M.2 questions regarding an older z97 board

[1Step2Short]

Hey guys, I've done a bit a research and would like a few more head on this. According to the asus website the ROG Maxi vii(hero) board DOES support m.2 drives. But only as gen 2.0 PCiE. The 970 evo is currently GEN 3 PCI meaning it does not support it, correct?

However I was debating on snagging one of the adapters (show in the screenshot added) that offers support for both AHCI and NVMe. I know the board would support a 960 EVO but alas they've gone quite up in price.

I'm looking to replace my current SSD which is about 4 years old now.

 

I'm aware I won't get quite the performance the drive offers due to PCI lanes. Just looking for some help with compatibility.

 

System

 

 

Win10 1809?

i7 4790k

EVGA 1070

Asus Maximus vii hero

x1 860 evo(sata SSD)\

x1 WD black drive

 

[PlymouthJoseph]

I think I will be the best person to help you with this, because I am actually using a Z97 based system with a NVMe M.2 SSD at full speed!

 

With what you're going to get, there shouldn't be an issue in the slightest! I mean, I am using a Samsung 960 Evo 256GB with a Silverstone adapter and it works absolutely flawlessly.

Just one piece of advice... Make sure you install it into the PCIe 3.0 x8 slot on your motherboard. This will reduce the 16x slot for the GPU to x8 but I'm currently using a EVGA GTX 1080 Classified and I haven't had a single issue with performance.

 

TL;DR: Yes, it will work without a single issue! Just make sure you do a fresh install of Windows to ensure you don't carry any bloat over from the current Windows install.

To make your life easier installing programs, use ninite.com too. That's a massive help!

[Jurrunio]

29 minutes ago, 1Step2Short said:

The 970 evo is currently GEN 3 PCI meaning it does not support it, correct?

PCIe bus is backwards compatible, so it does work.

 

All you need is an M.2 slot

[PlymouthJoseph]

9 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

PCIe bus is backwards compatible, so it does work.

 

All you need is an M.2 slot

Only thing with this, if he were to install it on the M.2 board located on his motherboard, he would be severely limiting his performance.

On-board is PCIe 2.0x2 and will get a maximum reed speed of 800MB/s, using the adapter will allow the SSD to get the full PCIe 3.0x4 and reach is maximum read speed of 3500MB/s.

While it is backwards compatible, he should definitely not use it and instead get the adapter the mentioned in the OP. As long as he plugs that adapter into the 2nd red PCIe slot, it will run at it's full speed. Only down side is that it will limit the GPU to 8x speeds, but I am running a GTX 1080 and I haven't gotten and less performance when comparing to when I was running it on 16x with my Kingston SATA SSD.

[Jurrunio]

38 minutes ago, PlymouthJoseph said:

Only thing with this, if he were to install it on the M.2 board located on his motherboard, he would be severely limiting his performance.

On-board is PCIe 2.0x2 and will get a maximum reed speed of 800MB/s, using the adapter will allow the SSD to get the full PCIe 3.0x4 and reach is maximum read speed of 3500MB/s.

While it is backwards compatible, he should definitely not use it and instead get the adapter the mentioned in the OP. As long as he plugs that adapter into the 2nd red PCIe slot, it will run at it's full speed. Only down side is that it will limit the GPU to 8x speeds, but I am running a GTX 1080 and I haven't gotten and less performance when comparing to when I was running it on 16x with my Kingston SATA SSD.

1. Using the SSD is the only requirement, OP already expected speed loss

 

2. Difference between 3.5GB/s and 0.8GB/s is minimal for daily use. Honestly if I can find documentation on whether I can use SATA M.2 drives in my laptop, I wont buy an NVMe one.

[1Step2Short]

Much thanks for the replies guys.

I see it this way. If I run the GPU in x8 configuration and I don't see a performance degradation of massive concern it's a good configuration.

2nd scenario I run it with the slot provided and gain 300MB/s of speed and replace the drive I had originally intended to replace. It's a win win.

SSD prices have went down extremely. When I first bought the evo I had it was almost $1 p/gb. I think I spent like 130 for a 128gb. It's time for it to go

[PlymouthJoseph]

2 hours ago, 1Step2Short said:

Much thanks for the replies guys.

I see it this way. If I run the GPU in x8 configuration and I don't see a performance degradation of massive concern it's a good configuration.

2nd scenario I run it with the slot provided and gain 300MB/s of speed and replace the drive I had originally intended to replace. It's a win win.

SSD prices have went down extremely. When I first bought the evo I had it was almost $1 p/gb. I think I spent like 130 for a 128gb. It's time for it to go

Nice! You will not be disappointed!

Just make sure you use the PCIe to M.2 adapter else you'll be limiting yourself quite severely when buying the NVMe SSD.

I also know the feeling of spending a lot of money for SSDs... My first SSD was the Kingston HyperX 3K 240GB. That cost me £102 and I bought that April 2015. Then April 2018, I bought my Samsung 960 Evo 256GB which cost me £125.

The price for SSDs have dropped MASSIVLY when compared to a few years ago, just wish the prices would also affect RAM.

 

Anyway, you enjoy your new SSD, you will not be disappointed. Just make sure you do a clean installation of Windows to ensure you don't get any unwanted bloat with the old OS installation. Also, using ninite.com will be a massive help.