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

[Audit13]

Hello guys! What an amazing thread! Thanks to all of you I discovered tons of helpful informations but still don't understand if there is a perfect setup for my MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Late 2013).
I ordered yesterday a Sintec adaptor and when I will receive it I would like to buy a Samsung 970 EVO Plus PCIe NVMe M.2 but will it worth it?

I would not get a 970 Evo Plus. Your MacBook's PCIe bus will limit the read and write speeds of the drive, battery will drain faster, and probably generate more heat.

There is no perfect set up but you can get very close with a modded bootrom and a low-power SSD.

 

[esssymanex]

Hello,

Newbie here, I have setup Sintech Adapter and Adata SX8200 Pro 512GB NVMe SSD but I got kernel panic nvme.

I was used adapter this one :

M.2 nVME SSD Card for Upgrade 2013 2014 2015 MacBook SSD

eshop.sintech.cn

I also have brought 2 different adapter but give same kernel panic.

Anybody have solution for this issue. This appear like SSD stop working then hang, afterward kernel panic appear.

 

[Ivan Young]

macbook pro 15，2015mid.970 evo 1T，mac os 10.15.6，？Pcie x4 8Gt / s！The hard disk reads slower than writes？

 

[Audit13]

Hello,

Newbie here, I have setup Sintech Adapter and Adata SX8200 Pro 512GB NVMe SSD but I got kernel panic nvme.

I was used adapter this one :

M.2 nVME SSD Card for Upgrade 2013 2014 2015 MacBook SSD

eshop.sintech.cn

I also have brought 2 different adapter but give same kernel panic.

Anybody have solution for this issue. This appear like SSD stop working then hang, afterward kernel panic appear.

Do the panics occur under different circumstances or only 1?

Did you perform a clean install?

Do you have any of the panic logs?

 

[pdxplm]

Hi

Looking at updating a late 2013 15" MBP, 11,3. I'm looking at the 970 EVO Plus 1T. Does this need an adapter or can I just update my MBP? Also, any issues with this drive?

Thanks in Advance!

 

[Audit13]

Hi

Looking at updating a late 2013 15" MBP, 11,3. I'm looking at the 970 EVO Plus 1T. Does this need an adapter or can I just update my MBP? Also, any issues with this drive?

Thanks in Advance!

I would not get a 970 Evo Plus. Your MacBook's PCIe bus will limit the read and write speeds of the drive, battery will drain faster, and probably generate more heat.

You will need an adapter.

 

[Birkan]

Hi

Looking at updating a late 2013 15" MBP, 11,3. I'm looking at the 970 EVO Plus 1T. Does this need an adapter or can I just update my MBP? Also, any issues with this drive?

Thanks in Advance!

First of all, you'll need an adapter for any standard M.2 NVMe adapter. Your SSD speeds will be limited to PCIe 2.0 x4 no matter which SSD you choose so any decent PCIe 3.0 x2 or x4 based SSD should be good in terms of speed. I also wouldn't suggest 970 EVO Plus due to high power consumption. You should probably check out the "Power Efficiency chart" on the first post. Phison E12 controller based SSDs such as Sabrent Rocket seem to be sweet spot for performance per watt.

 

[pdxplm]

First of all, you'll need an adapter for any standard M.2 NVMe adapter. Your SSD speeds will be limited to PCIe 2.0 x4 no matter which SSD you choose so any decent PCIe 3.0 x2 or x4 based SSD should be good in terms of speed. I also wouldn't suggest 970 EVO Plus due to high power consumption. You should probably check out the "Power Efficiency chart" on the first post. Phison E12 controller based SSDs such as Sabrent Rocket seem to be sweet spot for performance per watt.

Thanks! I've gone with the Sabrent Rocket and the adapter..hoping for at least an improvement of 600/600 R/W speeds that I'm getting currently. Love the 15" and am not ready to give up this beast yet! Adapter and SSD came out to $170. Big Sur will probably be the last supported OS for this machine, but hoping for another 2+ years out of it!

 

[esssymanex]

Do the panics occur under different circumstances or only 1?

Did you perform a clean install?

Do you have any of the panic logs?

Yes, happen very frequent, and performing clean install, about 13 to 15 minutes usage then hang, blank screen and kernel panic appear.

I already different MacOS Mojave, MacOS Catalina 10.15.4 also same results.

 

[Audit13]

Yes, happen very frequent, and performing clean install, about 13 to 15 minutes usage then hang, blank screen and kernel panic appear.

I already different MacOS Mojave, MacOS Catalina 10.15.4 also same results.

Which MacBook do you have? Have you tried re-installing the adapter? The drive is reported as x4 in system report?

Based on the logs, the panic is being caused by the NVMe driver.

MacBook is running the latest bootrom?

 

[esssymanex]

Which MacBook do you have? Have you tried re-installing the adapter? The drive is reported as x4 in system report?

Based on the logs, the panic is being caused by the NVMe driver.

MacBook is running the latest bootrom?

13-inch Macbook Pro Retina Late 2013. Yes, i have tried countless time re-installing, re-seating the adapter. I have 3 different type sintech, chanyang and not sure brand from aliexpress, all give same kernel panic. The system can view in attachment.

This macbook just newly updated to bootrom 162, before this 160. But still same results.

 

[man1sshhh]

13-inch Macbook Pro Retina Late 2013. Yes, i have tried countless time re-installing, re-seating the adapter. I have 3 different type sintech, chanyang and not sure brand from aliexpress, all give same kernel panic. The system can view in attachment.

