• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

What's your boot drive? (Any recommendations?)

Joined
Aug 10, 2021
Messages
75 (0.06/day)
System Name Main
Processor Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard AsRock B650M Pro RS
Cooling Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 SE
Memory 2x16GB G.Skill FlareX 6000MT/s CL30
Video Card(s) Asus RX 6600 XT Dual OC
Storage Samsung 970 Evo 500GB + Crucial MX500 2TB
Display(s) AOC C24G1 + Lenovo L24-i10
Case Deepcool CH370 White + 6x Arctic P12 + 2x Arctic P14
Audio Device(s) Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80 Ohm + Fifine T669 Condenser Mic
Power Supply SeaSonic Focus GX-850 + sleeved extensions
Mouse Logitech G Pro Superlight
Keyboard Logitech G Pro KDA w/ GX Brown
Software W10 64bit Home | Linux Mint Cinnamon
My Samsung 970 Evo has been going strong for years now, however I am considering buying a newer, faster boot drive to replace it. The 970 Evo model is several years old now; and with my board having a Gen 5 M.2 slot, I could take advantage of the latest and greatest NVMe drives. Even a good Gen 4 drive would run rings around my 970 Evo.

As such I'm wondering, what boot drive do you use? What are your experiences with it/them? Any Gen 4/5 drives you'd recommend in particular? Any you'd steer clear of?

My disk usage needs are about as casual as they come, but the prospect of newer, faster tech is enticing nonetheless :cool:

The only thing I've really heard are Samsung's firmware woes with the 990 (?) series, so as reliable my 970 Evo has been, I'm a bit unsure whether I'd get a 990. Not too worried about my data, since most of it is on a separate drive and backed up regularly, I'd like to avoid having to go through an RMA process or multiple OS reinstalls with a brand new drive.

Would be great to hear what y'all are using :toast:
 
Joined
Feb 24, 2023
Messages
3,126 (4.74/day)
Location
Russian Wild West
System Name DLSS / YOLO-PC / FULLRETARD
Processor i5-12400F / 10600KF / C2D E6750
Motherboard Gigabyte B760M DS3H / Z490 Vision D / P5GC-MX/1333
Cooling Laminar RM1 / Gammaxx 400 / 775 Box cooler
Memory 32 GB DDR4-3200 / 16 GB DDR4-3333 / 3 GB DDR2-700
Video Card(s) RX 6700 XT / R9 380 2 GB / 9600 GT
Storage A couple SSDs, m.2 NVMe included / 240 GB CX1 / 500 GB HDD
Display(s) Compit HA2704 / MSi G2712 / non-existent
Case Matrexx 55 / Junkyard special / non-existent
Audio Device(s) Want loud, use headphones. Want quiet, use satellites.
Power Supply Thermaltake 1000 W / Corsair CX650M / non-existent
Mouse Don't disturb, cheese eating in progress...
Keyboard Makes some noise. Probably onto something.
VR HMD I live in real reality and don't need a virtual one.
Software Windows 11 / 10 / 8
My disk usage needs are about as casual as they come
If that's actually the case and you don't run anything hotter than video games and some average Joe workloads like Blender, Photoshop, some Visual Studio shenanigans you DO NOT NEED this upgrade. You might feel 0.3 ms boost to boot time and perhaps about 0.4 percent efficiency increase in terms of actual work but that's about it. 99.9999% users are limited by the memory itself (more precisely, random reads and writes) rather than the interface which is way wider than any casual user could bother.

Want additional space, go ahead and buy whatever SSD is high quality and big enough in storage space. Want additional speed, look for random reads and writes benchmarks but these aren't 100% accurate as far as I'm aware.

I got an "ancient" Samsung PM981 drive I purchased on Aliexpress about 5 years ago and it's a clockwork. Don't see why I should swap it.
 
Joined
Nov 16, 2023
Messages
1,433 (3.64/day)
Location
Nowhere
System Name I don't name my rig
Processor 14700K
Motherboard Asus TUF Z790
Cooling Air/water/DryIce
Memory DDR5 G.Skill Z5 RGB 6000mhz C36
Video Card(s) RTX 4070 Super
Storage 980 Pro
Display(s) Some LED 1080P TV
Case Open bench
Audio Device(s) Some Old Sherwood stereo and old cabinet speakers
Power Supply Corsair 1050w HX series
Mouse Razor Mamba Tournament Edition
Keyboard Logitech G910
VR HMD Quest 2
Software Windows
Benchmark Scores Max Freq 13700K 6.7ghz DryIce Max Freq 14700K 7.0ghz DryIce Max all time Freq FX-8300 7685mhz LN2
Im running a 980 pro 1tb. Works fine, pretty fast. No complaints.
 
