ADATA LEGEND 970 2TB PCIe Gen5 M.2 NVMe SSD Review

ReviewsStorage
By Brent Justice
8
OVERALL SCORE

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Test Setup

Please read our SSD Storage Review Format and Methodology article for an explanation of our test system, how we test, procedures, and goals for SSD reviews. It has been changed and updated for PCIe Gen5 SSD reviews.

System Setup Table

We are using the motherboard’s current default BIOS settings.  We are running the latest motherboard BIOS.  We have Windows 11 Pro configured to run in the “Best Performance” power profile.  Windows has the latest updates.  NVMe drivers are installed if present on the manufacturer’s webpage.

In today’s PCIe Gen5 SSD review, you will find the ADATA LEGEND 970 compared to the last seven fastest PCIe Gen4 SSDs we have reviewed. As this is our first Gen5 SSD review, we do not have comparison data to other Gen5 SSDs at the time of review. As we attain more Gen5 SSDs, we will fill out our graphs for Gen5 SSD reviews with those drives to compare with. In this review, you will be able to see what a Gen5 SSD offers over the previous fastest Gen4 SSDs.

CrystalDiskInfo

Installation of the SSD went smoothly, this SSD does not need a special NVMe driver.  It uses the default Windows NVMe driver.  In CrystalDiskInfo we can see information on the SSD below. The current Firmware version is EQFM22.0 and the drive is running at the NVM Express 2.0 protocol at PCIe 5.0 x4.

CrystalDiskInfo Screenshot

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REVIEW OVERVIEW

Performance
10
Features
9
Cooling
7
Price Value
6

SUMMARY

We reviewed the ADATA LEGEND 970 2TB PCIe Gen5 M.2 NVMe SSD, which introduces 10,000MB/s read/write PCIe Gen5 SSD performance in a slim form factor with a patented heatsink and active cooling solution. This NVMe 2.0 SSD features a DRAM cache, SLC Cache and a Phison E26 controller with 232-layer 3D NAND Flash to offer incredible performance in every metric, beating Gen4 SSDs. The active cooling solution is eloquent, if a bit loud. The price is high, and the value is in the performance and slim form factor for any build.
8
OVERALL SCORE
Brent Justicehttps://www.thefpsreview.com
Former managing editor of GPUs at HardOCP for 18 years, Brent Justice has been reviewing computer components since the late 90s, educated in the art and method of the computer hardware review, he brings experience, knowledge, and hands-on testing with a gamer-oriented and hardware enthusiast perspective. You can follow him on Twitter - @Brent_Justice You can sub to his YouTube channel - Justice Gaming https://www.youtube.com/c/JusticeGamingChannel You can check out his computer builds on KIT - @BrentJustice https://kit.co/BrentJustice

Recent News

We reviewed the ADATA LEGEND 970 2TB PCIe Gen5 M.2 NVMe SSD, which introduces 10,000MB/s read/write PCIe Gen5 SSD performance in a slim form factor with a patented heatsink and active cooling solution. This NVMe 2.0 SSD features a DRAM cache, SLC Cache and a Phison E26 controller with 232-layer 3D NAND Flash to offer incredible performance in every metric, beating Gen4 SSDs. The active cooling solution is eloquent, if a bit loud. The price is high, and the value is in the performance and slim form factor for any build.ADATA LEGEND 970 2TB PCIe Gen5 M.2 NVMe SSD Review
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