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

[deepblonde]

When the fast cache runs out (some ppl call it eye candy for consumers or cheatsheet for sloppy benchmark), Hynix P31 2TB sustains 1500MB/s write speed until the very last bit. When the fast cache runs out, Intel 660p 2TB sustains a miserable 250MB/s in comparison.

The level of performance and power efficiency that Hynix P31 Gold brings to the competition is unparalleled for the audience of this thread.

I noticed reviews of Hynix P31 on Amazon stating it wouldn’t work on their Mac’s or had kernel panics ?
maybe I’ve missed something?

One interesting review :
”So like most everyone, I got pretty mad when I found out that this NVME's driver chip was not compatible with Macs. Nonetheless, I tried. I got the same kernel error as everyone else. I tried a bunch of different formats, JHFS+, FAT32, APFS, all would pull a kernel panic on boot. I was going to return the drive, but chose to keep it for emergencies. Alas, a windows NVME failed, and I had this. I ran windows on it until I was able to get a more permanent drive in, and then removed the NVME. I had to transfer large files of a shop Mac one day, so I put the SK P31 in a Mokin NVME to USB-C 3.0 enclosure. Formatted it via disk utility in terminal as an APFS drive on Big Sur, and it worked great. One day I noticed that I turned the Mac on and it booted fine, and showed the P31 as a functioning external. Running Disk Utility, I see that somehow there is a small Windows EFI partition that is a sort of remnant of the initial windows install, but the APFS formatting has also created an Apple EFI partition. That got me to thinking, so I formatted it as APFS again. Copied the EFI off my main drive onto the P31's Apple EFI. Then I kept it in the USB-C enclosure, and rebooted with a Big Sur Install USB. The install booted up correctly, let me choose the APFS formatted P31 as an option and promptly installed. After a few restarts to finish out the install, it successfully would boot Big Sur from the P31 via the USB enclosure. Then I said, why not just plug it into the NVME slot and see what happens..... and it works! I have no idea why it wouldn't throw a kernel panic now, if it was something to do with the onboard driver. But doing an APFS format, copying an Apple EFI or Clover EFI into the EFI partition, and rebooting seems to make it work. This is obviously stupid af but if you have one of these drives around, and you want it on your Mac, give this a shot. For reference, I am running mainly on a Z370n-wifi, i5-8600k hackintosh with Big Sur and the latest Clover. I assume an open core EFI holder would function the same. I later tried this same method, with a factory apple EFI folder, and was able to successfully make a P31 drive function in a A1708 MacBook Pro via an NVME adapter. The adapter is meant for 2230/2242 drives, but with a little ingenuity, it'll fit.”

 

[keepsec]

I noticed reviews of Hynix P31 on Amazon stating it wouldn’t work on their Mac’s or had kernel panics ?
maybe I’ve missed something?

One interesting review :
”So like most everyone, I got pretty mad when I found out that this NVME's driver chip was not compatible with Macs. Nonetheless, I tried. I got the same kernel error as everyone else. I tried a bunch of different formats, JHFS+, FAT32, APFS, all would pull a kernel panic on boot. I was going to return the drive, but chose to keep it for emergencies. Alas, a windows NVME failed, and I had this. I ran windows on it until I was able to get a more permanent drive in, and then removed the NVME. I had to transfer large files of a shop Mac one day, so I put the SK P31 in a Mokin NVME to USB-C 3.0 enclosure. Formatted it via disk utility in terminal as an APFS drive on Big Sur, and it worked great. One day I noticed that I turned the Mac on and it booted fine, and showed the P31 as a functioning external. Running Disk Utility, I see that somehow there is a small Windows EFI partition that is a sort of remnant of the initial windows install, but the APFS formatting has also created an Apple EFI partition. That got me to thinking, so I formatted it as APFS again. Copied the EFI off my main drive onto the P31's Apple EFI. Then I kept it in the USB-C enclosure, and rebooted with a Big Sur Install USB. The install booted up correctly, let me choose the APFS formatted P31 as an option and promptly installed. After a few restarts to finish out the install, it successfully would boot Big Sur from the P31 via the USB enclosure. Then I said, why not just plug it into the NVME slot and see what happens..... and it works! I have no idea why it wouldn't throw a kernel panic now, if it was something to do with the onboard driver. But doing an APFS format, copying an Apple EFI or Clover EFI into the EFI partition, and rebooting seems to make it work. This is obviously stupid af but if you have one of these drives around, and you want it on your Mac, give this a shot. For reference, I am running mainly on a Z370n-wifi, i5-8600k hackintosh with Big Sur and the latest Clover. I assume an open core EFI holder would function the same. I later tried this same method, with a factory apple EFI folder, and was able to successfully make a P31 drive function in a A1708 MacBook Pro via an NVME adapter. The adapter is meant for 2230/2242 drives, but with a little ingenuity, it'll fit.”

