MP All Models PCIe SSDs - NVMe & AHCI

[tsialex]

looks like it work with macOS natively , found it here https://www.ebay.com/itm/254423159216

Very very weird that the PFX-L family of switches have been around for just a little over 11 months, with Linux kernel patches from September this year, and the auction says that even Yosemite is supported, where macOS only have AHCI support.

Even if macOS support for the PFX-L switch is real like the auction say and the kernel has the corrections needed for it work correctly, who would buy an inferior card for this price ($430)? HighPoint SSD7101A-1 v2.00 and SSD7102 both have a list price of $399, most people payed a lot less than that with Amazon promos.

Btw, it's nice that the PCIe switch market has new players besides AVAGO/Broadcom and ASMedia, maybe we will start to see price reductions instead of constant increases.

 

[Flocarino]

Hello all and pardon my ignorance but I just bit the bullet and bought an IO Crest PEX40129 along with an Samsung 970 PRO NVME blade and it works perfectly along the Radeon Sapphire Pulse RX 580 8GB in slot 2 (16 x). I achieve speeds of 2700MB easily but have a little dilema. Here it is:
To achieve scores towards the 5500 - 6000MB/sec do I need a RAID( 2 blades ) or 2 blades only and not settled in RAID mode. Do the NVME blades have to be identical or can I go with a second blade like 970 EVO 1TB instead of the PRO? I simply want to pull out the max read/write from the IOCrest card, that's why I ask the questions, also beeing a noob in the RAID department, sorry. Can I put a different size blade, let's say a 512GB instead of the 1TB and achieve the same results?
Thank you in advance but any help is appreciated before I pull the trigger on another NVME blade (a Samsung 970 EVO 1TB this time).

 

[tommy chen]

yes you need 2 blades in mode raid0 for max performance

if you do with different sizes the raid partition will only sized as the smallest blade
so, with 1TB and 512GB the size is only 1TB with both off them

better get the same 1TB size and modell for 2TB raid partition

 

[Flocarino]

yes you need 2 blades in mode raid0 for max performance

if you do with different sizes the raid partition will only sized as the smallest blade
so, with 1TB and 512GB the size is only 1TB with both off them

better get the same 1TB size and modell for 2TB raid partition

Thanks for the reply.....so it must be absolutely a 1TB 970 PRO !? An 1TB 970 EVO won’t do it !?

 

[bsbeamer]

People have reported success with mixed manufacturers and models (and same matching capacity), but it is always recommended they 100% match.

 

[Flocarino]

People have reported success with mixed manufacturers and models (and same matching capacity), but it is always recommended they 100% match.

Allright, I'll try to get a second similar Samsung 970 PRO 1TB but it will be very hard to get a cheap one, as the one I just got with the IO CREST, that's why my question for the EVO version. I will keep an eye on the sales / bargains and local ads...
Thank you

 

[tsialex]

Allright, I'll try to get a second similar Samsung 970 PRO 1TB but it will be very hard to get a cheap one, as the one I just got with the IO CREST, that's why my question for the EVO version. I will keep an eye on the sales / bargains and local ads...
Thank you

This card has a x8 switch, so you'll never get past ~2900MB/s total throughput with a 2.0 PCIe slot. One or two blades, RAID or not, it's limited by the x8 switch.

 

[Flocarino]

Thank you very much Alex, so basically, going with a 970 EVO, won't make any difference, right?
...and one more question just by curiosity: What is the 9,0,0 behind SLOT-2 (in the screenshot) stands for?

 

[tsialex]

Thank you very much Alex, so basically, going with a 970 EVO, won't make any difference, right?
...and one more question just by curiosity: What is the 9,0,0 behind SLOT-2 (in the screenshot) stands for?

If you get 2700MB/s with one blade, you will get 2900MB/s with a RAID-0 of two. To get past that limitation you need a card with a PCIe 16x switch like HighPoint SSD71xx models.

Simplifying a little, Slot-2 9,0,0 is the address of the card in the PCIe space when you use a switch.

 

[Flocarino]

Thank you very much. Good to know

 

[tommy chen]

upps, the crest I had overlooked

 

[Spacedust]

From Intel drives:

- Optane D4800X 375 GB works perfectly also with 4Ksectors
- DC P3700 2 TB works perfectly also with 4Ksectors
- DC P4500 4 TB doesn't work at all - macOS says no drivers installed

 

[Azatos]

Hello! Just m2 which is not nvme will work?

 

[tsialex]

Hello! Just m2 which is not nvme will work?

Samsung SM951-AHCI and Kingston Predator AHCI.

 

[Azatos]

Thanks! and what controllers are cards for mac pro 1?

