M.2 x4 Gen-3 SSDs with 32Gb/s bandwidth

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
K

kuba200104

Honorable
Dec 1, 2013
10
0
10,510
Do you have any information about M.2 x4 Gen-3 SSDs with 32Gb/s bandwidth? Do you know when this will come out and how much would it cost. I've heard about Samsung XP941 but that's using Gen 2 PCIe interface. I hope we will see 3GB/s M.2 SSDs soon, am I right?
 
Solution
JohnnyLucky
A few weeks ago Samsung sent out a message to its partners indicating the company will begin manufacturing test samples of their new SM951 M.2 NGFF PCIe 3.0 x4 ssd within the next few weeks. If all goes well mass production and distribution will begin about the middle of next year. The production lead time appears to be similar to the XP941. Samsung did not mention whether the new SP951 will be "OEM only" like the XP941 or whether it will be available for retail sales to the general public.

Samsung jumped ahead of other motherboard and ssd companies when they released the XP941 last year. It was the first consumer M.2 ssd to make use of 4 PCIe 2.0 channels. In addition it was OEM only. It was actually designed for use in tablets and...
Sort by date Sort by votes
JohnnyLucky

JohnnyLucky

Illustrious
May 30, 2007
10,902
10
42,965
A few weeks ago Samsung sent out a message to its partners indicating the company will begin manufacturing test samples of their new SM951 M.2 NGFF PCIe 3.0 x4 ssd within the next few weeks. If all goes well mass production and distribution will begin about the middle of next year. The production lead time appears to be similar to the XP941. Samsung did not mention whether the new SP951 will be "OEM only" like the XP941 or whether it will be available for retail sales to the general public.

Samsung jumped ahead of other motherboard and ssd companies when they released the XP941 last year. It was the first consumer M.2 ssd to make use of 4 PCIe 2.0 channels. In addition it was OEM only. It was actually designed for use in tablets and other small mobile pc's. Samsung has very lucrative contracts to supply major pc companies like Dell, Lenovo, Apple, and others with OEM ssd's.

Currently there are only three Z97 motherboards that can fully support the XP941 with 4 PCIe 2.0 channels. The situation is a little better with X99 motherboards. Most X99 motherboards have at least one M.2 NGFF header/connector. A few of the M.2 headers / connectors are PCIe 2.0 x4. However, a much larger portion are only PCIe 2.0 x2. A few are SATA 3 and a few are a hybrid of PCIe 2.0 x 2 and SATA 3. A consumer has to be very careful in selecting a motherboard that supports the new ssd's.

With the SM951 Samsung is jumping ahead again because the SP951 will be a M.2 NGFF PCIe 3.0 x4 ssd. Currently there are no consumer motherboards that can fully support the SP951. I do not expect to see any motherboards that support the SP951 until next year.

Price should be about the same as the XP941 - about $1.00 USD / GB.

I maintain the ssd database listed in a sticky at the very top of this forum section. Here is the link:

http://www.johnnylucky.org/data-storage/ssd-database.html

Scroll down to the Samsung section and follow the links to technical reviews of the XP941. You can also check other brands and models you might be interested in.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Solution
N

nbrikha

Honorable
Jun 19, 2013
21
0
10,510


and which Z97 boards would those be because I'm looking for one.

 
Upvote 0 Downvote
K

kuba200104

Honorable
Dec 1, 2013
10
0
10,510
As it comes to z97 motherboards with support for m.2 SSDs Gen 3 x4 you might consider ASRock Extreme6. However, I recommend going with x99 platform (as I do) and with Asus x99 deluxe which has support for it. Obviously you would have to pay a bit more, but six core processor (i7 5820k) which is just a couple of bucks more will be very useful, not necessary for gaming, but for things like video editing or game designing.
 
Upvote 1 Downvote
JohnnyLucky

JohnnyLucky

Illustrious
May 30, 2007
10,902
10
42,965
The three Z97 motherboards that fully support the Samsung XP941 M.2 NGFF (PCIe 2.0 x4) are:

1. ASRock Z9 Extreme6

2. ASRock Z9 Extreme9

3.Asus - I can't remember which one.

