The SSD isn't visible on my system via a USB adapter.
The SSD isn't visible on my system via a USB adapter.
Hey everyone... I recently got a new PC about two weeks back. I went with the RTX 4060Ti mainly because others kept saying it was terrible, but after beating 3060 and 3070 in Cyberpunk 2077 with RT Overdrive, Path Tracing, and DLSS 3.5, I realized it was worth it. The setup includes an i5 13400F, 32GB DDR4 3200MHz RAM, and a LG UltraGear 144 QHD monitor with HDR. My motherboard is the Gigabyte H610M H, which was sufficient before. However, I forgot to check the number of M.2 and PCIe slots. It has one 16x PCIe slot for my GPU, one unused PCIe slot, and one M.2 slot for my Samsung 980 PRO.
The issue is that I have three unused M.2 drives, all with games installed. Connecting them via USB-C every time I want to play is frustrating. All the SSDs are M.2 NVMe, and I have three SATA slots free. I bought a board meant for connecting those NVMe drives through SATA, but it doesn’t work. I searched online and found out that this socket is actually for NGFF drives, not NVMe. The seller on Amazon mentioned converting NVMe to SATA III, but there was no guarantee it wouldn’t support NVMe. After some digging, I learned the difference between old NGFF and modern NVMe.
Right now, I have three broken M.2 NVMe boards, three unused NVMe SSDs, and only a few months ago one of my drives got corrupted because I had to wipe it while Steam was running. It’s annoying and risky. I’m worried there’s no easy fix for converting NVMe to SATA as I thought, and I don’t want to waste money on a board that might not work.
What do I have now? Three free SATA slots and one PCIe slot. The PCIe slot idea is tempting—more USB ports would help—but I’d still need to connect everything separately. If I buy a PCIe 1x to 16x riser and add a PCIe card with multiple M.2 slots, it could work. I could use one drive at a time without OS, just for games that don’t need super fast SSDs. That way, I’d avoid the risk of data loss from USB-C connections.
Is there a way to set this up properly so all my SSDs are where I want them? Or will I always have to rely on USB-C and risk losing everything again?
Quick update: The drives in said Sata converter had power, all three were at around 60 degrees. They were placed temporarily inside an HDD enclosure without airflow, so the board provided power but the SSDs didn’t send any signal. The code on the m.2 socket is mirrored—my m.2 was oriented with the chips and data on top, which required flipping it upside down to fit. Despite that, the pins matched and they made good contact with the SSD. So I think the board might be faulty or designed only for older M.2 SATA SSDs. But I’m confused because with a past 240GB SATA SSD in a laptop, my NVMe SSD worked perfectly. Now it’s unclear what’s happening.
Firstly- please use a proper spec form, which goes: CPU: GPU: MoBo: RAM Cooler: (Optional) Storage: PSU: Otherwise it's impossible to read. No offense, there's a lot of things that shouldn't be here in the first place. < removed by moderation > Back to the question tho. The only thing you can possibly do is grab external NVME enclosures (something like this https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Type-C-To...108&sr=8-1 ) and fill up those USB ports you planned to add. You'll have a huge bottleneck since 1x PCI-E 4.0 can go up to 4GBs speeds. There's no obvious way to convert NVME to SATA. These are different protocols and standards, most of those carrier cards are just adapters from m.2 slot to SATA slot. Only carrier cards that can 'convert' is NVME to PCI-E. Since you're out of slots, that won't help you very much. UPD: I'm not even talking about a wrong section. How the devil a storage issue is in AUDIO SECTION? Edited October 10, 2023 by LogicalDrm
Thread cleaned up. Trash talk isn’t useful for anyone. I’m not here to adjust the format for readability—reading it three times helped clarify if this was about troubleshooting or storage. If your goal is just to change the post’s layout, skip responding. Posting isn’t required, and your comments won’t affect your score. Moved to Troubleshooting now. Please be careful where you share questions for better support.
Sorry about that, I didn’t notice I shared this in Audio. There was a problem with the speakers going stand before, and I probably didn’t update the category. Anyway, I currently have NVMe connected to a Type C port, but as I mentioned, it can cause issues—about three times in the last ten months, two on one drive, one on another.
I don't really believe USB for constant storage is the best choice because universal solutions rarely perform well in one specific task. The only viable option seems to be switching to SATA SSDs, unless you plan to upgrade your PC soon—like adding more PCIe slots or using a NVME-PCIE carrier card—or if you're treating these drives as regular mass storage without needing fast access times.
I don't understand what you mean by "cool score." Generally, when I visit a forum and share my details about the problem I'm experiencing, I receive a lot of unrelated advice like system updates or chipset questions. But when I post with all relevant information and explain my reasoning for choosing certain parts, it doesn't seem to fit the right topic. I wish I could stick to Reddit as I did before, but now I feel it's not safe there. The toxic behavior from others makes it hard for me to engage anymore. I'm frustrated because my posts about simple fixes—like my speakers turning off due to static or ground issues—got dismissed or labeled as "static electricity" without understanding the real regulations. It's disappointing that what seemed straightforward to me now feels misunderstood. I'm sorry for the confusion and will not return.
I bought all the PC parts two weeks ago, except the SSDs which I’ve had for a while. I don’t think I’ll return them and buy something new. I’m thinking about searching for alternatives and will stick with the NVMe to USB C case for now.
Sharing on public platforms brings varied reactions, both positive and negative. What matters is how you handle those comments. Your initial message is hard to follow—not due to the amount or lack of details, but because it’s written in a loose style. The absence of punctuation only makes it worse. This version is clearer. There will always be some who seek trouble. We can attempt to filter them out, but we can't completely prevent it. You can help by reporting and ignoring those solely aiming to disrupt or annoy, and focus on those offering real assistance. Honestly, I think you won’t find a completely safe space free of harsh comments. In truth, most interactions are from a few bad individuals amid many good ones. Edited October 10, 2023 by LogicalDrm Numerous typos