Corsair MP700 2 TB PCIe Gen5 x4 NVMe M.2 SSD Review

With PCIe Gen 5 SSDs finally rolling out into the mainstream market, Corsair was kind enough to send out its flagship MP700 for review. This represents the very best Corsair (or anyone) has to offer for M.2 storage. It boasts the new NVMe 2.0 interface, 2 TB capacity, and a blazing fast 10,000 MB/s sequential read and write speeds. In this review, we see just how much of an improvement this PCIe Gen5 drive is when compared to its Gen4 predecessors. Finally, we will answer the long-standing question: Is it worth the extra cost to upgrade?

Specifications and Features

Below are the key features and specifications provided by Corsair.

• PCIe Gen5 x4 with NVMe 2. – PCIe Gen5 x 4 combines with a massively high-bandwidth NVME 2.0 interface to unleash higher-speed data transfers and greater M.2 SSD performance than ever before.
• Your PC Made Faster – Load games, boot Windows, and manage large files with unprecedented speed, reaching up to 10,000MB/s seq read and write speeds. *
• High-Density 3D TLC NAND – Provides an ideal mix of performance and endurance to keep your drive performing at its best for years.
• Microsoft DirectStorage** –  Enables the MP700 to communicate directly with your graphics card when playing compatible games for unbelievably fast load times.
• Outstanding Endurance – Guarantees up to 1,400 TB Written. The MP700’s longevity ensures it reliably stores your data through many years of use.
• Compact M.2 2280 Form-Factor – Fits directly into most motherboards.
• Backward Compatible*** – Support for PCIe Gen4 and Gen3 systems.
• Corsair SSD Toolbox Software – Enables advanced drive controls from your desktop, including secure erase and firmware updates.
• Comprehensive Five-Year Warranty – Long-term reliability and industry-leading customer support for peace of mind.

Notes:

* Performance and endurance vary by capacity

** DirectStorage requires a DirectX12 GOU with Shader Model 6.0 support

*** Reduced performance on PCIe Gen4 and Gen3

Packaging

Corsair always seems to design attractive yet concise packaging. In this case, the MP700 uses a black-and-yellow theme that identifies the contents. It lists the major features and specifications without looking crowded. A high-quality image of the SSD is printed on the front with additional information on the sides. The back of the packaging is reserved for a multilingual version of the basic contents. Also at the back are the UPC and EAN codes, along with a multitude of international certifications.

Once opened, we find the SSD securely nestled in a dense foam pad. There are additional slots to accommodate different sizes of drives or even heatsinks. Finally, there is also a small pamphlet identifying safety and compliance information.

The Corsair MP700

The Corsair MP700 looks like most other M.2 drives we have reviewed over the years. It uses the 2280 form factor, meaning it has a width of 22 mm and a length of 80 mm. At the top is a black sticker displaying MP700 and PCIe Gen5 x4 NVMe M.2 SSD. Located on the back is another sticker. This one shows the serial number, capacity, and certifications.

What’s Under The Hood

Removing the top sticker gives us our first glance at the soul of the MP700. The controller is a Phison PS5026-E26 and is their first controller for Gen5 SSDs. Phison has been a leader in manufacturing controllers for many years, and we expect the E26 to be another great performer. Adjacent to the controller is an SK Hynix DRAM module, a significant producer of memory products. Finally, a pair of 500 GB Micron 3D NAND chips.

The sticker on the bottom of the drive is not supposed to be removed, and doing so will void your warranty. We voided the warranty on this sample to show the second pair of 3D NAND, so you won’t have to.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Testing Method and Test System

Benchmark Results

CrystalDiskMark

CrystalDiskMark is the benchmark that Corsair uses to verify its SSD’s advertised speed. We had no issue reaching the incredible 10,000-plus read and write speeds during the sequential 1M-Q8T1 tests. As expected, this is hands down the fastest drive we have tested to date. There is a caveat that we need to discuss. We’ll come back to this later in the review. Looking at the sequential 1M-Q1T1 tests, we see awe-inspiring results again, with the MP700 nearly doubling the next closest drive in speed.

Moving on to the random tests, we get a bit of an anomaly with the 4K-Q32T16 benchmark. We have some simply horrible results here. We thought we must have done something wrong, but after three runs with similar results, we believe something isn’t optimized here. We’re not sure where the problem lay with these sub-par results. It could be our test system or even in the firmware. We’ll update the article as needed and it’s worth it to keep an eye out for the latest firmware. Finally, the 4K-Q1T1 tests bring us back to fantastic-looking results. The random tests are not nearly as impressive as the sequential tests, and I wonder if this will be a recurring result for Gen 5 SSDs, only time will tell.

