SSD for gaming and Storage suggestions?

[David_Kwan]

Hi guys,

So I have a 860 evo 500gb SSD right now as my game drive, but it is slowly but surely filling up and when the time comes I will need a new SSD.

Are there any SSD's I should look out for in case my 500gb finally fills up?

 

I'm looking for a 1TB or 2TB drive.

There's a bunch of things I don't understand like QLC, TLC differences. Is there a better one of the two? And all that.

Of course I'll take the one that should age better over any other as I wish to keep it over the years.

 

(I got the 860 Evo at first because of all the good reviews it has.)

 

Also, should I consider an m.2 ssd?

I have 4 sata slots and 2 asata slots. As I have a 970 Evo plus for my boot drive, occupying the first m.2 slot makes the 2 asata slots not useable.(According to the mobo manual)

So if I get a m.2 ssd for my second m.2 slot I won't be able to add anymore HDDs or SSDs as it will render 2 sata slots not useable.

 

FYI 2 of the 6 slots is used up by my 500gb SSD and a 2tb HDD.

 

 

Thanks in advance!

[TrigrH]

MLC is better than TLC which is better than QLC.

 

EVO is TLC

 

PRO is MLC

 

QVO is QLC

[LukeLinusFanFic]

Get whatever is cheap and is from a reputable brand - it doesn't have to be Samsung. But buying an SSD for storage... That's going to be pricey.

[GoldenLag]

any old SSD should be fine. 

 

if you want a quality one. Crucial mx500 is a cheaper EVO. 

[Wh0_Am_1]

SLC- Single layer cell, this means that each cells store 1 charge and thereby one bit, this is the fastest and most rugged class, yet also the least cost efficient and most space hungry

 

MLC- Multilayered cell or Dual layered cell, each cell can store 2 bits, but each read/write cycle in which both bits are stored is twice as hard as on SLC basically a full R/W cycle is with MLC is like 2 with SLC, but it each cell consumes about as much space as an SLC cell. Also it takes more time to use both layers as the upper most layer must be filled before the bottom most layer can be utilized at full capacity, although SSDs can treat MLC as SLC, for quick storage and compact the second bit in later, think of it as climbing bunk beds or fitting people into the back seat of a car.

 

TLC- Triple layered cell, same as MLC except with the potential to 3 bits instead of 2, and each full read and write cycle (in which all three bits layers have bits) is like 3 SLC cycles.

 

QLC MLC with twice the layers, thereby it wears out twice as fast when the SSD is used to capacity, and as the SSD is filled it will tend to get slower as more of the SSD is filled, this is also one of the cheapest technologies as it requires fewer chips to provide the same amount of storage and thereby less silicon. 

 

I hope this helps! or you could just ignore me and watch the video...... 

  ...... I just typed all that for nothing didn't I?

[schwellmo92]

Crucial MX500 is my go-to cheap but good SSD.

[David_Kwan]

16 hours ago, TrigrH said:

MLC is better than TLC which is better than QLC.

 

EVO is TLC

 

PRO is MLC

 

QVO is QLC

 

16 hours ago, Wh0_Am_1 said:

SLC- Single layer cell, this means that each cells store 1 charge and thereby one bit, this is the fastest and most rugged class, yet also the least cost efficient and most space hungry

 

MLC- Multilayered cell or Dual layered cell, each cell can store 2 bits, but each read/write cycle in which both bits are stored is twice as hard as on SLC basically a full R/W cycle is with MLC is like 2 with SLC, but it each cell consumes about as much space as an SLC cell. Also it takes more time to use both layers as the upper most layer must be filled before the bottom most layer can be utilized at full capacity, although SSDs can treat MLC as SLC, for quick storage and compact the second bit in later, think of it as climbing bunk beds or fitting people into the back seat of a car.

 

TLC- Triple layered cell, same as MLC except with the potential to 3 bits instead of 2, and each full read and write cycle (in which all three bits layers have bits) is like 3 SLC cycles.

 

QLC MLC with twice the layers, thereby it wears out twice as fast when the SSD is used to capacity, and as the SSD is filled it will tend to get slower as more of the SSD is filled, this is also one of the cheapest technologies as it requires fewer chips to provide the same amount of storage and thereby less silicon. 

 

I hope this helps! or you could just ignore me and watch the video...... 

  ...... I just typed all that for nothing didn't I?

This is very informative thanks! So I'm guessing MLC or TLC SSDs are better for my use case. Since I don't have the kind of money to keep buying SSDs, I'd like to keep the ones I have for as long as I can.

 

16 hours ago, LukeLinusFanFic said:

Get whatever is cheap and is from a reputable brand - it doesn't have to be Samsung. But buying an SSD for storage... That's going to be pricey.

I wasn't exactly thinking of getting an SSD for storage. In the case my 2TB HDD fills up I'll just get an external HDD to move my files or buy another internal HDD for more space. Buuuut I do wish to get a larger SSD for games so I have enough space to store as much as I can. As I don't want to store my games in my HDD once my SSD is full, since the difference is so huge I can't go back to HDD lol. And my current HDD is 5400rpm... wanted a 7200rpm seagate HDD but there was none that would ship to my location at the time I purchased my PC parts....

 

16 hours ago, GoldenLag said:

any old SSD should be fine. 

 

if you want a quality one. Crucial mx500 is a cheaper EVO. 

 

16 hours ago, schwellmo92 said:

Crucial MX500 is my go-to cheap but good SSD.

Would the Crucial MX500 be MLC or TLC? I was also thinking of this particular SSD as it seems to be good for it's performance and price.

[GoldenLag]

1 minute ago, David_Kwan said:

Would the Crucial MX500 be MLC or TLC? I was also thinking of this particular SSD as it seems to be good for it's performance and price.

I believe its TLC. And for its price its more or less the go to option for cheap high performance SSDs.

[Wh0_Am_1]

8 minutes ago, David_Kwan said:

 

This is very informative thanks! So I'm guessing MLC or TLC SSDs are better for my use case. Since I don't have the kind of money to keep buying SSDs, I'd like to keep the ones I have for as long as I can.

Your welcome! Do note at the time of writing SLC is the really high end SSDs, MLC is high end, TLC is mid grade, QLC is lower end, although all of them read about just as fast, if you are just going to dump files onto the SSD and use it as a mass storage device, and not keep rewriting things, (and have the patience to wait for potentially longer game installations,) then you probably want to go with TLC or QLC, that is unless you are willing to spend a pretty penny for MLC.

[David_Kwan]

2 minutes ago, GoldenLag said:

I believe its TLC. And for its price its more or less the go to option for cheap high performance SSDs.

It's currently $129.95 on Amazon for the 1TB model. $20 cheaper than the 860 Evo. As I don't need it yet I'll wait for a deal and get it then. Does Amazon always have Black Friday deals?

[Wh0_Am_1]

1 minute ago, David_Kwan said:

It's currently $129.95 on Amazon for the 1TB model. $20 cheaper than the 860 Evo. As I don't need it yet I'll wait for a deal and get it then. Does Amazon always have Black Friday deals?

Not necessarily.

[GoldenLag]

1 minute ago, David_Kwan said:

It's currently $129.95 on Amazon for the 1TB model. $20 cheaper than the 860 Evo. As I don't need it yet I'll wait for a deal and get it then. Does Amazon always have Black Friday deals?

I dont keep up with blackfridaydeals. They are often quite lackluster in tech. There isnt much to margin to begin with

[David_Kwan]

1 minute ago, Wh0_Am_1 said:

Your welcome! Do note at the time of writing SLC is the really high end SSDs, MLC is high end, TLC is mid grade, QLC is lower end, although all of them read about just as fast, if you are just going to dump files onto the SSD and use it as a mass storage device, and not keep rewriting things, (and have the patience to wait for potentially longer game installations,) then you probably want to go with TLC or QLC.

I plan to use it solely for gaming. So as some of the guys here recommended I may get the Crucial MX500 1TTB model (when it's on a deal). And as it is TLC would it's performance dwindle as I keep using it? Same for my 860 evo as @TrigrH mentioned the evo is TLC?

[David_Kwan]

2 minutes ago, Wh0_Am_1 said:

Not necessarily.

