I Have Been Told Not To Buy Mac Studio With 512 SSD

[haralds]

I tend to use Apple systems longer than I expect. I have started to buy with future use in mind. When I bought the M1 at the time of their announcement, I went for the Ultra with 64GB/4TB. I have since attached another 2x 4TB of Thunderbolt and 2TB of USB-C storage (in a Satechi dock used for media.)
I try to keep the system drive at > 20% empty. I am already shuffling storage to move files to my NAS.
I have lots of media and VMs, play with music, and also do code development.

 

[loby]

It really depends on your workload. 512 SSD is fine and the speed differences might be some what over-rated (in my opinion and research).

If you do general application work (internet, Office, etc.) than 512 SSD is fine; just have an external drive to store your files.

But if someone is getting a Mac Studio, then probably the user will need more internal storage for projects that can require more intense processing power, so looking at more SSD store is and may be considered a looking into and helps with workflow/completion times.

I work in Video production, so I noticed it is probably better to have at least 1TB internal storage.

If Mac Studio becomes a production box for you, then buy the most SSD internal storage you can afford. I use external SSD drives that are fast and able to handle large projects (example) with FCP for years, but now Apple has fast and/or even faster internal drives that makes rendering projects a dream and worth the extra cost. SSD write vs. wear and tear is over-rated (in my opinion and reading), but in older days was more a concern. The SSD (mostly) will last longer than you will probably own the mac now, even if you use the SSD intensely every day.

I think it always comes down to (now) how much you want (or can) spend at the initial purchase or so than if 512 SSD is enough.

 

[avro707]

am constantly seeing YouTube videos saying that buying a Mac Studio with 512 SSD is a bad move simply because it only has one chip and the data transfer is considerably slower than having a 1TB SSD.

On my old 2010 Mac Pro with NVME storage I would see 12gb/sec speeds, double the amount posted earlier. Its the same in my 2019 7,1.

That is handy if you are dealing with work that needs that kind of speed.

Agree on the comment earlier about getting the most machine you can afford now - because you cannot upgrade later and you have to stick with it.

Unlike a normal Mac laptop or Mac Mini the Studio isn’t an inexpensive disposable device either!

 

[Pressure]

On my old 2010 Mac Pro with NVME storage I would see 12gb/sec speeds, double the amount posted earlier. Its the same in my 2019 7,1.

That is handy if you are dealing with work that needs that kind of speed.

Agree on the comment earlier about getting the most machine you can afford now - because you cannot upgrade later and you have to stick with it.

Unlike a normal Mac laptop or Mac Mini the Studio isn’t an inexpensive disposable device either!

You can upgrade both the Mac Studio and Mac Pro though.

The NAND modules are available after purchase on the Self Service Repair store, Apple Store or even on Amazon.

 

[yukari]

I have 512GB Mac Studio with external 4TB NVMe with Acasis enclosure (speed of ~2800 Mb), which has about the same read/write as internal SSD.

See:

Thunderbolt 3 M.2 NVMe SSD Enclosures

Thunderbolt 3 / 4 / USB 4 NVMe Enclosures The best enclosures for high speed transfers (2.5GB/s+) usually have one of these 2 chipsets: Thunderbolt 3: Intel's JHL7440, e.g. Acasis TBU-401 / 405 Orico TB3-S2 USB 4: Asmedia ADM2464PD Jeyi TB-2464 Maiwo 2464 ( NewEgg / AliExpress) Satechi Pro...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[Shazaam!]

M1Max, internal 2TB: 5,500 MB/sec READ, 6,500 MB/sec WRITE

 

[Seoras]

Apparently the Studio storage is now upgradable according to this YouTuber vlogger.
If this true then the Studio I'm about to purchase can have much less storage, initially, without the worry of future proofing.
I'm curious to hear what y'all think of this?

 

[loby]

Apparently the Studio storage is now upgradable according to this YouTuber vlogger.
If this true then the Studio I'm about to purchase can have much less storage, initially, without the worry of future proofing.
I'm curious to hear what y'all think of this?

This is what Appleinsider wrote about the procedure and I would agree:

"As we have warned previously, AppleInsider strongly advises you to not to go down this road to perform a risky upgrade to a Mac Studio. If you have missed the opportunity to upgrade your storage at the time of purchase, if you lack the skill of DosDude1, you should consider one of the best hard drive enclosures to expand capacity."