The first drives with earlier firmware was not compatible. Hynix published an updated firmware. You can download it on their site. Newer drives already come with that firmware, like all the 2TB ones.

 

[User9]

yes for battery efficiency, not so sure about sabrent rocket 1TB high failure rate reports based on amazon users reviews , it does come with up to 5yrs warranty if you register it.

vince22 what was the idle power usage for Hynix Gold with NVMEFix kext on yours?

 

[herb2k]

so NVMeFix not working on Hynix gold when you tested it?

I was talking about ADATA SX8200 Pro. I have not tried Hynix (It was not being made when I started this project to update the SSD in my MacBook Pro)

 

[herb2k]

is there another permanent solution without boot attribute on Monterey without OpenCore?

No. I am using OpenCore on my 2015 13" to load NVMeFix without boot attributes, there is no other way on Big Sur or Monterey.

 

[dbgt]

The A2000 doesn't have a 2TB version, unfortunately, and may very well be being phased out, with the NV1 as <replacement>.

You'll be the fifth one (that I know) so far here who opted for the A2000. Keep us updated when you do, especially if you install any additional kext.

I can only vouch for the Kingston A2000 SSD.

I installed the 1 Tb version a little bit over 1 month ago on my MBP 11,3 using a generic 10 euro long adapter (this one), I then cleaned installed MacOs Monterey 12.1 using OCLP 0.3.3 (was using Catalina before, first time installing a non-supported OS, and using OCLP) and have been using the MBP on a daily basis without any problems so far. I also installed MacOs Catalina on the same container in another volume but havent used it at all, I installed it just so I can upgrade the firmware if necessary/when a new fw is released as it is not possible to do that from non supported OSs.

I never turn off my macbook, so its either sleeping or being used. Never had any waking problems so far.

Power usually hangs between 0,03A - 0,1A most of the time, sometimes dropping to 0,01A and spikes here and there up to 0,3A. SSD Temp is always between 30 - 40 degree celsius

I dont use my mbp for anything intensive like editing but I usually have a lot of apps open. Right now I have 3 chrome windows open with >100 tabs, word, powerpoint, excel, discord, whatsapp app, mail, 2 pdfs with preview, nordvpn, and 2 finder instances.

I have not noticed any impact on my battery, which is btw very old (OEM) and needs a change. I can still get about about 3 -4 hours use like before.

 

[xboxbml]

I had it for about a week (testing it out) last year.

I found it to be much faster than both the Intel 660p and Seagate (Phison-based) SSD I currently use (but not by much - my MBP 13" is limited to PCIe 2.0 x4 speeds).

The tradeoff for the speed was power consumption and heat. With NVMeFix, it could not achieve the lowest power state and ran typically warmer than the other two SSDs I tried. SsdPmEnabler didn't exist at time, so could not comment on how that may improve the situation.

The ADATA SX8200 Pro really was a consistently "fast" SSD!

Good to hear it! So you ditched it only after a week huh? I'm not too concerned about power or heat really.. Don't do alot of power work on this MBA.. Works well for me!

 

[User9]

Apparently Hynix P41 Platinum Gen4 nvme is due for release anytime now, rumour has it that the controller in Gold P31 was a prototype for it. Just imagine if P41 has similar energy efficiency to P31 but with enhanced boosted speed of R7000Mb/W6500Mb and also TLC! Hynix is onto somethings big here when they use all inhouse parts just like Apple.

 

[Jim Clayton]

Hi Folks,
I'm looking to upgrade the storage of my 2015 macbook pro retina 15" and luckily discovered this helpful thread before purchasing a drive from OWC.

So there's a range of replacement nvme SSDs listed in the summary, does anyone have any recommendations for this mac?

I plan on getting a fast drive like the sk hynix gold and using it in my next (windows) laptop, but the stock for that seems to have evaporated overnight where i am (it was on sale too 😢).

 

[xanderx007]

I can only vouch for the Kingston A2000 SSD.

I installed the 1 Tb version a little bit over 1 month ago on my MBP 11,3 using a generic 10 euro long adapter (this one), I then cleaned installed MacOs Monterey 12.1 using OCLP 0.3.3 (was using Catalina before, first time installing a non-supported OS, and using OCLP) and have been using the MBP on a daily basis without any problems so far. I also installed MacOs Catalina on the same container in another volume but havent used it at all, I installed it just so I can upgrade the firmware if necessary/when a new fw is released as it is not possible to do that from non supported OSs.

I never turn off my macbook, so its either sleeping or being used. Never had any waking problems so far.

Power usually hangs between 0,03A - 0,1A most of the time, sometimes dropping to 0,01A and spikes here and there up to 0,3A. SSD Temp is always between 30 - 40 degree celsius

I dont use my mbp for anything intensive like editing but I usually have a lot of apps open. Right now I have 3 chrome windows open with >100 tabs, word, powerpoint, excel, discord, whatsapp app, mail, 2 pdfs with preview, nordvpn, and 2 finder instances.

I have not noticed any impact on my battery, which is btw very old (OEM) and needs a change. I can still get about about 3 -4 hours use like before.

Like I mentioned in a previous response, the adapters are basically the same, or at least have come from the same manufacturers. Except for the branding, the one you got is basically the same as the one I got.

Did you install any kext? I'm still a bit hesitant to do so, as well as installing Open Core if only to install Monterey (Monterey as it turns out is still rather buggy).

I might do that with another A2000 later on, but right now, I'm fine with Big Sur. There are also a some features that I do not really need that are only available to M1s.

 

[otosan]

Idling on 0,0W (see status bar) and quite good sequential & random performance

 

[keepsec]

View attachment 1948128

Idling on 0,0W (see status bar) and quite good sequential & random performance

Which NVMe do you exactly have on which Macbook Pro?

 

[dbgt]

Like I mentioned in a previous response, the adapters are basically the same, or at least have come from the same manufacturers. Except for the branding, the one you got is basically the same as the one I got.

Did you install any kext? I'm still a bit hesitant to do so, as well as installing Open Core if only to install Monterey (Monterey as it turns out is still rather buggy).

I might do that with another A2000 later on, but right now, I'm fine with Big Sur. There are also a some features that I do not really need that are only available to M1s.

No, i did not installed any kext. I dont see a reason to do it, and dont know if they even work in Monterey. As for the OS, I personally havent had any problems with it so far, everything works. I never used Big Sur so i cannot compare it to it, but Monterey has been as good if not better than Catalina for me.

 

[nathanel]

Hi there !
I want to upgrade my MacBook Pro 2015, 13, 128gb to 512gb.
After I read quite a few posts here, I have doubts a bout 3 ssd:
1. transcend 110s or lexar mn610 - is it really worth to give up DRAM for more battery life ?
2. transcend 220s or xpg 8200 pro

In my country all of this ssd are almost the same price
Which one do you recommend buying?

 

[herb2k]

Good to hear it! So you ditched it only after a week huh? I'm not too concerned about power or heat really.. Don't do alot of power work on this MBA.. Works well for me!

Heh, yes I did, it made my system feel much more responsive but at the cost of burning my legs slightly

 

[MisterPi]

I just replaced the 512GB SSD in my Mid 2014 MBP (Retina, 15-inch). I bought an ADATA XPG SX800 Pro 1TB NAND MVMe Gen 3x4 ($110 - cheaper now), a Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter ($15), and a MOKiN M.2 NVME SATA SSD Enclosure ($17, $32 now) - all from Amazon. I am running 10.13.6.

Since that enthusiastic post, I have encountered a problem which may or may not be related to the new SSD.
Everything works great except for one thing. I close the lid and leave it closed overnight, as I always have, I cannot "wake up" without leaning on the on/off button. This is an annoyance but not yet critical.
I'm curious to know where to look for clues about this failure to hibernate properly. If I close the lid for "a while", it comes back like it always has.
I am about to search this thread for "hibernation" and see if it's a thing. I still have the original SSD and could always put it back in to test.

I say that it may not be the SSD because when I had the bottom off, I found a spot of corrosion on the motherboard. At one point several years ago, my MBP was caught *open* in a sunshower on a terrace in Mexico. I cleaned and dried as best I could and I have never noticed any negative effects from that (reaches out and knocks on wood).

