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TSSDR TEST BENCH AND PROTOCOL
SSD testing at TSSDR differs slightly, depending on whether we are looking at consumer or enterprise SSDs. For our enthusiast testing today, our goal is to test in a system that has been optimized with our SSD Optimization Guide. To see the best performance possible, the CPU C states have been disabled, C1E support has been disabled, Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology (EIST) has been disabled. Benchmarks for consumer testing are also benchmarks with a fresh drive so, not only can we verify that manufacturer specifications are in line but also, so the consumer can replicate our tests to confirm that they have an SSD that is top-notch. We even provide links to most of the benchmarks used in the report.
SYSTEM COMPONENTS
The components of this Test Bench are detailed below. All hardware is linked for purchase and product sales may be reached by a simple click on the individual item. As well, the title is linked back to the individual build article where performance testing can be validated.
TSSDR ASUS Z270 APEX TEST BENCH (link)
| PC CHASSIS: | Corsair Crystal Series 460X RGB |
| MOTHERBOARD: | ASUS Z270 ROG Maximus IX Apex |
| CPU: | Intel Kaby Lake I7-7700K |
| CPU COOLER: | Corsair Hydro Series H110i GTX V.2 |
| POWER SUPPLY: | Corsair RM850x 80Plus |
| GRAPHICS: | PNY GTX 1080 XLR8 Gaming OC |
| MEMORY: | Corsair Dominator Pl 32GB 2800 |
| STORAGE: | Samsung 2TB 960 Pro M.2 SSD |
| KEYBOARD: | Corsair Strafe RGB Silent Gaming |
| MOUSE: | Corsair M65 Pro Gaming |
| OS | Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64 Bit |
BENCHMARK SOFTWARE
The software in use for today’s analysis is typical of many of our reviews and consists of Crystal Disk Info, ATTO Disk Benchmark, Crystal Disk Mark, AS SSD, Anvil’s Storage Utilities, PCMark Vantage, PCMark 8 as well real data transfer testing. Our selection of software allows each to build on the last and to provide validation to results already obtained.
CRYSTAL DISK INFO VER. 7.0.5
Crystal Disk Info is a great tool for displaying the characteristics and health of storage devices. It displays everything from temperatures, the number of hours the device has been powered, and even to the extent of informing you of the firmware of the device.
A quick look at the Total Host Reads and Total Host Writes gives you a great indication of how much actually goes into our testing. This SSD arrived with both at 0GB.
ATTO Disk Benchmark is perhaps one of the oldest benchmarks going and is definitely the main staple for manufacturer performance specifications. ATTO uses RAW or compressible data and, for our benchmarks, we use a set length of 256mb and test both the read and write performance of various transfer sizes ranging from 0.5 to 8192kb. Manufacturers prefer this method of testing as it deals with raw (compressible) data rather than random (includes incompressible data) which, although more realistic, results in lower performance results.
ATTO, although the most basic of benchmarks software, provides some great results of 3.1GB/s read and 2.1GB/s write. Equally as impressive are the low 4k transfer speeds of over 400MB/s.
Your PCMARK 8 RESULTS graphs are in the wrong order.
Also, I’d really like to see the power usage results! You seem to ignore posting them often for an unknown reason.
Thanks for that. I will switch them up. When I test, I don’t do the power testing. I leave it to Sean with his enterprise test regime. If he happens to do consumer drives, he will do the testing because he has the equipment right there in front of him.
Well I’ve found the most interesting metric so far about NVMe SSDs is
their power usage. I have been working to create a program to estimate the total cost of ownership. In other words, I take the lifespan of the largest drive and add in the cost of each drive plus electricity and if the lifespan is too short than the cost of buying a new drive (or drives), to see how much each drive *really* costs compared to it’s competitors.
This is a really cool metric no-one seems to care about. Sadly, no-body seems to give *all* the power info about a drive. Anandntech has started, but only the info for 2 or 3 drives is available.
Thanks for your reviews, and please encourage Sean!
Consumer and oem SSDs. The SSD will be replaced long before cost of ownership will be considered. Next up…power usage. It is not a major consideration, if any at all, with consumer SSD buyers. That is why we reserve our enterprise reviews for such. Don’t get me wrong. I am not discrediting you at all but, in most cases, SSDs are received only 3-4 days prior to when the embargo is when the report is to be released. Trust me when I say reviewers work their asses off to get an accurate report out in a very small period of time. It is not uncommon whatsoever to receive a SSD on Friday, without warning, for review release Monday morning…when you had a weekend planned. For many, the pay for doing such is very little if not non-existent. Many work on retention alone in the tech world. Just a peek into the SSD review lifestyle…
I totally understand. Its a cruel world sometimes.
What I have always wondered is, what happens if you get your review out 1 or 2 days after the embargo expires?
Let’s face it, you can give a better review if you have more time, plus you can think about what you are writing vs. being in a mad rush.
Personally, I typically am the last person to have an opinion on a given topic, but mine are far more accurate because I do the research and take the time to go through all of what I know and have learned.