Which Corsair Force should I buy?

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I know that GTX Neutron 240GB is the fastest, but it's not within my budget.
So I want the next fastest thing after that, but then it also has to offer most bang for buck for its storage space.

Should I get Force GS or Force GT?
Does the 180GB version offer the same performance as the 240GB version?

How about the Nuetron GTX 120GB, is that faster than the fastest Force GT or GS?

I don't need that much space, 120GB is fine, I just want the speed.

 
Solution
Tom's Hardware is an international community. Not all ssd brands and models are available in all countries. Sometimes we have to make recommendations based on local availability.

The Corsair Force GS and the Force GT both use the same LSI SandForce SF2281VB1-SDC controller. The Force GS uses SanDisk 24nm Toggle Mode flash memory while the Force GT uses Micron Synchronous 25nm MLC flash memory. I would probably recommend the Force GS because of the toggle mode flash memory which gives the ssd an advantage when reading files. I would probably recommend the GT if you are going to be writing a lot of files. It depends on what you will be doing with your pc.

I maintain the ssd database listed in the sticky at the very top of this forum...
Okay, look... we're talking about SSDs here.

The difference in speed between SATA III and SATA II is noticable.

The difference between 120GB and 240GB is only noticeable in benchmarks, and even then, only barely.


However, a lot of controllers take a speed hit if it more than half the drive is full - enough to be noticeable.

I'd recommend going with the 120GB version, and getting a cheap-o ~80 gig 7,200 or 10,000 RPM hard drive.

[On a note? The Samsung 830 is very likely to be cheaper and faster.]
 

quas

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Samsung, OCZ, Plextor, and all the other 'good' brands is out. Where I live, only Corsair is easily available.

"a lot of controllers take a speed hit if it more than half the drive is full - enough to be noticeable. "
Which Corsair SSD is affected by this?
 
As far as the Corsair SSDs go the GT model is the better and faster model, however a lot depends on what your using the drive for, some things like gaming you will only see a difference in the loading of the maps, while loading large files will be faster with a good quality SSD.
With the motherboards the main difference between the two is price and that's because the Z-77 has a lot more features and can be used for overclocking both the cpu and the video card. The B-75 is a good board but is limited in features and will be good for overclocking the cpu.
 

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I am not going to overclock. But, I've heard that the controllers (I think it's SATA controllers, I'm not sure. What do you call the controllers that determine the speed that your SSD is accessed?) vary across boards. Since B75 boards are the cheapest and most basic boards, so these boards probably use cheaper controllers than Z77 boards? And there's going to be difference in performance, ya?
 
No, there are a limited number of controllers that are used by the motherboard makers and the most popular is the Marvell controller with the Asmedia controller starting to be used a lot.
The more expensive controllers are used in the raid addon card and you don't see them in any motherboards. All the motherboards use the same controllers, even the more expensive ones. So you will see the same sata speeds across the board.
 
Tom's Hardware is an international community. Not all ssd brands and models are available in all countries. Sometimes we have to make recommendations based on local availability.

The Corsair Force GS and the Force GT both use the same LSI SandForce SF2281VB1-SDC controller. The Force GS uses SanDisk 24nm Toggle Mode flash memory while the Force GT uses Micron Synchronous 25nm MLC flash memory. I would probably recommend the Force GS because of the toggle mode flash memory which gives the ssd an advantage when reading files. I would probably recommend the GT if you are going to be writing a lot of files. It depends on what you will be doing with your pc.

I maintain the ssd database listed in the sticky at the very top of this forum section. Here is the link:

http://www.johnnylucky.org/data-storage/ssd-database.html

Scroll down to the brands and models you are interested in and follow the links to the technical reviews. There are quite a few reviews for both the GS and GT models.

I recommend waiting 6 months before purchasing a Corsair Neutron GTX or Neutron ssd. Those ssd's are brand new. They were just released at the end of August. They do not yet have a proven track record. In addition, the prices are still high.
 
Solution

quas

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Alright, thanks for your extensive database. I think it's a bit outdated though. The GT version now comes in 180GB sizes too. I've also read that not all GTs are the same. The 120GB and the 240GB use different controllers (one use 2281, the other uses 2282), if my memory is correct (and I'm not too sure about that).

I guess the OCZ Vertex 4 performs noticeably faster than the Corsair GS/GT, but what about reliability? Should I be worried about OCZ seemingly changing their CEO (is that a signal that something's wrong within?)?
 
You're right the Force GT capacity has been expanded. Now goes from 60GB up to 480GB. Both the GT and the GS use the LSI SandForce SF2281VB1-SDC controller. Corsair does not use the 2282 controller for either model. The two model series use different flash memory and different firmware.

I normally do not recommend OCZ. They've had more than their fair share of problems. OCZ continues to experience financial problems which may affect their operations. At the beginning of the year the company reported it had suffered a financial loss. Last Spring there were rumors that OCZ was for sale. Rumors and speculation suggested either Seagate or Western Digital might be interested in acquiring OCZ. The rumors proved to be false. At the same time OCZ released the Vertex 4 ssd prematurely, possibly in a move to generate additional revenue to make the company appear more attractive for a takeover. Validation was not properly completed resulting in five firmware updates being issued. Recent news reports suggest OCZ is drowning in red ink and facing 4 separate lawsuits claiming OCZ's financial reports were misleading. The CEO resigned and the value of OCZ stock has dropped dramatically. Historically OCZ has a problem with diversification of its product lines and competition in a tough market. Over the years they've had more failures than successes. They can't seem to get it right.
 
I have come accross situations where I have loaded a drive to within 10gb of capacity and there was not that much of a slowdown, yes it will start to get slower then a less full SSD but it will still be a lot faster then a regular hard drive.
The size and brand does not make a difference this will happen to any SSD. S o depending on the size of the SSD you will have to keep an eye on capacity. If you get a 120gb or less you will have to pay more attention and more than 120gb would be better with a 256gb SSD being the best option for a Primary hard drive. It allows you top put the OS your most used apps and several games and still be less than half full.