 

[otosan]

Which NVMe do you exactly have on which Macbook Pro?

Am using A1708,

as for the ssd, am supposed this particular ssd wont be available in most of country :

 

[otosan]

Since that enthusiastic post, I have encountered a problem which may or may not be related to the new SSD.
Everything works great except for one thing. I close the lid and leave it closed overnight, as I always have, I cannot "wake up" without leaning on the on/off button. This is an annoyance but not yet critical.
I'm curious to know where to look for clues about this failure to hibernate properly. If I close the lid for "a while", it comes back like it always has.
I am about to search this thread for "hibernation" and see if it's a thing. I still have the original SSD and could always put it back in to test.

I say that it may not be the SSD because when I had the bottom off, I found a spot of corrosion on the motherboard. At one point several years ago, my MBP was caught *open* in a sunshower on a terrace in Mexico. I cleaned and dried as best I could and I have never noticed any negative effects from that (reaches out and knocks on wood).

If you are on Mid 2014 model,

you gonna want to make sure that your BootRom is updated to 4xx.x.x.x so that you got hibernation and sleep issue sorted,

any version lower than that (especially if you still on version with a letter instead of number as first digit) have sleep issues when paired with NVMe drive, including Apple original Polaris drive.

easiest way to update is to plug back original ssd and install BigSur into it (or to external drive - while still having the original ssd plugged inside).

 

[xboxbml]

Heh, yes I did, it made my system feel much more responsive but at the cost of burning my legs slightly

Really.. Well, this MBA doesn't get too warm, but I don't actually have it in my lap too much. Usually on desk in office hooked to TB2 dock.

 

[herb2k]

Really.. Well, this MBA doesn't get too warm, but I don't actually have it in my lap too much. Usually on desk in office hooked to TB2 dock.

Interesting. I had an MBA previously and noticed it did not get nearly as warm as an MBP of the same generation.

 

[xboxbml]

Interesting. I had an MBA previously and noticed it did not get nearly as warm as an MBP of the same generation.

Yeah, I've never had a heat issue with my MBA. Works great with this 2TB ADATA.

 

[enplaned]

Some Amorphous Disk Mark results for three different third-party SSDs made for the Apple 16+12 connector, along with comparisons to the SM0512F and SM0512G, using an rMBP11,5 testbed:

Third Party and OEM SSD speeds with rMBP11,5

I happened to acquire some third party SSDs made for 2013-2015 rMPBs (and 2012-2017 MBAs, I think, but I've never had one of those so I am less familiar). For the avoidance of doubt, all of these drives were made for the Apple 12+16 adapter, none of these is an M.2 NVME drive with an adapter...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[yohD]

Hello people!

First I want to thank you all for all your good advice and feedback on this enormous post 🙌

I will upgrade my MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Mid 2014) and I want to know if these parts will be ok:

Corsair Force Series MP510 960GB NVMe PCIe Gen3 x4 M.2 SSD​

Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card for Upgrade MacBook Air(2013-2016 Year) and MacBook PRO(Late 2013-2015 Year) (Black)​

Thank you!

 

[otosan]

Hello people!

First I want to thank you all for all your good advice and feedback on this enormous post 🙌

I will upgrade my MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Mid 2014) and I want to know if these parts will be ok:

Corsair Force Series MP510 960GB NVMe PCIe Gen3 x4 M.2 SSD​

Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card for Upgrade MacBook Air(2013-2016 Year) and MacBook PRO(Late 2013-2015 Year) (Black)​

Thank you!

That would work fine. Yes.

Just don't forget to ensure your BootRom is already on 4xx.x.x.x range

because your mid 2014 have sleep issues on older BootRom version

 

[yohD]

That would work fine. Yes.

Just don't forget to ensure your BootRom is already on 4xx.x.x.x range

because your mid 2014 have sleep issues on older BootRom version

Hello @otosan !

Thank you for your answer!

I've made some research in order to find my BootRoom version.

In this post on Apple StackExchange, the BootRoom name has changed for: System Firmware Version

Here is my firmware version :

System Firmware Version: 432.40.8.0.1

Do you think everythink will be ok now my Firmeware verison is > 4xx.xx.x.x.x and if I follow this tutorial ?

And one more question, does this upgrade works on Apple Mac Pro late 2013 ?

Thanks !