-
The scheduled forum maintenance has now been completed. If you spot any issues, please report them here in this thread. Thank you!
- Status
As the owner of three 256GB 950 Pros (that I was panning to update to 960s), I was more than a little disappointed that Samsung chose not to release a 256GB version of the 960 Pro -- especially when they have a 256GB version of the 961.
And doubly disappointed that if I step down to the 250GB 960 EVO ... that it has a TBW rating of only 100.
And doubly disappointed that if I step down to the 250GB 960 EVO ... that it has a TBW rating of only 100.
** Same here...not doggin' the EVO but a 256 960 Pro woulda been nice **
After looking over the specs of the 960 drives, I have finally decided to replace my three 256GB 950 Pros with 500GB EVO 960s.
I don't really need that much capacity on my OS drives, but the 500GB 960 EVO is not much more expensive than the current pricing of the 256GB 950 Pro and has the same 200 TBW rating. Moreover, the 500GB EVO 960 has a significantly (40%) larger SLC buffer than the 960 EVO 250GB version.
Additionally, although the 512GB 960 Pro version has slightly superior Sequential Read/Write specs over the 500GB 960 EVO, both have precisely the same IOPS rating.
And finally, I do expect the 500GB 960 EVO to be superior in every performance parameter over the 256GB 950 Pro.
One expectation I hope proves true -- that the Polaris controller on the 960s runs cooler than the UBX controller on the 950s. In my notebook, I had to add a heatsink to the 950 to reduce thermal throttling (BTW, it worked pretty well).
After looking over the specs of the 960 drives, I have finally decided to replace my three 256GB 950 Pros with 500GB EVO 960s.
I don't really need that much capacity on my OS drives, but the 500GB 960 EVO is not much more expensive than the current pricing of the 256GB 950 Pro and has the same 200 TBW rating. Moreover, the 500GB EVO 960 has a significantly (40%) larger SLC buffer than the 960 EVO 250GB version.
Additionally, although the 512GB 960 Pro version has slightly superior Sequential Read/Write specs over the 500GB 960 EVO, both have precisely the same IOPS rating.
And finally, I do expect the 500GB 960 EVO to be superior in every performance parameter over the 256GB 950 Pro.
One expectation I hope proves true -- that the Polaris controller on the 960s runs cooler than the UBX controller on the 950s. In my notebook, I had to add a heatsink to the 950 to reduce thermal throttling (BTW, it worked pretty well).
(I hope I am not double posting this as I inadvertently did above.)
Chris,
Do you know when you will receive samples for benchmarking?
Newegg already has the 960 series on their website for "auto notification" (email notification when they arrive in stock). Newegg is saying delivery will be sometime in October.
I have tentatively settled on the 500GB EVO 960 to replace my 256GB 950 Pros, but a less than stellar review might change that.
Is it your expectation that the 500GB EVO 960 *should* out perform the 256GB 950 Pro in every aspect?
Chris,
Do you know when you will receive samples for benchmarking?
Newegg already has the 960 series on their website for "auto notification" (email notification when they arrive in stock). Newegg is saying delivery will be sometime in October.
I have tentatively settled on the 500GB EVO 960 to replace my 256GB 950 Pros, but a less than stellar review might change that.
Is it your expectation that the 500GB EVO 960 *should* out perform the 256GB 950 Pro in every aspect?
Zaxx420
Honorable
- Aug 7, 2013
- 137
- 0
- 10,710
I'm guessing they'll be neck n neck. With the increased parallelism and larger/faster SLC buffer (aka TurboWrite) of the 500 960 EVO, it will probably best the 256 950 Pro in a lot of metrics...doubt the difference will actually be noticeable under 'average' use. The difference in thermal characteristics will be interesting to see. Wish Tosh would hurry the hell up with their 3D nand....we need some competition to bring prices down a bit.
I recently purchased a ProStar notebook. At the time ProStar was running a promotion on the model I chose that included a free Toshiba 128GB XG3 NVMe drive (OEM version of the OCZ RD400) .
