just keep in mind it doesn't support 1TB SSDs (apparently due to power requirements). that was a non-starter for me.
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External 1TB SSD Solution for nMP
- Thread starter carrerascott
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just keep in mind it doesn't support 1TB SSDs (apparently due to power requirements). that was a non-starter for me.
ah, I did not know that.
You could still fit 2 TB of SSD in it with four 512-drives. I wonder if the Samsung 840 EVO 750 GB would be usable? Or one of the intel 800 GBs..
this is true, but in my case i already own multiple 1TB SSDs, so it was a non-starter.
LaCie 1TB USB3/Thunderbolt HDD:
http://www.macmall.com/p/LaCie-External-Hard-Drives/product~dpno~9597442~pdp.icbeahb
Refurb case and you get a free 1TB HDD for $125.
Stick inn your SSD, though might not be compatible with all SSDs.
If you want a wall powered device that should handle all power requirements:
http://www.macmall.com/p/LaCie-External-Hard-Drives/product~dpno~9714541~pdp.iddacag
$180 with a free 3TB HDD inside. Note well, that the d2 is limited to SATA II speeds, not III, and also a refurb.
With 6 Thunderbolt ports on your nMP, the fact that drive cannot be daisy-chained shouldn't be much of an issue.
Good luck with your quest.
http://www.macmall.com/p/LaCie-External-Hard-Drives/product~dpno~9597442~pdp.icbeahb
Refurb case and you get a free 1TB HDD for $125.
Stick inn your SSD, though might not be compatible with all SSDs.
If you want a wall powered device that should handle all power requirements:
http://www.macmall.com/p/LaCie-External-Hard-Drives/product~dpno~9714541~pdp.iddacag
$180 with a free 3TB HDD inside. Note well, that the d2 is limited to SATA II speeds, not III, and also a refurb.
With 6 Thunderbolt ports on your nMP, the fact that drive cannot be daisy-chained shouldn't be much of an issue.
Good luck with your quest.
i have the OWC elite pro dual now sitting next to me (still in the box), and i just got word that an R4 diskless is preparing for shipment (should be here tomorrow or thursday).
i will figure out a way to do an objective measure of the noise of the various options.
i have the sonnet in a temporary location and my ear is about 2' from the fans. i hear fan noise but it is quite muted. (i am running only one fan but that is another story.)
i should figure something out to give some feedback. if i haven't done this in a few days, please remind me.
USB faster than TB?
That's an interesting result. I tried my 840 EVO in the OWC USB 3.0 enclosure, via a cheap USB to SATA adapter, and via internal Sata 6Gbps on my Mac Mini.
I don't have the BlackMagic results to hand, but it was roughly:
1) comfortably over 500MB/s read & write via internal SATA
2) About 460MB/s read and 390MB/s write in the OWC USB enclosure
3) About 380MB/s read & 340 MB/s write with the $10 USB3->SATA adapter.
I originally got the OWC USB 3.0 enclosure because I had read good things about its performance, and there weren't any simple and affordable Thunderbolt enclosures without an included disk.
The cheap adapter is OK for the money, and it would be a reasonable option for a very small backup solution using a naked SSD (much lighter than the metal OWC enclosure which is enormous for a 2.5" disk!)
Your results made me think I have made the right decision with the OWC. It's surprisingly good, and maybe I would actually get *worse* results with a Thunderbolt enclosure.
I guess it all depends on the controller chips.
But throughput isn't the whole story. I'm not sure whether Thunderbolt has better latency figures or taxes the CPU less than USB 3, so real world results may be different, particularly is running an OS from the external drive rather than just using for backup.
That's an interesting result. I tried my 840 EVO in the OWC USB 3.0 enclosure, via a cheap USB to SATA adapter, and via internal Sata 6Gbps on my Mac Mini.
I don't have the BlackMagic results to hand, but it was roughly:
1) comfortably over 500MB/s read & write via internal SATA
2) About 460MB/s read and 390MB/s write in the OWC USB enclosure
3) About 380MB/s read & 340 MB/s write with the $10 USB3->SATA adapter.
I originally got the OWC USB 3.0 enclosure because I had read good things about its performance, and there weren't any simple and affordable Thunderbolt enclosures without an included disk.
The cheap adapter is OK for the money, and it would be a reasonable option for a very small backup solution using a naked SSD (much lighter than the metal OWC enclosure which is enormous for a 2.5" disk!)
Your results made me think I have made the right decision with the OWC. It's surprisingly good, and maybe I would actually get *worse* results with a Thunderbolt enclosure.
I guess it all depends on the controller chips.
But throughput isn't the whole story. I'm not sure whether Thunderbolt has better latency figures or taxes the CPU less than USB 3, so real world results may be different, particularly is running an OS from the external drive rather than just using for backup.
be careful drawing too many conclusions from one benchmark. as you noted, "real-world" performance may vary, but the bigger thing is that the blackmagic test isn't regarded as the best indicator of performance, though it is easy to use.
it surely is possible to have a poorly-designed TB enclosure and a great USB enclosure, or vice versa. if TB isn't at least on-par with USB3 i think it may be suggestive of a bigger issue at hand.
It's not tha fast.
I got a 512 GB M4 almost 2 years ago, for $330 at amazon.com.
So I would say, the prices are going down, but not as fast as we wanted.
I have a Samsung 1TB 840 EVO in that very enclosure, which I got for $19 from B&H. In getting up to 400MB/sec in both directions off USB 3. It's fine and cheap (for the enclosure anyway). Total cost including enclosure and cable was $550.
Hey bro, thanks for sending me the link in my other thread.
I just ordered the drive on amazon and also ordered the 1tb samsung drive you mentioned. Looks like I'm gonna get it before the Mac Pro, so I'll just be testing it out for a bit, but glad I found a fanless 1tb option.
Ps, do I need any tools to open this up?
I posted a comparison of three TB enclosures (speed & noise) here:
https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=18688000
It might be of interest to some.
https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=18688000
It might be of interest to some.
Cheap, flexible but not pretty
I have a Pegasus2 R4 for my main storage drives. For a flexible external TB drive that I can use at will with any bare drive, from regular hard drives to SSDs, I use the Thunderbolt adapter meant for seagate drives. I picked one up for $130 at BestBuy and are now more expensive on Amazon.
The drives have an exposed connector which is actually not a propriety connector but rather standard SATA connector that you can put any SATA drive directly on it. I use an inexpensive short SATA extension cable from Amazon to make it very easy to use even old heavy drives without tension. An SSD can directly stand up on it. I can use it for anything, including booting Windows from a migrated Bootcamp partition with Winclone. I needed the flexibility to access my massive collection of SATA drive archives.
The setup is not the prettiest since it uses bare drives, but if you want to used it for any drive you may have, it is the easiest. Works well for me.
The Disk Speed Test is to a Samsung 840 EVO 1 TB drive Fat32 partition.
Seagate Backup Plus Desktop Thunderbolt Adapter (STAE129)
http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Deskt...1&sr=8-3&keywords=seagate+thunderbolt+adapter
Seagate Backup Plus Portable Thunderbolt Adapter (STAE128)
http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Porta...1&sr=8-2&keywords=seagate+thunderbolt+adapter
I have a Pegasus2 R4 for my main storage drives. For a flexible external TB drive that I can use at will with any bare drive, from regular hard drives to SSDs, I use the Thunderbolt adapter meant for seagate drives. I picked one up for $130 at BestBuy and are now more expensive on Amazon.
The drives have an exposed connector which is actually not a propriety connector but rather standard SATA connector that you can put any SATA drive directly on it. I use an inexpensive short SATA extension cable from Amazon to make it very easy to use even old heavy drives without tension. An SSD can directly stand up on it. I can use it for anything, including booting Windows from a migrated Bootcamp partition with Winclone. I needed the flexibility to access my massive collection of SATA drive archives.
The setup is not the prettiest since it uses bare drives, but if you want to used it for any drive you may have, it is the easiest. Works well for me.
The Disk Speed Test is to a Samsung 840 EVO 1 TB drive Fat32 partition.
Seagate Backup Plus Desktop Thunderbolt Adapter (STAE129)
http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Deskt...1&sr=8-3&keywords=seagate+thunderbolt+adapter
Seagate Backup Plus Portable Thunderbolt Adapter (STAE128)
http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Porta...1&sr=8-2&keywords=seagate+thunderbolt+adapter
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You can find empty disk enclosures for the Seagate Thunderbolt adapters on eBay which will give your setup a "finished" look. They are available for both the desktop and bus-powered portable GoFlex and Thunderbolt adapters. You can install either SSD or standard hard disks in the empty enclosures.
-howard
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Wow, so I just got mine in and hooked up to my TB display and it's fast!
What used to take 50 seconds to transfer over USB 2.0 to external hdd now only takes less than 3 seconds over this TB ssd drive. Excellent recommendation. Can't wait til my 1TB Samsung SSD comes in and it will be flying. I'll probably be bored with it when the nMP finally gets her, but at least I have something to keep my mind off of it.
What used to take 50 seconds to transfer over USB 2.0 to external hdd now only takes less than 3 seconds over this TB ssd drive. Excellent recommendation. Can't wait til my 1TB Samsung SSD comes in and it will be flying. I'll probably be bored with it when the nMP finally gets her, but at least I have something to keep my mind off of it.
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I like this TB sled/adapter
Almost the same as "Rad", I purchased this Thunderbolt sled/adapter
It works with any SSD and you're not left having to sell a smaller SSD that you don't need.
I used this adapter with a Samsung 840 Pro SSD to run Windows 8.1 externally on my nMP.
Almost the same as "Rad", I purchased this Thunderbolt sled/adapter
It works with any SSD and you're not left having to sell a smaller SSD that you don't need.
I used this adapter with a Samsung 840 Pro SSD to run Windows 8.1 externally on my nMP.
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
