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@ 2009/09/20The first problem is that the only SATA 6 Gbit controller available, the Marvell 88SE9123, only connects with one PCI-Express link. At best then, you get 500 MB/s, which is less than the theoretical speeds of SATA 6 Gbit/s, without counting the fact that this bandwidth will have to be shared between the two ports supported by the chip. At worst then, you’ll have 250 MB/s per port!
The second problem is that the additional PCI-Express lanes on the Intel chipsets don’t work at 5 GT/s but at 2.5 GT/s, even on the latest P55 Express. A simple design linking the Marvell 88SE9123 to the P55 Express will therefore limit it to 250 MB/s, which is less than the bandwidth you get with SATA 3 Gbit/s! Thankfully, following the “bug” of the 88SE9123 and PATA, many manufacturers have temporarily put it to one side, which spares us seeing a whole load of motherboards appearing that use this ridiculous design.
The second problem is that the additional PCI-Express lanes on the Intel chipsets don’t work at 5 GT/s but at 2.5 GT/s, even on the latest P55 Express. A simple design linking the Marvell 88SE9123 to the P55 Express will therefore limit it to 250 MB/s, which is less than the bandwidth you get with SATA 3 Gbit/s! Thankfully, following the “bug” of the 88SE9123 and PATA, many manufacturers have temporarily put it to one side, which spares us seeing a whole load of motherboards appearing that use this ridiculous design.
