Quick SSD question

[fartheststar]

Hi,

In doing my research on SSD's, and I still have a few questions.

What I know:

I know that my Mac Pro (2008) runs at Sata II / 3Gbps, so it won't take advantage of the new 6Gbps standard. I saw Crucial m4 recommended on here for the Mac Pro, and I was looking on B+H.

Here's the M4: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ..._Technology_CT256M4SSD2_256GB_m4_SSD_2_5.html

Here's the V4: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/897177-REG/Crucial_ct256v4ssd2_256GB_V4_SSD_2_5.html
(says it was designed for computers before 2011 (3Gbps speeds)

The difference in price is less than $4.

Q1: Is there any reason I wouldn't get the M4? Do they work like hard drives in that they'll work at the lower speed they way they are supposed to?

Q2: I'm guessing its as easy as plug it in (like a hard drive)? I keep reading about the benefits of different 'controllers' on the SSD. Is the controller something on the SSD (therefore important which SSD I choose? I guess what I'm asking is - I don't need an extra controller card when I order this, do I?

Q3: The most recent 'what SSD in my Mac Pro' thread I found is from June or July 2012. Any further recommendations now?

Q4: Do I need to be concerned about SLC or MLC SSD's? There are arguments on the web that 'controller' is more important then the type of cell memory, and others that say it's all important.

Q5: I understand the principal behind TRIM. I don't know whether Trim (on lion) is an automatic cleanup or not, or if it's something I need to do (like a defrag) every once in a while. On OWC, they say their drives don't need to do any of this nonsense, but their drives are much less affordable, even the 3Gbps version.

Thanks for your insights.

 

[TheEasterBunny]

Hi,

In doing my research on SSD's, and I still have a few questions.

What I know:

I know that my Mac Pro (2008) runs at Sata II / 3Gbps, so it won't take advantage of the new 6Gbps standard. I saw Crucial m4 recommended on here for the Mac Pro, and I was looking on B+H.

Here's the M4: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ..._Technology_CT256M4SSD2_256GB_m4_SSD_2_5.html

Here's the V4: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/897177-REG/Crucial_ct256v4ssd2_256GB_V4_SSD_2_5.html
(says it was designed for computers before 2011 (3Gbps speeds)

The difference in price is less than $4.

Q1: Is there any reason I wouldn't get the M4? Do they work like hard drives in that they'll work at the lower speed they way they are supposed to?

Q2: I'm guessing its as easy as plug it in (like a hard drive)? I keep reading about the benefits of different 'controllers' on the SSD. Is the controller something on the SSD (therefore important which SSD I choose? I guess what I'm asking is - I don't need an extra controller card when I order this, do I?

Q3: The most recent 'what SSD in my Mac Pro' thread I found is from June or July 2012. Any further recommendations now?

Q4: Do I need to be concerned about SLC or MLC SSD's? There are arguments on the web that 'controller' is more important then the type of cell memory, and others that say it's all important.

Q5: I understand the principal behind TRIM. I don't know whether Trim (on lion) is an automatic cleanup or not, or if it's something I need to do (like a defrag) every once in a while. On OWC, they say their drives don't need to do any of this nonsense, but their drives are much less affordable, even the 3Gbps version.

Thanks for your insights.

Hello,
I have a 2006 Mac Pro.
It has 2 Crucial V4's in it.
They work right out of the box.
I opted to put them on the OOD SATA connections in the Optical bay.
Since SSD's are smaller in format, they don't fit in the standard bays very easily, but it can be done.
So:
Q1:Yes they are backward compatible so SATA III will work too. I am considering going to the Samsung 840's though, the V4 and M4 are not as fast.
Q2:No controller card is needed.
Q3:Like I said, I would consider the Samsung 840 series.
Q4: Consumer SSD's are made for exactly what you are doing, the type of memory chips is something to consider in a server environment, or with specific tasks, but for most daily use type machines nothing to worry about.
Q5: Trim software can be downloaded for free, Lion does not have it on-board for third party hardware.
Hope this helps.

P.S. I got mine for less than $100USD each

 

[Tesselator]

To elaborate on Q2 there are two kinds of controllers. One is an embedded controller and self contained on the SSD unit. The other is the interface controller and is either part of the Intel chipset on your MB or an intermediary controller for attachment via PCI-e and/or employed for RAID etc.

The controllers I think you're talking about are the embedded kind.

 

[GP-SE]

Get the Crucial M4