SSD/ M2 SSD

[chris higgin]

My original M2 SSD 970 evo for TS is getting fairly full , as prices are fairly reasonable I am toying with the idea of purchasing a 1gb replacement. I was wondering if I should replace it with an ordinary SSD or an M2 SSD,
either WD or Samsung. I have a back up copy of TS on a spare SSD and have run the program once or twice on it and have not really noticed any difference, any comments or thoughts would be appreciated.

Regards, Chis H

[gptech]

Personally I'd go for Windows on a M.2 drive, but TS on a *normal* SATA interface--the game doesn't seem to benefit from the higher theoretical transfer speeds M.2 provides.

[Kernow2]

My non tech answer is that if you have TS on a SSD then any bottlenecks will be elsewhere on your system. I run TS from a Barracuda 4gb HDD and rarely suffer noticeable stuttering with a high end processor, motherboard, memory and graphics card. Loading time is obviously slower but gives me time to drink my coffee!

[majorminor]

1gb SSD??

Do you mean 1tb??

[peterfhayes]

My two cents.
I would go for the .M2 drive but reserve it for TS (plus other games) only.
I would put the OS on a separate small SSD plus essential software then other software can be loaded onto a conventional HDD.
The advantage of having TS on a SSD is that it loads quicker and if it generates soft/hard pages fault (and it does plenty of those) then it is much faster for the OS to check/retrieve the "missing" data from the SSD than from a conventional spinner. Fewer micro stutters.
However, the system must be balanced to take advantage of the SSD read/write speed.

pH

[AndyUK]

I'll be facing a similar choice soon. What benefit is there from having the OS and TS on two separate drives, SSD / M2? I understand some motherboards don't support two M2 drives so from a speed perspective would it be better to have both on one large M2 drive?

Andy L

[chris higgin]

Thanks for all your replies, slip of the finger I meant 1tb not gb. I have always run TS on a separate drive away from Windows . I certainly saw an improvement on changing to a normal SSD from a HDD but not quite sure how much improvement there was on changing to an M2 drive. I have two M2 slots on the MB so thought I would put TS on a 1tb drive and utilise the original for something else, just not sure whether the extra cash is worth it over a normal SSD.

Regards Chris H

[peterfhayes]

ChrisH
Just remember that one of the .M2 slots (when you install a .M2 SSD) can "disable" 2 of the SATA3 slots on the mobo.
So have a look at the mobo manual to see which of the .M2 slots should be used.
I use both and found that the M2M_32G slot disabled SATA3, 4 and 5 slots.
The M2P_32G slot is the usual one to use, ( this may disable/curtail the PCIe x4 slot on the mobo), but may vary from mobo to mobo.

AndyUK
I use a SATA III SSD for the Windows OS separate to the .M2 slot for TS20XX. Windows doesn't need a .M2 SSD or for that matter any SSD - as with TS - Windows loading from a conventional spinner it will just take longer to load. However, unlike TS20XX, Windows 10 64-bit is very stable it does not generate very many soft/hard page faults, and once loaded into the working set it will run just as fast, as to whatever hard drive it loaded from. I use a SSD because I like my PC to boot up fast and not take the several minutes it took when loading from a conventional HDD.

pH

[johnrossetti]

In the case of TS, I dont think the M2 is worth it, by i7 Games PC has 4, everything is on them, Windows,Games,Docs,BU.
My office PC has a HDD for C: Windows and Docs, SSD for Games, and SSD for MS Office and docs,
And only runs very slightly slower FPS with TS than the games PC, where the Games PC does win is rendering in video editing but thats about all.
As Kernow has already said there are other parts of the PC that can be a restriction rather than than the SSD, a GOOD single thread CPU 16Gb fast memory and a decent GPU are more important than M.2
John

[chris higgin]

Thanks for all of your replies and advice,I think I will go down the road of purchasing a 1tb Sata SSD and use the present M2 drive for something else.

Chris H

[majorminor]

Just as an observation, the spec of the PC I use for TS is really nothing special - because it simply doesn't need to be.

Bought to run on my network as a TV server, the whole thing, including the 240gb SSD, cost around £175.00. I view it via HDMI to my 55in TV. It doesn't even have a separate graphics card!

And TS (32 and 64 bit) runs PERFECTLY.

I really think that DTG hype up the needs of TS to cover up the fact that the base game is ANCIENT in gaming terms, and was designed for much more lowly systems than even base PCs that are available now.

So, for any TS newbies out there, try TS on your old cooking PC, BEFORE you start spending cash on fancy new systems. You might be pleasantly surprised

[Lumpy]

Majorminor...
LOL...
That'll cause a LOT of controversity with the 'I NEED 100fps' brigade!
and the 'I must have 'immersion' and 'clarity' (the latest 'buzzwords') disciples...

I agree with you (except about DTG trying to 'cover up' that the game is ancient. That is well known and DTG have done an amazing job squeezing the best out of the old game engine).

Contrary to accepted (ie. 'continously repeated') wisdom:-

I run Windows 7 (If it ain't broke don't fix it!!!)...
I have TS installed in the default location:- Program Files (x86)...
In NVIDEA control panel I have 'Let the 3D application decide'...
I use Notepad to edit .bin/.xml files (using serz.exe)...
I use Utilities.exe to install when a .rwp is offered (and don't think I know best what to install manually)...
I have fps set to 30 max...

I read every 'latest' post here on 'General Discussion' every night...
and I never have ANY of the problems reported...

I ignore 'It has been reported' unless there is confirmed corroboration that it is widespread...
I believe 99.99% of problems reported here are due to user error/setup...

and uncorroberated advice...

That should take the heat off you Majorminor... LOL!

Bring it on...

[Easilyconfused]

The above post is the best post I have seen in a long time here

Too many people overcomplicate things and look for all the pitfalls (real or imagined) rather than just getting on and trying things (with a valid backup of course).

[IronBidder]

I read every 'latest' post here on 'General Discussion' every night...
and I never have ANY of the problems reported...

Me to.

People make problems for themselves by trying to be too clever by half. By all means customise and experiment, but don't be surprised if your game stops working. The same goes for routes, scenarios and reskins. Use them if you like, some are good, but they come with no warranty whatsoever.

[gptech]

All good points guys, but how has a discussion relating to the merits of SSDs with an M.2 interface Vs one with an older SATA interface been seen as experimenting or building in complexity?
There's no doubt that SSDs are quicker than spinning drives when transferring data to RAM so an SSD is the *better* choice when contemplating a new drive--a change in this case because the existing drive is getting full. The question has been whether to spend more on the M.2 version or does the SATA one work just as well in gameplay, and the consensus of opinion is that yes, SATA does the job nicely. That's called
cost effective, not complicated.

What benefit is there from having the OS and TS on two separate drives, SSD / M2?

Andy, M.2 drives are SSDs, it's only the interface that is different, how it connects to the motherboard and data bus https://searchstorage.techtarget.com/definition/M2-SSD

The benefit of having the OS on a separate drive to applications, regardless of the drive technology, is that Windows is not "competing" for disc access whilst those applications are running. The faster/more able your base hardware is then the lesser that benefit will be. To borrow from Peter---

...the system must be balanced to take advantage....

Read that as a statement that it's pointless installing any high end kit if it can't perform as it should/could because it's held back by whatever else is in the box.