USB 3.x PCIe Cards for Classic Mac Pro

[joevt]

I actually successfully updated to High Sierra (avoiding APFS) with all apps and plugins working so now I'm good with the Sonnet 10G USB card. But now I understand that a lot of these 10G cards are using the ASM controller & firmware which is why they aren't compatible with El Cap. Good to know that I could have changed to the 5G firmware to get it working if I had to.

Do you like the Sonnet card or do you think there are better offerings for the money? I eventually want to find a USB 3.1/eSATA (two ports each) combo card so I can ditch the E2 and free up a PCIe slot for something more useful.

You can't get much better than the CalDigit FASTA-6GU3 Plus for USB 3.1/eSATA. I like that it uses a 4 lane upstream PCIe switch, which allows getting (almost) full performance from a USB 3.1 gen 2 port when the card is in a PCIe 1.0 slot, or a PCIe 2.0 slot that does not support x2 link width. I don't think either of those problems exist in the MacPro4,1 or later. The PCIe switch is required by the card to connect the SATA controller. This is probably better than cards that use a USB to eSATA converter.

The Sonnet Allegro USB-C 4-Port PCIe Card is similar to the CalDigit FASTA-6GU3 Plus. It just replaces the SATA controller with another ASM1142.

For the best USB 3.1 gen 2 performance, I use a GC-TITAN RIDGE in my MacPro3,1. Consider that the ASM1142 uses PCIe 2.0 x2 which allows only 5*2*8/10 = 8 Gbps. The GC-TITAN RIDGE is PCIe 3.0 x4 and therefore the built-in USB controller won't be limited by PCIe 2.0 x2 so it can get closer to the 10 Gbps limit (I suppose you won't see the difference unless you do a lot of really long sequential reads). Also, it does Thunderbolt 3!

I am not considering price.

It's too bad that OWC doesn't make a SATA converter for the Accelsior blades of the E2 so you can reuse them with a standard SATA connector. You could place the card in a Thunderbolt PCIe expansion box but that gets expensive.

 

[Mac_User 0101]

You can't get much better than the CalDigit FASTA-6GU3 Plus for USB 3.1/eSATA. I like that it uses a 4 lane upstream PCIe switch, which allows getting (almost) full performance from a USB 3.1 gen 2 port when the card is in a PCIe 1.0 slot, or a PCIe 2.0 slot that does not support x2 link width. I don't think either of those problems exist in the MacPro4,1 or later. The PCIe switch is required by the card to connect the SATA controller. This is probably better than cards that use a USB to eSATA converter.

The Sonnet Allegro USB-C 4-Port PCIe Card is similar to the CalDigit FASTA-6GU3 Plus. It just replaces the SATA controller with another ASM1142.

For the best USB 3.1 gen 2 performance, I use a GC-TITAN RIDGE in my MacPro3,1. Consider that the ASM1142 uses PCIe 2.0 x2 which allows only 5*2*8/10 = 8 Gbps. The GC-TITAN RIDGE is PCIe 3.0 x4 and therefore the built-in USB controller won't be limited by PCIe 2.0 x2 so it can get closer to the 10 Gbps limit (I suppose you won't see the difference unless you do a lot of really long sequential reads). Also, it does Thunderbolt 3!

I am not considering price.

It's too bad that OWC doesn't make a SATA converter for the Accelsior blades of the E2 so you can reuse them with a standard SATA connector. You could place the card in a Thunderbolt PCIe expansion box but that gets expensive.

Thank you for the info. I'm going to have to make my way over to the TB thread and read up on the Titan Ridge. I can't understand how TB could even be possible on a cMP. I heard talk of this but it blows my mind.

 

[joevt]

For the best USB 3.1 gen 2 performance, I use a GC-TITAN RIDGE in my MacPro3,1. Consider that the ASM1142 uses PCIe 2.0 x2 which allows only 5*2*8/10 = 8 Gbps. The GC-TITAN RIDGE is PCIe 3.0 x4 and therefore the built-in USB controller won't be limited by PCIe 2.0 x2 so it can get closer to the 10 Gbps limit (I suppose you won't see the difference unless you do a lot of really long sequential reads). Also, it does Thunderbolt 3!

To be clear (after encoding but ignoring protocol overhead):
1) PCIe 2.0x2 (8b/10b) = 8 Gbps = 1000 MB/s
2) PCIe 3.0x1 (128b/130b) = 7.877 Gbps = 984.6 MB/s
3) USB gen 2x1 (128b/132b) = 9.697 Gbps = 1212.12 MB/s
You can see that any USB controller that uses (1) or (2) like the ASM1142 is not going to give the full performance of (3). Protocol overhead reduces (3) to around 912 MB/s, but protocol overhead reduces (1) to around 745 MB/s.

