My new music streamer has a USB socket to connect an external Solid State Drive. I am thinking of getting one with 2 or 4 TB storage capacity to store my whole CD collection on it. What I don't know is how fast such an SSD needs to be. I was thinking of a Crucial X6 (up to 800 MB/s), or X9 (up to 1050MB/s). Or is any SSD fast enough to stream music smoothly? Thanks
What kind of USB protocol does your streamer use? Is it 2.0 or 3.0 or 3.2? I would confirm what USB protocol the streamer uses and check that against the SSD drive you intend to buy.
I made the mistake of buying a Samsung external SSD that uses the USB 3.2 protocol and my Cambridge CXN V2 uses a 2.0 protocol which meant it couldn't read the SSD. So I ended up getting a 2TB HDD and instead use that as my primary drive for my digital collection. The portable SSD is my back-up drive so if something happens I won't lose all my music.
Isn’t the Samsung QVO an internal drive? I need an external one.
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@stievus fair question. The difference between an external drive and an internal drive is generally that an external drive is sealed inside a case that converts SATA or NVME to USB, whereas with an “internal” drive you select one of many empty 2.5” SATA or M.2 drive cases (or open connectors) that contains the chipset to convert the same. Only difference being an external drive is generally not separable from the case it’s built into and you can’t always be sure which version of a manufacturer’s drive is inside said case.
QVO is Samsung’s space/cost efficient version that can work as an internal or external drive. I mentioned it because it was already discussed in this thread.
I would imagine most every streamer will be using USB 2.0 protocol as that’s standard for audio. Higher version chipsets should be backwards-convertible, but you may need to change the USB cable accordingly as there can apparently be difference in protocol there (depending on the device receiving the data).
USB 3.2 is overkill for audio if used with high speed drives and in such use can produce an unnecessary amount of heat; consequently, I have no experience using USB 3.2 drives for audio purposes - they aren’t designed for such “light lifting.”
USB 3.0 external cases + 2.5” SATA drives have usually worked fine for me (into various USB 2.0-spec’ed audio devices), but that doesn’t mean all converter chipsets will be compatible (I did have an issue with a Unitek open-style SATA-to-USB 3.0 converter into a USB 2.0 device once; it was a powered adapter so that may have been an issue) - YMMV.
Whether external drives or external cases for internal drives, best to use something that is bus-powered by the streamer.
I would not recommend a USB 2.0 external drive as these will all be HDD’s and sacrifice the benefits of an SSD.
If you use a SSD for backup, it is probably a good idea to power it up periodically, given the concern over data integrity if stored at length in unpowered drives of this format.
@benandersSo then I assume that any current SSD will work as they all are 3.0 or higher, while audio devices have 2.0. I counted my CDs, 2tb will suffice (my vinyl collection is larger). Cheapest around here is the Crucial X6. Not sure if I will need a better usb cable, as with everything in audio and in life, opinions go in all directions. Thanks
@stievusI do not recommend that Crucial X6 because it is spec’ed USB 3.2. Any USB type C device like this may require a bit more power (for its greater read/write speeds) than your USB 2.0 audio device can provide. It would surely require a different USB cable because audio devices spec’ed for 2.0 will not have USB type C-in’s (usually type A or B-in’s).
I use bus-powered external cases for SATA III (internal) drives spec’ed for USB 3.0/3.1. No issues on USB 2.0 audio devices. It is the Transcend 25S3 2.5” enclosure - Audiogon will not allow me to post the company link; it’s useful for understanding some of these differences in USB spec’s. With a basic computer I/O understanding this becomes a bit easier, I promise 😉
To sum up:
Most audio devices - USB 2.0
Most external HDD’s - USB 2.0 (a few are 3.0/3.1; still “slow”)
Some external SSD’s - USB 3.0/3.1 (probably fine)
Increasing # of external SSD’s - USB 3.2 / type C (maybe problematic)
Internal SSD’s - SATA III or M.2; require USB-adapter/converter like what’s built-in for external drives’ cases
SATA III 2.5” internal SSD in USB 3.0/3.1 external case tends to work with 2.0 audio device inputs (type A or B)
No guarantee that USB 3.2 / type C devices (drives) will be backwards-compatible with audio USB 2.0 due to differences in power spec’s
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