Mushkin Vortex SSD: Even faster than the Gamma on paper

US manufacturer Mushkin is expanding the SSD portfolio with its fastest model to date. The Mushkin Vortex is said to achieve over 7,400MB/s read, 6,800MB/s write, and up to 1.5 million IOPS in random write. The M.2 SSD with PCIe 4.0 x4 uses an InnoGrit controller.

The 80mm long black M.2 module with a sticker topped by the Vortex logo looks simple and understated. Mushkin has said goodbye to the Greek alphabet with this model, as the manufacturer’s first PCIe 4.0 SSDs were still called Delta and Gamma (test).

Top performance even above the Mushkin Gamma

Compared to the already very fast Gamma, the Vortex is a step ahead, at least according to key data. The Gamma controller with the Phison E18 is specified at a maximum of 7175 MB/s, with the Vortex it is now 7415 MB/s. This is achieved by switching to the Innogrit IG5236 as controller, which is ahead in sequential read, at least in synthetic benchmarks like CrystalDiskMark. The Patriot Viper VP4300 (test) with the same chip therefore leads ComputerBase’s SSD ranking in this discipline. In sequential writing, up to 6,800 MB/s is on par with models with the Phison E18.

The fact that Mushkin talks about up to 1.5 million IOPS for random write is surprising again, because the Patriot counterpart offers a maximum of 800,000 IOPS according to the manufacturer; Innogrit had previously cited this value as the maximum for the IG5236 as well.

No useful information on storage.

The use of TLC-NAND is almost guaranteed in this performance class, but Mushkin leaves the type of memory or its origin completely open in the datasheet and only talks about “High reliability NAND flash“. This creates flexibility in memory configuration as long as promised performance values ​​are achieved. There is an unspecified DRAM cache.

Mushkin gives the total bytes written (TBW) with 250TB, 500TB and 1000TB for the three models with 512GB, 1TB and 2TB of storage space. The 2TB model offers the highest performance, while the 1TB model writes slightly slower and achieves nearly half the read IOPS. The 512GB version is even slower at 6,750 MB/s and 200,000 IOPS in reading and 2,635 MB/s and 645,000 IOPS in writing.

Prices and Availability

The Mushkin Vortex will launch in the US at comparatively low prices (MSRP before tax) of $125 (1TB) and $78 (512GB). Exclusive distribution through Amazon is to be expected in this country, as was the case with the predecessors. Prices for Germany or the 2TB model are not yet available.