Joined
Jul 26, 2024
Messages
185 (1.30/day)
old adata mlc sata ssd, I don't think swapping for pcie5 one would make much difference. you might shave off a second or two, but that's it.
 
Joined
Nov 27, 2023
Messages
2,472 (6.45/day)
System Name The Workhorse
Processor AMD Ryzen R9 5900X
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus B550 Pro
Cooling CPU - Noctua NH-D15S Case - 3 Noctua NF-A14 PWM at the bottom, 2 Fractal Design 180mm at the front
Memory GSkill Trident Z 3200CL14
Video Card(s) NVidia GTX 1070 MSI QuickSilver
Storage Adata SX8200Pro
Display(s) LG 32GK850G
Case Fractal Design Torrent (Solid)
Audio Device(s) FiiO E-10K DAC/Amp, Samson Meteorite USB Microphone
Power Supply Corsair RMx850 (2018)
Mouse Razer Viper (Original) on a X-Raypad Equate Plus V2
Keyboard Cooler Master QuickFire Rapid TKL keyboard (Cherry MX Black)
Software Windows 11 Pro (24H2)
I run an Adata 8200 Pro. Doesn’t really functionally matter, TBH. Unironically - get any decent Gen 3 and above SSD. That’s it. Any difference beyond this are imperceptible. Avoid Gen 5 like the plague for now - hot, expensive and completely unnecessary unless all you do is move BIGHUGE files every day, all day.
 
Joined
Sep 24, 2008
Messages
2,695 (0.45/day)
System Name Dire Wolf IV
Processor Intel Core i9 14900K
Motherboard Asus ROG STRIX Z790-I GAMING WIFI
Cooling Arctic Liquid Freezer II 280 w/Thermalright Contact Frame
Memory 2x24GB Corsair DDR5 6667
Video Card(s) NVIDIA RTX4080 FE
Storage AORUS Gen4 7300 1TB + Western Digital SN750 500GB
Display(s) Alienware AW3423DWF (QD-OLED, 3440x1440, 165hz)
Case Corsair Airflow 2000D
Power Supply Corsair SF1000L
Mouse Razer Deathadder Essential
Keyboard Chuangquan CQ84
Software Windows 11 Professional
Running an AORUS 7300 1TB (it was the cheapest Gen4 1TB drive when I was building this system). No complaints.

My honest recommendation is to pretty much keep what you have. I've been running drives in the 2000MB/s to 7000MB/s range and there is zero difference between them all in pretty much every casual use case. I doubt going into Gen5 territory would suddenly make things any different.
 
Joined
Jul 30, 2024
Messages
294 (2.13/day)
Location
Mitten State, USA
System Name Sim Racing PC/Dell XPS 15 7590
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800x/Intel Core i7-9750h
Motherboard ASUS TUF B450-Plus II/Dell Laptop MB
Cooling Arctic Freezer A35 CO/laptop cooling
Memory 2*8 GB G.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4-3200/2*8 GB Crucial DDR4-2666 SO-DIMM
Video Card(s) XFX SWFT309 RX 6700 XT/Laptop GTX 1650
Storage 1 TB Crucial 3400 PCIe Gen 4 SSD/Ediloca EN605 512 GB PCIe Gen 3 SSD
Display(s) 77" LG OLED TV (4K@120Hz)/15" Dell integrated panel (1080p@60Hz) and 30" Dell U3011 (1600p@60 Hz)
Case Cougar MX330-G Air / XPS 15 7590 chassis
Audio Device(s) Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro via Yamaha HT receiver/Integrated speakers or Creative Pebble Plus
Power Supply EVGA 600 BA / Dell 130W laptop brick
Mouse Logitech K400+ / Cherry MW 4500
Keyboard Logitech K400+ / Drop ENTR or E-YOOSO Z-686 or integrated keyboard
VR HMD Meta Quest 2
Software Windows 11 Home/Windows 11 Pro (meaning to try Linux)
I used to boot my main PC off of a 128 GB SanDisk SSD for the longest time and didn't really mind it; the PC was still plenty snappy. Now I run a Crucial 1 TB PCIe Gen 4 NVMe in it instead at Gen 3 speeds because my B450 board can't run Gen 4. It loads games extremely quickly and the PC boots in a matter of seconds. I haven't tried any Gen 4 drives but I think Gen 3 is still very quick for the vast majority of users. Heck, even a SATA SSD is still perfectly usable. Just don't boot your PC from an HDD! Don't get me wrong, I don't have a problem with people using HDDs as storage drives; just don't use them as your OS drive.
 

