Two Technical Questions on Maximus IX Hero - PCIe and M.2 slots

[shiney]

Hello I have two questions for a new build based on the Maximums IX Hero relating to PCIe and M.2 memory slots. I am trying to complete the build this weekend and need to make some choices, so any help is appreciate:

First, for PCIe in general, I noted an apparent inconsistency in the manual. The Specifications in the manual and online say there are "2x PCIe 3.0 x16 slots (supports x16, x8/x8)." But in Section 1.1.5 of the Manual page 1-7 it states that Slot 2 is "PCIe 3.0 x 18/8_1 slot" and Slot 4 is "PCIe 3.0 x8_2 slot". Slots 2 and 4 are the slots that are reinforced for use with graphics card and no other slot has x8 or x16. I have an ASUS ROG GTX 1070 video card and understand that I need x16 to run that card properly. Question: Do I have to put the 1070 in Slot 2, and what is the actual difference between Slot 2 and Slot 4?

Second, for the M.2 socket: I understand the difference between M.2 SATA III mode (6GB/sec) and the M.2 NVMe standard (32 GB/sec). I do not have the budget for the new NVMe drives so I have to choose between an old-style 2.5 SSD SATA-III (off the Board) and an M.2 drive running SATA-III on the MB, both at 6GB/sec. But I don't fully understand the difference between the two M.2 slots on the MB (see below for manual text) and I don't know if there is a reason to prefer a 2.5 SSD Drive or an M.2 drive if both are running at SATA-III. I have heard that heat is an issue with the M.2 cards, and since it seems like the M.2-SATA drive is closest to Slot 2, that might be a reason to keep the card off the board despite the extra cables.

I would appreciate advice on which M.2 slot is for which sorts of M.2 cards and whether I should prefer an M.2 (on motherboard) or 2.5 SSD (off motherboard) solution.

The specs for the two M.2 slots are as follows. Since both use the term "SATA" in different places I am mystified as to which is compatible with a SATA-only SSD:

"M2_1 socket supports PCIe 23.0 x 4 and SATA mode M key design and type 2242/2260/2280 PCIe storage devices.
M2_2 socket supports PCIe 3.0 x 4 M key design and type 2242/2260/2280/22110 PCIe and SATA storage devices."

Thanks to all.

[Chino]

1. Install your GPU into the PCIe 3.0 x16/x8_1 slot for maximum performance.

2. M.2 drives are divided into 2 categories: SATA drives & PCIe drives. M.2 SATA drives are basically your typical SATA drive in M.2 format so it's restricted to SATA III speeds. On ther other hand, M.2 PCIe drives use PCIe lanes which makes them a lot faster.

Both M.2 slots support SATA and PCIe M.2 drives. The difference is that the M.2_2 supports longer drives up to 110mm in length.

[shiney]

Chino wrote:
1. Install your GPU into the PCIe 3.0 x16/x8_1 slot for maximum performance.

2. M.2 drives are divided into 2 categories: SATA drives & PCIe drives. M.2 SATA drives are basically your typical SATA drive in M.2 format so it's restricted to SATA III speeds. On ther other hand, M.2 PCIe drives use PCIe lanes which makes them a lot faster.

Both M.2 slots support SATA and PCIe M.2 drives. The difference is that the M.2_2 supports longer drives up to 110mm in length.

I ask because I have heard that M.2 can have heat problems on the motherboard if it has no specific cooling such as its own radiator or fan.* I'm dirssing the off-board 2.5 SDD which is placed on the other side of a metal plate from the graphics card would not get as hot. *Thanks!

[JustinThyme]

shiney wrote:
I ask because I have heard that M.2 can have heat problems on the motherboard if it has no specific cooling such as its own radiator or fan.* I'm dirssing the off-board 2.5 SDD which is placed on the other side of a metal plate from the graphics card would not get as hot. *Thanks!

If you are not going to use NVMe drives stick with the 2.5 inch drives. SATA standard of 6Gbps no matter where it's at. The M2 slots go through the PCH controller so there is a bottleneck of 4GBps. *Be careful with the marketing ploy with GB vs Gb. They always market the Gb but speeds are measured in GB. Basically bytes vs bits. Take the inflated Gb and multiply by 0.125 to get GB. IMO this choice is clear, the 2.5 *drives are cheaper and easy to set up in a raid. Two of those in raid 0 and you go from 500MBps to 1000MBps.*

There are plenty of heat stories on M2 drives that all center around one video that was done long ago when the 950s came out . I've been running M2 drives for some time and have never seen throttling, even closed up in a laptop with no air. The video where they were made heat up to the point of throttling was done outside of any possible use. Hammered the drives with continuous writes for 20 minutes. *In a real world the drive will have transferred its max capacity long before. I did a 500GB transfer from one drive to another in just over 5 mins with a max temp of 50C on two 960 pros. Seemed the 960s idle at 40 and max out at 50 no matter if it's 10 GB or the drives capacity. The polaris controller is definitely cooler. Bottom line, the average user will never hammer the drive continuously anyhow. They only thing that will come remotely close would be someone encoding raw video for feature length productions. These users won't be using a 4 core CPU either and would most likely use 2.5 inch SSD with a PCIe raid controller with lime 10 drives on it. 10 sata SSDs will get you 5GBs on PCIE controller but will never pass 4 GBps when downstream of the PCH controller due to the DMI bottleneck.*

[shiney]

Thanks! Very helpful information.

[Chino]

Nothing covers the M.2 slots on the Maximus IX Hero so you shouldn't have to worry about high temperatures. Also you can always add some active cooling.

[MrAgapiGC]

I have being going around the web. I need help with a PNY CS2030. my speeds are fantastic on a clean boot and now BAD. i slike half but all is correct configuration. i need help badly i can do a stream live if needed.