SamPotts
macrumors 6502
Me or the Mac Pro? Haha. It works fine other than the light. I’ll probably just crack out some black tape and be done with it. They seem clueless to it even though they made the thing.
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Mac Pro (Late 2013) - Amfeltec AngelShark Carrier Board - Storage Upgrade
- Thread starter RyanXM
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Me or the Mac Pro? Haha. It works fine other than the light. I’ll probably just crack out some black tape and be done with it. They seem clueless to it even though they made the thing.
Yeah when its on it seems to work OK. But TBH, it gets on my nerves seeing that red light coming out of the vents. So then I choose to reboot and its gone for some days / weeks.
PITA Amfaltec can not just explain what the color red means. Very annoying!
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Maybe there lays the problem, they didn't design it themselves?
Yeah it seems to work fine, but I'm getting nervous from it, and then shutdown/power-on (not reboot) it.
Anybody has multiple USB devices connected? I had a webcam and now I had it 2 times in a few days, while before it's been gone for 8 weeks! :-/ Disconnected the webcam, lets seee...
SamPotts
macrumors 6502
I've never felt the need to shutdown and restart because of it. The machine has functioned fine with the red light on, it just looks odd. If it bothers you too much, you could always stick tape over it or something given it seems to not really mean anything. Mine tends to come on 10-20 minutes after waking up in the morning and after lunch and I leave it on for weeks at a time and just sleep/wake it.
SamPotts
macrumors 6502
Mine functions as normal (other than having two extra SSDs). The only time I had issues was with the D300 cards that had to be replaced (common issue) but that was prior to installing the card anyway. It’s been rock solid. I’ve upgraded the CPU to a 2667 v2 also and it’s been stable. I only reboot if I have to for an update or something usually.
Hi Sam, thanks. Silly me, i should have phrased it better.
I meant, once the RED LED comes on, does it ever turn off as-well? Or only once you do a shutdown/power-on?
SamPotts
macrumors 6502
Ahh, I see. In that case no, it comes on after 10-20 minutes (seems random) and stays on for me unless I sleep or restart the machine. It's mildly annoying but I've learnt to live with it 🙂
Sorry to revive a dead thread, i have now after careful thought bought this card. I have a OWC Aura Pro X2 2Tb as the main middle 'Apple' drive, flanked by a pair of Sabrent 2Tb drives giving me 6Tb in total.
Using AJA System Test , All three drives perform well
The OWC performs at 1410 Write and 1421 Read
Sabrent 1 performs at 1364 Write and 1414 Read
Sabrent 2 performs at 1367 Write and 1414 Read
No noticeable difference in fan noise, Same annoying Red light on bottom of card taped over
The Sabrent 2Tb drives are good value on Amazon UK @ 189
Added 128Gb OWC ram into the pot and its a little beast now
Not really a Newbie either, just never post lol
Using AJA System Test , All three drives perform well
The OWC performs at 1410 Write and 1421 Read
Sabrent 1 performs at 1364 Write and 1414 Read
Sabrent 2 performs at 1367 Write and 1414 Read
No noticeable difference in fan noise, Same annoying Red light on bottom of card taped over
The Sabrent 2Tb drives are good value on Amazon UK @ 189
Added 128Gb OWC ram into the pot and its a little beast now
Not really a Newbie either, just never post lol
rockyromero
macrumors 6502
This seems powerful.
Glad to know that the main drive can be other than Apple. How did you manage to do that?
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Have the Amfeltec boards gone down in price? On the fence myself. Can't swing for the next-gen Mac Pro.
View the product info for the OWC Aura Pro X2:
https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/ssd/owc/aura-pro-x2
It's an Apple shaped NVMe drive.
I don't know if there's an adapter for normal M.2 NVMe devices (I can find ones for MacBook Air but not sure it's for Mac Pro because it says Late 2013-2015 and there's only one Mac Pro model year 2013 and the compatibility tab for the Aura Pro X2 only lists Mac Pro suggesting it is not the same as the other Mac models).
https://www.amazon.ca/Sintech-Adapter-Upgrade-2013-2016-2013-2015/dp/B07FYY3H5F?th=1
https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/S3DAPT4MP02P/
But the older Aura Pro X (not X2) has compatibility with both Mac Pro (with caveats) and MacBook Air/Pro
https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/S3DAPB4MB02U/
so maybe the adapter can work? Maybe the only difference is the requirement for a heatsink in the Mac Pro version that does not fit in a laptop version.
The caveat says "Special Note for Mac Pro (Late 2013) MacPro6,1: Installing an Aura Pro X SSD in Mac Pro requires a heatsink and additional tools. For a complete installation solution, see Aura Pro X Add-On Kits for Mac Pro Late 2013." Can't find info about the Add-On kit.
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The OWC Aura Pro x2 has the same connector as the original Apple one, so fits just fine, its faster than the original Apple 1Tb drive too.
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Unfortunately not, they are as expensive as hell!!
464 USD inc shipping
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rockyromero
macrumors 6502
I’m on the fence also, deciding to wait on the new MAC Pro or this as an interim solution.
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Sweetfeld28
macrumors 65816
Anyone have one of these for sale, or know where to buy one?.... I asked for a Quote but imagine it will still be a high price.
So I finally caved and bought one of these carrier boards. Not only did the box show up with the seal broken (is it even new?!) but there are NO POWER screws! Does anyone know the size/type of the tiny screws that attach the board to the custom power pegs? I believe they are item #4 in the manual.
Yes, I've reached out to Amfeltec. Wish I had more confidence in them at this point.
Yes, I've reached out to Amfeltec. Wish I had more confidence in them at this point.
SamPotts
macrumors 6502
I'm not sure if it'll make you feel better but I had an issue where the original SSD didn't fit into gap in the center of the heatsink. They sent me a new heatsink to Australia by FedEx the next day and I was up and running in a few days. I'm sure they'll get you sorted out. I've always had good service.
Just a tip, if you don't like an occasional red light shining out the bottom of the Mac, stick some electrical tape over the LEDs.
Also, you'll need to remove the adapter and re-fit the original Apple SSD to be able to apply BootROM updates.
Yeah, one reason I went this route. Annoying but still seemed simpler than running an non-supported SSD solo. Of course, right after purchase I found a guy selling NOS Apple-style SDDs for a reasonable price. Sigh. Don't feel like I'm winning but glad to have everything working again.
MisterAndrew
macrumors 68030
I have a question about this board. SamPotts in post #118 said it needs to be removed and the Apple SSD reinstalled to apply BootROM updates. Why would this be the case? Can you not install the Apple SSD directly onto the carrier board?
tsialex
Contributor
10.15.4 EFI firmware updates didn't required Apple SSDs for any of the Macs that usually require it. Seems Apple removed the requirement.
There are several reports of 135.0.0.0.0 installing with just a M.2 NVMe drive.
MisterAndrew
macrumors 68030
MisterAndrew
macrumors 68030
I got a price quote from Amfeltec for the carrier board. It's $423.17 USD plus $49.07 shipping (to Oregon), plus either a 4% processing fee for credit card or $30 processing fee for bank wire transfer. I'll hold off for now since I don't need to Boot Camp on this Mac actually and 2TB is enough for me. I could go with a 4TB SSD later if I need more space. A great option for those who need the extra space though. Up to 12TB inside a 6,1 is incredible. They said they do have it in stock in case anyone is looking to order one.