[SOLVED] Does pcie 1x to 4x have the same speed?

[Sauce109]

So if I buy an adapter that is a pcie 1x to 4x and I plug in an m.2 drive, will it be slower? If the m.2 is slower, then how much slower would it be if it’s nvme? If the m.2 would be to slow, could I put a network card in it?

 

[CountMike]

So if I buy an adapter that is a pcie 1x to 4x and I plug in an m.2 drive, will it be slower? If the m.2 is slower, then how much slower would it be if it’s nvme? If the m.2 would be to slow, could I put a network card in it?

1x, 4x.... 16x is number of lines not "speed" Each line runs at 100MHZ
NVME needs at least 4 lines to run full speed.

 

[Sauce109]

1x, 4x.... 16x is number of lines not "speed" Each line runs at 100MHZ
NVME needs at least 4 lines to run full speed.

So would it run at 1/4 the speed it should?

 

[Barty1884]

You're switching interfaces, but the underlying connection via the PCIe slot in this instance remains x1 whereas an SSD can typically utilize speeds right around x4 (Gen3), although some older will cap out at Gen2 x4 (which is equal in bandwith to Gen3 x2). Either way, and x1 interface is going to limit any M.2 SSD.

How much slower, really depends. Might only test as slower in benchmarks, but I'd expect it to be noticeable in day-to-day use.

Why are you considering an adapter? What motherboard do you have? Do you already own the M.2?
If you don't already own the M.2, the cost + adapter is a waste. You'd be best served by a 2.5" SATA based SSD.

As far as a network card goes, generally, yes. Networking is a more appropriate use-case for x1.

So would it run at 1/4 the speed it should?

Rarely will it scale linearly with limited lanes, but in a very simplistic sense, you could use that as a (very) rough idea.

 

[Sauce109]

You're switching interfaces, but the underlying connection via the PCIe slot in this instance remains x1 whereas an SSD can typically utilize speeds right around x4 (Gen3), although some older will cap out at Gen2 x4 (which is equal in bandwith to Gen3 x2). Either way, and x1 interface is going to limit any M.2 SSD.

How much slower, really depends. Might only test as slower in benchmarks, but I'd expect it to be noticeable in day-to-day use.

Why are you considering an adapter? What motherboard do you have? Do you already own the M.2?
If you don't already own the M.2, the cost + adapter is a waste. You'd be best served by a 2.5" SATA based SSD.

As far as a network card goes, generally, yes. Networking is a more appropriate use-case for x1.



Rarely will it scale linearly with limited lanes, but in a very simplistic sense, you could use that as a (very) rough idea.

Right now I am going to use a SATA 2.5 inch, but I might want to get an m.2 nvme. I was thinking maybe I could get a 1x to 4x so that I could use a network card. I didn’t want to use a 1x network card because they all stick out of your computer.

 

[Barty1884]

Right now I am going to use a SATA 2.5 inch, but I might want to get an m.2 nvme.

Why? Unless there's a performance gain over SATA, which there won't be when running x1, an M.2 NVMe doesn't make any sense

And what motherboard do you have?