EDITOR’S NOTE: After further investigation, we determined the updated CDM benchmark changed the structure of the 4K random benchmark, which made the MP700 appear to run slow. After re-running the test with the correct benchmark, the drive is a lot faster than the others in high queue depth situations. However, low queue depth transfers are still in the ballpark of the last-gen PCie 4.0 drives. The charts above have been updated to reflect the updated datasets.

AS SSD

Next on the list is AS SSD. Similar to CrystalDiskMark, this tests the drive’s abilities in sequential and 4K read and write tests. The results are very similar, with excellent results in the sequential testing. The 4K and 4K-64Thread results are good but not overly impressive. However, we don’t see the strange anomaly as we did in the previous benchmark.

ATTO

The ATTO benchmark utilizes a wide spectrum of file sizes to gauge speeds based on the file’s relative size. This testing phase gives us a better visual to assess what is happening based on the file size. As you can see, the MP700 is outstanding with all file sizes. The only slight blip in comparative performance is the 64K read test, which lags a little, but overall, these are great results.

Anvil Storage Utility

Anvil’s Storage Utility is another benchmark that measures read and write speeds, similar to CrystalDiskMark and AS SSD. The main difference with ASU is that it produces a performance score for comparison rather than an actual speed. This performance score is more of an all-encompassing overview of the drive’s capabilities. The MP700 holds the top position in both reads and writes, but the gap isn’t as large as in the other tests.

Thermal Testing

Up to this point, we have run synthetic benchmarks to test the drive’s potential. Now let’s look at the real-world applications, starting with thermal testing. Please note that previous tests used an AMPROBE TMD-52 digital thermometer with a K-Type thermal probe to provide the most accurate readings without using heatsinks on the drive. This is where the caveat that we mentioned comes into play. The latest Gen 5 drives run so hot that it is impossible to complete even the first benchmark without severe throttling, halting the drive in its tracks. To complete this review, it was necessary to equip the drive with the motherboard’s included heatsink. The device on the MSI X670E Ace weighs 85 grams for your comparison. Unless you use the same motherboard as the one in this test, you will get different results.

As you can see, even with the reasonably large motherboard heatsink, the MP700 reached 77° Celsius at full load and 49° Celsius while idling. These drives run very hot, and you absolutely must account for this when building a rig.

DiskBench

Last but certainly not least, we have our DiskBench benchmark. This one provides an excellent, real-world test determining actual file transfer time. We transfer a 120 GB random data file from the primary (OS) drive onto the test drive while DiskBench records the exact transfer time. If you do a lot of large file transfers, this is another one of the tests to pay attention to.

With the test completed in just over 25 seconds, we now have a drive twice as fast as our fastest Gen 4 drive. These Gen 5 SSDs are the new bee’s knees for large file transfers.

Conclusion

The Corsair MP700, put simply, is a high-speed drive. It performed exceptionally well in synthetic benchmarks as well as real-world applications. As expected, it is much quicker than the fourth-generation SSDs we compared it to. The ultra-high bandwidth of NVMe 2.0 and Phison’s E26 controller is responsible for the bulk of that speed. Corsair was wise to pair it with exceptional quality DRAM and 3D NAND modules. Add in Microsoft DirectStorage support, 1400 terabytes of guaranteed endurance, and five years of warranty, and you have an outstanding SSD that will stand up to the test of time. The one aspect about the MP700 we don’t like is the lack of an included heatsink. Out of the box, it was unusable as it would severely throttle under heavy load. Once we installed our motherboard’s M.2 heatsink, the temperatures were much better, though still above the maximum recommended temperature.

Moreover, nowhere on the packaging does it state that an SSD cooler is required. It does mention on the Corsair website that one is required, but how many unsuspecting consumers will find out the hard way? With that said, if you are considering this drive, ensure you have some means of cooling it, be it an included motherboard heatsink or an aftermarket cooler.

Finally, let’s discuss the price. Anytime there is a sizeable generational leap like this one, we expect the price to be higher than the previous generation. At $169.99 for the 1 TB and $289.99 for the 2 TB, the MP700 is priced like its closest competitor, Gigabyte’s Aorus 1000 M.2, and is considerably cheaper than MSI’s Spatium M570. In the end, if you believe you can benefit from the ludicrous speed of a fifth-generation SSD with large file transfers and will be able to keep its thermals in check, then we have no problem recommending the Corsair MP700 for your next build.

-John Nester (Blaylock)

Related Articles:

• ADATA Legend 960 Gen4 M.2 NVMe 1TB SSD Review

• MSI SPATIUM M480 and M470 M.2 NVMe Gen 4×4 SSD Review

• ADATA XPG Gammix S70 Blade M.2 PCIe Gen4x4 NVMe 1 TB SSD Review