I had the ASRock Extreme6 and the Samsung XP941. In order to enable the XP941 as the primary boot drive and install Microsoft Windows I had to enable UEFI mode instead of Legacy mode for three settings in the UEFI BIOS. After changing the settings I also had to select the Windows Boot Manager as the primary boot drive. Save the settings and proceed with normal Windows installation to the XP941.

Unfortunately the motherboard had a defective Intel Ethernet Connection adapter and I had to RMA it back to newegg yesterday. I also did an RMA for the XP941 for the following reasons:

1. The XP941 is strictly an OEM ssd for sale to pc companies like Dell, Lenovo, Apple, and others. It is not supposed to be for retail sales to consumers. The few vendors that do have the XP941 are technically selling it as a replacement part.

2. The XP941 was designed for use in mobile pc's, especially tablets. It was never designed for use in desktop computers. It does not have the proper code for using it as a primary boot drive in a desktop pc. That's why the extra changes to UEFI mode and the Windows Boot Manager are required in order to get it to work as a primary boot drive in a desktop pc.

3. The Samsung SSD Magician recognizes the XP941 but the utilities will not work because it is not a retail consumer version ssd.

4. Consumers cannot register the ssd with Samsung or obtain support because it is not a consumer retail version.

5. Since the ssd is not being used for its intended purpose there is no warranty or consumer protection.

6. Finally, the synthetic benchmarks look good but they are about the same as my standard 2.5 inch Samsung 840 EVO SATA 3 6Gb/s ssd with rapid mode enabled. Most consumers will not see or feel a difference in performance between the 840 with rapid mode, the 850 with rapid mode, and the XP941.

 
Upvote 1 Downvote
JohnnyLucky

JohnnyLucky

Illustrious
May 30, 2007
10,902
10
42,965


You are correct about an X99 system costing more. An X99 system will require the purchase of a new X99 motherboard, a new Intel cpu, and new DDR4 memory. It is an expensive proposition just to be able to use the XP941. At the other extreme all I had to purchase was a Z97 motherboard that fully supported the XP941. I was able to use all of the other components in my old system.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
JohnnyLucky

JohnnyLucky

Illustrious
May 30, 2007
10,902
10
42,965
In the past few days I have come across several additional motherboards boards that support M.2 NGFF PCIe 3.0 x4 ssd's. The ultimate is the ASRock X99 Extreme11 which was just released today. The board fully supports two M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 ssd's and something like a total of 18 SATA 3 and SAS ssd's. It has so many features packed into it that it costs $649.99 USD at newegg.com. I think it is the most expensive X99 board so far.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
N

Naeem Rahman

Reputable
Dec 12, 2014
15
0
4,510


Can i use it for boot too?
Secondly the option of SATA Express willremain open or not by doing so?

 
Upvote 0 Downvote
G

galley

Distinguished
Jan 18, 2015
37
0
18,530


JohnnyLucky- I have been looking for a PCIe 2.0 (3.0 in necessay) x4 Adapter to install the XP941 in an Asus Z97-Pro as the bootable drive. I have had no luck finding one that anyone believes will allow the M.2 to be bootable. If you know of a PCIe/M.2 adapter that will work for me, PLEASE provide me with the names. The ones I have found, by Lycom & BPlus state they do not support the M.2 as being bootable. Please HELP if you can. Thanks.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
N

Naeem Rahman

Reputable
Dec 12, 2014
15
0
4,510


Sir will my board asus Z97 A will support it
and will i would be having an option of SATA Express or it will be gone with it.?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
N

Naeem Rahman

Reputable
Dec 12, 2014
15
0
4,510


will there be the option of sata express after that ?
or it wouldn't be?