Hello. Try and apply a double layer of Kapton tape on the other side of the Sintech adapter. I have the same 512GB Adata SX8200 Pro running on MacBook Air 2013 and have received the same kernel panic in the past. Haven't received any kernel panic since the application. The SX8200 Pro has a capacitor that touches the adaptor which results in kernel panic. I think this has been discussed before here on this thread. Also, keep in mind the capacitor sometimes digs in the tape, hence the recommendation for double layer. Hope this helps.

 

[alros]

Hi noob here, I have a MBP mid 2014 (11,2) I first installed an m.2 adapter with a WD black and the boot time was a bit long. It took almost 20 seconds to show the apple logo. I changed the bootloader to reFind and reduced the time significantly. I changed the Drive again to an Aura Pro X2 and the same issue persist but the boot time is longer. Is there any work around to the boot time? I read something about the ssd controller is ACHI and it doesnt supports NVMe by default, but I dont know if there is a workaround for it.

Also Im just getting 1200 write /1500 read , the link speed is 5GTs and is a X4 pcie port so i think it should be higher.

Thank you.

 

[Jedi82]

I would not get a 970 Evo Plus. Your MacBook's PCIe bus will limit the read and write speeds of the drive, battery will drain faster, and probably generate more heat.

There is no perfect set up but you can get very close with a modded bootrom and a low-power SSD.

thanks so so much. Will try maybe the 512Gb Sabrent Rocket when adaptor will arrive Will also check for this modded botrom, I don’t know nothing about

 

[Ivan Young]

old vs new ssd , reading speed ? why? help?tks!

 

[bmuellerleile]

Hi noob here, I have a MBP mid 2014 (11,2) I first installed an m.2 adapter with a WD black and the boot time was a bit long. It took almost 20 seconds to show the apple logo. I changed the bootloader to reFind and reduced the time significantly. I changed the Drive again to an Aura Pro X2 and the same issue persist but the boot time is longer. Is there any work around to the boot time? I read something about the ssd controller is ACHI and it doesnt supports NVMe by default, but I dont know if there is a workaround for it.

Also Im just getting 1200 write /1500 read , the link speed is 5GTs and is a X4 pcie port so i think it should be higher.

Thank you.

When starting up mac, hold option key. when the drive shows hold control and click on it to start. restart should be much faster now. symbol should change under drive while holding control.

 

[macsound1]

Congrats！The only thing I'm not sure from your above posts is that did you put your MBR into deep sleep (aka hibernation) after drain your battery to 50% or below? I'll call it success if that passed. Do you have means to check if your bootrom has full or partial nvme driver? TIA!

Here's a couple of screenshots. Wasn't able to find anything that said nvme driver so let me know if I should screenshot something else.
2013 15" mbp slept overnight at 30ish% and woke up flalessly 12 hours later at 27%.

 

[herb2k]

Here's a couple of screenshots. Wasn't able to find anything that said nvme driver so let me know if I should screenshot something else.
2013 15" mbp slept overnight at 30ish% and woke up flalessly 12 hours later at 27%.
View attachment 939840View attachment 939841

How did you get your ADATA SSD to be recognized as an "Apple SSD Controller"? Most aftermarket ones are recognized only as "Generic SSD Controller" and don't seem to receive any of the power saving features.

 

[rando_onDaInterweb]

Anyone experienced with overheating, or too hot after upgraded to M2MVME SSD?
My MAX_TEMP was 147 F

 

[macsound1]

How did you get your ADATA SSD to be recognized as an "Apple SSD Controller"? Most aftermarket ones are recognized only as "Generic SSD Controller" and don't seem to receive any of the power saving features.

Not a clue.
Like I said in a prior post, I chose a non-recommended adapter & SSD and am getting better results than those using the recommended stuff.
I'm baffled, but I want to share if somehow this is the magic combo.

 

[man1sshhh]

Used Migration assistant to restore existing CCC backup from 512GB SSD to TB SSD

Congratulations on your installation success! Out of curiosity, is this carbon copy cloner? Are these back ups suppose to be bootable as claimed by the company? Wonder how this works.

 

[esssymanex]

Hello. Try and apply a double layer of Kapton tape on the other side of the Sintech adapter. I have the same 512GB Adata SX8200 Pro running on MacBook Air 2013 and have received the same kernel panic in the past. Haven't received any kernel panic since the application. The SX8200 Pro has a capacitor that touches the adaptor which results in kernel panic. I think this has been discussed before here on this thread. Also, keep in mind the capacitor sometimes digs in the tape, hence the recommendation for double layer. Hope this helps.

Hi, I tried apply a double layer of kapton tape just as u said. This working after completion fresh installation, when i copy back backup files from other hard disk then same problem happen again, it just black blank screen then kernel panic appear. I try again with other 2 adapter, reset smc and nvram but give same results.

 

[Audit13]

Hi, I tried apply a double layer of kapton tape just as u said. This working after completion fresh installation, when i copy back backup files from other hard disk then same problem happen again, it just black blank screen then kernel panic appear. I try again with other 2 adapter, reset smc and nvram but give same results.

Could it be that the SSD is defective? Same procedure works with an original Apple SSD?

 

[Superhai]

How did you get your ADATA SSD to be recognized as an "Apple SSD Controller"? Most aftermarket ones are recognized only as "Generic SSD Controller" and don't seem to receive any of the power saving features.

It would be insanely stupid silly if all Apple checks for is if the drive name starts with the letter A.

 

[vince22]

Not a clue.
Like I said in a prior post, I chose a non-recommended adapter & SSD and am getting better results than those using the recommended stuff.
I'm baffled, but I want to share if somehow this is the magic combo.

I'm getting same controller today macsound1 have, i'll be checking if i'm getting "Apple SSD controller".