PCI-E 4.0 NVMe Review - Gigabyte AORUS Gen4 - How Fast Is It?

[@TechDeals]

*UPDATE* - Thanks to everyone for being understanding on the lack of videos recently. We are recovering from being sick for the past month, it has been an interesting challenge, to say the least. Lots of backed up content coming as soon as possible, so much to do! Please follow on Twitter or join our Discord for regular updates!

[@playmaker451]

I wish you a speedy recovery and don't push yourself getting out vids, just take the time to recover.

[@Saigonas]

👍

[@kalingakeshari296]

It's all right, Take care of yourself and your family.

[@jekciso]

Shoot some B-roll

[@evol3852]

The quantity of videos doesn't matter to me, it's the quality that you deliver every time. Take care of yourself, health comes first.

[@dafarsher9738]

PC hardware manufacturers this is the YT content creator we want to receive your manufacturing samples for testing, his explanation and presentation of technology is far superior to other creators!

[@kumd]

Unfortunately he tells the truth though. Good for us bad for sales 👎

[@flybywire5866]

Exactly!

[@isDatBoi]

agree... unlike others TY , they just keep talking with 90% of their face enlarge to screen with little information about the new product itself

[@pannudilraj]

Agree

[@adeanda92]

Other YTs *insert ad, omg this NVME is fast as fuck watch it after *insert ad, on this episode of Scrap Yard wars Linis tries to find an NVME for his budget bill. *Insert ad

[@MidnightBanshi]

I love how you poke holes in the hype to keep it real and show where the real value for the money is! You set the gold standard for TechTubers!

[@DJSammy69.]

I love how you explain what is important and whats not. Thats why i come here! Awesome video!

[@razzlfraz]

Unfortunately, his information about the 4k 1D1T test is not as real world as you would think. Most games and programs are written sequentially, so even if the block size on the partition is 4k, it will read most programs sequentially. Think about it this way: If you load a video game from your hard drive, what is it's load speed? The HDD is loading gigabytes for most games yet it takes less than a second for a modern SSD to load it all. Clearly it's not going at 61MB/s like the 4k 1D1T test implies it would be. The 4k 1D1T test is for when you run out of ram. Out side of that, it's not a very real world test.

[@Sunny-uh5bc]

Angel So, then which NVMe would you recommend for gaming? I’m currently looking to buy one for a i9-9900k, 2080 Ti, 32GB RAM 3200Mhz build. Do you currently have a preference out of those 8 drives he tested?

[@razzlfraz]

@@Sunny-uh5bc At the end of the day it comes down to how much you want to pay. I've got a Samsung SSD in my computer, but my machine is pci-e 3.0. That pci-e 4.0 ssd being demoed in the video looks amazing, but unfortunately I don't have personal experience with it so I can't vouch for it. I can vouch for Noctura for their CPU coolers, Coursair for their PSUs, and Samsung for their SSDs though. All three brands have a great track record and I've been using them for 5-10 years in my builds with zero issues.

[@lucasrem]

DJSammy69 What do noobs need, play a game......Is AMD fast enough to run a game..... 2014 Thunderbolt 3 levels, or cheap open AMD USB4 in 2020? Needed?

[@JamesNashWalker]

Me too

[@DrearierSpider1]

I wish Intel would/could offer the same value in their CPU's as their SSD's have.

[@OfficialNakatsuMegami]

They are too busy with Security issues. Its one security threat after another with them. They are dying.

[@leechburglights]

I followed Tech's suggestion and ordered the Intel 600 1TB NVME for my 2 year old Ryzen 1600 system. Was on sale for $84 in July . Very happy with the investment.

[@wysetech2000]

@@OfficialNakatsuMegami You sure can't count very well. Intel started with 2 vulnerabilities and then 6 more. That's not one after the other. You should go play with your AMD toy and not comment on something you know nothing about. Intel will probably out last you.

[@simok8443]

@@wysetech2000 i bet that's not even the most embarassing thing you've ever said

[@grizzly6699]

Agreed. Then Tech would be recommending Intel over Ryzen.

[@Amanullah-dx5uy]

This dude is better than most of the computer teachers!