 
Upvote 0 Downvote
W

wbreno

Reputable
Jan 27, 2015
7
0
4,510
what the heck does any of this have to do with the original question on gen3 M.2 drives? I don't understand how this board works. I have the same question. Who is currently making a gen3 retail m.2 SSD? The best solution to this is an article that was done Sept 2014????? The stuff in that article doesn't even apply because it says there aren't any mobo with gen3 m.2 support which is not true anymore.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
JohnnyLucky

JohnnyLucky

Illustrious
May 30, 2007
10,902
10
42,965


Sorry for the delayed response. Here is the Addonics adapter card:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=12K-017B-00001&cm_re=addonics-_-12K-017B-00001-_-Product

The Addonics card is also available through the company web site which also has more detailed information and some instructions:

http://www.addonics.com/products/adm2px4.php

Also available at Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Addonics-M2-PCIe-SSD-Adapter/dp/B00K7CJG1U

Assus released a Republic of Gamers adapter card:

http://rog.asus.com/327432014/labels/product-news/asus-hyper-m-2-x4-pci-express-gen23-to-m-2-x4-ssd-adapter-card/



 
Upvote 0 Downvote
G

galley

Distinguished
Jan 18, 2015
37
0
18,530


Thank You :)
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
JohnnyLucky

JohnnyLucky

Illustrious
May 30, 2007
10,902
10
42,965


Yes, Asus Z97 motherboards can support M.2 PCIe solid state drives with an appropriate adapter card. You may have to update the BIOS and change a few BIOS settings.

There are no SATA Express solid state drives being manufactured. It was easier and less expensive to manufacture M.2 ssd's and add M.2 connectors to a motherboard. M.2 can be used for both desktop and mobile computers. In addition SATA Express ssd performance cannot equal M.2 PCI-e ssd performance.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
JohnnyLucky

JohnnyLucky

Illustrious
May 30, 2007
10,902
10
42,965


You are correct in that things have changed quite a bit since last September. The Samsung XP941 PCI-e 2.0x4 ssd was finally released for retail sales and now comes with a 3 year warranty. Samsung is already manufacturing and distributing an OEM version of the new SP951 PCI-e 3.0x4 ssd. It is already available in HP computers. Samsung will release it for retail sales next March.

But wait! There's more. Other companies are releasing or planning to release their own M.2 PCI-e ssd's. The M.2 interface varies from M.2 SATA 3 all the way to M.2 PCI-e 3.0x4.

I maintain the ssd database listed in a sticky at the very top of this forum section. Here is the link:

http://www.johnnylucky.org/data-storage/ssd-database.html

As you scroll down the database you will notice that each brand is divided into sections - PCI-e, M.2, SATA 3, and SATA. I have already added PCI-e and M.2 ssd's that are currently available and new models that were announced at CES 2015 in Las Vegas two weeks ago. There will be another round of releases next summer at the big computer show in Taiwan.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
W

wbreno

Reputable
Jan 27, 2015
7
0
4,510
I just emailed these guys so I haven't verified this yet but it looks like they might have a gen3 M.2 SSD available. The tech specs below the picture are obviously not gen 3 but I think that is just a problem with the page construction as the speeds in the product description are clearly gen3 and don't match the specs underneath.

http://www.mfactors.com/m-2-pcie-gen3-x4-ssd-80mm-monarch-m4/
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
G

galley

Distinguished
Jan 18, 2015
37
0
18,530


thank you - I shall look into this :)
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
W

wbreno

Reputable
Jan 27, 2015
7
0
4,510


 
Upvote 0 Downvote
W

wbreno

Reputable
Jan 27, 2015
7
0
4,510
I was really complaining about the way Tom's Hardware organizes these threads. It had your post as an answer to the question on whether there was a currently available m.2 Gen3 x4 SSD. Which clearly wasn't the question your post was intended to answer. As far as your DB goes. A lot of info there but I find it too difficult to use. I'd rather see it organized by product type rather than vendor. I just want to see all the same type SSD together, I don't want to have to search the entire thing to find what M.2 Gen3 X4 SSD are available.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
G

galley

Distinguished
Jan 18, 2015
37
0
18,530


I agree that it would be best to organize by product type. Mfgs just make too many different product types to do it the way it is being done. BUT - Tom's Hardware and these forums has prove incredibly valuable, though a bit difficult at times.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
W

wbreno

Reputable
Jan 27, 2015
7
0
4,510


 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom