Intel 750 SSDs on Z97 Extreme4

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   Looking for info on a new (not purchased yet) ASRock Z97 Extreme4 relative to supporting Intel 750 SSD 1.2 TB disks.

Z97 Extreme6 is on Intel 750 tested motherboards but Z97 Extreme4 is not.

On Z97 Extreme4, can I have: 
1) graphics card (16x) in a PCIe 3.0 slot running 8x 
2) Intel 750 SSD 1.2 TB AIC in a PCIe 3.0 slot running 3.0 4x  - with maximum perf (about 2.4 GB/s read seq/1.5 GB/s write seq)
3) Intel 750 SSD 1.2 TB AIC in a PCIe 3.0 slot 4x  - with max perf (about 2.4 GB/s read seq/1.5 GB/s write seq)
4) 32 GB of DDR3

I have an I7 4770K and would plan to use it on this board. Is it correct that the PCI lanes on the 3 PCIe slots above would be independent - i.e. no sharing between lanes  - and that they are connected direct to CPU?

Does pre-installed motherboard firmware support above or do I need to load something?
Is BIOS setup default such that it supports above or do I need to configure something?
What level of Windows 7 would I need to support this SSD and would it have full support?
What would be the recommended level of Windows to fully support above (I've heard 8.1) 
Would a Radeon Saphire HD 7870 card work OK as the graphics card? 

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ric982 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 30 Oct 2015 Status: Offline Points: 4	Post Options Post Reply Quote ric982 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: Intel 750 SSDs on Z97 Extreme4 Posted: 30 Oct 2015 at 3:58pm
	Looking for info on a new (not purchased yet) ASRock Z97 Extreme4 relative to supporting Intel 750 SSD 1.2 TB disks. Z97 Extreme6 is on Intel 750 tested motherboards but Z97 Extreme4 is not. On Z97 Extreme4, can I have: 1) graphics card (16x) in a PCIe 3.0 slot running 8x 2) Intel 750 SSD 1.2 TB AIC in a PCIe 3.0 slot running 3.0 4x - with maximum perf (about 2.4 GB/s read seq/1.5 GB/s write seq) 3) Intel 750 SSD 1.2 TB AIC in a PCIe 3.0 slot 4x - with max perf (about 2.4 GB/s read seq/1.5 GB/s write seq) 4) 32 GB of DDR3 I have an I7 4770K and would plan to use it on this board. Is it correct that the PCI lanes on the 3 PCIe slots above would be independent - i.e. no sharing between lanes - and that they are connected direct to CPU? Does pre-installed motherboard firmware support above or do I need to load something? Is BIOS setup default such that it supports above or do I need to configure something? What level of Windows 7 would I need to support this SSD and would it have full support? What would be the recommended level of Windows to fully support above (I've heard 8.1) Would a Radeon Saphire HD 7870 card work OK as the graphics card?

ric982 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 30 Oct 2015 Status: Offline Points: 4	Post Options Post Reply Quote ric982 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 01 Nov 2015 at 12:51am
	Well I guess I should stop this thread. I was looking at this board because I was under the impression that you needed a mobo with updates to support the intel 750 to use it as a secondary drive (not a boot disk). Spent some time with a local computer shop that sells the Intel 750 and they think it will plug in to just about any 3.0 PCI slot with an X97 or X99 chip set as long as you don't need it for a boot disk. I found the following on Intel's web site: http://www.intel.com/support/ssdc/hpssd/ssd-750/sb/CS-0... To use as a secondary data drive: System with x4 PCIe connector A system based on an Intel® Z97 Chipset or an Intel® X99 Chipset is suggested uEFI BIOS Airflow across the drive to provide cooling, such as a front fan and rear fan An available PCIe 3.0 connector (for HHHL SSD) or a PCIe-capable Mini-SATA HD connector (SFF-8643) for the 2.5 inch SSD Microsoft Windows* 7, 8, or 8.1 operating system NVMe driver installed after OS boot Interestingly, he suggested that if I don't care particularly about gaming, I could move my graphics card from one of the two 3.0 x16 slots to a 2.0 x16 slot and that would give me two 3.0 x16 (running 3.0 x8) slots on my ASUS 87 Plus motherboard to plug Intel 750s and they would both run full bore. According to him (and more or less supported by the Intel page referenced above), you don't need any motherboard firmware to run the Intel 750 AIC unless you want to use it as a boot disk (requirements for this are also on the liked page). May be a while before I get around to trying it.

Xaltar Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Moderator Group Joined: 16 May 2015 Location: Europe Status: Online Points: 25028	Post Options Post Reply Quote Xaltar Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 01 Nov 2015 at 1:08am
	Your info is correct, you should have no issues running those HDDs on any Z97 or X99 board. Even a Z87 should run them fine so long as you are not looking to make them boot drives as you stated.