Review on 🔌 StarTech.com Dual NVMe or AHCI M.2 SSD PCIe Adapter Card - x8 / x16 Dual M.2 NGFF PCIe (M-Key) Compatible - Supports 2242, 2260, 2280 - JBOD - Mac & PC (PEX8M2E2) by Chakravarthi Ladner

One of these was put on my home lab server running ESXi 6.5. Intel P4500 NVMe SSD with Intel U.2 M.2 cable included. ESXi recognized the SSD immediately and now the IOPS are off the charts. Running virtual machines here will be amazing considering how high the IOPS are. This device does NOT require a PCIe fanout. Just insert a card and you're done. This card is currently in the 3.0 x16 slot because the card will not fit in the x8 slot due to the Intel U.2 M.2 cable getting in the way. I'm removing the asterisk because the M.2 slot is next to the bracket which complicates cable routing when using an Intel U.2 to M.2 cable. I would like to see an additional version of this product: Bracket -> Mounting Pin -> M.2 Slot. Another downside is that the included airflow mounts are solid rather than rectangular. However, you do get full-height and half-height brackets. Reliable purchase, buy another if necessary.