ASUS Z97I-PLUS M.2 Drive

[Dawelio]

Hey guys,

So I have the ASUS Z97I-PLUS motherboard and it says that it supports an M.2 drive?...

Now I don't have much knowledge with these kind of drives, but are they better/faster than an SSD?... As thinking of getting one for my OS, and then only have 2 SSDs (since also the Fractal Design Node 202, only supports 2 SSDs)

And which one would then fit my motherboard, as they specify it on their website, which I don't understand the numbers:

https://www.asus.com/se/Motherboards/Z97IPLUS/specifications/

Will either of these 2 work on my motherboard, or what is it that I should be looking at here really?... Regarding those numbers 2260/2280?.

https://www.komplett.se/product/857...disk/ssd-m2/samsung-950-pro-256gb-m2-pcie-ssd

https://www.komplett.se/product/857...isk/ssd-25/samsung-950-pro-512gb-m2-pcie-ssd#

Apologies for so many links, hope you can by pass it.

Thanks,
Chrazey

 

[Doomslayer]

The only one you can buy that will be faster than a SSD is one of those intel NVMe but normal M.2 drive aren't really faster than a normal SSD

 

[MNMadman]

Yes, those two drives will both work. They are both the 2280 type.

Your system won't take full advantage of the read speeds of either drive, as those PCIe 2.0 lanes in the M.2 slot max out at 2000MBps. And that's assuming x4 width is available to it -- if it has x2 width, then it will only do 1000MBps.

I've had a Crucial MX100 and a Samsung 840 Pro. When I switched to the 950 Pro 512GB, it did feel quicker. The difference isn't huge, but it is noticeable. I just do gaming, heavy internet usage, and movie and music streaming. If you do more disk-heavy stuff, you'll feel more of a difference.

 

[Dawelio]

Yes, those two drives will both work. They are both the 2280 type.

Your system won't take full advantage of the read speeds of either drive, as those PCIe 2.0 lanes in the M.2 slot max out at 2000MBps. And that's assuming x4 width is available to it -- if it has x2 width, then it will only do 1000MBps.

I've had a Crucial MX100 and a Samsung 840 Pro. When I switched to the 950 Pro 512GB, it did feel quicker. The difference isn't huge, but it is noticeable. I just do gaming, heavy internet usage, and movie and music streaming. If you do more disk-heavy stuff, you'll feel more of a difference.

Coolios... I have an Samsung 840 Pro 256GB SSD and used it for years now.

I don't really care all that much about the speeds to be honest, since I mostly just do what you describe you do on your PC. Just even less gaming than you

I just want it, cause then I can still have 3 drives in my system, while the Fractal Design Node 202 only supports 2 SSDs inside.

This m.2 drive for OS, a Corsair 180GB for games and then an 500GB/1TB SSD for storage

Although, I don't quite get what you mean with the x2 and x4 speeds etc... What will mine run at on my motherboard? :huh: