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Fastest Mac Pro Storage - SATA 3.2 Express - 16Gbps (2GB/s)

handheldgames

handheldgames

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Apr 4, 2009
1,943
1,171
Pacific NW, USA
** Updated 10/9/2013 **

The new M.2 NGFF/PCIe format is a cornerstone Merit of the 2013 Mac Pro that leaves the current crop of SATA III SSD's as well as the MacPro's SATA II architecture in the dust with performance topping 1GB/S on the Samsung XP941 from a single SSD.

It's time to take those extra PCIe slot's with a RAID 0 M.2 NGFF RAID and give the nMP a run for it's money. To date, I've identified a 4x single M.2 NGFF card, a dual 4X solution(pictured below) and a 8X dual M.2 NGFF bridged PCIe adapter.

M2P4S_2.jpg


As of the 7th of October, initial production runs are in process and we should see product in the channel by November / December from a variety of manufacturers.
 
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I've been on an upgrade rampage lately (ignore my sig), and 2 more upgrades were on my list before stopping. Sonnet Tempo Pro, 2x Samsung 840 Pro, GTX 680. I'm counting the Sonnet/Samsung SSD solution as 1 upgrade.

I'll be putting that on hold now myself. I'm not in a hurry :cool:
 
crjackson2134 said:
I've been on an upgrade rampage lately (ignore my sig), and 2 more upgrades were on my list before stopping. Sonnet Tempo Pro, 2x Samsung 840 Pro, GTX 680. I'm counting the Sonnet/Samsung SSD solution as 1 upgrade.

I'll be putting that on hold now myself. I'm not in a hurry :cool:
Click to expand...

I just picked up a GTX 680 @ amazon for around $300, I've been happy with the 7950, but... I want to run my own series of benchmarks with the iOS simulator as I'm seeing questionable results vs a rMBP on a 650GT.

Sonnet's and Apricorn's next generation products should help us keep the MacPro tower performance somewhat relevant.
 
It's been a long wait.

The prices are hitting a new low. I am going to upgrade as soon as the the new 1TB Samsung 840 EVO is out next week. It's unlikely my 2010 Mac Pro will be able to take advantage of the extra SATA 3.2 speed and I have waited long enough. May as well use it before the my Mac gets too old to upgrade.:)

Trying to decide between a Velocity X2 and a Sonnet Tempo Pro.
 
rjtiedeman said:
The prices are hitting a new low. I am going to upgrade as soon as the the new 1TB Samsung 840 EVO is out next week. It's unlikely my 2010 Mac Pro will be able to take advantage of the extra SATA 3.2 speed and I have waited long enough. May as well use it before the my Mac gets too old to upgrade.:)

Trying to decide between a Velocity X2 and a Sonnet Tempo Pro.
Click to expand...

With today's cards, there is no support for the new standard. Beyond Apple's 2013 MacBook Air, there are no other products shipping just yet. I'm sure the MacBook, iMac, and Mini will so join the announced 2013 Mac Pro specification.

If you need to buy now, go for a Sonnet Tempo SSD pro with 2x 500 gb x 2 in raid 0. With their next-gen product in the wings, they have been liquidating inventory, bringing the street price to $250. The EVO drives are already on preorder & b&h and should be out in the next 2 weeks.
 
handheldgames said:
Here come the initial prototypes. Final boards should be in manufacturing!

:eek::eek::eek: 2.1GB/s read and 1.9GB/s write performance with over 100,000 IOPS

Image

Image

http://thessdreview.com/daily-news/...uxe-pcie-ssd-flash-memory-summit-2013-update/
Click to expand...

The key questions are: will this work in a Mac without drivers, and will it boot? However, regadless, I personally wouldn't buy anything based on the SF2281 controller which is notorious for pre-mature failure. Wait for the next-gen controller.
 
VirtualRain said:
The key questions are: will this work in a Mac without drivers, and will it boot? However, regadless, I personally wouldn't buy anything based on the SF2281 controller which is notorious for pre-mature failure. Wait for the next-gen controller.
Click to expand...

Sandforce? Hell hasn't frozen over for a millennia yet for me to try the brand.. lol ! This is the 1st OEM/ODM example card that's shown up. I'm sure it won't be long before we see cards from Apricorn & Sonnet with a Marvell solution.

I'll happily move my video card to PCI Slot 2, making room for an 8x SSD sled that will keep me in check with the nMP
 
handheldgames said:
Sandforce? Hell hasn't frozen over for a millennia yet for me to try the brand.. lol ! This is the 1st OEM/ODM example card that's shown up. I'm sure it won't be long before we see cards from Apricorn & Sonnet with a Marvell solution.

