Any little extra performance we get in games is always welcome, especially if it doesn’t cost anything. One of the interesting technologies that allows you to obtain extra performance is DirectStorage. Well, the last NVIDIA drivers optimize compression technology for PCIe 5.0 SSD remarkably.
DirectStorage is a Microsoft technology introduced on the Xbox Series X that improves load times. Basically, the graphics card communicates directly with the SSD without going through the processor. This reduces loading times and gives you a little extra performance.
We have to say that you cannot activate DirectStorage in any way. Its activation or use depends on the video game developers integrating it.
Little extra performance, which is always appreciated
The latest NVIDIA drivers manage to reduce loading times, something that ends up assuming an extra FPS. We shouldn’t expect too much, since at best it should be a maximum of 5 FPS.
NVIDIA GeForce 532.03 drivers that implement DirectStorage 1.1 are compared with GeForce 535.50 Beta what already integrate DirectStorage 1.2. The comparison made by Compusemble is quite interesting. We have a showdown between the two controllers and the performance difference between the Crucial T700 which is a PCIe 5.0 SSD and the PCIe 4.0 based Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus-G.
Let’s see the more detailed data:
- Driver NVIDIA 532.03
- Crucial T700: 28.09 GB/s bandwidth and 0.24 second load time
- Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus-G: 22.3 GB/s bandwidth and a load time of 0.3 seconds
- Driver NVIDIA 535.5 Beta
- Crucial T700: 33.1 GB/s bandwidth and a load time of 0.20 seconds
- Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus-G: 22.8 GB/s bandwidth and a load time of 0.29 seconds
We can see that there is an improvement in the bandwidth and, consequently, the loading time is reduced. This supposes a little extra performance, which will not be excessive either.
We have to say that the 1 TB Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus-G PCIe 4.0 with heatsink costs 145 euros. This drive offers a read speed of 7,300 MB/s and a write speed of 6,900 MB/s.
Currently, the Crucial T700 PCIe 5.0 It is not available on the market, but we have some data. The 1TB drive with heatsink could around 250 euros, approximately. Said SSD offers a read speed of 11,700 MB/s and a write speed of 9,500 MB/s.
How much do these few extra FPS cost?
The first thing we should know is that, at the moment, finding the Crucial T700 SSD is impossible. This unit has not yet been officially launched on the market, although it should start to be seen on the market shortly.
Comparing both units, we have an extra cost of about 100 euros, approximately. Getting 1-5 FPS for that much money seems hard to justify, even if it’s a positive.
Undoubtedly, the interesting thing about this is that through DirectStorage 1.2 we can get extra performance. One of the big drawbacks is that this technology is only available if it is integrated by the video game developers. The important thing is that NVIDIA supports it and is improving the operation of this exciting technology.
