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MP 5.1, Startech USB 3.1 card, ORICO USB-C docking station. Drive unmounting

simonchase

simonchase

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Dec 6, 2016
17
0
I have this Startech.com card

System reports Link Speed: 5.0 GT/s on my Mac Pro (Mid 2010) macOS Sierra 10.12.6. I’m perfectly happy with that.

I connect my ORICO USB 3.1 (USB-C only) dock

And I do get good transfer speeds that I’m happy with given the limitations of SATA and HDDs.

But after 5 mins or so of transfer, the drive will disconnect and give the warning about not unmounting etc

Is the card NG? Dock? Are there better cards now. I like the idea of USB-A and C
 
Is this the card ?

ORICO USB 3.1 Type C.jpg


If so did you connect a SATA to PCIe power cable to the card >
 
Not quite - it's the one linked to (now discontinued)
What benefits are there to powering it?
 
I did ask myself that, then google. But I got a load of stuff about unpowered drives. But the dock is powered so...?

But i've just bought this cable.

Looks like the right one to me...

Hope it helps
 
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simonchase said:
I did ask myself that, then google. But I got a load of stuff about unpowered drives. But the dock is powered so...?

But i've just bought this cable.

Looks like the right one to me...

Hope it helps
Click to expand...


and where do you want to plug the molex 4 pin plug in the macpro?
 
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I have this cable inside that was powering an AVID HDX card (which i no longer have)

Have I made an error? Will this not work?

cable.JPG
 
simonchase said:
I did ask myself that, then google. But I got a load of stuff about unpowered drives. But the dock is powered so...?

But i've just bought this cable.

Looks like the right one to me...

Hope it helps
Click to expand...
Wrong cable. Should be SATA ( from one of your hard drive sockets ) to the SATA socket on the card. cMP does not have MOLEX cables.
 
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Would this one work? Other than being too short?
 
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NO. That cable is for a graphics card ( GPU )

1. Shut down your Mac Pro

2. Remove ONE hard drive and have a look at the SATA sockets on both the motherboard & the had drive

3. Remove the USB 3 card have a look at the SATA power socket.

4. You need a SATA cable to connect from the socket where you removed the hard drive
to your USB 3. card.

4. Think hard about it.

I'm not being hard on you, we all had to learn this by ourselves at some stage.
I could come to your home and show you but alas .. I live in Japan. :rolleyes:
 
I get that you're trying to help and it is much appreciated

My hard drive bays are full (including 2 in the "optical bays"). You're implying that I will have to give up a bay for this, is that correct?

MIKX said:
That cable is for a graphics card
Click to expand...

Could it not be repurposed for the USB card?
 
This Inateck 4 port USB 3.0 card does not need SATA power and is only $28.99 + shipping.

https://www.inateck.com/pci-express...t-usb-3-0-pci-e-express-card-for-mac-pro.html

Must be hot in there if they are spinner HDDs.

If your bootrom is 140.0.0.0 then you can also install a Samsung M.2 NVMe blade and use that either as a boot drive or for fast storage. That would allow one onboard SATA socket for your Orico.
 
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you realize startech's compatibility pages lists this only compatible for macOS 10.9 and 10.10? you're on 10.12.6
so makes me want to ask does this issue happen when plugging directly into the startech card? or does it only happen when plugging a dock into the startech card? otherwise I would think an incompatible OS version is lending a hand to your issue. the newer version of the card doesn't even support macOS.
 
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simonchase

if you want quick help with Mac Pro problems you should go to your Macrumors profile page and make a " .sig ' file describing your usual MacOS version + all your installed hardware.

Look at my .sig just belwo this text at the bottom.
 
skizzo said:
you realize startech's compatibility pages lists this only compatible for macOS 10.9 and 10.10? you're on 10.12.6
so makes me want to ask does this issue happen when plugging directly into the startech card? or does it only happen when plugging a dock into the startech card? otherwise I would think an incompatible OS version is lending a hand to your issue. the newer version of the card doesn't even support macOS.
Click to expand...



this is because of the opposite because the USB drivers of 10.11 all these cards have not supported and will work again from 10.12
 
simonchase said:
But the PCIE power outlet cannnot be made to work?
Click to expand...
Not unless you are willing to sacrifice one HDD and buy the correct cable. No.

Please make a " .sig " for your Macrumor posts .. help us to help you. Takes 1 minute to make.
 
Last edited:
If all of your drive bays are occupied, and you want to draw power from an SATA connection, get a "Y" splitter cable and grab the power from an optical drive cable. You don't have to ditch the drive, you can share the power...

From the splitter, you may need yet another SATA power cable to reach all the way to your USB3 card... Or not...

I would be far simpler to grab a known cMP USB3 card that doesn't need additional power.
 
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I think people are making this too complicated. In post #7 OP showed a pic of a cable he already has installed in his chassis (plugged into one of his mini-6-pin pcie jacks) with molex connectors.

The cheapest, easiest way to power your USB card would be attaching a molex->sata adapter, such as this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cable-Matters-3-Pack-Molex-Power/dp/B07JFLJ396

But I agree with the person who suggested plugging your HDD into the card directly (bypassing the dock) to see if it still disconnects. Still worth trying the supplementary power but could help isolate the issue further.

Nevermind, I forgot the card needs 5V, which isn't provided in the pcie connector.
 
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Just out of interest, what kind of USB3 cable are your running from the back of your Mac Pro to the Orico dock?

I ask because I've had all levels of nightmare with what I believe is interference (I suspect from Bluetooth) with unshielded USB3 cables on my Mac Pro. I'm running an Inateck KT4004 and since replacing cabling my problems with both Bluetooth and USB3 reliability have dropped substantially.
 
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