M.2 - PCIe Question

[Hi P]

Let's say we have an NVMe drive that goes 3000 mb/s when connected to PCIe 3.0 slot x4 mode.

 

What would be the tranfer rate on:

(just an aprox, in "theory")

 

- PCIe 3.0 x2: ???

- PCIe 2.0 x4: ???

 

Also, is it possible to connect an NVMe which is listed as PCIe 3.0 x4 in a PCIe 2.0 slot? do you need an adapter?

 

Thank you

[Electronics Wizardy]

about 1600mB/s max in a pcie 3 x2 or a pcie 2 x4(there about the same speed)

 

but you won't notice that difference. The big difference in nvme drives is iops and lower overhead for most people, not sequentical speeds. And you can get full iops on a pcie 3 x2 link. Thats why the faster nvme for most dekstop uses is the 800p and is a pcie3 x2 drive.

 

But for most desktop uses, get a sata drive, you won't notice the difference, the real world differece is very small.

[BrinkGG]

11 minutes ago, Hi P said:

Let's say we have an NVMe drive that goes 3000 mb/s when connected to PCIe 3.0 slot x4 mode.

 

What would be the tranfer rate on:

(just an aprox, in "theory")

 

- PCIe 3.0 x2: ???

- PCIe 2.0 x4: ???

 

Also, is it possible to connect an NVMe which is listed as PCIe 3.0 x4 in a PCIe 2.0 slot? do you need an adapter?

 

Thank you

985MB/s per lane on 3.0

500MB/s per lane on 2.0

985*2 = 1970MB/s

500*4 = 2000MB/s

About the same. 

[Hi P]

8 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

But for most desktop uses, get a sata drive, you won't notice the difference, the real world differece is very small.

Yup I agree, It's just that I'm going to use a 2 drive setup, and I noticed the NVMe and SATA where nearly same price for 120 / 250 gb, so I might aswell test it

 

Regarding the second question, can I connect a PCIe 3.0 x4 drive (860 EVO) on a PCIe 2.0 slot?

[Electronics Wizardy]

Just now, Hi P said:

Yup I agree, It's just that I'm going to use a 2 drive setup, and I noticed the NVMe and SATA where nearly same price for 120 / 250 gb, so I might aswell test it

 

Regarding the second question, can I connect a PCIe 3.0 x4 drive (860 EVO) on a PCIe 2.0 slot?

Why go 2 drive? Id just get a bigger single ssd.

 

The 860 evo is a sata ssd, no pcie at all. It will be the exact same speed as the 2.5 version and other fast sata ssds

 

If you want a cheaper pcie ssd look at a sx8200 or a 660p.

 

 

[seagate_surfer]

You can check the following chart, it shows what are the expected rates per lane and generation: https://goo.gl/XLTM2w

[Hi P]

14 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

Why go 2 drive? Id just get a bigger single ssd, the 860 evo is a sata ssd, no pcie at all.

My bad! I meant the 970 Evo

 

On the drive setup, I got told it's safer to have it that way, I planned on going:

 

- 250 GB NVMe: OS and Programs

- 500 GB SSD: Files

- 1 TB HDD: Backup

 

It's still up to change! doing such setup is bad?

[Electronics Wizardy]

Just now, Hi P said:

My bad! I meant the 970 Evo

 

On the drive setup, I got told it's safer to have it that way, I planned on going:

 

- 250 GB NVMe: OS and Programs

- 500 GB SSD: Files

- 1 TB HDD: Backup

 

It's still up to change! doing such setup is bad?

Id personally just get a single 1 or 2tb ssd, easier to manage and worth with. No copying files between drives or worrying about where data is.

 

ANd then id get external hdd for backup, and swap them with anouther off site drive. Having a second ssd really isn't much safer.

[seagate_surfer]

One SSD and one larger HDD for back up is what many people seem to be doing nowadays, nothing wrong about it!, But I understand your idea, of course 2 SSDs will last you longer, because you will be writing less on each one of them, and as you may already know, writing in SSDs is something that matters because they write/save data different than HDDs, and thus consume faster. Whether you use one SSD or two SSDs, it is always recommended to have a back up of all your important files.