Those numbers are for sequential reads. Writes are usually less. Let me know if you are able to get better numbers.

 

[Mac_User 0101]

To be clear (after encoding but ignoring protocol overhead):
1) PCIe 2.0x2 (8b/10b) = 8 Gbps = 1000 MB/s
2) PCIe 3.0x1 (128b/130b) = 7.877 Gbps = 984.6 MB/s
3) USB gen 2x1 (128b/132b) = 9.697 Gbps = 1212.12 MB/s
You can see that any USB controller that uses (1) or (2) like the ASM1142 is not going to give the full performance of (3). Protocol overhead reduces (3) to around 912 MB/s, but protocol overhead reduces (1) to around 745 MB/s.

Those numbers are for sequential reads. Writes are usually less. Let me know if you are able to get better numbers.

That is great information. What USB type C card do you recommend for a cMP for best performance in a x4 slot? (Excluding the FASTA b/c that's combo ports).

To be honest, I didn't expect to see speeds anywhere near 10 Gigabit since it's in a gen 2 slot but I learned that the better controllers have the capability to do 4 lane upstream so that changes things.

 

[joevt]

That is great information. What USB type C card do you recommend for a cMP for best performance in a x4 slot? (Excluding the FASTA b/c that's combo ports).

To be honest, I didn't expect to see speeds anywhere near 10 Gigabit since it's in a gen 2 slot but I learned that the better controllers have the capability to do 4 lane upstream so that changes things.

The Thunderbolt 3 add-in cards are the only 4 lane USB controllers that I know about. Of those, only the GC-TITAN RIDGE is known to work without additional software in the classic Mac Pro. The ASM2142 and ASM3142 are PCIe 3.0x2 and would therefore require something with a PCIe switch to convert to PCIe 2.0x4.

When talking about the FASTA, you need to be specific. The CalDigit FASTA-6GU3 Plus uses an ASM1142 and is therefore limited by PCIe 2.0x2. The 4 lane switch doesn't make it faster unless you're using it in a PCIe 1.0 slot - the switch converts the PCIe 2.0x2 to PCIe 1.0x4, otherwise the ASM1142 would be limited to PCIe 1.0x2 (x1 in the case of the MacPro3,1's slots 3 and 4 which do not support x2).

The older FASTA card is called the FASTA-6GU3 Pro. I don't know the exact chips used in the card. The USB 3.0 controller uses PCIe 2.0x1. The SATA controller uses PCIe 2.0x2. The controllers are probably connected to a PCIe 2.0x4 switch.

There is an even older FASTA card called the FASTA-6GU3. The USB controller (NEC uPD720200 USB 3.0 Host Controller) and SATA controller (Marvell 88SE9123 PCIe SATA 6.0 Gb/s controller) were both limited to PCIe 2.0x1 and connected to the slot with a PCIe 2.0x4 switch.

The performance of USB 3.1 gen 2 that you can get from a PCIe 2.0x2 link is about 80% of what you can get from a USB controller with a faster PCIe link, so it's not terrible, it's just not the best.

Edit: corrected info of older FASTA cards.

 

[howiest]

You can't get much better than the CalDigit FASTA-6GU3 Plus for USB 3.1/eSATA.

If only we could find a place to buy that card. Out of stock everywhere it seems .

 

[joevt]

Corrected info of older FASTA cards in #2230

 

[tommy chen]

i think the sonnettech allegro USB-C 4-Port PCIe or highpoint RocketU 1344A
will do the best job in macOS on a cMP

 

[Mac_User 0101]

i think the sonnettech allegro USB-C 4-Port PCIe or highpoint RocketU 1344A
will do the best job in macOS on a cMP

I think the Highpoint RocketU 1344A looks really good and the listing online says each port has its own dedicated 10Gb/s controller. It also states compatible with Mac OS X 10.9 & +

Can anyone confirm if that card works with 10.11?

 

[tommy chen]

no card are working well in 10.11.x if at all
USB driver fail by apple > never repaired in 10.11 > but in 10.12 !

 

[joevt]

I think the Highpoint RocketU 1344A looks really good and the listing online says each port has its own dedicated 10Gb/s controller. It also states compatible with Mac OS X 10.9 & +

Can anyone confirm if that card works with 10.11?

