Thanks Jim for that info!
My last build was the first example you used used syncraft. So it would have been an advantage to move up for more capability/speed. I was going for a mid level build. I have an M.2 slot on my mobo but chose not to use it since it it wasn't really an advantage in my case. I might try an HEDT in my next build. TBH I almost never adopt recent tech until I feel it is fairly safe. In this case it would have probably been ok to use the M.2 and I still might later on.
my cpu was only 26 lanes I think, so I would have needed to upgrade to a more expensive cpu.
For anyone seriously considering an M.2 moving to 40 lanes/HEDT is probably something they want to do to take full advantage of the hardware.
The motherboard info I read basically said that it all would work, but might be slower which in the end probably isn't a factor for me.