[@colmercer3315]

Those teachers are actually subscribed to him to get their info before teaching their class. 😉

[@umerbest9949]

@@colmercer3315 😯😯

[@parl-88]

I always love your DEAL or NO DEAL Videos....Maybe make it a Series or Playlist on its own

[@evol3852]

Looking forward to them. It's what got me into this channel. If only I've seen his videos earlier, ended up buying a cpu cooler which he didn't reccomend...had my hands full with it (the MA410m)

[@Duval_Sama]

I second this motion.

[@pntm2006]

At first viewing, I thought your videos would be disinteresting but how wrong was I. You have comprehensive video reviews, comparisons and you always have basis in your final verdict or recommendation. Pair that with a clean presentation of your videos (free of clutters or RGB lights everywhere) and a clear articulation, you have got yourself a subscriber in me. Please continue in creating more contents in the future

[@mattyclad9185]

I found the Intel 1tb ssd at Micro Center for $90. Perfect for my upcoming budget build 👍

[@jacobwebb8818]

HOWW?!?! 😂 must be a miracle

[@XxZebbe]

Cheapest is like 180$ in Sweden

[@joshuaboy]

Newegg emailed me a coupon to get it for $84 USD. I also had a $15 credit from another promotion, so I couldn't pass it up for $69.

[@edisonyang3283]

Mark Tanaka I assume tax increases the price to $69.42?

[@krecikowi]

exactly, I got 660 p 2TB fro $170 brand new :).

[@DanteLovesPizza]

This is why I watch your videos, because you test and suggest based on real-world performance. I actually saw another benchmark recently, the guy listed a series of figures comparing a few drives, but when he came to suggest, he based it off sequential read and write only and then said, yeah, 660p suggested for storage. What's worse was people actually were misled and responded in the comments, like, "oh, this helped me decide, MP510 it is" as if all they'll ever do with the drive is file transfer. Seriously, more people need to be directed to your videos, because it seems like most people go for the shiny sequential read and write numbers only not realising what any of the numbers actually mean. Keep up the good work.

[@Einungbrekke]

I bought the 2 T 660p after looking at your other video. I was thinking to spend more money on something more expensive, but after watching your last video, I ended up with the 660 and are really happy with it. Its more than fast enough for me

[@the1neoxu]

I'm going to buy it too for my game PC. I figured capacity is more important than being extreme fast.

[@Einungbrekke]

@@the1neoxu Yeah and I don't regret it and honestly, I don't think I would ever notice the difference, since all I use the disk for is having my games on it. The SSD with my OS on on the other hand, would I probably notice something. its an older one and limited to SATA speeds, actually a little under it

[@zero_chevalier]

Woah! Congrats on 400k subscribers!

[@HowNowBrownCow69]

Tech Deals has helped me purchase many of my pc components. Love these videos!

[@todderbert]

Thank you for helping make my SSD purchase, went with the normal 970 Evo 1TB. It will be my main drive for a content creation system.

[@Keo]

I was looking at an adata sx6000 1tb for 130€ but when I saw the 660p 2tb for 201€ I bought it instantly, the prices are different between eu and us but not that much usually, thanks for your videos pal

[@aloharay]

you continue to make very informative, well produced, and easy to understand technology videos. Thank you.

[@BillyNeverDies]

My first SSD was an OCZ Vertex 3 120GB. It's still working perfectly.

[@mattsmechanicalssi5833]

I'm still running an OCZ REVODRIVE3, 480GB, PCI-e x4. It too still works perfectly.

[@gaunterodimm3606]

Be glad it was not a Vertex 2. Those were known for failure as were some of the other OCZ drives of the time. Might help explain why they they went into bankruptcy and were bought by Toshiba.

[@LordAtrocities]

Mine died. :(

[@GameBacardi]

Mine OCZ Vertex 3 120GB was noisy, gave some hiccups in my PC. And finally it just stop working. Worked one year.

[@drunk3ngaming349]

Nice video. Wish this video came out when i bought 2 of the aorus drive. I concur, no difference for normal everday usage. Returned one at least.

[@panchstein]

Happy birthday to this video :p thanks for all the info man, always appreciate and keep up the good work

[@danmccalldesign]

Amazing video. It actually made the difference between these 3 SSDs I was considering. I went back to getting the 660p! So glad I watched this.

[@TheWinMD]

Thanks man. Finishing up a new custom loop build right now that has taken me a few months to find time for. Was kind of bummed about this but now could care less. No regrets now.

[@barathraj4596]

Haven't watched your videos in a while but after a while I feel better (your way of speaking calm me down )

[@vasilpeychev2637]

Finally, a honest and super professional review. That is what youtube should be used for. Thank you and immediate subscribed to the channel.

[@melbuilt]

Nice to see you getting better.

[@Twitch_Moderator]

You popped up in my YT feed and I am glad to see your honesty and explanation on product features. For those who don't fully understand, you are the greatest source of information 👍 Too often many people brag "I bought the 9900KS, 2080 ti, 10TB of SSD M.2 and 32GB of 4600MHz ram. Yet they only use 1/4 of what they have. Just bragging rights and no rational motive behind their wasting money. Just because it was marketed into their faces. LoL. They don't understand the functionality of their hardware and how useless half of what they bought is. Companies are good at what they do I guess. Too bad they didn't watch your videos first 😉

[@LordAtrocities]

First, thank you for what you do. While some of the stuff you have recommended, like the Muskin SSD's from August 2018 were epic disastrous POS failures, a lot of what you feature and talk about is insightful and extremely helpful. In fact, because of your "prime day" coverage I bought and built two 2700's last month. Now I am wondering if I should have just spent the extra $100.00 and went for a 3600. But I can do that next year. :D

[@TechDeals]

Thanks! Sorry to hear about the Mushkin problems... All I can offer is that my small sample size of 1 still works great. I do still have that drive in use. The 2700 is a great CPU and you got it for a steal, just enjoy it :)

[@Mrjonblakely]

Thanks for bringing clarity to all the hype. Great content.

[@robertweekes5783]

Love your streams, they’ve been helpful for general knowledge/ catching up. I’ve just been stumbling onto your older videos. Haha!

[@cyclonous6240]

After viewing your videos and lots of searching, I have bought Intel 660p 512GB SSD just for $70 as it is well inexpensive in India so no other choice but I'm happy with my purchase.

[@dkimmortal]

CYCLONOUS_69 just don’t fill it up past 50-70% of the capacity

[@Jako8557]

Nice video, thanks Tech. Glad you are feeling better and good to have you back.

[@Luna_Aberra]

I have discovered your channel just now. Been looking for "how to use M.2 Gen 4" and get this vid what told me and even showed me that the very drive you've tested, the same I wanted to buy is actually slower in real life usage than the one I currently using. The results for my M.2 drive is ~68 MB/s in Q1T1.

[@peterjansen4826]

A topic-suggestion for a future video: FPS-comparison for XMP vs tightened timings (DRAM calculator as starting point). A lot of work though, you would need to ensure stability with Mem86+. For Ryzen especially the timings are important for the FPS, in the case of slower memory (

[@Amsztel]

It will take weeks to test this, no one is going to do that...

[@praetorxyn]

Buildzoid tinkered with it. Sweet spot is 3800 with the tightest timings you can get and an FCLK of half your data rate. Hardware Unboxed also did some testing on this. Manually tuned timings are better.

[@Amsztel]

@@praetorxyn And you might be able to gain maybe 2 -3 fps tho

[@praetorxyn]

@@Amsztel It's actually pretty significant in one specific case per hardware Unboxed, like 10-15 FPS but I can't remember the case. Even if it's only 2 or 3, may as well make the most of what you have, it's not that time consuming.

[@vyathaen]

Finally a review that show true performance benchmark results, I was getting so tired of all the reviewers basically comparing sequential speeds and doing the work of the marketing and sales people . You nailed it man! keep doing what you are doing! Next time I would suggest,skip the marketing benchmarks and do only real benchmarks Q1D1 as well as game and OS loading speed,as well as VM loading speed and maybe some production work.

[@daleclark3138]

Have a Ryzen 7 3700+ on order. Was going to order a B550 and a PCIe 4 m.2 drive but then I watched this and ordered a 970 EVO instead to use with my B450 that supports Ryzen 2. You saved me quite a bit. Thanks.

[@Telesto13S]

Brilliant explanation. Concise and practical. Great job (again). So glad I found your channel. :)

[@LoriGraceAz]

I've been watching your videos for a couple weeks now but this was super informative when I needed it most. Already bought a Sabrient 1GB nvme m.2 PCIE gen4 SSD. Now I decided to fill the other M.2 slot with the Intel 660P. Thanks!

[@ghines65]

Sir, you continually put out good info on these drives. Really appreciate the data that you collect. Keep it up!!

[@rock4rule]

Tech Deals actually simplifies technical jargon and makes it easily understandable to everyone who are non-technical. I really appreciate their work and I am a Computer expert myself and really recommend everyone to watch their videos who wants to stay up to date with the technology. Hats off to you tech deals !!!

[@Gabe1080z]

Great video. Always very informative. I have been looking for some that talks about what nvme gen 4 is like in real world but all anyone wants to talk about is sequential read write. Thanks soo much for another realistic look at the complex world of modern computing. 🙌

[@bardacuda82]

Thanks for doing this. I watched your SSD comparison from a couple weeks ago and thought it was weird you had the Samsung 970 and talked about performance drives but didn't mention PCI-E 4.0 drives at all. Seems there is some benefit if you're frequently moving large files between drives...say if you record and edit a lot of high bitrate video ;) but the 660p and Crucial P1 still remain the only things that make sense for 99.9% of users.

[@TechDeals]

This arrived after I finished testing those drives, so I couldn't include it at the time.

[@bardacuda82]

@@TechDeals Makes sense. Well now we *know* they're not the deal we all already thought they were going to not be....if that makes sense. :D

[@dkimmortal]

A huge caveat that wasn’t spoken about, performance on an almost full ssd, how do they compare to each other then. You should do a video on that. Maybe 80% full and 90% full for people who just fill up their drives

[@tm001]

Dude I sincerely thank you for your honesty and the cold hard truth you hit me with because I really needed it. Even though I already knew the trick and that these numbers are just some fancy advertisement that won't matter in real live, I still stubbornly wanted to buy it. Thanks, I will take your advice and get met some cheap gen 3

[@mikedupgaming7157]

I’m really glad I found your videos. Very insightful and honest.

[@Shinta0SaINt]

Great video! Excellent methodology! Regards Shane from Trinidad 🇹🇹

[@ratingroomers]

Good to see you in better health. As someone who does uncommon data-intensive tasks I'd like to give an example of when sequential reads and writes really matter (and why PCIe4 drives still don't really make sense) . Working with large datasets (2TB plus, or 6TB in my case) on consumer hardware can lead to a lot of sequential reads as segments of data are read in, a recent task needed 28800 * 25GB reads (720,000GB). If you need insane sequential reads (and far fewer, smaller, writes) then 4 PCIe3 drives on a raid card is the way forward. Your own video recently showed that there are nvme drives only a little more expensive than the Intel that have much better read speeds. Stick 4 of those on an Asus Hyper M.2 x16 card V2 and you nearly saturate the PCIe3 x16 interface. I doubt many people need that but it's much better value than paying for PCIe4 drives

[@TechDeals]

Thanks! :) Yes, that would be called a corner case, not something I really test for or make videos for. I have 4x Intel 660p 2TB drives on a M2 Hyper card, not for the speed, but for the space and ease of install. You're right, in that use case, I would buy better drives as well.

[@louismorales5601]

I purchased this off EBAY in the 500GB size, Dec 2020, and it was only $86.54 w/shipping included. Quite a drop from $250+ for the 1 TB at debut. BTW You rock at explanations and I just had to Subscribe.

[@fernandom5070]

Crystal clear explanation as always Mr Tech . For most users sequential read/writes performance only matters when booting up .... As you very well pointed out random read/writes Q1/T1 ( and latency ) is what really matters on normal desktop use . Nice , quick and strait to the point review .... Something surprising on you Mr Tech ;-) ... Thanks for the video !!

[@endurance1030]

Always love the videos they're quite clear and I always learn something new.

[@amrosalah01]

This is going to help me a lot in my future purchases . Thanks .

[@Mystarius]

Thanks! now i feel better because i just bought a Corsair MP 510 1920GB about a month ago and i saw the newer one and thought OOF

[@trippgalaxy1345]

hey ya tech deals glad to see you doing this about 4.0 and the x570 been on the fence about this whole board sooo........ cheers!!!

[@faolon9343]

I just recently found your videos. Thank you SO MUCH for the "normal user" graphs and explanations.

[@tombouie]

The PhD of M.2 SSDs strikes again. My head hurts but in a good way. Thks

[@ryanmartin4053]

Been waiting for this one! 👌🙏

[@cicada3312]

You know what Einstein said, " A Smart person is one who can explain anything to a 5th grade, and the fifth grade can understand" Tech deals explains sooooo well.

[@jcloud8812]

You save my money from Auros Gen4 1TB because I already got my 970 EVO Plus 1TB with cheap price from Amazon. Thank you, Savior! I love this Video and will share with frds :)

[@seylaw]

Thanks for pointing out the Sabrent Rocket in your past video, it is not actively marketed in Germany, but it was quite a bargain to get here still over Amazon. I've built a 2 TB RAID-0 with two of them for a amateur video editing rig with a Ryzen 2700. And it does its job really well!

[@hargrove_here]

Feel better and keep up the good work. Great video, very informative. Cleared up some questions on pcie 4 I had. Thanks

[@noahbinette5628]

Awesome video! Lots of good information and I feel like I'm learning a lot. I'm looking to build my own pc in the future and want to so as much research as possible to get the best performance for the best price and you are definitely a well organized presenter. Your videos are clean and simple to understand. Gonna definitely check out more of your content!

[@henryorsomething]

Easily the most, if not one of the most, informative and helpful PC tech channels on YT.

[@tsukasa4381]

Thank you for this (and all other videos!) and hope you are doing well! Really love the comparison for daily usage. Do you have one comparing SATA and NVMe drives compared the same way? If not, it would be great to look at!

[@s.stallone5350]

Not only a great video, thanks for the software links also. :)

[@kishona69]

Watching your videos is always so informative. Thanks.

[@Krispy74447]

I recently overhauled my pc and wound up using both of those drives. 1tb evo for boot and 2tb 660p for storage. Didnt feel like wasting money on a gen4 nvme. Plenty of other places to spend that money in the build. Lol. Went from b450, ryzen 2600, vega 56 to a crosshair viii hero(wasting money in other spots 😉) 3900x, red devil 5700xt. Talk about a dramatic increase all around. People coming from FX probably wish their office chairs had seat belts. Anyways just wanted to share the story and say I love your vids and to keep up the good work. Also thanks for letting me know I wasnt completely crazy and got a decent deal on the drives.

[@prospero7849]

I think it pays to always be wary of buying into new shiny sounding tech premium prices - that's why this channel is so good for people to watch, especially if they are new to the PC building/buying scene. :)

[@ModernGeekReview]

Love the review! It all for the preparation for the fall sale !

[@ryh.6984]

@Tech Deals Hi Tech, I have exactly the same mobo and memory and cpu as yours, could you possibly do a overclocking guide that would bring out the best bang for buck performance for content creators specifically 3d modeling... I find your videos very down to earth and no non sense, straight to the point and safe. ^_^ keep up the great work.

[@davidhunter1538]

I can always rely on Tech Deals for useful information that I can understand. Thank you , Tech.

[@willtyler]

I'm surprised to hear you state that you've never worn out an SSD or known anyone who has. I've personally worn out two and am on my way to wearing out my 3rd, a 1 year old Crucial 1tb MX525 that is reporting 65% life left.

[@andrepamendes]

Great video, congrats on being to good at explaining this stuff with such honesty.

[@jameysummers1577]

This is my favorite tech channel. Well though out reviews and nothing but common sense.

[@deadpixel4106]

Well done explaining real world performance. I recently purchased a new laptop with 512GB PCIe 3.0 4 x NVme drive. I had some buyers remorse because the faster drives were released. After watching this video i'm content with my purchase. Thank you :)

[@PizzlesTechTime]

What an awesome idea for a video love it! I would know nothing without this channel

[@ahmeddesouky181]

Just bought Samsung 970 evo plus / 250gb based on your reviews 3 days ago and i'm so happy with it 💖

[@kalef1234]

Quality content! I am still a user that only requires PCIe 3.0 NVMe, which is still fast, but affordable now!

[@OscarRPalma]

In this channel i learnt the random QXTX mean, thank you, keep it up!

[@pitbullash]

Maybe im little to late , but i just bought the Aorus Gen.4 m.2 drive, and man its awesome! thank you for this review! :D

[@cmitchellfly]

Excellent video as always. Thank you for the excellent work you do Tech!

[@lloydc5736]

Great info, and honest facts, thanks for presenting the rates in such a detailed way and in lay-man's terms, well done!

[@SpardaKnightz]

Yo nailed this review 👌. You would not believe the testing I did myslelf researching bench.arkinh hdds ssds nvme drives on my own I was so confused wish I had seen this months ago. I really like the truth your putting down I bought the 2 tb 660p 2 months ago and have recommended it in about 6 builds for friends they all love it it is soild I feel ripped off for what I paid for my Samsung 950 1 TB Evo at 350 bucks last year compared to the 660p. Great job thank you.

[@aeroth]

Thank You, I subbed. Keep up the great work.

[@SouthwestManLA]

I love all the details that's the way to go!

[@chrisgg]

Finally a great video summing it up for real world usage.

[@mile69gazette10]

I'm upgrading from an FX next year I like your thoroughness Thank you

[@robestey5628]

Thank you for being just so damn honest. Your best quality. Love your channel. Keep up the great work.

[@johnpaulbacon8320]

Thank's for this detailed video of these new drives.

[@robertc574]

A Real Tech Channel w/ Real Tech Advise I really appreciate you

[@3Dsirius]

Kudos for this review about SSD. I reached the same conclusion and delayed to purchase PCIE 4 Express SSD. It is not faster in real world than 970 Evo or Intel. So better advice to buy the latter for the right price. Keep posting.

[@ignis86]

First video I watched of yours and enjoyed it.

[@tatamata3217]

Great and honest video! Those are rare nowadays and that's why we are on this channel

[@DBebeful]

Thanks for your honest, informative video! Very well articulated, if only it could reach more people...

[@shridharshivaramakrishnan7254]

Excellent review, clear conclusions backed by numbers

[@joshbrown1405]

Thanks for your diligence Mr Tech deals. You’ve helped me understand a lot about the various technologies associated with computers, storage etc. I’m a more discerning buyer because of it. Keep up the great work :)

[@Revener666]

Informative and turned out exactly as I thought it would. :)

[@georgeristo]

I got the Intel 2 tb for 170 on Newegg! Perfect for gaming/storage. Thanks for the last video helped meake a decision!

[@noobnoob98noob]

Trust this guy have have both a new pci4 ssd and the 660p and the more storrage feels alot better then being a little faster only time i ever even felt a "slowdown" was when i donwnloaded 7 games in a row and it was barly noticeble and the slowdown might even have been my fault. Good luck with youre next builds and have a great day.

[@albertchung30]

Thanks so much for this eye opening video. Very informative and I learned a lot. Thank you again!

[@iflnr978]

Thanks for the great video! I really like the subject and style of explanations, Perfect!

[@jfergmon]

Saved me $ before making a bad decision. All the other top tech guys I'm subbed to haven't done that. Subbed. Thank you.

[@TechDeals]

jfergmon - Thanks so much for the sub, welcome to the Deal Nation!

[@kgasho]

Not trying to be "critical", but sometimes you tend to "toot your own horn too much", example, testing is done with a 2080 TI (not that it matters) or If you have super fast internet speed, like me... Neither of those two things have anything to do with the review of the speed of NVME 3x vs 4x :-) The info on that subject was TOP NOTCH!

[@TechDeals]

Thanks for the feedback... I didn't used to explain the test bench, I'm trying to get better at including it. Also, the download speed is not meant to be tooting, rather it occurs to me that I see insane drive/CPU/RAM usage during game updates due to that speed. On a more typical connection, it is likely the ISP is the limitation, not the local PC.