7000mb/s M.2: is it usable / practical?

alexkyriak · 22 Nov 2021 at 08:50

Hi, is there any point in paying extra for an M.2 NVMe drive at 7000mb/s? Can any system or software really use this? Say my average base case is: Gaming, some CAD work, and some video editing work.

Trying to understand the world of NMVe specs!

Thanks

deardevildude · 22 Nov 2021 at 08:55

With your use cases I would say editing would have the most benefit to the drive speed, especially if its used as the disk where the videos are stored. It probably wont use it to its full potential but it would be the thing that benefits the most.

alexkyriak · 22 Nov 2021 at 09:30

Thanks. Can software and/or OS utilise that speed currently? Or am I as good to go "lower" to 4000/5000mb/s and save some cash?

deardevildude · 22 Nov 2021 at 09:33

I would recommend going to a 4000/5000MB/s to save money as you wont see much of a difference in your use cases.

mickyflinn · 22 Nov 2021 at 09:50

alexkyriak said:
Thanks. Can software and/or OS utilise that speed currently? Or am I as good to go "lower" to 4000/5000mb/s and save some cash?

Transfering data from one fast to another fast drive and loading the ram for projects can really help save time it's just how important that is to you., time is money.

Comparing 1000mbs per second to 2000mbs write speed Halves the time of the transfer theoretically.

Gaming and general no big diffrence yet but 4000mbs is still very fast.

alexkyriak · 22 Nov 2021 at 10:03

Awesome, thanks guys.

mickyflinn · 22 Nov 2021 at 10:29

alexkyriak said:
Awesome, thanks guys.

Do you have any drives in mind ?

A top end m2 pcie3 will have simmlar speeds to a lower end pcie4 m2 drive.

alexkyriak · 22 Nov 2021 at 15:23

There are a few but I am not sure I can mention them here as OCUK don't stock this particular brand, but they come in 3500mb/s and 5000mb/s variants, gen4

robj20 · 22 Nov 2021 at 15:26

alexkyriak said:
There are a few but I am not sure I can mention them here as OCUK don't stock this particular brand, but they come in 3500mb/s and 5000mb/s variants, gen4

You can mention a product just not the shop.

alexkyriak · 22 Nov 2021 at 15:29

Ah ok.

Sabrent 2TB Rocket NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 Internal SSD High Performance Solid State Drive (SB-ROCKET-2TB)

and

Sabrent 2TB Rocket NVMe 4.0 Gen4 PCIe M.2 Internal SSD Extreme Performance Solid State Drive (SB-ROCKET-NVMe4-2TB)

Minstadave · 22 Nov 2021 at 15:31

You won't notice a difference is the honest truth. I upgraded from a 960 Evo to a 980 Pro and am a pretty heavy user and I couldn't notice the slightest difference.

Fortunately prices have fallen substantially on Gen 4 drives the last few weeks so with wider uptake maybe a use for that speed will be found but unless you're moving huge amounts of data around the benefits are pretty tiny currently.

alexkyriak · 22 Nov 2021 at 15:36

Was thinking for practical usage could go with the 3500mb/s and save some money. There like 25-30 quid difference. Was planning on getting two. And am not regularly moving large amounts of data. Occasionally, of course, but not daily. Just need a snappy system overall.

Minstadave · 22 Nov 2021 at 15:56

alexkyriak said:
Was thinking for practical usage could go with the 3500mb/s and save some money. There like 25-30 quid difference. Was planning on getting two. And am not regularly moving large amounts of data. Occasionally, of course, but not daily. Just need a snappy system overall.

I didn't notice any difference in responsiveness or snappiness between an OK Gen 3 and a high end Gen 4.

robfosters · 22 Nov 2021 at 16:10

Sorry to hijack, but what sort of difference would I see with gaming and light video editing (Davinci), going from a standard SATA M2 SSD to a 980 pro? I have an X570 board.

alexkyriak · 22 Nov 2021 at 16:17

hijack away! This is what the thread is about

Minstadave · 22 Nov 2021 at 16:33

robfosters said:
Sorry to hijack, but what sort of difference would I see with gaming and light video editing (Davinci), going from a standard SATA M2 SSD to a 980 pro? I have an X570 board.

Gaming - essentially nothing.

I don't use Davinci so not sure how heavy it hits the disk subsystem. I'll leave someone else to advise on that but I expect it wouldn't be much unless using very large files.

robfosters · 22 Nov 2021 at 16:40

Minstadave said:
Gaming - essentially nothing.

I don't use Davinci so not sure how heavy it hits the disk subsystem. I'll leave someone else to advise on that but I expect it wouldn't be much unless using very large files.

Thanks, yeah I’ll think I’ll leave it. My video editing is very minor. Little snippets from games that I like to put together. Think I’ll wait until the inevitable PCIe5 comes along.

I just thought £233 for a 2TB one seemed a good deal.

alexkyriak · 22 Nov 2021 at 17:36

They can be bought for sub £200 at 3500mb/s and just over £200 at 5000mb/s

Minstadave · 22 Nov 2021 at 18:08

robfosters said:
I just thought £233 for a 2TB one seemed a good deal.

I saw a similar deal and nearly pulled the trigger but the value just isn't there.

kona786 · 22 Nov 2021 at 19:12

Heat management with be a crucial factor.