- Feb 9, 2025
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Hi Everyone,
Hope you are well?
I am currently researching about M.2 NVMe SSDs and enclosures to find a setup for my new Laptop.
Use case
I have two main use cases for using an external hard-drive setup:
1) I use a mind-mapping tool called TheBrain (PersonalBrain) which creates a database of thousands of small files that can be prone to corruption. This program fragmented my last hard-drive slowing down Windows, so I’d like to use an external drive and keep a mirrored copy of the database using RAID(1). I have lots of these databases and some of them are quite large, so I'm looking for a solution which is focused on data integrity and device longevity.
2) I’d like to run a multi-gigabyte piano library (a VSTi – Virtual Studio Tech instrument taking between 4 and 8 GB) and be able to keep it separate from my windows drive; also, I have a couple of laptops and like to transfer large quantities of data. For this purpose, I was thinking of a smaller quicker NVMe M.2 device perhaps with a single-drive enclosure.
Laptop spec:
My new Laptop is the Dell Latitude 7440 (Thunderbolt 4) but I also use the 7330 (Thunderbolt 3). The 7440 has a 13th Generation Intel Core i7 running at 5.20 GHz; 32 GB LPDDR5 4800MHz RAM; Interface type: PCIe NVME Gen4 x 4; 2 x Thunderbolt 4 ports with DisplayPort Alt Mode/USB C / USB4/ Power delivery. The 7330 has a 12th Generation Intel vPro Enterprise with Intel Core i5-8365U running up to 1.9 GHz; 8 GB, HMA81GS6JJR8N-VK Hynix Replacement 8GB DDR4-2666; 1 Thunderbolt 3 (1 x USB Type-C 3.1 Gen 2 port).
Thoughts
For the personal brain program, it seems to me that I might need good read/write speed and high MTBF/Endurance (TBW); whereas, running a multi-gigabyte piano library, performance is more important.
I am looking for advice on what setup would be best.
For the personal brain program, originally I thought about going with a couple of U.2 drives in an enclosure set to RAID(1) due to the greater reliability and endurance of these enterprise solutions (also to avoid throttling after long use due to temperature); however, it seems that compatibility with laptops is very iffy. I then looked at M.2 prosumer type enterprise solutions such as the Micron 7450 PRO and Samsung PM9A3 (3.84 TB) i.e., 2 drives linked with RAID(1) in an enclosure. I looked at a large number of different enclosures for these drives as they seem to be 22110 and a limited number of multi-drive enclosures suit these.
All these started to look quite expensive and so I thought of seeking expert advice. I’m concerned about spending a lot on solutions which will quickly look obsolete in a few years. I’m probably going to keep the laptop for 5 years or so.
Questions
What kind of form factor would you go for in my situation and which enclosures would be best for both use cases? Do you think I should opt for one enclosure that takes 4 drives and has excellent cooling, or does it make better sense to opt for a dual enclosure for Personal Brain and a single hard-drive for the other need? Do you think it's necessary to use Prosumer products or do these M.2 drives handle heat ok for multi-hour sessions? I live in the UK btw, which isn't the hottest place on earth lol. We do get 30-35 celcius in the summer sometimes with no aircon..
Kind regards,
Doug
Hope you are well?
I am currently researching about M.2 NVMe SSDs and enclosures to find a setup for my new Laptop.
Use case
I have two main use cases for using an external hard-drive setup:
1) I use a mind-mapping tool called TheBrain (PersonalBrain) which creates a database of thousands of small files that can be prone to corruption. This program fragmented my last hard-drive slowing down Windows, so I’d like to use an external drive and keep a mirrored copy of the database using RAID(1). I have lots of these databases and some of them are quite large, so I'm looking for a solution which is focused on data integrity and device longevity.
2) I’d like to run a multi-gigabyte piano library (a VSTi – Virtual Studio Tech instrument taking between 4 and 8 GB) and be able to keep it separate from my windows drive; also, I have a couple of laptops and like to transfer large quantities of data. For this purpose, I was thinking of a smaller quicker NVMe M.2 device perhaps with a single-drive enclosure.
Laptop spec:
My new Laptop is the Dell Latitude 7440 (Thunderbolt 4) but I also use the 7330 (Thunderbolt 3). The 7440 has a 13th Generation Intel Core i7 running at 5.20 GHz; 32 GB LPDDR5 4800MHz RAM; Interface type: PCIe NVME Gen4 x 4; 2 x Thunderbolt 4 ports with DisplayPort Alt Mode/USB C / USB4/ Power delivery. The 7330 has a 12th Generation Intel vPro Enterprise with Intel Core i5-8365U running up to 1.9 GHz; 8 GB, HMA81GS6JJR8N-VK Hynix Replacement 8GB DDR4-2666; 1 Thunderbolt 3 (1 x USB Type-C 3.1 Gen 2 port).
Thoughts
For the personal brain program, it seems to me that I might need good read/write speed and high MTBF/Endurance (TBW); whereas, running a multi-gigabyte piano library, performance is more important.
I am looking for advice on what setup would be best.
For the personal brain program, originally I thought about going with a couple of U.2 drives in an enclosure set to RAID(1) due to the greater reliability and endurance of these enterprise solutions (also to avoid throttling after long use due to temperature); however, it seems that compatibility with laptops is very iffy. I then looked at M.2 prosumer type enterprise solutions such as the Micron 7450 PRO and Samsung PM9A3 (3.84 TB) i.e., 2 drives linked with RAID(1) in an enclosure. I looked at a large number of different enclosures for these drives as they seem to be 22110 and a limited number of multi-drive enclosures suit these.
All these started to look quite expensive and so I thought of seeking expert advice. I’m concerned about spending a lot on solutions which will quickly look obsolete in a few years. I’m probably going to keep the laptop for 5 years or so.
Questions
What kind of form factor would you go for in my situation and which enclosures would be best for both use cases? Do you think I should opt for one enclosure that takes 4 drives and has excellent cooling, or does it make better sense to opt for a dual enclosure for Personal Brain and a single hard-drive for the other need? Do you think it's necessary to use Prosumer products or do these M.2 drives handle heat ok for multi-hour sessions? I live in the UK btw, which isn't the hottest place on earth lol. We do get 30-35 celcius in the summer sometimes with no aircon..
Kind regards,
Doug
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