dgianstefani

TPU Proofreader
Staff member
Joined
Dec 29, 2017
Messages
5,076 (2.00/day)
Location
Swansea, Wales
System Name Silent
Processor Ryzen 7800X3D @ 5.15ghz BCLK OC, TG AM5 High Performance Heatspreader
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix X670E-I, chipset fans replaced with Noctua A14x25 G2
Cooling Optimus Block, HWLabs Copper 240/40 + 240/30, D5/Res, 4x Noctua A12x25, 1x A14G2, Mayhems Ultra Pure
Memory 32 GB Dominator Platinum 6150 MT 26-36-36-48, 56.6ns AIDA, 2050 FCLK, 160 ns tRFC, active cooled
Video Card(s) RTX 3080 Ti Founders Edition, Conductonaut Extreme, 18 W/mK MinusPad Extreme, Corsair XG7 Waterblock
Storage Intel Optane DC P1600X 118 GB, Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB
Display(s) 32" 240 Hz 1440p Samsung G7, 31.5" 165 Hz 1440p LG NanoIPS Ultragear, MX900 dual gas VESA mount
Case Sliger SM570 CNC Aluminium 13-Litre, 3D printed feet, custom front, LINKUP Ultra PCIe 4.0 x16 white
Audio Device(s) Audeze Maxwell Ultraviolet w/upgrade pads & LCD headband, Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, Razer Nommo Pro
Power Supply SF750 Plat, full transparent custom cables, Sentinel Pro 1500 Online Double Conversion UPS w/Noctua
Mouse Razer Viper V3 Pro 8 KHz Mercury White w/Tiger Ice Skates & Pulsar Supergrip tape, Razer Atlas
Keyboard Wooting 60HE+ module, TOFU-R CNC Alu/Brass, SS Prismcaps W+Jellykey, LekkerV2 mod, TLabs Leath/Suede
Software Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC 24H2
Benchmark Scores Legendary
Optane is unbeatable for boot drive.

If your usecase is casual though, it really doesn't matter.
 
Joined
Sep 26, 2022
Messages
2,117 (2.61/day)
Location
Brazil
System Name G-Station 2.0 "YGUAZU"
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D
Motherboard Gigabyte X470 Aorus Gaming 7 WiFi
Cooling Freezemod: Pump, Reservoir, 360mm Radiator, Fittings / Bykski: Blocks / Barrow: Meters
Memory Asgard Bragi DDR4-3600CL14 2x16GB
Video Card(s) Sapphire PULSE RX 7900 XTX
Storage 240GB Samsung 840 Evo, 1TB Asgard AN2, 2TB Hiksemi FUTURE-LITE, 320GB+1TB 7200RPM HDD
Display(s) Samsung 34" Odyssey OLED G8
Case Lian Li Lancool 216
Audio Device(s) Astro A40 TR + MixAmp
Power Supply Cougar GEX X2 1000W
Mouse Razer Viper Ultimate
Keyboard Razer Huntsman Elite (Red)
Software Windows 11 Pro
For casual use, not even I need to change my boot drive from my old faithful sata Samsung 840 Evo, and I do have two NVMe drives installed.

Would changing the boot to one of those NVMe drives make Windows boot faster? Sure thing, in absolute numbers. Would I notice it? Just maybe. Would it be worth the hassle? I do not think so, such that I didn't do it.
 
