For my impending Win7 installation, I'm considering a RAID 0 setup. I already have another identical WD caviar black 640GB sitting downstairs. I'm am not concerned about hdd failure as I have ample means of backing up my drive. I've never done a raid setup before, so that adds to my curiosity.

What kind of speed gains can I expect from RAID 0? Meaningful for OS booting or game load times?

Does my mobo (in sig) have hardware raid, and if not does it matter?

If I were to go raid, any other settings I should be mindful of (such as AHCI?)