Gigabyte x99 gaming 5p with Samsung SM951 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive

[Gump12]

Hi guys,

I am pulling my hair out, so if any of you have the answer you will have my eternal gratitude and love.

I am building my new rig at the moment (http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/dpmLRB)

I am using the Gigabyte x99 gaming 5p motherboard with i7 5820 and a nvidia 980ti.

I'm happy with everything and went to buy a new SSD. But then after reading I heard of this new M.2 SSD.

So doing some research I found out that my mobo does have an M.2 slot.

So I bought everything, it has arrived but after reading more stuff I am currently scared to remove the M.2 SSD incase I cant get it to work - thus stopping me from sending it back.

Question 1 - I understand that the M2 slot my motherboard has less lanes than a PCI-E (2 lanes rather than 4 Lanes) - if I got it to work would I notice a huge difference or would i be better getting an adaptor?

Question 2 - I plan on making this the boot drive, if I unbox it, plug it in is it compatable as a boot drive for my Mobo?

Question 3 - I've heard that I have to install windows from a USB, thats not a big deal I can use a guide to learn that as long as I know it can be done.

Sorry guys, but a swift answer would be really appreciated, I can find people talking about it but they all discuss the ASUS motherboards.

Thanks in advance, really want this sorted so I know if I should return it or not!

Regards
Josh

[absic]

Hi there,

looks like you are putting together a nice rig.

The M.2 drive, according to everything I can find, is compatible with your motherboard. So, using it as a BOOT drive should not be a problem.

Using the on-board slot will affect the speed a little but, being totally honest, this is something you could address at a later stage, once the PC is up and running, if you really feel the need to do so.

Installing Windows from a USB pendrive is really easy, just make sure that you use a USB2 port on the motherboard, rather than a USB3 one. There are lots of guides on the internet that explain the process but Microsoft themselves supply a bit of software that can help. Check here: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/windows-usb-dvd-download-tool for this.

[Gump12]

You sir, have made my day!

I just went out to buy a new pen drive, got a USB3 one, spent twice as much as if I were to get one from Amazon But i was desperate

I assume using a usb3 pen in a usb2 to install windows wont be a problem though.

Thank you so much for your help, if I lived closer, Id buy you a beer. Ill take the plunge and plug it in when I get the last part of the rig!

Do I need to do anything different than what I would usually do with another HDD? Or do I have to mess around with the bios?

Thanks for the help mate

[absic]

Best advice I can offer is to put your rig together but, when it comes to the hard drives, only install the M.2 drive at the beginning. You can install any other HDD's or DVD drives once Windows has been installed.

BIOS should automatically see the M.2 drive and at POST you may get an initial splash screen identifying it before you get the Gigabyte splash screen.

Although they refer to a different motherboard and M.2 drive, you might want to check these two threads:
http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php?topic=14703.0
http://forum.giga-byte.co.uk/index.php?topic=14710.0
as they may help.

Using a USB3 pendrive shouldn't be a problem as they are backwards compatible and the reason I recommend trying to use a USB2 port is the fact that most USB3 ports don't always function properly until the OS is up and running.

[polypenko]

I had the Gigabyte GA X99 ud5 with the Samsung SM951 achi 256gb.

I ordered the following m.2. card.

https://www.alternate.nl/DeLOCK/PCI-Express-Card-1-x-internal-M-2-NGFF/html/product/1174651

placed it on the mb in the second pce-e slot, installed W 8.1 from a usb stick went without
any problems. (later updated to w10)

Initially went into the bios set de Samsung sm951 as my first boot priority.

With this add on card you get 2150 mb/s read and 1250 mb/s write speads.

Now using a Gigabyte Z170x gaming 7 with the sm951, the X99 was in retrospect overkill for
my purposes.

[Gump12]

Thanks for all the help guys! All parts have arrived, but had a long shift today so will be building it tomorrow! Had no idea  the cosmos 2 case would be this big!