Joined
May 3, 2019
Messages
2,127 (1.04/day)
System Name BigRed
Processor I7 12700k
Motherboard Asus Rog Strix z690-A WiFi D4
Cooling Noctua D15S chromax black/MX6
Memory TEAM GROUP 32GB DDR4 4000C16 B die
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 3080 Gaming Trio X 10GB
Storage M.2 drives WD SN850X 1TB 4x4 BOOT/WD SN850X 4TB 4x4 STEAM/USB3 4TB OTHER
Display(s) Dell s3422dwg 34" 3440x1440p 144hz ultrawide
Case Corsair 7000D
Audio Device(s) Logitech Z5450/KEF uniQ speakers/Bowers and Wilkins P7 Headphones
Power Supply Corsair RM850x 80% gold
Mouse Logitech G604 lightspeed wireless
Keyboard Logitech G915 TKL lightspeed wireless
Software Windows 10 Pro X64
Benchmark Scores Who cares
My boot drive is a WD SN850X 1tb. Never even looked at a optane. From bios screen to login on win 10 is very fast maybe less than 5 seconds.
On win 11 though it can be up to 30 seconds for some reason, maybe all the bloaty background stuff on win 11 dunno
 
Joined
Sep 10, 2018
Messages
6,957 (3.04/day)
Location
California
System Name His & Hers
Processor R7 5800X/ R7 7950X3D Stock
Motherboard X670E Aorus Pro X/ROG Crosshair VIII Hero
Cooling Corsair h150 elite/ Corsair h115i Platinum
Memory Trident Z5 Neo 6000/ 32 GB 3200 CL14 @3800 CL16 Team T Force Nighthawk
Video Card(s) Evga FTW 3 Ultra 3080ti/ Gigabyte Gaming OC 4090
Storage lots of SSD.
Display(s) A whole bunch OLED, VA, IPS.....
Case 011 Dynamic XL/ Phanteks Evolv X
Audio Device(s) Arctis Pro + gaming Dac/ Corsair sp 2500/ Logitech G560/Samsung Q990B
Power Supply Seasonic Ultra Prime Titanium 1000w/850w
Mouse Logitech G502 Lightspeed/ Logitech G Pro Hero.
Keyboard Logitech - G915 LIGHTSPEED / Logitech G Pro
I've used Samsung 840-980 pros, Crucial MX 500, adata xpg 8200 pro, WD sn850/sn770 and couldn't tell them apart in a blind test assuming all other specifications were similar.

Currently using 980 pros in all my systems but other much cheaper drives you'd likely not notice and especially vs what you are already using.

I haven't used a gen 5 drives yet but I doubt I'd notice still I made sure my board supported 2 for games/os down the road.

I prefer a 1tb OS drive or larger otherwise idgaf as long as it's Sata ssd or faster.

I only install windows and Core programs on it though all other applications/games are on secondary drives.

I'd say if you're going to go through the hassles of swapping boot drive just buy the best gen 5 drive you can afford then their is 0 chance of fomo at least vs anything you can currently purchase.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Jun 8, 2022
Messages
388 (0.42/day)
Location
Ohio, USA
System Name Trackstar
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D -30 All Core CO (on Corsair XC5 block)
Motherboard Gigabyte B550 AORUS Elite V2 Rev 1.0 (F17 BIOS)
Cooling Corsair XD5 pump / Corsair XR5 1x 360mm (front) + 1x 420mm (top) rads
Memory 32GB G.Skill DDR4-3600 CL14 1:1 (F4-3600C14Q-32GVKA kit)
Video Card(s) ASRock RX 6950XT OC Formula (on Bykski A-AR6900XTOCF-X block)
Storage WD_BLACK SN850X 2TB w/HS (FW ver. 620361WD)
Display(s) Dell S3222DGM 32" 1440p/165Hz FreeSync
Case Fractal Design Meshify S2
Audio Device(s) Realtek ALC1200 Integrated Audio
Power Supply Super Flower Leadex Platinum SE 1200W on Liebert GXT4-1500RT120 UPS
Mouse Corsair Nightsword RGB
Keyboard Corsair K60 RGB PRO
VR HMD N/A
Software Windows 11 Pro 23H2 (Build 22631.3958)
Benchmark Scores https://www.3dmark.com/sw/1131940 https://www.3dmark.com/fs/29315810
My boot drive is a WD SN850X 1tb. Never even looked at a optane. From bios screen to login on win 10 is very fast maybe less than 5 seconds.
On win 11 though it can be up to 30 seconds for some reason, maybe all the bloaty background stuff on win 11 dunno
I can second the excellent performance of the SN850X. I have the 2TB model and absolutely love it. Power button press to desktop is roughly 15 seconds on W11 but that's after I excavated all of the startup bloat.
 