I'll happily move my video card to PCI Slot 2, making room for an 8x SSD sled that will keep me in check with the nMP
Click to expand...

Or a Samsung controller... Isn't that's what Apple uses on the new MBA blades? It's also appears it will be what is powering the new Mac Pro SSD at 1200MB/s. I only hope they offer two blades in the new MP to get 2400MB/s in RAID0. On a card like this with 4 blades, you could get 4800MB/s :D
 
Fastest Mac Pro Storage - SATA 3.2 Express - 16Gbps (2GB/s)

handheldgames said:
I just picked up a GTX 680 @ amazon for around $300, I've been happy with the 7950, but... I want to run my own series of benchmarks with the iOS simulator as I'm seeing questionable results vs a rMBP on a 650GT.

Sonnet's and Apricorn's next generation products should help us keep the MacPro tower performance somewhat relevant.
Click to expand...

What kind of questionable results? I don't really have a specific need for the 680, I just want one (I think). If I replace the 5870 with the 680, will I see an increase in every day performance (gaming doesn't count, I do very little of that)? I'm guessing no. I do FCPX & Photo Shop and would hope to see something there. I want to future proof a little. I figure that Mac versions will stop being produced once the new MP hits the market, so I'm looking to max this thing out before the parts well goes dry.
 
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the iOS Simulator frame rate on the 7950 seemed sluggish when compared with a 650GT on a rMBP. Definitely glad I made the switch as the 7950 is prone to sleep errors, flashed or not.

Some Photoshop operations will be boosted with cuda drivers installed. Jumping to a fast SSD will offer your biggest bang for the buck.

crjackson2134 said:
What kind of questionable results? I don't really have a specific need for the 680, I just want one (I think). If I replace the 5870 with the 680, will I see an increase in every day performance (gaming doesn't count, I do very little of that)? I'm guessing no. I do FCPX & Photo Shop and would hope to see something there. I want to future proof a little. I figure that Mac versions will stop being produced once the new MP hits the market, so I'm looking to max this thing out before the parts well goes dry.
Click to expand...
 
** First post updated **

Initial products are starting to show up. Looks like it's going to be a great RAID 0 christmas! What's the interest level on Single 4X and Dual 8X cards?

M2P4S_2.jpg
 
As Virtual Rain said I hope these things work out easily for OSX.

I have an OCZ Revodrive PCIe which I could never get going under OSX - such a shame as it works so well under Windows!

Read a few bad things about OWC Accelsior and hackintosh compatibility so I was put off buying one of those too.
 
I Just bought a Sonnet Tempo Pro and 2 OWC 480GB SSDs, i was seaching the forum to see which slot is best to put the board in my Mac Pro when i came across this thread. I know have buyers remorse. I can send the items back and get a refund but when are we likely to see these PCIe cards and SSD blades hit the market?

Anyone got any links to tests or any products for sale? All i found was this.
http://www.hwtools.net/Adapter/M2P4S.html

Thanks
 
I feel your pain! Sandforce in any way or form is not mart of my SSD diet. The controllers on Toshiba and Samsung NGFF SSD's are natively supported in OSX as a boot device. Luckily, These boards are nothing more than a PCI bridge.


DJenkins said:
As Virtual Rain said I hope these things work out easily for OSX.

I have an OCZ Revodrive PCIe which I could never get going under OSX - such a shame as it works so well under Windows!

Read a few bad things about OWC Accelsior and hackintosh compatibility so I was put off buying one of those too.
Click to expand...
 
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DanielCoffey said:
Keep an eye on the Advertising/Solicitation/Self Promotion rules with what is effectively a product advert here.
Click to expand...

HAhaha.. Really? I don't have an ebay store nor do I want one. :p. I'm a software developer / hardware designer, not an after market hardware hack. :p Just a friendly MacRumors power user tired of waiting for Sonnett, Apricorn or whomever to bring a Taiwanese ODM solution to market with their name slapped on it.

There are too many benchmarks over at the thessdreview.com, pimping the new NGFF M.2 SSD's on Windoze. Sad for technology destined for the new mac pro is benched on a wintel system.

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beaker7 said:
Nice advertisement. Will wait for next version. Current storage is faster.
Click to expand...

Oh my... :cool: While the some of the M.2 ssd's are repackaged SATA III SSD's, this isn't always the case. My 840 pro 256, pales in comparison to the XP941..

Toshiba-HG5D-M.2-Vantage-Chart-Highlighted.png
 
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