usb 3.0 hub shows as 2.0 on an m1 mbp

[koze1910]

hello everyone, first time posting here but of course ive been lurking for ages so

im having a weird issue with my m1 mbp, im connecting my usb 3 hub (elektron overhub which supports MTT) using a usb 3 cable to usb c. if im connecting my usb 3 hard drive or my usb 3 card reader to the hub it shows as a usb 2.0 device in system report. all of this was working fine and showing as usb 3 on my 2012 15" retina MPB. anyone have any idea how to go about this?


thanks!

 

[joevt]

Connect USB devices to a Thunderbolt dock. They'll run faster even if they can connect to the M1 Mac directly with 10 Gbps connection speed.

USB on M1 Macs isn't actually 10Gb/s? (Also definitely not USB4)

After quite a bit of testing, I have concluded that the USB bus on at least my Mac mini M1 does not actually support "USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gb/s)" as listed on the Tech Specs page. I have a Samsung T5 USB-C SSD. It supports "USB 3.1 Gen 2 10Gb/s" (Gawd, I hate USB 3.1+ naming conventions...†)...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[koze1910]

Connect USB devices to a Thunderbolt dock. They'll run faster even if they can connect to the M1 Mac directly with 10 Gbps connection speed.

USB on M1 Macs isn't actually 10Gb/s? (Also definitely not USB4)

After quite a bit of testing, I have concluded that the USB bus on at least my Mac mini M1 does not actually support "USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gb/s)" as listed on the Tech Specs page. I have a Samsung T5 USB-C SSD. It supports "USB 3.1 Gen 2 10Gb/s" (Gawd, I hate USB 3.1+ naming conventions...†)...

forums.macrumors.com

thank you very much for replying, may i ask, does it have to be TB for the bandwidth? the ordinary usb c hubs wont do?

 

[joevt]

thank you very much for replying, may i ask, does it have to be TB for the bandwidth? the ordinary usb c hubs wont do?

If you get a USB Hub that doesn't have the same problem as the one you already have then it may allow your USB 3 devices to connect as USB 3. But it will be slightly slower than USB 3 from a Thunderbolt dock.

M1 Macs have two USB issues:
- USB 3.1 gen 2 (10 Gbps) devices connecting as USB 3.0 devices (5 Gbps).
- USB speeds are slightly lower than some other USB controllers such as the USB controller of a Thunderbolt dock.

Actually, I don't think I've heard of your problem before with the USB 3 devices connecting to your USB 3 hub as USB 2.0. You didn't say if your USB 3 Hub is appearing in system report with the correct speed of 5 or 10 Gbps. Check that first. If it says 480 Mb/s then there may be a problem. A single USB 3 Hub may appear in system report as two hubs - one for USB 3 devices and one for USB 2 devices so make sure you're taking that into account. Maybe show a screenshot of all the USB stuff in system report.

 

[koze1910]

hi and thanks again, i checked again and attached screen shots, the same scenario: my usb hub connected to the M1, and a usb 3.0 card reader connected to the hub. the M1 shows 480/mbs. same hub / same card reader connected to my mid 2012 15" retina mbp shows the correct 5/gbps connection. this is my first usb c macbook so im a bit confused. the reason i use the overhub is because it support mtt, meaning bandwidth wont drop if one connects usb devices of different speeds. this used to be an issue back in the days, but is it still an issue with usb c hubs?

 

[joevt]

hi and thanks again, i checked again and attached screen shots, the same scenario: my usb hub connected to the M1, and a usb 3.0 card reader connected to the hub. the M1 shows 480/mbs. same hub / same card reader connected to my mid 2012 15" retina mbp shows the correct 5/gbps connection. this is my first usb c macbook so im a bit confused. the reason i use the overhub is because it support mtt, meaning bandwidth wont drop if one connects usb devices of different speeds. this used to be an issue back in the days, but is it still an issue with usb c hubs?

The Electron Overhub has 7 ports. It appears to be two 4 port USB3.0 Hubs connected together.

In the 2012 MBP that each hub has a USB3.0 Hub and a USB 2.0 Hub and the drive connects to the USB3.0 Hub.

In the M1 MBP, only the USB 2.0 Hub part of each hub is connecting so the drive can only connect to the USB 2.0 Hub.
This is probably a problem with this combination of hub (Electron) and USB controller/bus (M1).
Therefore, to fix this problem, you need to change one part of the combination. Either try a different hub, or connect the hub to a different USB controller/bus. You can try the other Thunderbolt port of the M1 MBP.
You can try connecting the Elektron to a different hub.
If that doesn't work, then you need a different USB controller/bus. Like from a Thunderbolt dock.

Another possibility is the cable. But you said it works with the 2012 MBP so that's probably not it.

 

[koze1910]

thanks again, its actually not the same cable because my mpb mid 2012 does not have usb c, however if i use the same cable that i use with the m1 and the hub to connect the drive directly to the macbook m1 i get the full 5gbps so its not the cable. id love to avoid the thunderbolt hub due to the price and im thinking of trying the apple av adapter in combination with the hub but i guess ill have to find out

 

[joevt]

thanks again, its actually not the same cable because my mpb mid 2012 does not have usb c, however if i use the same cable that i use with the m1 and the hub to connect the drive directly to the macbook m1 i get the full 5gbps so its not the cable. id love to avoid the thunderbolt hub due to the price and im thinking of trying the apple av adapter in combination with the hub but i guess ill have to find out

The Apple AV Adapter could work. It contains a USB 3.0 hub (supports 5 Gbps but not 10 Gbps).

 

[Petri Krohn]

my usb hub connected to the M1, and a usb 3.0 card reader connected to the hub. the M1 shows 480/mbs. same hub / same card reader connected to my mid 2012 15" retina mbp shows the correct 5/gbps connection.

Your M1 Macbook only sees the hub as a USB 2.0 device. Check that you are using the USB3 cable and not the USB2 cable that also came in the same box.

Included in the box:
1 × Overhub Multiple Transaction Translator USB 3.0 Hub
1 × USB 2.0 A to Micro-B Connector Cable
1 × USB 3.0 A to Micro-B Connector Cable
1 × User manual

Elektron

Elektron | Within the music

www.elektron.se

 

[koze1910]

Your M1 Macbook only sees the hub as a USB 2.0 device. Check that you are using the USB3 cable and not the USB2 cable that also came in the same box.

Elektron

Elektron | Within the music

www.elektron.se

thank you for replying. im not using the supplied cable because its not type C. im using a type B to C cable which is verified to work as 3.0

 

[koze1910]

so i ended up getting the apple AV adapter and the hub works as usb 3.0 when connected to the usb input of the hub. leaving this here incase anyone encounters the same issue