June Extreme Gaming PC Buyer's Guide - Page 4

Storage

Maxtor DiamondMax 10 (6B300S0) 7200RPM 300GB OEM

Current Cost: $191
Months on list: New
Price Change: N/A

NCQ (Native Command Queuing) is currently all the rage when it comes to SATA drives, and as we're fans as well, our drive selection also includes this high performance technology. NCQ uses intelligent algorithms to speed up hard drive access time and increase data throughput, and can upgrade the performance of a 7200 RPM drive quite nicely. The nForce 2 SLI chipset we use in both of our AMD and Intel systems support this feature, so it's a smart be to choose a hard drive that takes full advantage of it.

As our budget simply can't afford the luxury of a dual-drive RAID setup, we opted to hit as high on the capacity ladder as possible, and nabbed the DiamondMax 10 (6B300S0) 7200RPM 300GB drive. The DiamondMax 10 drives support a whopping 16MB cache, 7200 RPM motor, and NCQ, which means that it can hold its own against the 10,000 RPM WD Raptors. Rather than spend the money on two lower capacity drives, a single 300GB 7,200 RPM drive with a large cache, and support for NCQ makes more economic sense. The DiamondMax 10 (6B300S0) 7200RPM 300GB has more than enough capacity for anything you might throw at it, not to mention the extreme performance to match.

The Maxtor DiamondMax 10 (6B300S0) 7200RPM 300GB is one of the fasted SATA-based drives we have ever used, as it not only has NCQ support, but also includes a massive 16MB cache. For the acoustically conscious user it will bring you peace of mind to know that the DiamondMax 10 series of hard drives feature Quiet Drive Technology, and have fluid dynamic bearings making this one of the quietest high-end drives we have ever used. As a testament to quality, Maxtor includes also includes a full 3-year warranty with this drive, and at only $191, this allowed us to pursue other areas of the guide without sacrificing features or performance on the hard drive end of things.

CD-ROM/DVD-RW: Pioneer 16x DVD+RW/-RW DVR-109 OEM

Cost: $56
Months on list: 2
Price Change: -$7

As the Blu-ray and HD-DVD camps continue to do battle, the DVD+/-R market has all but stagnated. As such, the Pioneer 16x DVD+RW/-RW DVR-109 is our top pick again this month. The DVR-109 is capable of writing at 6X DVD+/-R for Dual-Layer media, 16X for DVD+/-R, 8X for DVD+RW, 6X for DVD-RW, 40X for CD-R, and 24X for CD-RW. Priced at an ultra low $56, the Pioneer drive offers the best bang for your buck when it comes to a high-end optical drive.

The Pioneer DVR-109 is also available with either a black or beige faceplate, which allows you to mix and match according to personal preference.

Floppy Disk Drive: Generic 1.44 Floppy Disk Drive

Cost: $8

For those of you who continue to cling onto the ancient technology of 1.44MB floppy disks, we continue to include one in our extreme machine. Any old floppy drive will do, but we recommend sticking to a known brand like Panasonic, Sony or similar.