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What do I do? OWC SSD 6G Extreme Question regarding 17" Macbook Pro!

clutchm3

clutchm3

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Aug 9, 2011
563
92
Hey guys I am very confused. I have read reviews and one of the top of the line SSD's right now is the Mercury EXTREME Pro 6G SSD. Also, because of my other OWC experiences with their SSD's (always good experience) I went ahead an ordered a 120GB version 4 days ago and got it in the mail today. I just got a brand new 17 in MBP 2.2ghz and wanted to upgrade to an SSD right away so pulled the trigger very fast on all of these things.

Little did I know (yes my fault) that the new OWC 6G's are having problems with the 17" Models. (Read here - http://blog.macsales.com/10433-macbook-pro-2011-models-and-sata-3-0-6-0gbs-update-5272011)

My first question...WHY is this happening? They say it is a "hit or miss" but I want to know the reason as to why the 17" sometimes fails.

Second question has anyone else here with a 17" MBP got this drive and it works perfectly?

Third question, what other 6G SSD is good that people are using with their 17" MBP. Or any other recommendation SSD's for the 17 inch?

Fourth question, should I not even bother installing the drive and just return it for a full moneyback guarantee?

I know lots of questions and if it has been answered before PLEASE LINK ME TO THE THREAD! I searched and could not find what I was looking for! Any input is GREATLY appreciated! Thank you! :):confused:
 
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1. It has something to do with the SATA 6G controller on the MacBook Pro 17"

2. I don't have a 17"

3. If the OWC 6G doesn't work then none of them will. If it doesn't just get a SATA 3G SSD.

4. You should try it and see if you're one of the lucky ones.If it doesn't work then I'm sure OWC will let you exchange it for a different SSD.
 
soundguy15 said:
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It has something to do with the SATA 6G controller on the MacBook Pro 17", and nothing to do with OWC. More likely than not it won't work and you'll be forced to use a SATA 3G drive instead.
Click to expand...

Is that how it would be for every 6G SSD then? :confused: Even say the OCZ Vertex series?
 
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I updated my original post :)
 
Some people have gone for it, and it has just worked. Others have had it not work at all. Some have it just performing very slow. You will just have to try it. If it doesn't work, you could try making an aluminium foil shield for the SATA cable. If that doesn't work, you'll have to send it back.

MacRumors members only constitute a small percentage of Mac users. Only a very small percentage of MacRumors members have a new 2011 17" MBP. And only a small percentage of those are trying to put in SATA 3 SSDs. So no-one here has anywhere near enough statistical evidence to judge whether it is likely to work or not.

If you try it, and it doesn't work, (hopefully try with an alfoil shield too) then you should try looking at a Samsung 470, or Intel 320, both of which are SATA 2, but still very fast, and supposedly very reliable.
 
I was digging into the SSD topic. Basically, it seems to be some issue with SATA controller in 17" MBP. Some 17" MBPs will accept SATA3 SSDs, some won't. 13" and 15" MBPs have no issues with SATA3 in the main disk bay.

This is not SSD specific. If you happen to have bad MBP, none of the SATA3 SSDs will work.

Note: I was more interested in finding out about SATA3 in optibay. The issues there are similar: some new 13" MBPs work flawlessly with SATA3 drives at full speed, but none of 15" or 17"
 
Erasmus said:
Some people have gone for it, and it has just worked. Others have had it not work at all. Some have it just performing very slow. You will just have to try it. If it doesn't work, you could try making an aluminium foil shield for the SATA cable. If that doesn't work, you'll have to send it back.

MacRumors members only constitute a small percentage of Mac users. Only a very small percentage of MacRumors members have a new 2011 17" MBP. And only a small percentage of those are trying to put in SATA 3 SSDs. So no-one here has anywhere near enough statistical evidence to judge whether it is likely to work or not.

If you try it, and it doesn't work, (hopefully try with an alfoil shield too) then you should try looking at a Samsung 470, or Intel 320, both of which are SATA 2, but still very fast, and supposedly very reliable.
Click to expand...
Did you try it? Also do you know if it has to do with newer production models? I see your sig and wanted to ask when was your 17" built? Also did you have a Sata 6G for both your HDD and Optical Drive Bay?
 
The problem is caused by the battery cable which is physically close to the SATA cable in the 17" MBP (not the case in the 13" and 15" MBP's). There is some kind of interference going on.

Check this out, thats all you need, a simple solution - it shields the SATA cable from interference.
 
It's not that simple. Search for SSD related article on blog.macsales.com; there is a long blog post somewhere there.

Some 17" MBPs are just jinxed and no matter what won't accept SATA3.

The shielding cable is worth a try though. Some people report that it helps.
 
L0s7man said:
It's not that simple. Search for SSD related article on blog.macsales.com; there is a long blog post somewhere there.

Some 17" MBPs are just jinxed and no matter what won't accept SATA3.

The shielding cable is worth a try though. Some people report that it helps.
Click to expand...

I have read in the article I linked above this. That is why I am so scared. This could honestly be a deal breaker for me. Why pay so much for top of the line if it can't handle an SSD! That is shocking :eek:
 
clutchm3 said:
Did you try it? Also do you know if it has to do with newer production models? I see your sig and wanted to ask when was your 17" built? Also did you have a Sata 6G for both your HDD and Optical Drive Bay?
Click to expand...

