850 Pro compatibility with Z77X-UD5H

[keigo_kanzaki]

Hello friends at the storage forum,

I'm still new with the SSD world, so I don't know much about it. I'm thinking of getting a 512GB Samsung 850 Pro as my OS drive, but is it compatible with my motherboard, which is a Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H rev 1.0

If you please enlighten me, much appreciated

 

[ThatVietGuy]

It'll work like any hard drive, mechanical or otherwise.

 

[rhysiam]

Yes, it's a SATA3 drive. backwards compatible with SATA2, so will work on any SATA port released in the 8 years.

However... are you sure you need the 850 Pro? It's a lot more expensive than the 850 EVO. While it is technically "faster" than the 850 EVO, you need some really intense workloads before the 850 Pro is actually able to pull ahead. Normal desktop usage just doesn't put enough of a workload on an SSD to allow faster ones to unleash their potential.

Unless you have some very specific high IO workloads, save your money and get an 850 EVO.

 

[boju]

What thatVietGuy said.

I'm running a 840pro ssd on an older lga1366 setup with Sata2 ports it works fine. SSDs can run on either Sata2 or 3 - better performance on 3 obviously. But yea nothing nothing extra is needed, you'll have Sata3 ports. Connect it to your primary storage controller on the motherboard, usually the lowest numbered.

SSDs are small so think about getting a cradle for it or double sided tape or velcro - no moving parts so can stick it anywhere really.

And set in the bios ahci mode for the SSD before installing Windows.

And never defrag an SSD like you would with a normal HDD, check defrag isn't scheduled to run.

 

[keigo_kanzaki]

thanks for thatVietGuy, rhysiam & boju for the replies, I will note what you guys have suggested. Regarding the EVO vs Pro, I'm still considering between the two. My current preference for Pro is because the longer warranty, plus I read that TLC nand would "slow down" when used for copying large files.

 

[rhysiam]

thanks for thatVietGuy, rhysiam & boju for the replies, I will note what you guys have suggested. Regarding the EVO vs Pro, I'm still considering between the two. My current preference for Pro is because the longer warranty, plus I read that TLC nand would "slow down" when used for copying large files.

I don't know where you read that about TLC nand. It's true that some TLC products are much slower, the OCZ Trion is an example of a very slow (comparatively) TLC drive. However, the 850 Evo is 3D TLC Nand, which is a different beast entirely. Look at the sequential write speeds here: http://www.anandtech.com/show/8747/samsung-ssd-850-evo-review/8
It's a plenty fast drive.

 

[keigo_kanzaki]

I admitted that my research wasn't thorough. The impression of slower TLC nand was from this article:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2998497/storage/tlc-nand-ssds-the-crippling-problem-storage-makers-dont-advertise.html

However, even the author mentioned that the EVO's performance was only mild.