Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus B47R 1TB SSD Review - PS5 Speed Test Debut

1. Introduction & Drive Details
2. Sony PlayStation 5 - M.2 Storage Expansion
3. Synthetic Benchmarks: CDM, Anvil, ATTO
4. Real-World Testing: Transfers, 3DMark SSD Gaming Test, PCM10 Storage
5. Final Thoughts

TweakTown's Rating: 99%

The Bottom Line

Elite PS5 performance and elite PC performance. Sabrent's Rocket 4 Plus with B47R is exceptional.

Buy at Amazon

Introduction & Drive Details

After having reviewed Sabrent's 500GB Rocket 4 Plus with B47R and experiencing firsthand the massive performance lift brought about by arraying the Rocket 4 Plus with superfast Micron 176L B47R flash, we have been waiting with eager anticipation for the arrival of updated Rocket 4 Plus SSDs in larger capacities. Today, we have Sabrent's Rocket 4 Plus 1TB with B47R flash. Oh yeah, this is going to be good.

As fate would have it, we just so happen to be ready to debut our PS5 read speed chart, and the updated Rocket 4 Plus 1TB review is the perfect time for it, just as the updated 500GB Rocket 4 Plus was the perfect SSD to debut our Alder Lake SSD test system. Nice timing once again, Sabrent. As we've shown many times, Micron B47R flash brings with it record level throughput as verified by the following benchmark run on our AMD 5900X system:

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7,463 MB/s throughput is about the max that can be done over PCIe Gen4 X4. This is what Micron 176L B47R brings to the table, along with 25% better random read performance, which is why we are so excited over Sabrent updating its wildly popular Rocket 4 Plus series with this superior flash. This flash is a big upgrade in performance, but it is also a nice upgrade in endurance. The 1TB model we have on the bench goes from a Total Bytes Written (TBW) rating of 700 terabytes with 96L flash to a whopping 1,275 terabytes with 176L flash. Outstanding.

Drive Details

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Please note these performance specs are based on our results while benching the 1TB Rocket 4 Plus and are not official Sabrent performance numbers.

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The Rocket 4 Plus looks the same as it always has. Even with the new flash, the naming convention remains unchanged. This is one time when we are very happy the original BOM has changed because it's for the better. Excellent. Single-sided design, got to love that because it runs cooler and is easier to cool.

When you buy a Sabrent SSD, it comes with valuable complimentary software, including a copy of Acronis for Sabrent along with Sabrent's award-winning Rocket Control Panel SSD management software. You can get Sabrent's Rocket Control Panel here.

Use Rocket Control Panel to download Acronis and other Sabrent complimentary SSD management software. Register your Sabrent SSD via the Rocket Control Panel to activate a limited 5-year warranty, the limitation being TBW (Total Bytes Written). Without registration, Sabrent warrants its SSDs for 1-year, so be sure and register your Sabrent SSD.

Jon's Test System Specifications

• Motherboard: ASUS ROG Z690 HERO
• CPU: Intel Core i9-12900K
• Cooler: Alphacool Eissturm Hurricane Copper 45 - Buy from Amazon
• RAM: TeamGroup T-Force Delta DDR5 6400MHz 32GB - Buy from Amazon
• Video Card: Zotac 2080Ti AMP Edition - Buy from Amazon
• Case: PrimoChill's Praxis Wetbench - Buy from Amazon
• Power Supply: Thermaltake Toughpower GF1 1000W 80+ Gold - Buy from Amazon
• OS: Microsoft Windows 11 Pro 64-bit - Buy from Amazon
• Console: Sony PlayStation 5 - Buy from Amazon
• Console Heatsink: Sabrent Heatsink for PS5 Console - Buy from Amazon

Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus 1TB NVMe PCIe Gen4 x4 M.2 SSD

	Today	Yesterday	7 days ago	30 days ago
	$79.99	$79.99	$79.99	$79.99	Buy
* Prices last scanned on 9/28/2023 at 11:17 pm CDT - prices may not be accurate, click links above for the latest price. We may earn an affiliate commission.

Sony PlayStation 5 - M.2 Storage Expansion

PS5 Read Performance

With Sony's wildly popular PlayStation 5 console now enabled for M.2 NVMe SSDs to be used as fast storage expansion, we are including results for PS5 compatible SSDs we test as a part of our reviews going forward. We are using the newest PS5 hardware and software versions.

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For SSDs like the Rocket 4 Plus that don't have an adequately sized PS5 compatible heat sink or other SSDs where the heat sink provided doesn't fit and can be removed, we both use and recommend Sabrent's unparalleled PS5 heat sink available here. We will also note that Sabrent sells combos featuring the Rocket 4 Plus and its PS5 heat sink at value pricing.

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The newest PS5 hardware and or firmware has ushered in somewhat slower read speeds than we saw back in September of 2021 when Sony first enabled the PS5's storage expansion slot. This is likely part of a concerted effort to reduce fan noise caused by excessive heat generation.

For our PS5 chart, we only show SSDs that can deliver a minimum of 5,500 MB/s read, which is Sony's original recommendation. We note that with the latest PS5 software update, even SSDs that only do 4,200 MB/s no longer trigger a low-performance warning; nevertheless, we are sticking by Sony's original recommendation of 5,500 MB/s minimum read requirement.

