Also the recommended capacity for each.

 

hi. I'm happy with my gen4 nvme as the main boot/os drive , and a gen3 as data drive/storage. both are 1 tb , next will be a 2tb data drive probably. loading times are very fast from the gen3 data drive, i store kontakt libs, superior drummer libs and the steam library for omnisphere 3. loading anything from the main drive is literally instantaneous (is that a word) . well if u have a newer system which supports gen5 nvme's , there's your answer. basically go the highest your motherboard can handle. try to avoid sata drives, sata ssd's are still king, but strangely they are a bit more expensive than nvme's.

 

SAMSUNG - 850 EVO SATA III 2.5-inch SSD
1 TB
MZ-75E1T0B/EU

The 850 EVO's performance is optimized for everyday use, delivering write speeds of up to 520 MB/s with TurboWrite technology and sequential read speeds of up to 540 MB/s. RAPID mode also supports up to 2x faster* system-level data processing rates by utilizing unused PC memory as cache.

www.samsung.com/us/computing/memory-storage/solid-state-drives/ssd-850-evo-2-5-sata-iii-1tb-mz-75e1t0b-am/

 

well sata ssd's speed is 550mb/s max , whereas gen4 nvme is around 7000mb/s. which one is better PulseWave ?

 

That also depends on the motherboard. Older motherboards don't always support NVMe. Besides, the original poster asked about SSDs.

 

nvme's are also ssd's. soldis state drives = non moving parts. maybe i'm wrong.

 

Systems would specs would help in giving a more accurate recommendation and, things to look out for if choosing Samsung SSDs.

 

For OS drive and associated stuff get at least a 2TB NVMe. Keep large sample data and instrument libraries confined to DATA drives and keep the system drive as clear as possible. You will notice supremely improved boot up speeds and your OS operation will fly. For Data/Work drives 3-4TB SSD's work well and give you max performance over all else available these days.

 

What does this actually mean in practice? Can you feel the difference compared to a conventional SATA SSD?

Yes and no. The workflow of a current NVMe M.2 SSD hardly differs from that of a SATA SSD, at least not on a standard desktop PC. In terms of purely sequential performance, the fast NVMe M.2 SSDs can certainly deliver impressive results, as our AS SSD example shows. However, this has little practical relevance, as the workflow on a desktop PC has little in common with it. There, programs and operating systems are installed, which is also completed quickly by a SATA SSD. When it comes to latency, booting, or opening programs and applications, you won't notice any perceptible difference in practice, even if stopwatches and benchmarks suggest otherwise.

The strengths of an M.2 NVMe SSD become apparent when there are corresponding system demands, such as processing power for video editing, handling numerous large photos, daily transfer of large amounts of data, or the transfer of many small files over an extended period. Anyone who actually needs these workflows for personal use will certainly not be disappointed.

 

Yes I can actually. While experimenting with the build out of my last production box the NVMe system drive made a 2-3 second difference in boot up speed over conventional SSD (samsung evo) with an optimized Win10 22H2 os image... There was a noticeable difference with regular os operations - as in file copies, archiving/unarchiving, searches, etc, all just a bit more zippy with the NVMe over the standard SSD. Production speeds with renders, load times, processing times, etc, all improved because of better OS efficiency. Which is why I stayed with the NVMe system drive. Since the pricing is basically all in line there's really no good reason not to run NVMe's for system drives at all.

 

Last edited: Nov 23, 2025 at 9:33 PM

Normal specs:
Motherboard (rev ?)
Installed BIOS version
OS - macOS, Windows 10/11, Linux

C-PUZ or HWiNFO will help if you do not know specs offhand.

 

2TB NVME SSD is my minimum for creative setups.

• A lot of creative apps install to system drive (Adobe, Logic Pro, Maxon, Blender, etc). Sound libraries like Omnisphere and Arturia V Collection are suitable for system drive.
• NVME and SATA are at similar price points, so it makes sense to go with the fastest you system can handle.
• The more free space available is the better your SSD will perform. 1TB can get cramped over time as your apps and content grow. Especially if you try new apps often or process some local LLMs.

SATA SSDs may be good for archives (if you don't like HDD) when you run out of m.2/pcie slots and have some available SATA ports. I made sure to get a motherboard with 6 SATA slots.

 

I've changed the title

 

Brand new AMD build, latest R9 9950x CPU, MB ASUS PRIME X870-P. I just want to see what the fastest NVMe recommendations will be for OS & Data drive. I have something in mind, but I was curious what the general consensus would be.

My thinking was 2TB Samsung 990 Pro for OS and 4TB Samsung 990 Pro for the data drive. I could have it all wrong though

 

As far as NVMe speeds go you should get the fastest your system supports until cost prevention takes over. There are currently 3 popular versions of NVMe to choose from. It will depend greatly on what the target system can support (and your wallet).

NVMe PCIe 3.0 32 Gbps (4 GB/s) ~3,500 MB/s - Up to 500,000 IOPS
NVMe PCIe 4.0 64 Gbps (8 GB/s) ~7,000 MB/s - Over 1,000,000 IOPS
NVMe PCIe 5.0 128 Gbps (16 GB/s) Up to 14,000 MB/s - Varies, often exceeding 1,000,000 IOPS
* IOPS == i/o operations@second

Go with the fastest device your system and pocket-book can support...

 

NVMe prices are still ok, it's the RAM that's a bitch!

 

If you are separating OS & VST libraries, a 512GB to 1TB Pro Level SATA SSD or, 1TB Gen3x4 NVMe for an OS disk would be enough. Unless you are doing things that require a large swap space such as video editing without a dedicated swap disk.

A 4TB should be enough for VST libraries during normal use. Keep in mind that the 3rd M.2 slot will disable the adjacent PCIe slots when used.

From the specifications:

• PCIEX16(G4)_1 and PCIEX16(G4)_2 share bandwidth with M.2_3. PCIEX16(G4)_1 and PCIEX16(G4)_2 will be disabled when M.2_3 runs.

(Also consider that maximum memory functionality is achieved using two RAM modules instead of four with the AMD platform).

 

I had an EVO drive before and the performance is nowhere near as it should be. the drive does work for smaller files, but if you need to copy bigger files the performance goes down a lot. it was really annoying. I wouldn't recommend the EVO series at all.

If you want to use it as a pure storage device and you don't care about the speed, they could work, but if you need to copy big files regularly, you should go with the Samsung Pro Series even though they are more expensive of course

 

Last edited: Nov 24, 2025 at 7:40 AM

I can also recommend the "SAMSUNG - 990 PRO NVMe™ M.2 SSD - 2 TB," a modern high-end product, multiple award winner.
Samsung always stands for quality and durability. I think you can save a few dollars on it this Black Friday.

ASUS Prime X870 P
- Four M.2 slots
- Comprehensive cooling: two M.2 heatsinks

Four M.2 slots (up to 128 Gbps)
The PRIME X870-P offers a total of four M.2 slots, including one that supports data transfer speeds of up to 128 Gbps via PCIe 5.0, two that support 64 Gbps via PCIe 4.0, and one that supports PCIe 3.0. This enables faster boot and load times for operating systems and applications.

So, make sure you first select the fast slot for your operating system C:/,
then start the PC, and then install the other NVMe drive in the other slot!

Congratulations on your new super-fast PC!

 

I got 4TB Kingston HyperX Fury (which has its own 4GB DRAM), sure there are faster SSDs but depends on prices