Joined
Jun 1, 2011
Messages
4,647 (0.94/day)
Location
in a van down by the river
Processor faster at instructions than yours
Motherboard more nurturing than yours
Cooling frostier than yours
Memory superior scheduling & haphazardly entry than yours
Video Card(s) better rasterization than yours
Storage more ample than yours
Display(s) increased pixels than yours
Case fancier than yours
Audio Device(s) further audible than yours
Power Supply additional amps x volts than yours
Mouse without as much gnawing as yours
Keyboard less clicky than yours
VR HMD not as odd looking as yours
Software extra mushier than yours
Benchmark Scores up yours
WD SN550, starts my PC just like any other SSD drive I've used
 
D

Deleted member 229121

Guest
WD Black SN-750 500GB in my main rig, at the login screen in ~10 seconds w/o fast boot.

As for recommendations, a good Gen 4 drive is all you need I wouldn't bother with the flaming fireball that is Gen 5.
WD Blacks and Samsungs are both solid, I just go with whatever is cheaper at the time.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

64K

Joined
Mar 13, 2014
Messages
6,773 (1.72/day)
Processor i7 7700k
Motherboard MSI Z270 SLI Plus
Cooling CM Hyper 212 EVO
Memory 2 x 8 GB Corsair Vengeance
Video Card(s) Temporary MSI RTX 4070 Super
Storage Samsung 850 EVO 250 GB and WD Black 4TB
Display(s) Temporary Viewsonic 4K 60 Hz
Case Corsair Obsidian 750D Airflow Edition
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply EVGA SuperNova 850 W Gold
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Logitech G105
Software Windows 10
My boot drive is an ancient Samsung 850 EVO 250 GB in my present build from 7 years ago. I have kept this rig for almost twice as long as any other in my past for gaming reasons. My next build, at the end of this year, I'm going with a single 4 TB NVMe. I feel like a tech dinosaur right now.
 
Joined
Jun 14, 2023
Messages
380 (0.69/day)
System Name Computer
Processor Intel 12700K
Motherboard Asus Prime Z690-A
Cooling Twin radiator open loop
Memory Corsair Dominator 32GB DDR5
Video Card(s) eVGA 3080 FTW3 Ultra
Storage Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus 2 TB
Display(s) Asus PG348Q and two Asus VN279Q monitors
Case Corsair 4000D Airflow
Audio Device(s) Sennheiser GSX 1000 with Sennheiser HD599 SE
Power Supply Asus Thor 1200P
Mouse Corsair Scimitar Elite RGB Wireless
Keyboard Keychron Q3 Max
VR HMD Oculus Rift CV1
Software Windows 10 Pro
I've been using a Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus 2 TB Gen 4.0 M.2 for over a year now with no issues. I run everything from it.
 
Joined
Mar 18, 2024
Messages
192 (0.71/day)
Location
Queensland, Australia
System Name Full Aorus PC that upgrades forever
Processor Ryzen 5 5600
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus X370 Gaming 5
Cooling Cooler Master MasterLiquid ML240L V2
Memory 32 GB 3200mhz CL16 Silicon Power (2 x 16gb)
Video Card(s) Aorus 5700 XT
Storage 2x Samsung 970 evo plus 500gb (One is on an expansion card)
Display(s) XG2431 (Luv ya Viewsonic for this great monitor)
Case Cooler Master MB TG520
Audio Device(s) HyperX Cloud Alpha
Power Supply AP850GM (Aorus 850 Watt)
Mouse Razer Viper Ultimate
Keyboard Redragon K614
Software Windows 11
Benchmark Scores 4.7GHZ on the CPU at 1.3 Volts
My Samsung 970 Evo has been going strong for years now, however I am considering buying a newer, faster boot drive to replace it. The 970 Evo model is several years old now; and with my board having a Gen 5 M.2 slot, I could take advantage of the latest and greatest NVMe drives. Even a good Gen 4 drive would run rings around my 970 Evo.

As such I'm wondering, what boot drive do you use? What are your experiences with it/them? Any Gen 4/5 drives you'd recommend in particular? Any you'd steer clear of?

My disk usage needs are about as casual as they come, but the prospect of newer, faster tech is enticing nonetheless :cool:

The only thing I've really heard are Samsung's firmware woes with the 990 (?) series, so as reliable my 970 Evo has been, I'm a bit unsure whether I'd get a 990. Not too worried about my data, since most of it is on a separate drive and backed up regularly, I'd like to avoid having to go through an RMA process or multiple OS reinstalls with a brand new drive.

Would be great to hear what y'all are using :toast:
I still use 970 Evo Plus, mostly because I only have a Gen 3 system.
Getting an NV2/P3 Plus will provide you better performance than the Samsung, and cost way less at the same time.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2013
Messages
6,236 (1.53/day)
Location
Over here, right where you least expect me to be !
System Name The Little One
Processor i5-11320H @4.4GHZ
Motherboard AZW SEI
Cooling Fan w/heat pipes + side & rear vents
Memory 64GB Crucial DDR4-3200 (2x 32GB)
Video Card(s) Iris XE
Storage WD Black SN850X 4TB m.2, Seagate 2TB SSD + SN850 4TB x2 in an external enclosure
Display(s) 2x Samsung 43" & 2x 32"
Case Practically identical to a mac mini, just purrtier in slate blue, & with 3x usb ports on the front !
Audio Device(s) Yamaha ATS-1060 Bluetooth Soundbar & Subwoofer
Power Supply 65w brick
Mouse Logitech MX Master 2
Keyboard Logitech G613 mechanical wireless
Software Windows 10 pro 64 bit, with all the unnecessary background shitzu turned OFF !
Benchmark Scores PDQ
#WD4ME4EVA#

I've been using the 750x's & 850x's in my own rigs (5) as well as client builds for quite a while now, they run fast & cool without the "sammy tax", neveranottaproblemo.....

So much so that I bought about $7k worth of 2 & 4TB models late last year when the prices crashed !
 
Joined
May 2, 2022
Messages
1,648 (1.72/day)
Location
G-City, UK
System Name AMDWeapon
Processor Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard X670E MSI Tomahawk WiFi
Cooling Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 ARGB with Silverstone Air Blazer 2200rpm fans
Memory G-Skill Trident Z Neo RGB 6000 CL30 32GB@EXPO
Video Card(s) Powercolor 7900 GRE Red Devil
Storage Samsung 870 QVO 1TB x 2, Lexar 256 GB, TeamGroup MP44L 2TB, Crucial T700 1TB, Seagate Firecuda 2TB
Display(s) 32" LG UltraGear GN600-B
Case Montech 903 MAX AIR
Audio Device(s) Steel Series Arctis Nova Pro Wireless
Power Supply MSI MPG AGF 850 watt gold
Mouse Glorious Model D l Pad GameSir G7 SE
Keyboard Redragon Vara K551P
Software Windows 11 Pro 24H2
Benchmark Scores Some points. More than your setup!
Crucial T700 1tb.
 
Joined
Jan 20, 2019
Messages
1,581 (0.73/day)
Location
London, UK
System Name ❶ Oooh (2024) ❷ Aaaah (2021) ❸ Ahemm (2017)
Processor ❶ 5800X3D ❷ i7-9700K ❸ i7-7700K
Motherboard ❶ X570-F ❷ Z390-E ❸ Z270-E
Cooling ❶ ALFIII 360 ❷ X62 + X72 (GPU mod) ❸ X62
Memory ❶ 32-3600/16 ❷ 32-3200/16 ❸ 16-3200/16
Video Card(s) ❶ 3080 X Trio ❷ 2080TI (AIOmod) ❸ 1080TI
Storage ❶ NVME/SSD/HDD ❷ <SAME ❸ SSD/HDD
Display(s) ❶ 1440/165/IPS ❷ 1440/144/IPS ❸ 1080/144/IPS
Case ❶ BQ Silent 601 ❷ Cors 465X ❸ Frac Mesh C
Audio Device(s) ❶ HyperX C2 ❷ HyperX C2 ❸ Logi G432
Power Supply ❶ HX1200 Plat ❷ RM750X ❸ EVGA 650W G2
Mouse ❶ Logi G Pro ❷ Razer Bas V3 ❸ Logi G502
Keyboard ❶ Logi G915 TKL ❷ Anne P2 ❸ Logi G610
Software ❶ Win 11 ❷ 10 ❸ 10
Benchmark Scores I have wrestled bandwidths, Tussled with voltages, Handcuffed Overclocks, Thrown Gigahertz in Jail
I've got several builds...

Sammy 990 PRO (gaming)
Sammy 960 evo (home office)
Sammy PM981 (2nd gaming)
Seagate FireCuda 520 (office)
WD SN770 (office)

If you're wandering why 990 PRO overkill for gaming - i got 2 on a sweet staff discount from a mate who works at Samsung. One in service and the other one spare.
 
