Corsair Neutron XT SSD Review (240GB) – New Phison Controller Creates a Top Contender

CRYSTAL DISK BENCHMARK VER. 3.0 X64

Crystal Disk Benchmark is used to measure read and write performance through sampling of random data which is, for the most part, incompressible. Performance is virtually identical, regardless of data sample so we have included only that using random data samples.

Not only are the high sequential results of the Corsair Neutron XT very strong, but also, 4K speeds are just as strong in both 4K and 4K-QD32.

AS SSD BENCHMARK VER 1.7

The toughest benchmark available for solid state drives is AS SSD as it relies solely on incompressible data samples when testing performance.  For the most part, AS SSD tests can be considered the ‘worst case scenario’ in obtaining data transfer speeds and many enthusiasts like AS SSD for their needs. Transfer speeds are displayed on the left with IOPS results on the right.

Once again, we have very high transfer speeds that are complemented by IOPS just under the 100K specification, both of which contribute to a very high Total Score for any notebook factor SATA III SSD.

The AS SSD Copy Benchmark was perhaps the only time we saw any sign of a dip in the Corsair Neutron XT, as can be seen with the low Speed/Duration when transferring program data.

ANVIL STORAGE UTILITIES PROFESSIONAL

Anvil’s Storage Utilities (ASU) are the most complete test bed available for the solid state drive today.  The benchmark displays test results for, not only throughput but also, IOPS and Disk Access Times.  Not only does it have a preset SSD benchmark, but also, it has included such things as endurance testing and threaded I/O read, write and mixed tests, all of which are very simple to understand and use in our benchmark testing.

Although our sequential write speed dropped just a bit, both IOPS and the Total Score once again identify the Corsair Neutron XT as a very solid SSD.  Let’s see if we can get a bit closer to specs with IOPS…

Both read and write IOPS provided IOPS just short of specs at QD32.

PCMARK VANTAGE X64 HDD SUITE

The SSD Review uses benchmark software called PCMark Vantage x64 HDD Suite to create testing scenarios that might be used in the typical user experience. There are eight tests in all and the tests performed record the speed of data movement in MB/s to which they are then given a numerical score after all of the tests are complete. The simulations are as follows:

• Windows Defender In Use
• Streaming Data from storage in games such as Alan Wake which allows for massive worlds and riveting non-stop action
• Importing digital photos into Windows Photo Gallery
• Starting the Vista Operating System
• Home Video editing with Movie Maker which can be very time consuming
• Media Center which can handle video recording, time shifting and streaming from Windows media center to an extender such as Xbox
• Cataloging a music library
• Starting applications

PCMARK VANTAGE RESULTS

The Corsair pulled through Vantage testing with a high Total Score of 78979 points and a high transfer speed of 465MB/s when testing in Windows Media Center.  Even more interesting, however, is the pattern of performance where we see very strong results in the first six tests, where the final two lag; perhaps this being an attribute of the new X99 chipset or the new Phison controller.

Our PCMark Vantage Hierarchy Chart shows us the Top Ten 2.5″ SATA 3 SSDs to date, keeping in mind that this chart is based solely on PCMark Vantage Total Score results alone: