Upgrading 2013-2015 Macbook Pro SSD to M.2 NVMe

[Lolito]

Hello! I have been reading this thread... I have long experience on re-programming macbook's efi chip, via diagnose port or via an 8 legs chip clip. I do it the clean way, no solder, no mat card...

Now, my question is, is there any link or resource or video where it's explained what exactly has to be edited in the efi chip in order to make the mod so the 2013 and 2014 machines will work properly just like the 2015 machines?

thanks in advance!!!

 

[Walee]

Anyone try an HP ex900? I bought a 256 for a 2017 air that has no SSD.

Should work just fine. It is based on SM2263TX, no dram, TLC. I'm using a very similar Chinese ssd based on same controller and it works fine on 2015 air. Speeds are 1450/1100 R/W.

Now, my question is, is there any link or resource or video where it's explained what exactly has to be edited in the efi chip

So far I've seen only this: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/2034976/page-65#post-26224320
No video tutorial has ever crossed my path.

 

[Alpenjodel]

On Jan 21 2019 I posted a guide in this thread. Simply don‘t write that bootrom directly to the EFI chip if you prefer this way.

 

[halbprinz]

Hello Community,

I just registered my account but I have been reading all answers since months. But it seems like I have a problem with hibernation over night. which seems strange, because I thought macbook pros from early 2015 are fine without any changes on the hibernation settings.

My setup:
MacBook Pro 13 Early 2015
1 TB Adata SX8200 Pro without heat sink

while using the macbook as usual the battery drain is almost not noticeable but over night during sleep I sometimes loose 95% in like 15 hours of no usage at all.

can someone help me? I thought these are problems are not existent for macbook 2015 models

 

[tshelby73]

Was this the first night since installing the drive. I’ve heard spotlight will drain battery the first day indexing or something. Once that is done it might get better.

 

[halbprinz]

Was this the first night since installing the drive. I’ve heard spotlight will drain battery the first day indexing or something. Once that is done it might get better.

no... I recognized this behavior the last 2 nights. maybe the update to 10.14.3 changed something?

I mean I could just change to hibernation mode = 25 but I thought that's not necessary for macbook 2015 models?!

btw: my power settings

System-wide power settings:
Currently in use:
 lidwake              1
 autopoweroff         1
 standbydelayhigh     86400
 autopoweroffdelay    28800
 proximitywake        0
 standby              1
 standbydelaylow      10800
 ttyskeepawake        1
 hibernatemode        3
 powernap             0
 gpuswitch            2
 hibernatefile        /var/vm/sleepimage
 highstandbythreshold 50
 displaysleep         2
 sleep                1
 acwake               0
 halfdim              1
 tcpkeepalive         1
 disksleep            10

 

[Rob JJ]

I have a 15" mid-2014 MBPR running Mojave 10.14.3 and bootrom 149.0.0.0.0.
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M 2048 MB
Intel Iris Pro 1536 MB


If I can get someone to verify if this SSD and adapter are in fact correct for my machine...and as good as any other, I would be MOST grateful. I am not a huge techie and don't understand much of the discussion, but at least should be capable of swapping the drives. If there is any other information I need to include for you to answer, just ask and I'll be happy to provide to the best of my ability.

Here is the drive: https://www.amazon.com/SX8200-Gen3x...49037047&sr=8-1&keywords=adata+sx8200+pro+1tb

And here is the adapter: http://eshop.sintech.cn/ngff-m2-pcie-ssd-card-as-2013-2014-2015-macbook-ssd-p-1139.html

 

[Walee]

I have a 15" mid-2014 MBPR

Based on theoretical knowledge both the SSD and the adapter should work in your macbook if you disable hibernation/deep sleep. Although I'd go with a ST-NGFF2013-C adapter instead, but this is more of a personal preference.
Obviously I encourage you to wait for more replies on your question since I have no experience upgrading MBPs.

 

[Alpenjodel]

@halbprinz: To get a sleep log, use this line in Terminal:
pmset -g log|grep -e " Sleep " -e " Wake "


@RobJJ: this is the one most here use:
http://eshop.sintech.cn/ngff-m2-pcie-ssd-card-as-2013-2014-2015-macbook-ssd-p-1229.html
But yours (-B Revision) should also work.

 

[Audit13]

Should work just fine. It is based on SM2263TX, no dram, TLC. I'm using a very similar Chinese ssd based on same controller and it works fine on 2015 air. Speeds are 1450/1100 R/W.

Thanks. I will be installing the drive when my Sintech adapter arrives.

I checked to website for firmware updates and there are none which is good.

 

[gilles_polysoft]

I have a 15" mid-2014 MBPR running Mojave 10.14.3 and bootrom 149.0.0.0.0.
[...]
If I can get someone to verify if this SSD and adapter are in fact correct for my machine...and as good as any other, I would be MOST grateful. I am not a huge techie and don't understand much of the discussion, but at least should be capable of swapping the drives. If there is any other information I need to include for you to answer, just ask and I'll be happy to provide to the best of my ability.

Here is the drive: https://www.amazon.com/SX8200-Gen3x...49037047&sr=8-1&keywords=adata+sx8200+pro+1tb

And here is the adapter: http://eshop.sintech.cn/ngff-m2-pcie-ssd-card-as-2013-2014-2015-macbook-ssd-p-1139.html

Hi Rob JJ,

The SSD you linked to is perfect.

As for the adapter : don't buy the one you linked to (the small black adapter).
There is three models of Sintech adapters out there :

• small black adapter (the one you linked to) doesn't have the correct wirings.
• small green adapter (rev.B) has the correct wirings and also fits well either single-side or double-sided SSDs.
• long black adapter (rev.C) has the correct wirings, and fits only single-sided SSDs

So in your case, please buy the rev. B adapter :
http://eshop.sintech.cn/ngff-m2-pcie-ssd-card-as-2013-2014-2015-macbook-ssd-p-1143.html

 

[Walee]

small black adapter (the one you linked to) doesn't have the correct wirings.

Hm, how curious. I've asked Sintech about what is the difference between all three adapters and they replied with this:

they are same function,but ST-NGFF2013-C is more stable after assembled with SSD.

 

[tigerintank]

• long black adapter (rev.C) has the correct wirings, and fits only single-sided SSDs

Thats not good news for me sadly. I bought the rev C as I didn't see any health warnings after I asked a few pages back.

As I haven't ordered one yet, does anyone know if there are any good single sided SSDs with 1TB capacity?

Alternatively I could try to mod the rev C to fit a double sided SSD maybe - has anyone done that I wonder?

 

[x34]

[QUOTE="tigerintank, post: 27083337, member: 822796
As I haven't ordered one yet, does anyone know if there are any good single sided SSDs with 1TB?[/QUOTE]

crucial p1

 

[halbprinz]

@halbprinz: To get a sleep log, use this line in Terminal:
pmset -g log|grep -e " Sleep " -e " Wake "

thank you... it seems that the same pattern happens about every two hours when my macbook is in sleep mode. "powerd is slow" starts the pattern

2019-02-09 18:03:23 +0100 Kernel Client Acks      Delays to Sleep notifications: [powerd is slow(5006 ms)] [AppleThunderboltNHIType2 driver is slow(msg: WillChangeState to 2)(363 ms)] [RP03 driver is slow(msg: SetState to 0)(1004 ms)]           
2019-02-09 18:03:24 +0100 Kernel Client Acks      Delays to Wake notifications: [AirPort_BrcmNIC driver is slow(msg: SetState to 2)(315 ms)] [IOUSBMassStorageInterfaceNub driver is slow(msg: SetState to 1)(1103 ms)] [IOUSBMassStorageDriverNub driver is slow(msg: SetState to 1)(1138 ms)]           
2019-02-09 18:03:53 +0100 Sleep                   Entering Sleep state due to 'Maintenance Sleep':TCPKeepAlive=active Using Batt (Charge:98%) 7205 secs
2019-02-09 18:03:58 +0100 Wake Requests           [*proc=mDNSResponder request=Maintenance inDelta=7200] [proc=powerd request=TCPKATurnOff inDelta=35261]           
2019-02-09 18:03:58 +0100 PM Client Acks          Delays to Sleep notifications: [com.apple.apsd is slow(1936 ms)] [mDNSResponder is slow(5013 ms)]

 

[Audit13]

• small black adapter (the one you linked to) doesn't have the correct wirings.

Oh no, I ordered the small black adapter for my 2017 Air

 

[OneCrazyDJ]

Really stupid question. Me like an idiot bought a Mid 2014 Macbook Pro Retina. I know that the difference between mine and the Mid 2015 Macbook Pro is the 4 lanes of PCIe. I bought a Samsung 970 2tb NVME, threw it it my friends 2015 MBP and was getting 2859MB/s Read and 2499MB/s write. The original drive was getting 1977MB/s Read and 1458MB/s write.

Now, if I bought the same drive, wouldn't I have 1/2 the speed of 2859/2499 if the PCIe bus speed is cut in 1/2? I'm getting great read speeds of 1500MB/s, but my write speeds are horrible, getting anywhere from 200-500MB/s.

Will updating the rom give me faster write speeds? So damn jealous about my friends lightning fast read and write speeds i'm ready to sell this 2014 and buy a 2015 and call it a day. Between the sleep/hibernation issues and this write issue, i'm ready to smash this thing against a wall because I made a horrible buy not knowing about this PCIe speeds.

I'm looking to hold onto this computer if I can get identical write speeds as read speeds, or maybe something close to it.

Now the big question is, can I do anything with this computer to get 1500MB/s write speeds? Any help would be great.

 

[mbosse]

Hi Rob JJ,

The SSD you linked to is perfect.