The 1344A has two controllers conected to a PCIe 3.0x4 switch. The USB controllers are Asmedia. Probably ASM2142 (PCIe 3.0x2) (anyone confirm that?) so it should perform better than anything using ASM1142. Anyone know if the ASM2142 is compatible with macOS? Probably the standard xHCI driver will work.

10.11 probably doesn't work with any USB controller that advertises USB 3.1 gen 2 speed. That's why there's a firmware from CalDigit for macOS for the ASM1142 to force it to only USB 3.0 speed.

 

[Mac_User 0101]

The 1344A has two controllers conected to a PCIe 3.0x4 switch. The USB controllers are Asmedia. Probably ASM2142 (PCIe 3.0x2) (anyone confirm that?) so it should perform better than anything using ASM1142. Anyone know if the ASM2142 is compatible with macOS? Probably the standard xHCI driver will work.

You are extremely knowledgeable when it comes to the various controllers available in these cards and have made me look at things completely different. From now on when purchasing a product, I will not be so hung up on the manufacturer of the card but rather what controller is under the hood.

10.11 probably doesn't work with any USB controller that advertises USB 3.1 gen 2 speed. That's why there's a firmware from CalDigit for macOS for the ASM1142 to force it to only USB 3.0 speed.

That is what I thought as I've recently learned of the kernel bug in El Cap. Highpoint advertises 10.9+ on the 1344A which is why I was asking. If that is in fact a different ASM controller, then perhaps there is also a duel firmware option to drop it to 3.0 speeds. Regardless, it looks like a great card and the 4 controllers is worth the ten dollar difference over the Sonnet Allegro Pro (gen 2).

 

[octoviaa]

Hi,

I just bought following cards (about 25 USD):
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/JEY...801.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.6e164c4dXutY7L



It is using ASM1142 and detected properly as USB 3.1 in Mojave:

 

[tsialex]

Hi,

I just bought following cards (about 25 USD):
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/JEY...801.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.6e164c4dXutY7L

It is using ASM1142 and detected properly as USB 3.1 in Mojave:
View attachment 830310

View attachment 830309

Seems a nice card, but it works reliably without the SATA power or randomly disconnects?

 

[octoviaa]

Seems a nice card, but it works reliably without the SATA power or randomly disconnects?

Hi Alex,

Yes it is a nice card, the build quality is quite good.

It work without the SATA Power, I tried Samsung T5 SSD and 1TB WD Blue 2.5 HDD (USB 2.0) and no disconnect occurs.
I successfully do Carbon Copy Clone to the WD Blue 2.5 HDD 4 times without disconnect and also copy 2 movies total size about 1.2GB from the T5 to internal SSD and from T5 to the WD Blue 2.5 HDD.

 

[tsialex]

Hi Alex,

Yes it is a nice card, the build quality is quite good.

It work without the SATA Power, I tried Samsung T5 SSD and 1TB WD Blue 2.5 HDD (USB 2.0) and no disconnect occurs.
I successfully do Carbon Copy Clone to the WD Blue 2.5 HDD 4 times without disconnect and also copy 2 movies total size about 1.2GB from the T5 to internal HDD and from T5 to the WD Blue 2.5 HDD.

View attachment 830359

Nice, thx for checking.

I have an Orico FL1100, but it randomly disconnects when not powered. I'll probably buy one, since it's cheap and seems relatively well done for the price.

 

[octoviaa]

Nice, thx for checking.

I have an Orico FL1100, but it randomly disconnects when not powered. I'll probably buy one, since it's cheap and seems relatively well done for the price.

One little critics is their USB-C connector location as it sits quite low almost touching the 'separator':



No issue so far but I wish they've put it a little bit higher.

 

[joevt]

One little critics is their USB-C connector location as it sits quite low almost touching the 'separator':

No issue so far but I wish they've put it a little bit higher.

That is typical of most USB-C ports but is not a problem unless the thickness of the separator metal is greater than 1 mm like in the case of the ADP IT-GO "ADP-099-31" enclosure:
#73 #74 #90

 

[trifero]

Anyone have the 5G firmware from CalDigit? Thanks.

