External SSD is getting very slow speeds when using a fast port connection. Please help!

[Peter Boyle]

Hi,

 

I purchased an external SSD (Crucial X8 1TB) which advertises high transfer speeds. I looked at youtube reviews and a lot of people said that it is a very good SSD (as long as you arent transferring massive size files). The SSD arrived in the mail today and first thing I go to do is a benchmark because I wanted to make sure I would get good speeds.

 

Firstly the SSD was having issues connecting to the ports on the back of my PC (USB C & USB 3.1 ports) so I decided to try it on my USB 3.0 port on the front of my PC case. I was getting a solid 350 MB/s which I was happy with since that seemed promising to me due to usb 3.0 being my slowest port I use. Finally I got it to work on my USB C and USB 3.1 port and to my surprise the drive started at (apparently) 1.75GB/s then dropped off within a second or two to a constant 40-50MB/s. I was using an 8.3GB file to test however surely this doesn't class as a big file by todays standards? Especially with video editors online recommending this drive.

 

Could anyone suggest what could cause this? The drive was hot to the touch (not hot enough to burn or cause discomfort) but I assumed this was normal. Surely it can't be throttling over an 8GB file can it?

 

Would I be best to just return the SSD and purchase the Samsung T7 Touch for £30 more before the black friday sale ends?

 

(All speeds obtained were consistent no matter if I used the included cable or my own)

 

Thanks in advance.

[WhitetailAni]

I personally would classify an 8GB file as "big."

Unless we are talking OS disc images.

[Peter Boyle]

Just now, ragnarok0273 said:

I personally would classify an 8GB file as "big."

Unless we are talking OS disc images.

According to the reviews though people have been editing 4k videos off the drive and the speeds didnt drop off unless the files were about 200GB. Its confusing the hell out of me haha

[WhitetailAni]

Huh.

Is the USB-C port 5 Gbps or 10 Gbps?

'Cause there is no longer any such thing as USB 3.0 because USB-IF.

We instead have:

USB 3.1 Gen 1 (Type A, 5 Gbps)

USB 3.1 Gen 2 (Type C, 5 Gbps)

USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type A, 10 Gbps)
USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type C, 10 Gbps)
USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (Type C, 20 Gbps)

[Peter Boyle]

7 minutes ago, ragnarok0273 said:

Huh.

Is the USB-C port 5 Gbps or 10 Gbps?

'Cause there is no longer any such thing as USB 3.0 because USB-IF.

We instead have:

USB 3.1 Gen 1 (Type A, 5 Gbps)

USB 3.1 Gen 2 (Type C, 5 Gbps)

USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type A, 10 Gbps)
USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type C, 10 Gbps)
USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (Type C, 20 Gbps)

See my motherboard is a few years old now but I checked the spec list and it says the USB-C and USB 3.1 ports are both 10Gbps. When I say USB 3.0 im referring to the USB ports built into my PC case

 

My motherboard:

https://www.asus.com/us/Motherboards/MAXIMUS-VIII-HERO/

[Peter Boyle]

5 minutes ago, ragnarok0273 said:

Huh.

Is the USB-C port 5 Gbps or 10 Gbps?

'Cause there is no longer any such thing as USB 3.0 because USB-IF.

We instead have:

USB 3.1 Gen 1 (Type A, 5 Gbps)

USB 3.1 Gen 2 (Type C, 5 Gbps)

USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type A, 10 Gbps)
USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Type C, 10 Gbps)
USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (Type C, 20 Gbps)

Also my pc has been saying there is an error with the drive as of about 10mins ago. Anytime I have unplugged it I have ejected it because I know it can damage files so I think it might be needing returned possibly

[WhitetailAni]

Huh.

So 10 Gbps = 1.25 GB/s...

And it said 1.75 GB/s...

The 0.5 GB/s difference is probably caching, so I'll ignore that.

Once it dropped it was running a bit below USB 2.0 speeds.

And the SSD getting not makes sense to me - I was using an 850 EVO 250GB as an "flash drive" with a SATA to USB adapter, and it got a bit hot while using it.

I'm stumped on the slow speeds - the only things I can think of is the cable, but that doesn't make any sense.

[Peter Boyle]

2 minutes ago, ragnarok0273 said:

Huh.

So 10 Gbps = 1.25 GB/s...

And it said 1.75 GB/s...

The 0.5 GB/s difference is probably caching, so I'll ignore that.

Once it dropped it was running a bit below USB 2.0 speeds.

And the SSD getting not makes sense to me - I was using an 850 EVO 250GB as an "flash drive" with a SATA to USB adapter, and it got a bit hot while using it.

I'm stumped on the slow speeds - the only things I can think of is the cable, but that doesn't make any sense.

Yeah especially since it is getting 350MB/s on the USB ports on the case... You think I should just return it? I would like to test it on another machine but sadly i'm the only one who likes tech in the house so no one has any high speed ports haha

[WhitetailAni]

See if swapping it fixes it.

 

[Peter Boyle]

1 minute ago, ragnarok0273 said:

See if swapping it fixes it.

 

Im tempted to get it replaced however also tempted just to get the Samsung T7. Heard they aint the best as a drive to work directly from though.