 

[DJ_Road]

Thanks for posting . . . you're in the appropriate space

I re-purposed the 512GiB ssd from my 2015 MBP when I got the Sabrent, with a Sintech m.2>12+16 adapter:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0173ODBCE/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Only caveat is that said adapter increases the vertical height by almost 9mm:

View attachment 878536

In this photo, the m.2>12+16 ssd adapter is attached to a EZDIY-FAB m.2>pic-e 4X adapter...

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GCXCR7W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It gets the Job done

I do not know 'why' said m.2>12+16 interface needs-be twice the vertical height of the {industry} standard m.2 interface, that's just the way it (currently) is ;(

There are multiple options for the m.2>pic-e variants, and I've had no failures with any of the ones I've purchased/used.

hth

Regards, splifingate

I installed the Sintech adapter with the 256gb Macbook Pro pull this past weekend. However, I had an unexpected event. Right after installing the card, I powered up the Mac Pro. My 6 month old Sapphire Radeon RX 580 8GB card was dead in the water. I hadn't had a lick of trouble with it. I think some type of power event occurred because I had all sorts of strange problems with the machine. For a while I was worried that I had a logic board issue. So, after hours of troubleshooting and applying every fix and trial I could think of, I finally got things going again. All PCIe slots and logic board check out. But the SAPPHIRE is at No Power. I would like to see if I can find someone who repairs these. I'm hoping it's just the fuse on the card for a relatively inexpensive repair cost. I spend a considerable amount of time looking for Graphics card repair and came up zilch! I bought it new on eBay for $180 so Sapphire warranty is out of the question unfortunately.

Can anyone here recommend a business or individual who repairs video graphic cards?

 

[majus]

Can anyone here recommend a business or individual who repairs video graphic cards?

Buying a replacement card is likely going to be the cheapest solution.

 

[AidenShaw]

Buying a replacement card is likely going to be the cheapest solution.

cheapest *and* fastest

 

[DJ_Road]

cheapest *and* fastest

I think you guys are right. I've taken worse hits on failed computer equipment. I don't really have to be in a hurry about it though. My original card is running 1 display at the moment. I don't do any fancy video rendering, and I don't play games at all. I do IT work. A less expensive card would probably suffice. I think something with 4gb that will drive 3 27" monitors will work. I wouldn't mind having a card that allows access to the boot screen. So now it's to just to work out which cards on the Apple approved list, or which one's that aren't, will do the job. Would appreciate any suggestions in that regard from those in the know.

 

[tsialex]

I think you guys are right. I've taken worse hits on failed computer equipment. I don't really have to be in a hurry about it though. My original card is running 1 display at the moment. I don't do any fancy video rendering, and I don't play games at all. I do IT work. A less expensive card would probably suffice. I think something with 4gb that will drive 3 27" monitors will work. I wouldn't mind having a card that allows access to the boot screen. So now it's to just to work out which cards on the Apple approved list, or which one's that aren't, will do the job. Would appreciate any suggestions in that regard from those in the know.

Please open a thread about your GPU questions or go to the GPU sticky, this topic has nothing to do here.

GPU Compatibility List for cMP

 

[splifingate]

I installed the Sintech adapter with the 256gb Macbook Pro pull this past weekend.

8<----

Did the sintech+pull work, and as expected?

Regards, splifingate

 

[DJ_Road]

Please open a thread about your GPU questions or go to the GPU sticky, this topic has nothing to do here.

GPU Compatibility List for cMP

A-ok, gotcha. I found it. Thanks for your help.

 

[MrTed]

Hey Guys I really need help to choose a new SSD dive for my 6,1 Macpro. I saw on Amazon the EVO 970 1To at 189€ but also Sabrent Rocket 2TB for 299€. Is Sabrent as good as Evo 970 ? What SSD do you recommend for 6,1 Macpro ? and what Heatsink model should I buy ? thanks a lot !!

 

[DJ_Road]

Did the sintech+pull work, and as expected?

Regards, splifingate

It does work, and very well! One question I had is that I noticed it was an ACHI adapter. I was wondering if an NVME adapter would give me even better performance/advantage? I'm getting about 1200MB/s write and close to 1500MB/s read with the upgrade, which is around 1000MB/s more than my old sata SSD boot drive so I'm certainly not disappointed.

 

[tsialex]

It does work, and very well! One question I had is that I noticed it was an ACHI adapter. I was wondering if an NVME adapter would give me even better performance/advantage? I'm getting about 1200MB/s write and close to 1500MB/s read with the upgrade, which is around 1000MB/s more than my old sata SSD boot drive so I'm certainly not disappointed.

With a x4 PCIe adapter you are limited to around 1450 to 1500MB/s with a PCIe 2.0 slot, so you will get just a little more write speed.

Only with a switched adapter you can convert x8 or x16 PCIe 2.0 to x4 PCIe 3.0 and then get around 2900MB/s (x8 switch) to 3200MB/s (x16 switch) for one blade.