DosDude1 just showed that it is "possible", but really not advised unless you are very skilled (like Dosdude1).

 

[Seoras]

This is what Appleinsider wrote about the procedure and I would agree:

"As we have warned previously, AppleInsider strongly advises you to not to go down this road to perform a risky upgrade to a Mac Studio. If you have missed the opportunity to upgrade your storage at the time of purchase, if you lack the skill of DosDude1, you should consider one of the best hard drive enclosures to expand capacity."

DosDude1 just showed that it is "possible", but really not advised unless you are very skilled (like Dosdude1).

I wouldnt dream of attempting it even though I do design and populate my own circuit boards.

You missed this bit in the video description:

Once Gilles has these boards available for sale, I will add appropriate links here.

Now I might have mis-heard but I got the impression they would be sold populated.

Regardless, even if I'm wrong, if it is possible to upgrade then I think it is only a matter of time before someone takes Gilles board or makes their own and sells them populated.
So many with Studios, or wanting to buy Studios, who would love to get an upgrade.
$500 for 8TB instead of $2400? Add $200 for a worth while margin and $700 is still a great deal.

 

[loby]

I wouldnt dream of attempting it even though I do design and populate my own circuit boards.

You missed this bit in the video description:

Now I might have mis-heard but I got the impression they would be sold populated.

Regardless, even if I'm wrong, if it is possible to upgrade then I think it is only a matter of time before someone takes Gilles board or makes their own and sells them populated.
So many with Studios, or wanting to buy Studios, who would love to get an upgrade.
$500 for 8TB instead of $2400? Add $200 for a worth while margin and $700 is still a great deal.

Yes, if the price was reasonable compared to the upgrades from Apple, I am sure someone would make a killing if they are reliable.

I thought you had to bring the Mac Studio into Apple if another SSD is put into the unit so they can configure it to work with Mac Studio. I guess I am incorrect.

 

[Seoras]

Yes, if the price was reasonable compared to the upgrades from Apple, I am sure someone would make a killing if they are reliable.

I thought you had to bring the Mac Studio into Apple if another SSD is put into the unit so they can configure it to work with Mac Studio. I guess I am incorrect.

Not according to that video I linked to.
He shows you how to boot in DFU and then restore the OS (.ipsw file) on the new SSD.

We now have a proof of concept for SSD upgrade inside Studio.
Let's wait and see what commercial offerings appear that build on this.
I expect we wont need to wait too long.

 

[MarkC426]

We now have a proof of concept for SSD upgrade inside Studio.
Let's wait and see what commercial offerings appear that build on this.
I expect we wont need to wait too long.

Although this is some good news.
If you have Apple Care, this would void your warranty I imagine.

 

[Shazaam!]

History repeats itself.
Back in 1986 Apple released the Mac 512K that had 800K double-sided floppies as storage. A company called General Computer cleverly designed Hyperdrive, a 10MB hard drive that you needed to send your Mac to them to have it installed internally, thereby bypassing Apple's restriction on internal hard drives until the Mac SE/30. Made them rich for awhile. 10MB, that's megabytes, cost me $1,000 ($2,800 in today's dollars).

 

[Seoras]

Now I might have mis-heard but I got the impression they would be sold populated.

I knew I'd seen something somewhere in/around that video:

dosdude1 wrote in his video comments:

That's the intention eventually. I'll be buying the modules from Gilles, soldering NANDs on them, and selling them. Gilles himself will likely do the same for European customers.

M2 Studio uses different modules with different NANDs, so a new PCB design will be needed for those. This is planned, though will be quite some time before they are ready.

 

[Jackbequickly]

Likely the only way one would notice a speed difference would be by testing it. The difference would be imperceptible otherwise.

 

[Jackbequickly]

I'd suggest 1tb as "the minimum" for a Mac Studio in any case.

Doesn't make sense to buy a "big" computer like that (in terms of speed and power) without a comparably-sized SSD to go with it.

If a user does not use large files and is only using less than half of their 512gb SSD, why should that user pay for space they will never use. Sound a bit like an ego thing to me.