As for the adapter : don't buy the one you linked to (the small black adapter).
There is three models of Sintech adapters out there :

• small black adapter (the one you linked to) doesn't have the correct wirings.
• small green adapter (rev.B) has the correct wirings and also fits well either single-side or double-sided SSDs.
• long black adapter (rev.C) has the correct wirings, and fits only single-sided SSDs

So in your case, please buy the rev. B adapter :
http://eshop.sintech.cn/ngff-m2-pcie-ssd-card-as-2013-2014-2015-macbook-ssd-p-1143.html

I also have the small black adapter and use it with an Intel 760p (Firmware 002C) in an Early 2015 MBP - it seems like I also have sleep problems. So it might be worth trying the Rev. B adapter to solve this?

Thanks,
Magnus

 

[murrki]

Oh no, I ordered the small black adapter for my 2017 Air

Hi Audit13.

I use small black with MBA 2017 and work great after set hibernation mode to 25. No stress =). Bigger (version C) is bigger and You will be have a problem with backpanel of Your mac. And result with both adapters are the same. And YES they have a different connection. That I confirm before in thread.

 

[whg]

Oh no, I ordered the small black adapter for my 2017 Air

I have this adapter:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FYY3H5F/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
and it works perfectly in my Macbook Air 2017.
Together with an Intel i660p SSD with 2TB capacity I get read and write transfer rates of about 1400 MB/s measured with the Blackmagic tool.

 

[worldofjon]

I've been looking at adapters and some say they dont support NVMe and only AHCI but they look identical to the NVMe ones. Is it a case of just not testing them fully or is there more to them, as they just look like rewired connectors.

E.g.

NVMe https://www.amazon.co.uk/JSER-16pin-Macbook-M-Key-Convert/dp/B073F9LDD5

AHCI https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/M-Key-M-...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

I've already ordered the AHCI one and have a NVMe drive on the way so just wondering if i need to order a new adapter

 

[Audit13]

Hi Audit13.

I use small black with MBA 2017 and work great after set hibernation mode to 25. No stress =). Bigger (version C) is bigger and You will be have a problem with backpanel of Your mac. And result with both adapters are the same. And YES they have a different connection. That I confirm before in thread.

Thank you. I hope to get my adapter in another week. I purchased a 250 GB HP ex900 for $74 CAD.

The Air 2017 was purchased for parts because the seller spilled a big glass of water on the MacBook and had Apple remove the SSD because the seller's data was still on it. I took it home, took the Air apart, clean everything with pure isopropyl alcohol, tried to boot it a few times, and it finally booted. I inserted a SSD from another Air and everything works! I'm very happy but still need some parts to fix a friend's machine lol.
[doublepost=1549895541][/doublepost]

I have this adapter:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FYY3H5F/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
and it works perfectly in my Macbook Air 2017.
Together with an Intel i660p SSD with 2TB capacity I get read and write transfer rates of about 1400 MB/s measured with the Blackmagic tool.

Thank you. I feel better about ordering the small, black adapter. Your speeds look great.

How is the battery life? Are you using hibernation mode 25?
[doublepost=1549895608][/doublepost]

I've been looking at adapters and some say they dont support NVMe and only AHCI but they look identical to the NVMe ones. Is it a case of just not testing them fully or is there more to them, as they just look like rewired connectors.

E.g.

NVMe https://www.amazon.co.uk/JSER-16pin-Macbook-M-Key-Convert/dp/B073F9LDD5

AHCI https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/M-Key-M-2-PCI-e-To-12-16Pin-AHCI-SSD-Adapter-Card-For-Mac-Air-Pro-2013-2014-2015/273568653794?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

I've already ordered the AHCI one and have a NVMe drive on the way so just wondering if i need to order a new adapter

An adapter should work with AHCI and NVME.

 

[Kartii]

i will bought and 512gb ssd.
My question is, should i sell my old apple ssd? Will i need it at future for update or anythings?

 

[darkevil]

i will bought and 512gb ssd.
My question is, should i sell my old apple ssd? Will i need it at future for update or anythings?

Don’t sell it cause you’ll need it for when you do OS updates to load in new EFI firmware etc. The nvme drives don’t seem to be able to facilitate that function.

 

[darkevil]

I have this adapter:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FYY3H5F/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
and it works perfectly in my Macbook Air 2017.
Together with an Intel i660p SSD with 2TB capacity I get read and write transfer rates of about 1400 MB/s measured with the Blackmagic tool.

Is there any chance you can post a detail upside and downside picture of the latest short adapter? Since sintech has responded to everyone asking on amazon that they are both the same function. Just the long one being more stable meaning the board is physically stable to keep single sided SSDs from flexing or moving. They didn’t mean it was more stable for computer function. My guess is they just took the long adapter and shortened it. I’m planning to order the short one as well to compare. I currently only have 2 long ones on the way express from amazon.