"Jim" wrote...

Theoretically true. But unless you buy "true" SATA HDs, like the WD Raptor
line, you'll probably experience very little improvement over standard IDE
drives. Many so-called SATA drives are nothing more than PATA (parallel
ATA) drives in "SATA clothing"! (and selling at a premium to boot).

Additionally, it pays to NOT jump at the first offerings... The first 37 GB
Raptor was good, but the 74 GB Raptor is even faster and quieter! Similarly,
the first-generation Seagate Cheetahs (10K RPM SCSI) were a bit noisy, but the
4th generation+ are very quiet.

I'm putting a pair of Raptor 74s (RAID 0) in my new machine, and will take the
SCSI160 Cheetah 36 out of the old machine and use it as the data backup drive.


Of course, you pay dearly ($$$) for that privilege.

Well, if you sacrifice 3D graphics capability for the HD performance, it's
affordable. Of course, professional CAD users and "extreme" game players
(virtually the only ones who "need" all that 3D performance) always seem to have
enough $$ -- look at the prices of the "gaming" machines out there, especially
the fancy cases and liquid cooling systems that go with them! :-)


Lastly, nothing beats the WD Raptors for pure "speed", and although I've not
heard them myself, I suspect they are noiser, they are certainly known to
run "hotter".

Specs for the Raptors are VERY close to the generation 4+ SCSI Cheetahs, so I
expect noise, performance, and heat to be about the same. When the Raptors are
delivered, I'll know for sure...