Single 950 Pro vs 950 w/850 as Scratch Disk?

[Oceanwave]

Hey bro's,

 

I'm building my first video editing rig and trying to decide between a single larger SSD (Samsung 950 Pro) or a smaller 950 with separate scratch disk (Samsung 850 Pro).

 

Here's the break down:

 

512GB Samsung 950 Pro (OS & Apps/Scratch)

6TB HDD (Media)

vs

256GB Samsung 950 Pro (OS & Apps)

256GB Samsung 850 Pro (Scratch)

6TB HDD (Media)

 

What would you do? The 512GB 950 Pro is about the same cost of the 256GB 950 Pro and 256GB 850 Pro. Will having the separate drive really help video editing performance that much?

 

Thx Bro's!

[colinreay]

I might go for the 2 different ssds, as they 850 pro has a longer warranty than the 950, and if you are going to be constantly rewriting on that disk, it might be better insurance on that drive. Also, if it does break, you won't also lose your OS and apps, not really sure on how much faster then 950 pro would be for a scratch disk though.

[RazrLeaf]

I'd go with a separate scratch disk for the same reasons @colinreay has stated. Also, you gain flexibility if you want to transition towards a RAID 0 scratch disk (you don't have to reinstall OS to create the array), and you have the option of popping your scratch disk out and taking it with you/moving it to another computer.

 

TL;DR Minimal performance impact, but increased convenience and flexibility.