Maxtor, IBM, Western Digital - click images to enlarge
Test Results with
RAID 0:
The transfer rates under RAID 0 show a similar trend as with single
disks: the IBM 120GXP and the Western Digital 1000JB are basically
performing identical. Again we see very slightly higher rates
with the 120GXP. Again we observed an amazingly flat transfer
rate line with the 1000JB. The 120GXP and 1000JB transfer rates
are by far the highest we have ever achieved with any hard disk
drive in RAID 0. A transfer rate of close to 90MB/sec in the outer
zones is truly outstanding and shows the high potential of these
2 disks. The Maxtor D740X and our ATA 100 reference disk are falling
far behind. Both are no match for the latest hard disk drives
from IBM and Western Digital in RAID 0. The D740X shows a very
rugged transfer rate diagram. Such a volatile transfer rate, here
shown with 4 coupled disks, has been reported by many users and
is probably a firmware issue.
The results of the WinBench 99 "High-end Disk" test applications and the SANDRA "File Benchmark" show again the already familiar picture: The IBM 120GXP and the Western Digital 1000JB are performing almost identical and far ahead of the Maxtor D740X. The ATA 100 reference disk is almost out of sight. Similar to the single disk result, the D740X shows a slightly lower (means better) disk access time than the 120 GXP and the 1000JB.
As a side note: Those who doubt the impact of RAID 0 on "real-world" hard disk performance may have a look at the WinBench 99 subtests results and the SANDRA 2002 "File Benchmark". What we see are very robust gains in comparison to the performance with single disks.
Interesting is again the result in CC 2001: the IBM 120GXP and the Western Digital 1000JB are leading again, with the 1000JB again very slightly better. But both hard disks gain almost nothing compared with single disk operation. The reason is probably that already as single disks they are operating close to their maximum headroom when running the demanding CC2001 applications. The Maxtor D40X and our ATA 100 reference disk are gaining here more in RAID 0, but are still far behind the 120GXP and the 1000JB.
