Firmtek 1S2 v. Sonnet Tempo SATA

[adcx64]

So the Firmtek card in my G4 crapped out and I was not paying the $70 for another Firmtek card. I bought a Sonnet TSATA card and I can confirm it is IDENTICAL to the Firmtek, even funning the exact firmware. Just wanted to get that out to anyone who needs one, as they're considerably cheaper than the Firmtek. The Sonnet also has not been discontinued like the Firmtek and still ships with a warranty.

 

[skinniezinho]

Even if you ask sonnet for a firmware they will send you to the firmtek website..
Although that website only has the "older" firmware "for g4".
Sonnet will give you a new one if you ask.I just installed it, but I don't use sleep.

 

[adcx64]

Even if you ask sonnet for a firmware they will send you to the firmtek website..
Although that website only has the "older" firmware "for g4".
Sonnet will give you a new one if you ask.I just installed it, but I don't use sleep.

Both firmwares are actually identical in performance. The G4 one only supports the sleep mode in the G4's. Other than that there is no performance difference in 5.1.3 or 5.3.1

My card shipped with 5.3.1 so I downgraded it to 5.1.3

 

[macuser453787]

So the Firmtek card in my G4 crapped out and I was not paying the $70 for another Firmtek card. I bought a Sonnet TSATA card and I can confirm it is IDENTICAL to the Firmtek, even funning the exact firmware. Just wanted to get that out to anyone who needs one, as they're considerably cheaper than the Firmtek. The Sonnet also has not been discontinued like the Firmtek and still ships with a warranty.

Yep it's a Firmtek card, branded for Sonnet. I have two of them installed and they work beautifully. Firmware 5.3.1, Leopard 10.5.8. Oddly though, System Profiler says there are no SATA devices connected (all my drives with exception of the optical are SATA) but it does recognize the PCI cards. Does anyone happen to know if switching to 5.1.3 firmware corrects this issue?

I ask because Firmtek has told me that 5.1.3 is supposed to be better for Leopard than 5.3.1.

 

[Cox Orange]

If I would buy the card again, I would take the Firmtek one, because it has metal coverings over the SATA-ports. My Sonnet one is a bit worn out and I have to sometimes proof the cable is fastened enough. The Problem is, when I close the door, the cables get moved an slightly bend forward an backwards. If I wanted to destroy it, I could just bend the cable from the card away and the connector would break. I think with a metal clip arround it the cable will sit more stable and can't be accidentally bend away from the Card.

I have a Macsense SUA100E eXRack SATA-Card as well, it supports less varieties of drives, but the SATA-Pin has a plastic shielding arround it (instead of a metal one, like the Seritek/Firmtek) and the cables stay contacted.