Samsung ODD to SSD, HDD or USB 3.0

[Michael Etheridge]

I currently have a Samsung NP305 with the AMD A6-3420M in which i just use as a dock now because the screen cracked. The laptop is used only for my music studio. I am upgrading the HDD to a SSD but also would love to see if i could turn the CD-Drive (ODD) into another SSD or possibly a USB 3.0.

Ive already taken the laptop apart and everything is really assessable. There is an extra input on the motherboard for another Drive but no slot to case the HDD. The ODD uses the same input as the HDD as i mentioned so i would like to possibly buy a adapter and to swap the ODD bay to another Drive or USB 3.0. Will this work?

 

[Prostar Computer]

You would need a caddy for the optical drive bay: http://www.newmodeus.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=2_57

That bay is most likely a sATA Generation 2 port; possibly a Gen 1 port. If you install a SSD to that, its potential will be greatly hindered. A hard drive on the other hand would be fine, as they can't even fully saturate the sATA Generation 2 speeds/bandwidth.

 

[Michael Etheridge]

How saturated? I have no clue what generation port I have. I need writing speeds to be at least as fast or faster than a 7,200 rpm HDD.

You would need a caddy for the optical drive bay: http://www.newmodeus.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=2_57

That bay is most likely a sATA Generation 2 port; possibly a Gen 1 port. If you install a SSD to that, its potential will be greatly hindered. A hard drive on the other hand would be fine, as they can't even fully saturate the sATA Generation 2 speeds/bandwidth.

 

[Prostar Computer]

Even 10k RPM drives are incapable of taking advantage of sATA Gen 2 speeds. What helps in data access times is larger capacity (as well as RPM); a 1 TB drive will have more platter density than a 500 GB drive, for example, thus reducing the amount of arm movement on the platter.

You can use HWinfo to assess what sATA version your controller is. After you install, just expand the Drives tree and highlight your HDD.

 

[Michael Etheridge]

Where in HWinfo can i find the speeds capable where my current OOD is placed? I can see that my current HDD is Samsung SATA II but i do not know if that is as high as the motherboard will take. Regardless, your saying that a SSD will benefit over a 7,200/10k rpm HDD on a SATA II?

Even 10k RPM drives are incapable of taking advantage of sATA Gen 2 speeds. What helps in data access times is larger capacity (as well as RPM); a 1 TB drive will have more platter density than a 500 GB drive, for example, thus reducing the amount of arm movement on the platter.

You can use HWinfo to assess what sATA version your controller is. After you install, just expand the Drives tree and highlight your HDD.

 

[Michael Etheridge]

In short, i want to replace the ODD with a 60GB SSD solely for sending my audio tracks to during recording and while editing WAV. files for less latency and faster write speeds. I care less for the read speeds at the moment. I need those write speeds faster than the 5,400 i have now.

 

[Prostar Computer]

Come to think of it, I believe HWiNFO only shows the drive's SATA controller, and not the board's. You would need to find that from the manufacturer's page for it, or from a supplier that sells it, then look up the detailed specs, or find a spec sheet.

But yes, even on SATA Gen 2, the SSD will put the HDD to shame. Sata Gen 3 is ideal for the SSD's potential, is all.