Hi Ian Not knowing the full specs of your machine or how old it is but based on what you've said, I'd suggest going for the first option of the PCI raid card, I've not been a huge fan of SATA interface as its Intel's baby but depending on what you machine is, it could be suitable, check out ZD Net who did a review on system bus architecture a while ago, it was very useful and is probably available off their UK site (www.zdnet.co.uk). Just check compatability with the controller board and your drive, some cheaper controllers don't have the extended functionality you may require to optimise performance with your chosen drive.
Take a look at www.ebuyer.co.uk, use the search feature to bring up hard drives and you'll see there are quiete a few drives in there that will meet you needs. The controller card isn't going to set you back more than �30 at most I wouldn't think. Western Digital do a number of special edition drives that I've used, the biggest attraction is their size and the fact that they have a very large cache which reduces physical read time - I suppose its proportionate to their size but it does make a difference when used as a swap drive. I'd recommend the 250GB Western Digital, I've been using one for video work and have had no problems although there are smaller and cheaper versions listed on the link above. SCSI is pricey and if you're on a budget, you'd be better off spending that on drive real estate than on a controller card if you don't have one already, would recommend going for Adaptec SCSI if you do elect SCSI but 36GB doesn't represent as good a deal for swap space and at the price points. My 2p, hth Alex =============================================================== GO TO http://www.prodig.org for ~ GUIDELINES ~ un/SUBSCRIBING ~ ITEMS for SALE
