i resisted the raptor last time, and opted for a hitachi 160 sata. which turned out to be slower sustain read speed: (54mhz-ish) than older 160 gig maxtor (ata 133@ around 59mhz) and a 120 gig segate (ata 100@ around 58mhz). according to my mobo utility. i made the hitachi the main HD (since it's the almighty SATA afterall) and had noticible slow response in doing anything, compared to the maxtor install..
my friend has the same mobo + proc w/ the raptor and it rang up at 71mhz on first try. i guess i'll just take the plunge now. w/ shipping of .99 it came out to 179.48. thanks for the deal.. as if i really needed to spend another 150+ for comp parts.....