"Scott" wrote...
Hi, I'm working on a new computer that I will mainly use for personal
stuff, but I'll also be doing some database work that requires high
storage performance.

My system is based on the EVGA 680i motherboard, and I have 4 SATA 2
drives that I can configure as either RAID5 or RAID0+1.

Sysoft Sandra has a HD benchmark included. Some don't like the way it
works, but it should be fine for comparison purposes.

First guess is that RAID 10 (0+1) will be faster, at the expense of total
capacity.

Also, if you don't have 10K RPM Raptors, you're probably missing the first
benchmark: Spindle speed is important, because it determines physical
limits on access time.

BTW, ignore rodless speedless. He likes to cause problems while giving
little in the way of real information.