It would be worthwhile to use HighPoint’s most recent Rocket cards if the greatest solid state drives (SSDs) are unable to satisfy the demand for ultra-fast storage. According to the manufacturer, this enterprise-class PCIe 4.0 add-in card (AIC) is built for dependability and longevity. With a storage density of up to 122 TB and read and write speeds of up to 54 GB/s and 36 GB/s, respectively, the RocketAIC is marketed. A common PCIe 4.0 x16 expansion slot is used by the RocketAIC to connect to the system.
The RocketAIC does not appear to employ M.2 SSDs, in contrast to other PCIe 4.0 AIC options like the Sabrent Apex X21 Destroyer or the ASRock Blazing Quad M.2 Card. Instead, the Solidigm D7-P5520 E1.S, a 114-layer TLC hard drive, is utilized by HighPoint’s AIC. All is well thus far.
This has eight E1.S NVMe ports that may theoretically be used to connect up to eight E.1S drives. A typical 6-pin PCIe power connector is reportedly provided for an external power supply because eight SSDs might not be powered only by the expansion slot. Each E.1S SSD is believed to have its own PCIe 4.0 x4 interface thanks to an undisclosed Broadcom PCIe 4.0 switch.
The AIC has a tool-free design that makes it simple to switch on and off access to the E.1S ports. Heat is believed to be the worst enemy of AIC installations, thus HighPoint has apparently devised a strong cooling system to keep the E.1S SSDs cool. Two small, silent fans are reported to circulate air to cool the SSDs, and the aluminum enclosure is said to contain integrated heatsinks with suitable vents for heat dissipation.
There are two sizes of RocketAIC cards: 30.72 TB and 61.44 TB. However, a dual-drive system (cross-sync) combining two drives can result in a storage capacity of 122.88 TB. Performance in both capacities stays comparable. However, the 61.44 TB model provides up to 27 GB/s and 18 GB/s of read and write rates, respectively. However, performance improves to up to 54 GB/s read and 36 GB/s write in a two-drive setup.
Rocket Cards HighPoint Specifications
| RA7749EM- S30T7-01 | RA7749EM- S61T4-02 | RA7749EN- S61T4-01 | RA7749EN- S122T-02 | |
| Storage | 30.72 TB | 61.44 TB | 61.44 TB | 122.88 TB |
| Read performance (4 x PCIe 4.0 x8) | 14 GB/s | 14 GB/s | 27 GB/s | 27 GB/s |
| Write Performance (4 x PCIe 4.0 x8) | 10 GB/s | 10 GB/s | 19 GB/s | 19 GB/s |
| Read Performance (2 x PCIe 4.0 x16) | 26 GB/s | 27 GB/s | 53 GB/s | 54 GB/s |
| Write Performance (2 x PCIe 4.0 x16) | 19 GB/s | 18 GB/s | 38 GB/s | 36 GB/s |
| MSRP | €4569,84 | €9139,69 | ? | ? |
The product has conventional dimensions of 7.68 x 4.37 x 0.85 inches (195.07 x 111 x 21.59 mm) with a full height, full length, and double width form factor. The 30.72-TB drive uses around 137.28 W of power, whereas the 61.44-TB model uses 161.298 W. The power usage would simply increase for a two-drive setup. Users can select between the three RAID arrays supported by the RocketAIC card—RAID 0, RAID 1, and RAID 10—to have the best performance, the most security, or a hybrid of the two. The fact that only data RAID and no boot RAID are supported could be a deal-breaker for certain people.
Windows, Linux, and macOS are all supported by the RocketAIC, but care must be made to choose the right part number. While the RA7749EW version with the “EW” suffix is made for Windows and Linux systems, the RA7749EM version with the “EM” suffix is made for macOS. Users don’t have to worry about one drive being more expensive than the other depending on which OS they use because the drives are priced the same regardless of OS support.
Regardless of size or configuration, the RocketAIC has a three-year warranty. Given that the RocketAIC is advertised as a high-priced workstation equipment, it is apparent that this warranty is short compared to that of comparable competitors. Solidigm, in contrast, provides a five-year warranty for their D7-P5520 SSD. Depending on the RocketAIC version, different load limits apply. The load limits for the 30.72-TB and 61.44-TB drives are 7 PBW and 14 PBW, respectively, in a single-drive system. The load limits for the 61.44-TB and 122.88-TB variants are 56 PBW and 112 PBW, respectively, in a two-drive arrangement.
The RocketAIC is priced appropriately because it is intended for the professional and workstation sectors. The price of the 30.72 TB drive is 4569.84 EURO, while the price of the 61.44 TB drive is 9139.69 EURO. As they incorporate two different AICs into one package, the price for the dual-drive configurations, which is currently unavailable, is anticipated to be twice as much as for the single drives.
