Hello everyone,

I am about to install 2 raptors in a RAID-0 configuration and I was wondering whether I should use the Intel or Gigabyte RAID drivers. I know that the Intel ones will provide more compatibility for future upgrades and that apparently bypasses the PCI bus. However, I have also read on these forums that a RAID add-on card is far superior for RAID setups and I was wondering if the onboard Gigabyte RAID Controller provides the same benefits as a standalone RAID card. The motherboard about to be operated on is the Gigabyte P35 DS3P. I had a look through a lots of the posts on this forum and others but cannot seem to find the answer.

Any comments would be much appreciated.

You're only hearing half the story. Most RAID controllers are "Software" based, meaning they use the CPU for processing. That includes most add-in RAID controller cards, as well as chipset-integrated controllers and motherboard add-in controllers. Of the "software" controllers, Intel is pretty good.

The cards you're thinking of are hardware RAID cards, which typically include a chip similar to your JMIcron (Giga-RAID or whatever it's called) interface chip plus a RISK processor. They're expensive, the RISK processor takes up space, and you won't find such a solution on a consumer-level motherboard.