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USB on M1 Macs isn't actually 10Gb/s? (Also definitely not USB4)
- Thread starter Anonymous Freak
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I did some further research on this topic. The availability of decent external enclosures in my country is abysmal. The best option would be the Samsung X5 external Thunderbolt 3 drive, but it costs the same per GB/TB as upgrading the internal storage so I just bit the bullet and changed my Mac Studio into 8TB. Makes much more sense compared to paying the same to have 4x Samsung X5 2TB connected via Thunerbolt 3 with lower performance. It gives me the added benefit of having 6x Thunderbolt 4 ports free to use down the line so if 8TB ends up not being enough for my server I can add additional NVMe drives via Thunderbolt if needed.
What a mess! My M1 purchase is set on hold:
https://9to5mac.com/2022/04/18/m1-mac-thunderbolt-4-ports-speed-tests/
https://9to5mac.com/2022/04/18/m1-mac-thunderbolt-4-ports-speed-tests/
I think this merits a class-action suit. Who is with me? 😡
What do you mean? The external SSD is 10gbps.
And the article's title is talking about how M1 Macs doesn't support the 10gbps USB spec
If I had a nickel for every time someone suggested a 'class action lawsuit' on the internet...
We already know, some device controller chips don't play nice with all Macs/TB ports. It could be the enclosure controller, the SSD controller, etc. That are a lot of variables that are often out of Apple's control.
See here for a similar/associated discussion:
Studio Display & USB-C Ethernet adapter performance issues
I’ve had this same issue and found this thread via ATP. At first I thought it’s either a USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 limitation or my new Studio Display was a lemon, but when I borrowed an adapter from work that did not have this issue, I started contacting support channels. Both Belkin and Anker told...
forums.macrumors.com
Yeah that's why I said that mine is working fine. So that means that it's not that the M1 that doesn't support 10gbps. It's probably just some compatibility issues with some bridge chipsWe already know, some device controller chips don't play nice with all Macs/TB ports. It could be the enclosure controller, the SSD controller, etc. That are a lot of variables that are often out of Apple's control.
See here for a similar/associated discussion:
Studio Display & USB-C Ethernet adapter performance issues
I’ve had this same issue and found this thread via ATP. At first I thought it’s either a USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 limitation or my new Studio Display was a lemon, but when I borrowed an adapter from work that did not have this issue, I started contacting support channels. Both Belkin and Anker told...
Exactly. I appreciate that the article linked above was "trying" to be thorough, but there are hundreds (thousands?) of test permutations. Later today, I think I have a combo that will disprove their conclusion. I'll report back.
The more times I read this article, the less it makes sense. The testing methodology and structure of the writing is full of contradictions, and lack of clarity.
Not to mention, I can get higher-than-he-reported speeds on both front USB-only, and rear TB4 (connected via USB-C 10Gbps cable), on my Studio Max.
The article doesn't say anything new that hasn't been discussed in this thread.
- M1 Macs have USB-C ports that might connect to some 10 Gbps devices at 5 Gbps speed (but some 10 Gbps devices connect properly at 10 Gbps).
- M1 Macs have USB controllers that perform slower than some other USB controllers at either speed (10 Gbps or 5 Gbps). Expected speed for 10 Gbps is 1060 MB/s but M1 is 100 MB/s slower or more.
- other stuff I forgot.
This whole thing is a clusterfuk. I can't even connect my iPad Pro M1 to 14" MBP M1 Pro using Apple's TB3 cable. It won't even see it. ~$3k worth of equipment that can't even communicate via a wire, pathetic.
are you using the USB-C charge cable that came with the iPad Pro?
at best, you'll get USB 2.0 transfer speed on that cable
I know that cable works but I shouldn't have to resort to 2.0 speed. The TB3 cable works with my M1 Mini @ 10 Gbps speed, which is still pathetic considering both my iPad and my Macs have TB ports. It's like amateur hour at Apple and you got workers crying about having to go back onsite.
i'm confused. was the TB3 cable included with either the M1 mini or the 14" M1 MBP? neither ship with a TB3 cable.
I know, I'm just ranting here that Apple's TB implementation across their product line is crap.
Is there a list out there of what works and what doesn't? I know that while my M1X MBP generally does way better than my 2017 Intel model, it seems to have moved backward on handling my Samsung T5 SSDs.
I think the current consensus is that Apple Silicon doesn’t support the second link on USB devices that use it. It seems that Samsung Tx devices are USB 3.x x2 devices and with only x1 being available on current AS Macs you only get half the bandwidth.
No. All Mac USB ports are x1. None have x2. The only USB controller that I know of that has x2 is the ASMedia ASM3242 (except what's built into the latest Intel and AMD chipsets). https://www.kingston.com/en/blog/personal-storage/usb-3-2-gen2x2 I don't think macOS has any drivers that support x2 or they don't work with the ASM3242.
Samsung Tx device are USB 3.1 gen 2 (or 3.2 gen 2x1) devices and sometimes (or often with the M1) connect only as gen 1.
M1 Macs support gen 2 but it doesn't work with all gen 2 USB devices for some unknown reason. It works with some gen 2 USB devices.