Since I was planning on getting a Samsung 960 anyway, I took the free Toshiba XG3 as a place holder rather than spending the money for another Samsung 950.
The Toshiba NVMe XG3 works fine, but using HW-iNFO64 I observed that it operates at a full 12 degrees Celsius hotter than a Samsung 950 pro in the same notebook (I took a 950 out of another notebook to experiment).
That's almost 54 degrees Fahrenheit hotter and I can actually feel the difference on my keyboard.
Under ATTO benchmarking, the XG3 exceeded it's (80 degree C) max operating temperature rather quickly (at the 4MB mark) and went into thermal trotting. This would likely not be a problem in a desktop with better ventilation.
I partially solved the problem by installing a copper RAM heatsink on the controller. However, I had to remove the label and thereby voided the warranty.
So even when Toshiba/OCZ delivers 3D Flash, I will likely stick with Samsung even if the cost is somewhat higher.
Since I was planning on getting a Samsung 960 anyway, I took the free Toshiba XG3 as a place holder rather than spending the money for another Samsung 950.
The Toshiba NVMe XG3 works fine, but using HW-iNFO64 I observed that it operates at a full 12 degrees Celsius hotter than a Samsung 950 pro in the same notebook (I took a 950 out of another notebook to experiment).
That's almost 54 degrees Fahrenheit hotter and I can actually feel the difference on my keyboard.
Under ATTO benchmarking, the XG3 exceeded it's (80 degree C) max operating temperature rather quickly (at the 4MB mark) and went into thermal trotting. This would likely not be a problem in a desktop with better ventilation.
I partially solved the problem by installing a copper RAM heatsink on the controller. However, I had to remove the label and thereby voided the warranty.
So even when Toshiba/OCZ delivers 3D Flash, I will likely stick with Samsung even if the cost is somewhat higher.
babernet_1
Honorable
- May 8, 2012
- 2,850
- 0
- 13,460
https://www.google.com/#q=12+degrees+celsius+to+fahrenheit
According to the C to F converter, 12 degrees C is equal to 53.6 degrees F.
According to the C to F converter, 12 degrees C is equal to 53.6 degrees F.
babernet_1
Honorable
- May 8, 2012
- 2,850
- 0
- 13,460
Not a math major I'd imagine. For instance, if it went from 50 C to 62 C, that would be 122 F to 143.6 F. That's a difference of 21.6 F degrees.
babernet_1
Sorry I was not not clear in my comment. The Toshiba XG-3 (in my notebook) does run 12 decrees C hotter than the Samsung at max performance. However, the Toshiba also idles at a considerably hotter (nominal) temperature. When I mentioned the 53.4 degree Fahrenheit difference, I was (mentally) thinking about the sum difference between the idle temperatures of the two in addition to the difference in temperatures at maxed out performance under bench marking.
Sorry I didn't state that clearly.
Sorry I was not not clear in my comment. The Toshiba XG-3 (in my notebook) does run 12 decrees C hotter than the Samsung at max performance. However, the Toshiba also idles at a considerably hotter (nominal) temperature. When I mentioned the 53.4 degree Fahrenheit difference, I was (mentally) thinking about the sum difference between the idle temperatures of the two in addition to the difference in temperatures at maxed out performance under bench marking.
Sorry I didn't state that clearly.
There are still some things we don't know about the 960 EVO. We tested the PM961 512GB to get a good idea, more like a feel for the product. Your XG3/RD400 with Toshiba 15nm MLC will likely perform a bit better than the 960 EVO 250GB but we will not know for sure. The Toshiba drive runs hotter than the Samsung Polaris and has a harsh thermal throttle.
We have a review coming in the next week that may be a better option for a second notebook.It is the fabled entry-level NVMe model that competes with the 600p in price but delivers higher performance.
We have a review coming in the next week that may be a better option for a second notebook.It is the fabled entry-level NVMe model that competes with the 600p in price but delivers higher performance.
Thanks Chris,
The XG-3 that I am currently running in the secondary notebook came as a free promotion when I bought that notebook about three months ago. I have since seen two reviews showing a somewhat nasty thermal throttling characteristic on the XG-3/RD400 drives. (But since it was free, I took it as a place-holder until the 960s arrived.)
Although I don't notice the throttling so much in day-to-day use, it did show up (as in the reviews) when I bench marked the XG-3. I installed a heat sink on the controller and that helped a bit.
In my secondary notebook, the M.2 drive slot is located right beneath the Enter key area and the heat difference between it and a 950 Pro is enough that I can feel the difference on the keyboard.
This, plus the nasty throttling characteristic have put a large damper on Toshiba/OCZ M.2 drives for me (although I really want to like them).
I will look forward to your review next week on the "fabled drive."
BTW. Does the Toshiba XG3 series carry the same TBW rating at the same capacity RD400 series? I have been unable to find the TBW ratings for the XG3 series.
(PS. I use to correspond with you some when you were with TT. I am retired from the audio/video industry and we once talked about some high-end audio gear (amps and speakers) that you were looking at.) Thank you for the review work that you do for us. It is extremely helpful.
Bruce
The XG-3 that I am currently running in the secondary notebook came as a free promotion when I bought that notebook about three months ago. I have since seen two reviews showing a somewhat nasty thermal throttling characteristic on the XG-3/RD400 drives. (But since it was free, I took it as a place-holder until the 960s arrived.)
Although I don't notice the throttling so much in day-to-day use, it did show up (as in the reviews) when I bench marked the XG-3. I installed a heat sink on the controller and that helped a bit.
In my secondary notebook, the M.2 drive slot is located right beneath the Enter key area and the heat difference between it and a 950 Pro is enough that I can feel the difference on the keyboard.
This, plus the nasty throttling characteristic have put a large damper on Toshiba/OCZ M.2 drives for me (although I really want to like them).
I will look forward to your review next week on the "fabled drive."
BTW. Does the Toshiba XG3 series carry the same TBW rating at the same capacity RD400 series? I have been unable to find the TBW ratings for the XG3 series.
(PS. I use to correspond with you some when you were with TT. I am retired from the audio/video industry and we once talked about some high-end audio gear (amps and speakers) that you were looking at.) Thank you for the review work that you do for us. It is extremely helpful.
Bruce
Hello Bruce,
It's good to hear from you. Our chats were right around the time I picked up the massive tube amps and Martin Logans. I love that system but it was moved to my bedroom so I don't get to play it too often.
It sounds like you just need some DEI Reflect-A-GOLD for under your keyboard. The XG3/RD400 is a very fast drive but it does pump out some heat. MSI used the drive in a few notebooks but I think it makes a better desktop drive. If you do see throttling then it's best to remove it. Throttling should be a last stop against the drive eating itself rather than a character trait you see every day.
Give us a few days to get the other review and hopefully by then we know more about the 960 EVO. As of now there really isn't a date, performance or throttling info to report.
It's good to hear from you. Our chats were right around the time I picked up the massive tube amps and Martin Logans. I love that system but it was moved to my bedroom so I don't get to play it too often.
It sounds like you just need some DEI Reflect-A-GOLD for under your keyboard. The XG3/RD400 is a very fast drive but it does pump out some heat. MSI used the drive in a few notebooks but I think it makes a better desktop drive. If you do see throttling then it's best to remove it. Throttling should be a last stop against the drive eating itself rather than a character trait you see every day.
Give us a few days to get the other review and hopefully by then we know more about the 960 EVO. As of now there really isn't a date, performance or throttling info to report.
- Status
TRENDING THREADS
-
-
-
-
Review Intel Arc B580 review: The new $249 GPU champion has arrived- Started by Admin
- Replies: 68
-
Discussion What's your favourite video game you've been playing?- Started by amdfangirl
- Replies: 4K
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram