Intel 750 SSD

[libertaire]

I'm thinking about getting the 750 SSD from intel but i have a few questions:

- is it possible to use a pci-express extender to put the drive in my 2.5 / 3.5 drive bay without losing speed and without buying an expensive pci-express addon card ?

- is it compatible with my MSI Z87-G45 ?

- what do i need to do to use the PCI-E SSD as a boot disk ?

- Is it compatible with Windows 7 ? I heard some PCI-E SSD only works with Windows 10

Thanks !

 

[JohnnyLucky]

The answer to your first question is yes. Intel makes a version of the 750 that is inside a standard 2.5 inch ssd enclosure which is mounted in a drive bay. It uses a cable to connect the ssd to an M.2 connector on a motherboard:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167358&cm_re=intel_750-_-20-167-358-_-Product

This is the free adapter that comes with the 750:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813995047

Now for the bad news - Your Z87 motherboard does not have an M.2 connector. The motherboard does not support the 750.

 

[libertaire]

Your Z87 motherboard does not have any M.2 connectors so it can't support the Intel 750.

Even if going for the standard PCI-Express version ?

 

[JohnnyLucky]

More bad news - The Intel 750 uses the new NVMe protocol instead of AHCI. MSI has released a total of 10 Bios updates for your board. None of the updates include support for the NVMe protocol. You would need a Z97 or newer motherboard to properly support any version of the 750. Your motherboard was released just about 3 years ago. The Intel 750 was released last April. In addition your motherboard was a basic entry level value model. Some features found on high end boards were not included.

I maintain an ssd database listed in a sticky at the very top of this forum section. Here is the link:

http://www.johnnylucky.org/data-storage/ssd-database.html

The very first section at the top lists the Intel 750 and several new models that will be released sometime this year. Follow the links to technical reviews for more information. The links are divided into two categories - English language reviews and reviews in many other languages.

I suggest you follow the link to the technical review published by AnandTech. It is the very first review listed. It addresses your concerns.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

david1978 - I'm glad you posted: "Notice: your motherboard must support PCIe 3.0 nVME and pls make sure Motherboard BIOS can be support PCIE SSD to boot up".

That is the exact problem with the OP's motherboard. There are no updates for NVME compatibility.

 

[libertaire]

"Some NVMe SSDs like Samsung's 950 Pro SSD are natively bootable in LEGACY mode (CSM and loading of Option ROMs has to be enabled within the BIOS), because their Controller chip contains its own NVMe supporting Option ROM module."
Source: http://www.win-raid.com/t871f16-Guide-How-to-get-full-NVMe-support-for-Intel-Chipset-systems-from-Series-up.html

Does this means i would be able to run the Samsung 950 on my non-nvme MSI Z87-G45 ?

This same link says there's a way to hack the BIOS to support NVME... Would it work with the Z87 ? And what would the performance looks like ? Probably not as fast as real nvme link?

I'm still trying to decide if i should upgrade or stick with older gen SSD stuck at 500mbs. I prefer buying newer technology rather than older stuff, but if i want to get NVME it means i have to change the motherboard, and if i change the board i'll have to change the CPU even if my overclocked i7-4790K is still very good, it uses an old socket, so why not upgrade to the newer Broadwell... And if i upgrade cpu/mobo then why not also upgrade to DDR4 and in the end i will end up with a brand new computer even if the one i'm currently using is still very good.
Decisions, decisions...
#firstworldproblems

 

[libertaire]

What about this ?
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=12K-017B-00001