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Maverick0984
08-12-07, 01:10 PM
I'm looking at this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816116042

My motherboard is the new P5K Premium:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131190

The Raid card says it needs an PCI-E x4 slot, but is that on my motherboard? There are a couple of the PCI-E x1 slots, but looking at the pictures, I don't even think the pins will fit. Not to mention x4 vs. x1, I don't want it to run 1/4 the speed. What am I missing?
bchur83
08-12-07, 01:25 PM
You would need to put that card in the black x16 slot.
Maverick0984
08-12-07, 01:34 PM
Damn, I was afraid of that.

Will it physically fit though?
bchur83
08-12-07, 01:45 PM
Yes, it would fit physically. The 4x is shorter, but it will fit in the 16x slot. That slot only runs at 4x or 1x logically, but it is physically a 16x slot.
shirker
08-12-07, 02:15 PM
Yes, it would fit physically. The 4x is shorter, but it will fit in the 16x slot. That slot only runs at 4x or 1x logically, but it is physically a 16x slot.and hence perfect for your raid controller. on just about all current P35 chipset boards with two PCIe x16 slots, the second slot is usually only wired for 4 lanes, so its a x16 slot with x4 speeds (which is fine for your raid controller anyway)
Maverick0984
08-12-07, 02:24 PM
Now I just have to make the decision to pony up the $$ for that :o

I currently have RAID1 on the software raid of the motherboard. Would it be worth it to move that array to the raid controller as well? I'd have to rebuild my entire XP install, which is annoying.

I'm getting the controller cause I want to have an expandable RAID5 array that can be transported between systems and doesn't have as many bottlenecks as software raid.
shirker
08-12-07, 02:37 PM
Now I just have to make the decision to pony up the $$ for that :o

I currently have RAID1 on the software raid of the motherboard. Would it be worth it to move that array to the raid controller as well? I'd have to rebuild my entire XP install, which is annoying.

I'm getting the controller cause I want to have an expandable RAID5 array that can be transported between systems and doesn't have as many bottlenecks as software raid.well, if your motherboard has a decent raid controller, then it may not be worth your trouble moving it to your raid controller. raid 1 is relatively simple and can be reliably done by cheap(er) raid controllers, and the ich9r SB on your p5k premium (assuming that's the one you're referring to) should be fine with the raid 1 you already have
Maverick0984
08-13-07, 06:26 AM
well, if your motherboard has a decent raid controller, then it may not be worth your trouble moving it to your raid controller. raid 1 is relatively simple and can be reliably done by cheap(er) raid controllers, and the ich9r SB on your p5k premium (assuming that's the one you're referring to) should be fine with the raid 1 you already have

Alright, ya, that's what I figured. I"ll move it sometime if I feel like it, but the main purpose of the controller is the RAID5 which will benefit greatly from a raid controller.
Maverick0984
08-13-07, 03:14 PM
Has anyone ever ordered from MemoryLabs.com?

$488 - http://www.memorylabs.net/am96saharaco1.html

$490 - http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?p=3WA965SE8&c=pw

$515 - http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16816116043

Their website looks a little shady.
shirker
08-13-07, 03:20 PM
Has anyone ever ordered from MemoryLabs.com?

Their website looks a little shady.you'd best stay far, far, away (http://www.resellerratings.com/store/memorylabs)
Maverick0984
08-13-07, 03:28 PM
you'd best stay far, far, away (http://www.resellerratings.com/store/memorylabs)

Yikes.

I was thinking about going with Newegg even though they are more expensive. They are damn trustworthy and have treated me well the last couple weeks with customer service.
shirker
08-13-07, 03:31 PM
Yikes.

I was thinking about going with Newegg even though they are more expensive. They are damn trustworthy and have treated me well the last couple weeks with customer service.I've bought from ewiz once, it was a 480w PSU at a great price, and I don't have any complaints about them. Processing time was standard (a day), and shipping was quite fast. They also have a great resellerratings rating, which is definitely a plus
Maverick0984
08-14-07, 01:25 PM
So, buying this + 3x750gb hdds is pretty expensive for storage. I don't want to drop down to 500gb because of space and power so I was wondering if this particular raid card I picked out was "excessive" and I could save money by going with someone else. I'm looking for optimal RAID5 data storage backup, that is:

1. Reliable
2. Move between systems w/o problems (all should do this?)
3. Minimum of 8 ports
4. I only have PCI-E and PCI slots, no PCI-X available (P5K Premium)

Any ideas?