Samsung PM983

Haven't used one but "PM" is Samsung's label for TLC-based OEM drive and the 9xx tells you the generation. The 983 utilizes the Phoenix penta-core controller (970 Pro/EVO/EVO Plus) which is an updated and upclocked version of the Polaris (960 Pro/EVO) and the same 64-layer TLC as the 970 EVO. Generally, enterprise/datacenter drives like this have no SLC cache with an emphasis on steady state (esp. write) performance and this coupled with additional overprovisioning increases endurance. Such drives also tend to have enterprise firmware, PLP, etc. Apologies if you know all of this already, I'm not entirely sure what you're asking, but basically this is a 970 EVO with more OP, PLP, no SLC cache, and datacenter firmware. Obviously it has a longer form factor (20110) and as a result higher maximum capacity (3.84TB) due to the use of 8 NAND packages (16DQ - 16 dies/package, 32 GiB/die).
 
Thanks - that's the details I was missing. HF always delivers!

I'm wondering how these will perform in my "desktop" type ESXi server build. Using a Dell 7060 i7 with a crap load of memory to run a bunch of VMs for various household servers, NAS, streaming media, Blue Iris, Ubuntu testing, etc etc.

I found a M.3 NF1 PCIe adapter card to hold the longer form factor drive, hope the Dell will recognize it.

Any thoughts? Pls chime in..... Aloha.
 
Most adapters (at least the cheap ones) are "dumb" and just reroute the PCIe lanes, so that much should work. The controller is powerful and quite capable so can multi-task and handle a ton of things at once, anything you can throw at it; even the tri-core MJX on the 860 EVO can handle a bunch of VMs without issue. Nothing a 970 EVO wouldn't accomplish - the advantage here is power-loss protection (PLP) as previously stated, plus superior write performance as it's not dealing with a SLC cache and has a bit more OP. That also improves endurance which is not a huge factor as this NAND can survive a ton of writes unless you have a workload with truly high sustained writes and/or high write amplification factor. Reads are not generally a limitation. Latency here won't be as good as MLC or a TLC drive within its SLC cache but more consistent on the whole and under load even when fuller, but the 970 EVO would likely be adequate. Same with the firmware. So...maybe overkill? Unless it's cheaper per GB, or you need 4TB. It'll get the job done though.
 
Your last statement hit it- cheaper per GB. I've found some that are much cheaper that the 970 EVOs. Honestly, cache or no cache, these drives are so fast it's mind boggling. I remember when I thought 7200 at RAID0 was fast.

I'll reply back if I build it.
 
It's completely overkill for what you're doing. I had the 3.84TB PM983 in my desktop before I upgraded to something larger and was quite pleased with the performance.
 
Thanks for all the info - as of now I'm holding off on the PM983. My MB needs an adapter card to hold the NF1 form factor - and the cost of the adapter card drives up the per GB price on the drive. So, Black Friday is coming......need a nice 2TB NVMe at a good price.
 
You can always get the 2.5" U.2 version. M.2 to U.2 adapter/cable is only $15. Same goes for PCIe slot adapters.
 
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