SIIG SC-SAE212-S2 PCI Express x1 SATA II (3.0Gb/s) Controller Card

Pros: Installed it in an HP Proliant G5 ML350 server since the system does not come with an internal and external SATA connection (?!). I installed a 2TB internal Samsung drive, and just recently an external Vantec enclosure and 2TB Samsung drive on this controller, both work flawlessly and with expected performance.

Cons: None.

Pros: Installed in management server in a virtualized environment for data backups. Works great most of the time.

Cons: On couple of occasions server reported the drive not visible, not sure if this might be the card or cable. Once card re-seated, everything ok.

Other Thoughts: Good for the price. Gets the job done.

Pros: 3gbps, full support for NCQ. supported on XP/vista/Win7 32 or 64-bit & even UniversalBoot CD.

Cons: Does not implement AHCI software interface, so Vista/Win7 must have drivers on USB stick during install. Still does NCQ though. 6Gbps would be nicer.

Other Thoughts: The drivers show as a SCSI controller in XP. No configurable options in the cards BIOS. Just works. Shows as a 'RAID' card in my mobo BIOS boot menu with the drive model. Only slows the boot by a couple seconds. Used it in an x16 slot on a mobo that didn't work with the ASUS U3S6 due to BIOS incompatibility. Can do firmware update from the Properties dialog in Windows, not tested.

Pros: Issue-free installation, worked right the first time with no fiddling, fast data transfer at native SATA II speeds.

Cons: None.

Other Thoughts: I installed this in my home-built Windows Home Server (which is really Server 2003 with specialized extensions and functionality). I needed an extra internal SATA II port for a previously-unused drive sled slot which I will utilize to make off-site backups. I will probably want to use the eSATA port sometime in the future as well, so this feature was a plus.

I had considered buying this from Newegg but found it locally for less.

Pros: Installed and detected just fine initially on HP Proliant ML350 G5 server with Windows Server 2003 32bit.

Cons: Works for a few days, then the drive goes offline with errors in the Event log "The device, \Device\Scsi\SI31321, did not respond within the timeout period." Ran a full diagnostic on the drive, and have tried another drive with the same results. Going to have to try another brand controller, I've asked HP sales for assistance.

Other Thoughts: I also have an LSI 1068E running an external SAS tape drive, it's possible this is causing some sort of problem, but in theory these controllers should all be able to behave together.

Pros: It worked without a hassle.

Cons: Price.

Pros: 64-bit driver is built into Windows 7! Had a Promise card that was fine in 32-bit XP, but no drivers and none forecast. Searched numerous vendors, and SIIG had a ready answer. Plugged in the card, and it was immediately recognized without having to install anything!

Cons: Not the cheapest card, but I appreciate them being ready for Windows 7 on Day One.

Other Thoughts: Newegg has remarkable service!

Pros: Card wouldnt work in my Asus P6T v2.0 Mobo

Cons: Didnt work, corrupted the drive (was able 2 recover)

Other Thoughts: The cheapo JBMicron 64 bit unit worked so i really expected this one to do even better.

Pros: This card works as advertised. Went into my SuperMicro board without a hitch. Found both drives and they showed up in the BIOS, as expected. The driver CD has the same revision as their website!

Cons: None.

Other Thoughts: I tried cards from Star Tech and ByteCC. Both use JMicron chips, which are junk! Slow, unreliable and full of bugs.

Pros: It just works. Plugged it in, it was found & works with OpenSolaris 2008.11. I'm sure it's fine with Windows, but the UNIX people need to know what works as well. No battles were waged with my integrated Intel ICH9x controller or other devices. Fits perfectly.

Cons: None.

Other Thoughts: Green card, red card, black card, what does it matter. This is a PCIe card, not a PCI card for those that can't get it to fit.