really with the Marvell chip or any other SATA3 controller. It is the hardware that is currently available to attach to them that are the problem. The issues being faced shouldn't prevent you from buying the UD7 just be aware that you you will have to wait for other hardware to catch up before you can reap the full benefits of your investment.

As an example and from the link to WD provided by F5BJR the WD Caviar Black SATA3 HDD's perform almost exactly the same as their SATA2 counterparts, the only real difference being in the size of cache the have. My Hitachi SATA2 HDD's actually perform better than the Western Digital SATA3 HDD's and, with hindsight I should never have bought the WD Drives, but I fell for the hype. Newer technology, better able to utilise the SATA3 interface will become available but, in the short term, unless you have bottomless pockets and can afford the High Spec SSD's then don't expect miracles.

I have now been running my own rig for nearly 48 hours, with a RAID 0 Array on the Marvell Chip using 2 Hitachi  1TB SATA2 HDD's and the systems is noticeably faster and it  also appears to be rock solid.

[Dark Mantis]

Newer technology, better able to utilise the SATA3 interface will become available but, in the short term, unless you have bottomless pockets and can afford the High Spec SSD's then don't expect miracles.

I would like to comment on what absic has just said. According to the new "writing on the wall" even the new SATA3 SSDs won't work properly in RAID0 with the Marvell 9128 controller as configured on the motherboards. I can see no reason why this should be. If this is the case then how does Gigabyte get the advertised 4x SATA2 throughput?  I can understand the problem with getting the Western Digital Blacks to work in RAID0 as they do not support TLER but that shouldn't affect the SSDs. I wish Gigabyte would comment on this officially and clear it up.

[onemilimeter]

The same with UD3R (Rev. 1.0)

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3305#ov

[Dark Mantis]

Well I finally started to get some sense out of Western Digital although it is a bit like extracting teeth. After much "playing for time" I got an email requesting:

- Try to connect the drive to a different mother board
- Try different Sata cable
- Ask the manufacture of your mother board if the Marvell 9128 SATA3 6Gbs controller is compatible with this drive (Caviar Black model number: WD6402AAEX-00Z3A0).

So now it would appear that we not only need CPU and Memory QVLs now we also need a hard drive QVL If we add to that the PSUs it would look like it is starting to become stupid 

What happened to all the standards