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Certain SSDs have suffered a read speed hit with the latest PS5 software update, but the Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus with B47R flash 1TB isn't one of them. Its PS5 read speed is right in there, with the fastest recorded for any SSD as measured by the PS5 at any time. Outstanding. Notice how Sony doesn't care about write performance. We couldn't agree more because 99% of consumer storage is read frequently, write infrequently.

Synthetic Benchmarks: CDM, Anvil, ATTO

CrystalDiskMark

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Very high marks with CDM, as we would expect to see from an SSD arrayed with Micron 176L B47R Fortis grade flash. Those read speeds, both random at QD1 and sequential at 7,264 MB/s, are about as good as it gets for a flash-based SSD. That is performance that matters, especially the QD1 random read, and exactly where E18 powered SSDs with 96L flash were somewhat lacking. Powerful.

Anvil's Storage Utilities

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More top of the food chain read performance. This is what we want to see, performance that matters.

ATTO

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Our focus, as always, is on read performance. Read performance at 128K transfers is what we are most interested in. As expected, the Rocket 4 Plus goes right to the top of our chart, where only E18 based SSDs can tread. Excellent.

Real-World Testing: Transfers, 3DMark SSD Gaming Test, PCM10 Storage

Transfer Rates

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Impressive. The third best result we've extracted from any 1TB SSD.

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Even better and where it matters more. This time Sabrent's Rocket 4 Plus with B47R delivers the second-best read transfer rate we've recorded for a 1TB flash-based SSD. Wow.

3DMark SSD Gaming Test

UL's newest 3DMark SSD Gaming Test is the most comprehensive SSD gaming test ever devised. We consider it superior to testing against games themselves because, as a trace, it is much more consistent than variations that will occur between runs on the actual game itself. This test is in fact the same as running the actual game, just without the inconsistencies inherent to application testing.

In short, we believe that this is the world's best way to test an SSDs gaming prowess and accurately compare it against competing SSDs. The 3DMark SSD Gaming Test measures and scores the following:

• Loading Battlefield V from launch to the main menu.
• Loading Call of Duty Black Ops 4 from launch to the main menu.
• Loading Overwatch from launch to the main menu.
• Recording a 1080p gameplay video at 60 FPS with OBS (Open Broadcaster Software) while playing Overwatch.
• Installing The Outer Worlds from the Epic Games Launcher.
• Saving game progress in The Outer Worlds.
• Copying the Steam folder for Counter-Strike Global Offensive from an external SSD to the system drive.

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Gaming is a performance metric that matters to the majority of DIY consumers, especially to the enthusiast crowd that TweakTown caters to. As a gaming SSD, Sabrent's updated Rocket 4 Plus is hard to beat, as it is among the best we've ever tested. Whether it be PS5 or PC, this drive is a gamers delight.

PCM10 Storage Tests

PCMark 10 Storage Test is the most advanced and most accurate real-world consumer storage test ever made. There are four different tests you can choose from; we run two of them.

The Full System Drive Benchmark and the Quick System Drive Benchmark. The Full System Drive Benchmark writes 204 GB of data over the duration of the test. The Quick System Drive Benchmark writes 23 GB of data over the duration of the test. These tests directly correlate with mainstream user experience.

PCMark 10 Full System Drive Benchmark

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This particular test writes 204GB data and covers a broad range of common consumer tasks, including booting Windows 10, file transfers, Adobe and Office applications, and startup times for games including Battlefield V, COD Black Ops 4, and Overwatch. Unlike synthetic numbers, this is comprehensive real-world data which is why we use it to rank SSDs in terms of user experience.

We are looking for a minimum 500MB/s storage bandwidth along with 3000 points here. Huge upgrade here over 96L flash. If you look down the chart at, say, the 1TB AORUS 7000s, this is where 1TB E18 based SSDs arrayed with 96L flash land. Performance that matters.

PCMark 10 Quick System Drive Benchmark

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Although not a head-turning score here, it is light years ahead of E18 based SSDs arrayed with 96L flash. Again, an excellent example of the performance gain incurred with 176L flash would be the AORUS 7000s 1TB.

Final Thoughts

As we see it, all is right in the SSD universe now that what is arguably the most popular brand of enthusiast SSDs, is updating its E18 based SSDs with Micron B47R Fortis grade flash. As our test results demonstrate, the updated flash array makes all the difference in the world, and where it matters most, massively improved random read performance. The huge bump in endurance is just the cherry on top.

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We rank SSDs in terms of overall user experience (performance where it matters most) as expressed by PCMark 10 storage and 3DMark gaming storage tests. We consider a user experience score of 11K or more to verify an SSD as a TweakTown Elite performer.

Having already seen the 500GB Rocket 4 Plus with B47R achieve TweakTown Elite status, we knew the even better performing 1TB model would become Sabrent's second SSD ever to achieve this level of performance. Performance that matters.

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As we see it, updating its hugely successful Rocket 4 Plus series with B47R flash has put Sabrent right back at the top of the list for a must-have hyper-class Gen 4 SSD. This drive wowed us with exceptional read performance that translates directly to superior user experience.

If you are after enthusiast-level performance, you can't do much better than Sabrent's Rocket 4 Plus with B47R, and if current pricing holds, you can't do much better in the way of value either. TweakTown Elite and worthy of our highest award.

Pros

• Gaming
• PS5 Read Speed
• Pricing

Cons

• None