 

[Mac_User 0101]

Anyone have the 5G firmware from CalDigit? Thanks.

joevt had mentioned to me it was available on the CalDigit website. If you ever want to switch back to 10Gb firmware you have to email them to get a download link.
[doublepost=1554409079][/doublepost]Just want to share this info from Highpoint regarding the 1344A - 4 port USB 3.1 gen 2 card. I hope this helps some one who might be considering this card:

"We officially have not tested the RU 1344A on a Mac Pro Towers, however, we have had multiple customers using it in their Mac Pro Towers.
Each 2142 chipset on the card will take x2 lanes.
We did not have any issues testing the RU 1344A on macOS 10.11.
The RU 1344A uses the native xHCI drivers so we cannot give software updates to fix a bug if there is."

 

[joevt]

joevt had mentioned to me it was available on the CalDigit website. If you ever want to switch back to 10Gb firmware you have to email them to get a download link.

The 10G firmware installer is available on their website (I don't think they have a public link but the link has been mentioned elsewhere). I don't think the 5G firmware is. The 10G firmware installer says you should contact their support e-mail to get the 5G firmware.

Just want to share this info from Highpoint regarding the 1344A - 4 port USB 3.1 gen 2 card. I hope this helps some one who might be considering this card:

"We officially have not tested the RU 1344A on a Mac Pro Towers, however, we have had multiple customers using it in their Mac Pro Towers.
Each 2142 chipset on the card will take x2 lanes.
We did not have any issues testing the RU 1344A on macOS 10.11.
The RU 1344A uses the native xHCI drivers so we cannot give software updates to fix a bug if there is.

Not sure how any USB gen 2 card works on 10.11. I guess I should do some testing on some old OS's. Maybe a small Lilu.kext patch to Apple's driver could make them work.

The 1344A is a PCIe 3.0 card, so it might operate at only PCIe 1.0 speed on a MacPro3,1 or older Mac if you don't force it to PCIe 2.0 speed.

 

[Mac_User 0101]

Not sure how any USB gen 2 card works on 10.11. I guess I should do some testing on some old OS's. Maybe a small Lilu.kext patch to Apple's driver could make them work.

The 1344A is a PCIe 3.0 card, so it might operate at only PCIe 1.0 speed on a MacPro3,1 or older Mac if you don't force it to PCIe 2.0 speed.

I believe you are probably correct about that. I'm actually going to purchase this card and see how it behaves in my 5,1. I'm also going to test it against the new Sonnet Allegro Pro to see if there is any real world performance difference between the two when using multiple devices. I'll report back with results.

 

[joevt]

The 10G firmware installer is available on their website (I don't think they have a public link but the link has been mentioned elsewhere). I don't think the 5G firmware is. The 10G firmware installer says you should contact their support e-mail to get the 5G firmware.

So I tried contacting their support, and they replied I need to give them my serial number to receive the 5G firmware installer. I did that, but then they replied I need to send the card in.

I would check the Windows ASM1142 firmware installer. See if it can backup an existing firmware. Then get someone that has a card with the original 5G firmware on it to backup that firmware.

I believe you are probably correct about that. I'm actually going to purchase this card and see how it behaves in my 5,1. I'm also going to test it against the new Sonnet Allegro Pro to see if there is any real world performance difference between the two when using multiple devices. I'll report back with results.

Do you have devices that can do 900 MB/s? If not, then you probably won't see a difference, especially in real world performance. The 5,1 has the new EFI firmware that came with Mojave so it should boot the card into the optimal PCIe 2.0 speed.

The 1344A should be able to do 900 MB/s from any one port. One port from each controller will add up to less than 1800 MB/s, because they'll be limited by PCIe 2.0 x4 (2000 MB/s), to something like 1500 MB/s? Two ports from one controller will have even less performance because they'll be limited by PCIe 3.0 x2 (1969 MB/s).

Every port of the Sonnet Allegro Pro (USB 3.1 PCIe) will be limited by each controller's PCIe 2.0 x2 (1000 MB/s) to something like 745 MB/s. There'll probably be less of a drop if you try adding together one port from each controller because of that compared to the drop seen be the same setup in the 1344A. You could get 1400 MB/s? Two ports from the same controller will be stuck at single port speed of something like 745 MB/s.

 

[octoviaa]

Benchmark of the JEYI USB 3.1 card with Samsung T5 500GB connected to the USB-C connector:

So it looks like pretty inline to the Sonet Allegro benchmark I saw in below youtube video:

Not bad for a 25USD card

 

[startergo]

Benchmark of the JEYI USB 3.1 card with Samsung T5 500GB connected to the USB-C connector:
View attachment 830499

So it looks like pretty inline to the Sonet Allegro benchmark I saw in below youtube video:

Not bad for a 25USD card

Did you have to provide external power to it? What chipset it uses?