I haven't tried it, as I don't have an SSD.

I am contemplating getting one near the end of the year, perhaps a Samsung 470. Although choosing one will likely be much easier than figuring out how to safely get one in Australia without being ripped off.
 
I have a OWC 240g 6G SSD in a 2011 17" 2.3 MBP and I would recommend getting a 15" or waiting in hopes the issues are resolved in the next model.
 
My Vertex 3 MaxIOPS works perfectly in my MBP. Never had any issues so far. I recommend to try it, if it doesn't work you can get you're money back from OWC. There have been reports that the shielding kit (offered by OWC) helps in some cases, others have reported that they solved the problem by changing the SATA cable. No one knows exactly what the problem is with the 17".
My 17" MBP was built in early march, so an early version.
I felt exactly like you do now, read a lot of posts about these issues. I ended up just hoping that I'd be lucky. I'm one of the lucky few with a perfectly working 6G interface.
 
Last edited:
clutchm3 said:
How is it running? You don't like it at all? :confused:
Click to expand...

It hangs waiting on the SSD which shows up as beach balls in OS X.

It doesn't happen all the time, very sporadic, but enough that it's annoying.
The hang can last between 2 sec and 1 minute.

I love the speed of the SSD but if I had to buy right now I'd either get a 15" high rez MBP and a 6G or a 17" with a 3G SSD.

If at all possible I'd wait for a 17" machine where Apple has fixed the issue.

If comments on OWC's blog entry are any indication, most have issues with a 6G SSD in the 17".
 
mjohnson1212 said:
It hangs waiting on the SSD which shows up as beach balls in OS X.

It doesn't happen all the time, very sporadic, but enough that it's annoying.
The hang can last between 2 sec and 1 minute.

I love the speed of the SSD but if I had to buy right now I'd either get a 15" high rez MBP and a 6G or a 17" with a 3G SSD.

If at all possible I'd wait for a 17" machine where Apple has fixed the issue.

If comments on OWC's blog entry are any indication, most have issues with a 6G SSD in the 17".
Click to expand...

Have you enabled TRIM?
 
The SF-2200 Controller features garbage collection, which does the same as TRIM. Enabling TRIM on these drives leads to beachballs and freezing issues, like the problems you're experiencing. That's why I asked.
 
JronMasteR said:
My Vertex 3 MaxIOPS works perfectly in my MBP. Never had any issues so far. I recommend to try it, if it doesn't work you can get you're money back from OWC. There have been reports that the shielding kit (offered by OWC) helps in some cases, others have reported that they solved the problem by changing the SATA cable. No one knows exactly what the problem is with the 17".
My 17" MBP was built in early march, so an early version.
I felt exactly like you do now, read a lot of posts about these issues. I ended up just hoping that I'd be lucky. I'm one of the lucky few with a perfectly working 6G interface.
Click to expand...

Indeed did you try OWC first before the Vertex 3? Or just Vertex 3 off the bat? :confused:
 
I never had an OWC SSD, since they are hard to get where I live. I bought a Vertex 3 120GB at first. Made sure that I could sell it to my friend right away if it wouldn't have worked. After it was working perfectly for about a month, I sold it and bought the Vertex 3 240GB MI.
I advice you to do the same. Buy one an make sure you can get a refund. If it doesn't work you can buy a Samsung 470 SSD, I hear they are very reliable. You will not notice a big speed difference anyway.
If you're optical drive bay is connected to a SATA 3G port, you could also use the 6G SSD in there, running at 3G speeds.
Of course, having a SATA 6G interface and not being able to use it because of a design flaw is frustrating. I don't think that Apple will ever address these issues.
 
Last edited:
How do you know if your SATA 3 is working in your MBP 17". I have a traditional SATA 3 HDD in my 17" and this is what I get from the system report:


Vendor: Intel
Product: 6 Series Chipset
Link Speed: 6 Gigabit
Negotiated Link Speed: 6 Gigabit
Description: AHCI Version 1.30 Supported


Does this mean that my main bay is and will be able to work with all SATA 3.
 
Blue Sun said:
The problem is caused by the battery cable which is physically close to the SATA cable in the 17" MBP (not the case in the 13" and 15" MBP's). There is some kind of interference going on.

Check this out, thats all you need, a simple solution - it shields the SATA cable from interference.
Click to expand...

Yes, I believe OWC reported this to be the problem, and I believe some sites, may have posted alternatives to this issue.
 
duffer6 said:
How do you know if your SATA 3 is working in your MBP 17". I have a traditional SATA 3 HDD in my 17" and this is what I get from the system report:


Vendor: Intel
Product: 6 Series Chipset
Link Speed: 6 Gigabit
Negotiated Link Speed: 6 Gigabit
Description: AHCI Version 1.30 Supported


Does this mean that my main bay is and will be able to work with all SATA 3.
Click to expand...

Hard to tell. I know that mine is working, because I get over 500MB/s reads and writes with my SSD, without any freezes or beachballs. My system is very stable and everything is running as it should.
 
JronMasteR said:
Hard to tell. I know that mine is working, because I get over 500MB/s reads and writes with my SSD, without any freezes or beachballs. My system is very stable and everything is running as it should.
Click to expand...

How can you check the speeds? Just curious what program do you use because if mine runs nicely I want to make sure it is running correctly.
 
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