dang Marvell SATA 3 ports

[vienna01]

Re: dang Marvell II Ports. Are special SATA III cables needed?

The maximum transfer rate for SATA III is 600GB/s. Depending on your hard drive, say a 90Gb OCZ vertex3, you might get in the range of 500-550 GB/s in both read and write transfer rates per OCZ's specs. One thing to watch out for and common mistake for new builders who don't read spec sheets and forums (or the fine print on the SSD package): to get SATA III speeds from a 6Gb/s drive you MUST have a SATA III cable. Your regular SATA cable won't cut it, so make sure the packaging says it is for SATA III.

Here is what SATA International Organization (SATA-IO) says about cables.
"FAQ 9: Does SATA 6Gb/s require different connectors and cables to support the higher transfer speed?
A9: The same cables and connectors used for current SATA 1.5 and SATA 3.0 Gb/s implementations can be used to connect SATA 6Gb/s devices, although SATA-IO recommends quality components be selected to ensure data integrity and robust operation at the faster SATA 6Gb/s transfer rate. Keeping the existing SATA connector form factor enables SATA 6Gb/s to be designed into the same cost-conscious hardware architectures while minimizing infrastructure changes."

If I understand what the SATA group said- There isn't any official SATA III cable. I would, however believe any reputable manufacturer who called their cables SATA III. It may not be important anyway. From my brief look at cable prices today, seems cables sold as "SATA III" cables do not cost more. We don't seem to have the situation where several companies claimed their HDMI cables were mandatory for HD TV and priced the cables between $50 and $100 USD. That took advantage of buyers, who only needed a cable that sells for under $10 USD.

Certainly using a cable claiming to be "SATA III" increases the odds that the cable won't be a bottleneck. So it seems good advice to use cables claiming to be SATA III.

Has anyone seen any tests of "SATA cables"? It will be VERY interesting to see what happens in the real world.

 

[Going Bald]

Could be, but I do not like 26 AWG flat SATA cables. They seem flimsy and cheap. They also don't stay connected if you bump the cable. I prefer a larger guage, round cable with a metalic shield and a catch on the connector that keeps it in place. I believe there is less of a chance of data loss/corruption using this kind of cable.

 

[vienna01]

Getting a better cable is always a good idea IF there is no big extra cost.


A typical example:
OKGear 18 inch Blue Premium SATA III Round Cable 6GB/s Straight to Right Angle w/latch AMAZON $3.95

"nuf said"