 

1 minute ago, GoldenLag said:

I dont keep up with blackfridaydeals. They are often quite lackluster in tech. There isnt much to margin to begin with

Ahh ok. I'll just keep it in my cart for the time being and just check it every once in a while if it does go on special.

[Wh0_Am_1]

Just now, David_Kwan said:

I plan to use it solely for gaming. So as some of the guys here recommended I may get the Crucial MX500 1TTB model (when it's on a deal). And as it is TLC would it's performance dwindle as I keep using it? Same for my 860 evo as @TrigrH mentioned the evo is TLC?

There are some versions of the evo which are MLC, I believe that the main performance hit with an almost full drive is writing,  but otherwise a TLC drive should wear out about 50% faster than an MLC drive, but that should not be an issue if you are not constantly writing to it.

[David_Kwan]

2 minutes ago, Wh0_Am_1 said:

There are some versions of the evo which are MLC, I believe that the main performance hit with an almost full drive is writing,  but otherwise a TLC drive should wear out about 50% faster than an MLC drive, but that should not be an issue if you are not constantly writing to it.

So if it just for gaming, there won't be too much of a problem I guess?

And should I leave a certain percentage of the drive free to have it last longer? I read somewhere in the forum that you shouldn't have a drive full all the time as it can make the drive wear much faster?

[Wh0_Am_1]

1 minute ago, David_Kwan said:

So if it just for gaming, there won't be too much of a problem I guess?

And should I leave a certain percentage of the drive free to have it last longer? I read somewhere in the forum that you shouldn't have a drive full all the time as it can make the drive wear much faster?

Yes generally speaking it is common practice to leave at least 20% of the drive empty, as SSDs move around the data when writing to even out the wear on the drive, and with more empty space, you have fewer wasted write cycles from this process.

[Wh0_Am_1]

Here is a terabyte TLC 3DNAND flash drive from Adata for $95 USD. If you want to know what 3DNAND is here is a video. 

 

[David_Kwan]

11 minutes ago, Wh0_Am_1 said:

Yes generally speaking it is common practice to leave at least 20% of the drive empty, as SSDs move around the data when writing to even out the wear on the drive, and with more empty space, you have fewer wasted write cycles from this process.

lol... if I need to leave at least 20% then I can fit one more game in my SSD as it has only 149GB of space left. 

 

11 minutes ago, Wh0_Am_1 said:

Here is a terabyte TLC 3DNAND flash drive from Adata for $95 USD.

Unfortunately this does not ship to where I'm from.. and is there a significant difference between 32 and 64 layers?

[Wh0_Am_1]

 

5 minutes ago, David_Kwan said:

 is there a significant difference between 32 and 64 layers?

As far as I know, only how compact the memory is.

6 minutes ago, David_Kwan said:

Unfortunately this does not ship to where I'm from.. 

I apologize for asking, but which country or province does it need to be shipped to?

[TrigrH]

44 minutes ago, Wh0_Am_1 said:

There are some versions of the evo which are MLC, 

Thats a lie, 3 bit MLC is TLC.

[Wh0_Am_1]

1 minute ago, TrigrH said:

Thats a lie, 3 bit MLC is TLC.

Ooph I missed that 3bit thanks!

[TrigrH]

3D NAND using TLC apparently has better endurance than planar TLC drives, so personally I wouldn't go lower than an MX500 / EVO for drive endurance.

[schwellmo92]

3 hours ago, Wh0_Am_1 said:

Yes generally speaking it is common practice to leave at least 20% of the drive empty, as SSDs move around the data when writing to even out the wear on the drive, and with more empty space, you have fewer wasted write cycles from this process.

By default they've already over-provisioned from the factory almost completely sufficiently, have a read here https://www.seagate.com/au/en/tech-insights/ssd-over-provisioning-benefits-master-ti/

[Wh0_Am_1]

2 hours ago, schwellmo92 said:

By default they've already over-provisioned from the factory almost completely sufficiently, have a read here https://www.seagate.com/au/en/tech-insights/ssd-over-provisioning-benefits-master-ti/

Indeed, but that is near the bare minimum for the drive to be able to function, usually less than 10%