Cheap SSD for LINUX/Bazzite?

[Mark Kaine]

Is this a good one?

 

Acer Predator GM7 2TB M.2 NVMe SSD PCIe 4.0 

 

I'm mostly concerned about temps, if this runs hot/needs a heatsink I'd be ok with a slower one (don't really care about the speed, more about reliability)

[Dutch_Master]

51 minutes ago, Mark Kaine said:

concerned about temps

Then get yourself a generic PCIe gen 3 NVMe: slower, but running cooler.

[TudorFinalBosz]

@Mark Kaine That drive seems fine.

Apparently there are extension cables for M2 key slots.

Example: https://www.amazon.com/RIITOP-Extension-Cable-Extender-Support/dp/B0DPHSGPYV

 

 

I haven't tried them but it could be a solution if you want to position the M2 drive somewhere further from sources of heat on the mobo.

So you could, for example, place the drive close to a case fan.

[Mark Kaine]

29 minutes ago, Dutch_Master said:

Then get yourself a generic PCIe gen 3 NVMe: slower, but running cooler.

Oh, right... ok but which one? I want one with dram cache, my current one doesn't have it and it kinda sucks (Samsung 980)

[leclod]

Does your system support PCIe 4.0 at all ? if not then a PCIe 4.0 ssd will probably run cool by default.

(If it's concerning your MSI B550M MORTAR, than you've got  one PCIe 4.0 M.2 with a heatsink and one PCIe 3.0 without)

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/acer-predator-gm7-ssd-review

Edited October 24, 2025 by leclod

[Lurking]

2 hours ago, Mark Kaine said:

Oh, right... ok but which one? I want one with dram cache, my current one doesn't have it and it kinda sucks (Samsung 980)

You won't find a generic AND good SSD with DRAM. if you want performance, get formt he vertically integrated companies (Samsung Pro, or SK Hynix).

 

What is your use case? For Linux, i would assume requirements are less than for W11 since it uses less resources and consequently doesn't need to load as much. but whatever application you run in Linux, may require more performance. Like if you swap lot of large files al the time, a fast SSd still is better in Linux. 

 

FWIW, My Linux PCs use PCIe3 SSD and 6-7th generation Intel and start up and shut down Linux much much faster than My AM5 CPU with Samsung 980/980Pro SSD with W11. That is insane and shows how much better Linux itself is. so you can get by with less.

[Mark Kaine]

2 hours ago, Lurking said:

You won't find a generic AND good SSD with DRAM. if you want performance, get formt he vertically integrated companies (Samsung Pro, or SK Hynix).

 

What is your use case? For Linux, i would assume requirements are less than for W11 since it uses less resources and consequently doesn't need to load as much. but whatever application you run in Linux, may require more performance. Like if you swap lot of large files al the time, a fast SSd still is better in Linux. 

 

FWIW, My Linux PCs use PCIe3 SSD and 6-7th generation Intel and start up and shut down Linux much much faster than My AM5 CPU with Samsung 980/980Pro SSD with W11. That is insane and shows how much better Linux itself is. so you can get by with less.

I assume the HMB is dram cache?

Acer FA100 PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSD 2TB: up to 3300MB/s Read Speed, Gen3x4 M.2 2280 Internal Hard Drive with HMB & SLC

 

I'm not finding any pcie3 nvmes on german Amazon otherwise lol...

 

That's really the two main criteria, dram cache (I'm gonna write lots) and pcie3, it's still plenty fast to me.

[Lurking]

35 minutes ago, Mark Kaine said:

I assume the HMB is dram cache?

Acer FA100 PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSD 2TB: up to 3300MB/s Read Speed, Gen3x4 M.2 2280 Internal Hard Drive with HMB & SLC

 

I'm not finding any pcie3 nvmes on german Amazon otherwise lol...

 

That's really the two main criteria, dram cache (I'm gonna write lots) and pcie3, it's still plenty fast to me.

 don't think anyone still makes PCI3 anymore. 

 

No, DRAM in the context of SSD is actual RAM on the SSD. Only the few good SSD have that. Many of the cheap ones use the system RAM (HMB). The problem with system RAM is, the SSD needs to go through PCIe, then the CPU then the system RAM, and then the data goes back to CPU, to PCIE, and then the SSD. With actual DRAM, all these steps aren't needed. Also imagine a time the CPU is very busy with other tasks - then the whole HMB chain is even slower. i also think if you use the m.2 SSD in an enclosure on USB, that HMB doesn't work anymore. So, if in 5 years you want to recycle that SSD to use as an external drive, this may not be good. 

 

If it is just a storage drive, HMB is fine. But for an actual working drive, use DRAM on the SSD.

 

YMMV, but for my systems I decided to just buy Samsung Pro SSD. And large ones to partition to use them for data and OS. That way i never need to worry if the SSD holds me back. And even in 10 years that still is a decent SSD. I have an older system with PCI3 only. And that PCIe3 SSD also has DRAM. I never regretted to spend the extra $20. Do whatever you want, but life is too short for SSD made from reject parts or with parts missing (DRAM-less). IMHO, DRAM-less is only for a PC where you have absolutely no budget and the alternative would be an HDD. Good SSD also last longer and get support. To me, on the long run, a good SSD is cheaper. Buy cheap, buy twice.