Every gamer knows that Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra is a very popular gaming motherboard. Today, I will help you pick the right SSD for Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra. There are several SSDs available with different specifications and storage sizes. So, in this article, I will compare and list them as per their performance and their implementation.
The Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra comes with three PCIe M.2 NVMe slots along with heatsinks. However, you can also make use of its SATA interface to install a SATA SSD. I will list the best SSDs in both the categories. The first one is M.2 PCIe NVMe and the other is SATA 2.5” based. Look at other specs of Z390 Aorus Ultra Motherboard here.
I have picked all the SSDs by taking care of a good controller, fast DRAM, and at least TLC NAND support. So, without any delays, let’s get started.
Best M.2 PCIe NVMe SSDs for Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra
Below are the best NVMe based SSDs that I personally prefer:
1. Samsung 970 Pro
If you’re really serious about gaming or you’re a professional gamer you should go for Samsung 970 Pro. This one was the best and fastest of all SSDs which I’ve ever tried. It took me just a few minutes to transfer my 20 GB data from the old drive to this one. Samsung’s cloning software makes these things much more easier for you.
Samsung 970 Pro comes with a 3500 MB/s data reading and 2700 MB/s data writing speed. It has the newer fourth-generation V-NAND technology with Phoenix controller and M.2 form factor which greatly increases the performance. Samsung 970 Pro also comes with 30% more efficiency than its predecessor due to its input voltage of only 2.5V.
If we talk about the TBW limits, the 970 Pro has a lot to offer. The 1TB version has a massive 1,200 Terabytes write limit.
Samsung 970 Pro will meet all your gaming and professional requirement. However, it’s still very expensive as compared to its competitors. So, if you’re not short on budget then you should probably go for it.
2. Crucial P5
If you don’t want to spend too much money then next in line for you is Crucial P5 SSD for Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra. Crucial P5 comes in many size options from 250GB to 2TB it also offers very competitive pricing as compared to the other brands. Crucial P5 is aimed at gamers and professionals and it does its job very well.
The sequential read speed for all size variants is the same at 3400 MB/s but the sequential write speed for 250 GB drive is 1400 MB/s while for other size variants from 500 GB to 2 TB have the sequential write speed is 3000 MB/s. Crucial P5 has Micron-made 96 layer TLC NAND along with gives LPDDR4 DRAM.
I would recommend Crucial P5 if you want value for your money. As for only a slightly less speed, it directly competes with Samsung 970 Pro.
3. Kingston A2000
My last pick in NVMe SSD goes for the Kingston A2000 for Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra. As it has everything that a professional gamer requires, and still it is cheaper than the above two SSDs. Kingston A2000 is available in 3 sizes, which are 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB.
Just like the above two SSDs, Kingston A2000 also has M.2(2280) form factor. The 256 GB variant has a sequential read speed of 2100 MB/s and a sequential write speed of 1100 MB/s, But, the 512 GB and 1 TB variants have a sequential read speed of 2200 MB/s and a sequential write speed of 2000MB/s. It has also a 96 layers TLC memory like Crucial P5 along with a DDR4 DRAM.
If you’re very short on budget and want an NVMe SSD, then this one is for you. I recommend this one because it’s the best on entry-level NVMe SSDs and has everything that an NVMe SSD should have.
Best SATA 2.5” SSDs for Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra
What is a SATA SSD? SATA means Serial Advanced Technology Attachment, and these are slower than NVMe SSDs because the read and write operations are done serially. SATA drives have a maximum data write speed of 550 MB/s in SSDs however NVMe interface has a speed of about 3.5 GB/s.
So, SATA-based SSDs are slow as compared to the NVMe based SSDs. But, still, they are way faster than the HDDs and enough to work great for raw data storage and even for software/OS installation.
Below I have listed the best 3 SATA-based SSDs which are worth your money.
1. Samsung 860 Evo
Samsung 860 Evo is my favorite in SATA SSDs. I have used 2TB size on my work PC, and it never disappointed me. It is also the best-selling SATA-based SSD and is perfect for your gaming and professional needs.
Samsung 860 Evo has 64-layer V-NAND which is faster and more efficient than the previous 48-layer stack. Along with V-NAND, Samsung used an MJX controller which is powerful than most of its competitors and helps in reducing energy consumption and supports DDR4 memory. The sequential read speed for all sizes is 550 MB/s and the write speed is 520 MB/s. The cache memory varies from 512 MB to 4 GB Low Power DDR4 SDRAM.
Samsung 860 Evo has a V-NAND fab which enhances the performance all the while keeping energy consumption low. Samsung 860 Evo is expensive but it also has the latest V-NAND technology which makes it a must-buy. I would really recommend Samsung 860 Evo if you want more size with best performance
2. Samsung 870 Evo
You might be wondering why did I put the Samsung 860 Evo on top of this list and Samsung 870 Evo on second. Well, I know Samsung 870 Evo is better in performance than 860 Evo, but I took the price also under consideration and 860 Evo is value for money with just a small trade-off on the side of performance.
Samsung 870 Evo is available in a size range from 250 GB to 4 TB. And All of these variants have a sequential read speed of 560 MB/s and a write speed of 530 MB/s. Samsung 870 Evo has MKX ‘Metis’ controller, with 128-layer V-NAND TLC which offers great performance. The DRAM for all sizes varies from 256 MB to 4GB, depending upon the size of the SSD.
Samsung 870 Evo offers 38% higher performance in day-to-day tasks and 30% higher performance in heavy operations than the Samsung 860 Evo. Samsung 870 Evo is really good at fast system startup because of the newer 6th generation 128-layer V-NAND, so I would recommend this one if you want a really fast response on system start-up or game start-up
3. Crucial MX500
Crucial MX500 is our last pick in this list for Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra. Crucial MX500 is affordable as compared to the other SSDs and has competitive performance. Crucial MX500 is available in four different sizes which are 250GB, 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB.
All of these sizes have a sequential read speed of 560 MB/s and a sequential write speed of 510 MB/s. Crucial MX500 has a new SM2258 controller with the new Micron 64-layer 3D NAND which helps in less power consumption and long endurance. Micron’s new interface also optimizes the read and write operations on NAND for heavy operations.
Crucial MX500 comes with the software package for drive management which makes it really easy to manage drive space and clone drive. It took me hardly 5-10 minutes to clone my previous drive data to this one and data transfer was really fast. I would recommend this one if you want performance at an affordable price.
Thanks for reading!
Also Read: Best Budget SATA 2.5″ SSDs in 2021