Question 1

Im looking in to purchasing the EVGA x99 Classified mobo and would like to know if this drive will fit on to the onboard M.2 slot?

for me this would be the perfect combo. Thanks 
Steve

Accepted Answer

Steve, I have an xp941 running in an asus rog mini-itx.  it is fast and smooth.  I am not familiar with evga product, and dont have an opinion about this mb you are pondering.  I did read the spec and nowhere does it specify that the m.2 slot is pcie.  Now I believe it may be, as in the manual it say if used with a m key ssd , which the xp941 is, then it shares bandwidth with one of the pci lanes.  If M.2 performance was on my short list of requirement, I dont think this mb would also be on my list.  i would think that is a mb manufacturer was using tech like the m.2, and was aiming for performance, that it would be selling that feature loud and clear, not on page 50 of a 300 pg manual.  Just my 2 cents.  i would look for reviews of the board using a pcie m.2 and check the performance, otherwise whats the point?

Question 2

Is it possible to use this PCIe M.2 drive and still have SLI on the Z97 chipset?

Accepted Answer

I haven't seen a board that allows you to do this on the Z97 chipset.

I'm running the AsRock z97 Extreme6 which has native support for this card, but means that it shares the PCIe lanes.  
Specifically,  this means that the lanes get divided up as:
PCIe 3.0 x8 (running Nvidia GTX970)
PCIe 3.0 x4 (empty)
Ultra M.2 x4 (Samsung XP941)

My mobo also has a PCIe 2.0, but it only has 2 lanes, which would be a waste because it limits the XP941 to 2 lanes from 4 lanes, even if you got an adapter.

So you can't run SLI because SLI requires twin PCIe slots with at least 8 lanes per slot.  (I believe Crossfire will run at x4)

I think that x16 lanes on the Z97 chipset is a travesty, and is evil, because it forces you to a whole new chipset and mobo (much more $$$) to get more lanes and run a fast PCIe SSD with SLI.

Question 3

The documentation does not mention a heatsink being required to run this drive.  Does this require a heatsink?

I have and ASUS Z97-A board and it is compatible with the m.2 slot on the board.

Should I opt for the PCI adapter with heatsink kit?

Accepted Answer

I have been running this device for over a week without any additional heatsink connected so I do not believe one to be required.

Do make sure that your board's M.2 slot is PCIe-based and not SATA-based.

I initially purchased this as upgrade for a Sony Vaio Duo 13" that had a 128GB M.2 SSD from the factory.  Despite the MZHPU256HCGL-00000 fitting in the slot it was not detected by BIOS or OS.  It wasn't until after this happening did I realize that my Sony was SATA-based (B & M keyed devices) and not PCIe-based (M-only keyed).  Maybe that is intuitive to everyone else, but it was a fact that I was not aware of.

Question 4

Can this drive be used as a boot drive on an X99 motherboard?

Accepted Answer

Yes,
  I have the Asus X99 Deluxe,  it comes with the PCIE card adapter.    I am using this adapter and was able to make this drive the bootable drive.  Hoping the adapter will help keep the drive cooler, with the air movent in the case.
Had to make a USB stick a bootable for Window 7 installation, because the DVD wouldn't seem to work properly.
If you research the net, you will see everything that needs to be done, the drive needs some changes done in the command promt, to make it bootable.
I am getting full boot up times (when hitting the power button) with 'windows 7' around 7 seconds.   
This thing is BLAZING FAST, with everything that is thrown at it.
Have been using this drive now for 1.5 months.  
Remember this is a OEM product, so it doesn't come with anything.

Question 5

Will this fit in a mPCIe Combo IV from the Asus ROG motherboards? Specifically the Maximus Vii Impact

Accepted Answer

Yes, this SSD is a 2280 size (22mm wide [hence the 2 in 'M.2'] and 80mm long). IIRC, the board comes with 2 M.2 slots, and I think both are occupied, 802.11ac and a Bluetooth module (I think) so you would have to sacrifice one or the other for this SSD. Be aware, this is a PCIe 2.0 device, so you can only achieve PCIe 2.0 speeds with it's 4 lanes (tops out at ~1GB/s), check the reviews for my Crystal Disk bench marks.

Question 6

if i install two M.2 x4 Gen-3 SSDs with 32Gb/s bandwidth in a asus rampage v extreme/u3.1 mobo will it double the speed like raid 0 does ?

Accepted Answer

my previous build was with 2 furyx 3 ssd's and they ran around 1000 read 900 write at 128k on up using atto  i don't think i am understanding the m.2x4 32 ghz thing but i have read that they are directly connected to the processor and sata ssd's and hdd do not do that but in raid they scale up nicely to a point in fact after the third ssd in raid 0 their isn't much advantage other than more lanes which does help in running software just not when it comes to real life usability ... i beleive that comes from the architecture the new x99 mobo's address this by allowing 40 lanes to the processor thanks for your time.

r.steffen

Question 7

will XP941 work on Gigabyte GA-Z77-DS3H?

Accepted Answer

It could probably work with any motherboard provided that it has pci express(using a adapter card as a medium that which to plug the samsung into.  Off hand your motherboard does not.  I have a Gigabyte z98 server tested black edition motherboard and I know that as rock has this ability and it has the special x4 slot on it for this application. It is nice to have though much like the new lanovoe laptops.  I use it for the os and my solid states are raided for other applications. Write speeds are great.

Question 8

Is this an 80mm length drive?

Accepted Answer

Yes I think so.  It fits in my Asrock x99x Killer motherboard.

Question 9

Is this compatible as a boot drive with the GIGABYTE GA-Z97-D3H motherboard? Thanks.

Accepted Answer

Since the Owner's manual just references an M.2 SSD, it is hard to tell for sure.   But M.2 drives come as SATA or PCIe.

For the following reasons, I would say the drive is not compatible.

Using the M.2 slot will disable some SATA ports.  On the X99 board it disables PCIe slots.

The drive shown in the owners manual appears to be a Crucial M500 and I see no Crucial M.2 PCIe drives available on Newegg, they all seem to be M.2 SATA drives.

Question 10

Is this M.2 M keyed or B keyed?

Accepted Answer

It shows, after doing research, as M keyed.  If I understand it correctly, the single slot is the M slot.  the second one is the B slot.

It appears to me, on M.2 PCIe SSDs the second slot means the drive is x2 but the single slot means it is x4.  But I could be wrong.

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