Joined
Mar 21, 2021
Messages
5,129 (3.76/day)
Location
Colorado, U.S.A.
System Name CyberPowerPC ET8070
Processor Intel Core i5-10400F
Motherboard Gigabyte B460M DS3H AC-Y1
Memory 2 x Crucial Ballistix 8GB DDR4-3000
Video Card(s) MSI Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super
Storage Boot: Intel OPTANE SSD P1600X Series 118GB M.2 PCIE
Display(s) Dell P2416D (2560 x 1440)
Power Supply EVGA 500W1 (modified to have two bridge rectifiers)
Software Windows 11 Home
Don't see any point in changing. How many times do I boot my system per day? (Answer: 0.024)

The benefit of pure Optane is more than just booting; I also like the idea that the drive is not changing mode (SLC, QLC) as it fills up but keeps up the full speed throughout.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Jul 13, 2016
Messages
3,314 (1.08/day)
Processor Ryzen 7800X3D
Motherboard ASRock X670E Taichi
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 Chromax
Memory 32GB DDR5 6000 CL30
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 4090 Trio
Storage Too much
Display(s) Acer Predator XB3 27" 240 Hz
Case Thermaltake Core X9
Audio Device(s) Topping DX5, DCA Aeon II
Power Supply Seasonic Prime Titanium 850w
Mouse G305
Keyboard Wooting HE60
VR HMD Valve Index
Software Win 10
For your use case there's really no need to upgrade. I have an optane P5800X 800GB as a boot drive and had a T700 4TB as a boot drive (now just a storage drive) and the T700 provided zero noticeable performance uplift for normal tasks. I really only have these drives explicitly for training and loading AI models.
 
Joined
Jan 23, 2011
Messages
594 (0.12/day)
Location
St. Louis, MO
System Name Desktop
Processor AMD Ryzen 7800X3D
Motherboard MSI X670E MEG ACE
Cooling Corsair XC7 Block / Corsair XG7 Block EK 360PE Radiator EK 120XE Radiator 8x EK Vadar Furious Fans
Memory 64GB TeamGroup T-Create Expert DDR5-6000
Video Card(s) MSI RTX 4090 Gaming X Trio
Storage 1TB WD Black SN850 / 4TB Inland Premium / 8TB WD Black HDD
Display(s) Alienware AW3821DW / ASUS TUF VG279QM
Case Lian-Li Dynamic 011 XL ROG
Audio Device(s) Razer Nommo Pro Speakers / Creative AE-9 w/ Audio-Technica ATH-R70X
Power Supply EVGA P2 1200W Platinum
Mouse Razer Viper, Logitech G600
Keyboard Razer Huntsman Elite
I'd keep with what you got; you aren't going to notice it.

I have used a OCZ RD400 Revo Drive, Western Digital SN850, Various Inland branded SSDs, and PNY ones, can't tell a difference between them. You really cant.
 

FreedomEclipse

~Technological Technocrat~
Joined
Apr 20, 2007
Messages
24,135 (3.74/day)
Location
London,UK
System Name DarnGosh Edition
Processor AMD 7800X3D
Motherboard MSI X670E GAMING PLUS
Cooling Thermalright AM5 Contact Frame + Phantom Spirit 120SE
Memory 2x32GB G.Skill Trident Z5 NEO DDR5 6000 CL32-38-38-96
Video Card(s) Asus Dual Radeon™ RX 6700 XT OC Edition
Storage WD SN770 1TB (Boot)| 2x 2TB WD SN770 (Gaming)| 2x 2TB Crucial BX500| 2x 3TB Toshiba DT01ACA300
Display(s) LG GP850-B
Case Corsair 760T (White) {1xCorsair ML120 Pro|5xML140 Pro}
Audio Device(s) Yamaha RX-V573|Speakers: JBL Control One|Auna 300-CN|Wharfedale Diamond SW150
Power Supply Seasonic Focus GX-850 80+ GOLD
Mouse Logitech G502 X
Keyboard Duckyshine Dead LED(s) III
Software Windows 11 Home
Benchmark Scores ლ(ಠ益ಠ)ლ
Currently using a 512gb Samsung evo I bought off Amazon in 2018. I'm stepping up to a new setup and my new boot drive is going to be an 1TB SN770.

If youre only using it for OS and general apps, there's no real reason to upgrade it if it still has life on the clock.
 
Top