Well, if I wait until the thing launches before figuring this out, I'll end up with a machine that I can't actually use as all my work related files are on those drives!
Where is the requirement that you have to buy a Mac Pro 2013 on the day it launches. If you don't buy a new Mac Pro, nothing happens to the one you currently have.
We know what ports the machine has, so I figured that was enough information to determine what it was I was going to have to buy beforehand.
There are two parts to the equation here. One, is what Apple is going to ship. The second is what the peripheral vendors are going to ship. The Apple half is somewhat "known". The second, is what there is some speculation as to whether there is going to be a significant shift or not.
Intel didn't plan on shipping TB v2 in 2013. Hence, not many peripheral vendors probably have either. I think there is some hope that vendors on their 2nd generation TB devices will drop prices at bit. Having learned how to do TB devices on the first go around this one will be easier to do, lower risk .... hence lower prices.
For example, one thing that is a missing is an affordable 3.5" JBOD device. A 3-4 3.5" sled drive box with a 5.25" bay would probably make more than few folks happy. In 2011-2012 when most new TB folks are transitioning between MBP/iMac to new TB versions probably didn't have a greater demand for such boxes. Demand is probably going to go up when the Mac Pro 2013 releases. [ enough to bring in multiple vendors and race-to-the-bottom prices ? No. But at least one viable product would be a start. ]
Post the CES 2014 show in Vegas should probably put most of the vendors cards onto the table.
I suppose Apple could release a companion HD enclosure, but that seems somewhat unlikely to me.
So it is more than just Apple waiting on info from.
There are a couple of things can do now though that likely aren't going to change much whether the connection is TB or USB 3.0. Smaller x4 drive enclosures may/may-not come with restrictions on types of drives can place (depends upon how the box deals , or doesn't deal, with vibrations) that may be a mismtach for your drives.
The other is whether all four need to be bundled together in a single device or now. If have two different volumes with different growth rates may better off aiming at two new enclosures as opposed to one ( it isn't really a new problem ... were on the path now. However, this is an opportunistic time to address it since have to make some changes anyway. )
