Fastest External Storage For Your M2 Mac mini
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- čas přidán 17. 03. 2023
- We show you how to build the fastest external storage for your M2 Mac mini in this video. Using the ACASIS 40 Gbps external enclosure TBU405, and a very fast M.2 NVME SSD, we build external storage that is approaching 3,000 MB/s which is faster then the storage that comes with many of the M2 Mac mini models.
This external SSD storage can be used on any Mac computer including modern iMacs, MacBook Airs, MacBook Pros, Mac Studios, and even the M2 Mac mini. If you want the fastest external storage for your Apple Mac computer then please watch this video to see how we did it.
In this video we discuss the following parts (first two used in video):
ACASIS 40 Gbps M.2 SSD Enclosure (TBU405) - amzn.to/3lmGeCH
Western Digital Black SN770 NVME SSD 1 TB - amzn.to/3LQLKbF
Western Digital Black SN770 NVME SSD 2 TB - amzn.to/40k8qoo
Samsung 980 Pro 1 TB NVME SSD - amzn.to/3TsTBxI
Samsung 980 Pro 2 TB NVME SSD - amzn.to/3lpj66p
Western Digital SN850 1 TB - amzn.to/3yMKdLE
Western Digital SN850X 1 TB - amzn.to/3YXjfMa
Western Digital SN850X 2 TB - amzn.to/3n1Hyvh
Western Digital SN850X 4 TB - amzn.to/3lrgTHy
Various M.2 NVME SSDs - amzn.to/404Ww2g
You can also buy the ACASIS enclosure here - www.acasis.com/TBU405
So if you are interested in the fastest external SSD storage you can buy then check out this video. You can add super fast external storage for much less cost than upgrading your Mac mini with more storage. The external ssds are fast enough for video processing and much more.
Thanks for watching and please subscribe for more videos like this one. Disclaimer - if you use one of the links above to make a purchase a very small portion could go to support the channel. Thank you. - Věda a technologie
Lovely analysis and real-world tests; earned a follow!
Thanks for watching and the feedback. Thanks for the sub.
subbing to your channel Craig! just moved recently to an M2 base model Mac Mini and I'm loving your content for independent creators like us. all the Best and keep doing what you're doing!
Thanks for the feedback and good luck with the M2.
I didn’t realise how slow my external drives were until I saw this video. Thanks for the excellent demo and explanation. 🙏
Thanks for watching and for the feedback.
Thanks for this information. I’ve been searching all over for this.
Thanks for watching and I'm glad it helped.
Great Video! Straight to the point, Exactly what I was looking for!
Thanks, I also did a video on another one of these recently by Gigamundo. I will be doing another one in a week or so from Minisopuru also.
Thank you for this video! It was exactly what I needed to solve my storage problem. Well done.
Thanks for the feedback I appreciate it.
Many thanks for this excellent review. I'll be following your recommendations.
Thanks for watching and the nice comment.
SAME EXACT NUMBERS!! Craig, I went ahead and upgraded my full set up:: I bought a mac mini M2 on eBay for $400, bought the same WD memory card and enclosure that you presented here and can't believe how fast things run. Funny enough, for real basic things the 2014 mini actually does pretty good, but when it comes to editing and rendering videos for my CZcams Channel, the M2 blows it away. For good measure I also built the USB3->SATA 512G data disk that you covered in another one of your videos (total expense ~$35). Oh, one extra comment: for those worried about the heat on the NVMe drive. I placed a small DC fan by the module and powered it with a USB plug I had. My module is cool to the touch!! (I made sure to properly install the thermal pads too. Double layer on the controller chip to bring it up to the same height as the memory so everything is making equal contact with the case). Once again, thanks for all of your great content and help!!! -DT
Great, and thanks for the info on how you cooled it. It's good to hear that you are getting the same performance and it worked out good for you. I appreciate the info for sure.
Good call. Worked like a champ!
Thanks for watching and good luck with everything.
Thanks! Just got my Mac Studio.
This is a must-have!
Thanks for watching Tony.
Great video, thanks Craig. I've got two other enclosures and three other drives. Planning to make video about that. Great stuff for any laptop to work with or just as emergency backup for you machine.
You make awesome videos man, keep it up!
Thanks for the nice words and good luck with the videos. I have one coming out in the near future from another brand too and like to test the tech.
Great video. This helped me made my purchase. Thank you.
Thanks for watching and for the nice feedback on the ssd enclosure.
Whoa....I bought my first ssd external drive last week. I'm shocked with how out of date I am with tech. 60gb transferred in roughly 3 minutes. Magic as far as I'm concerned. Now in my quest for cheaper and bigger and faster options I find your video. I can't wait to build one. This will help so much with my video editing. Thank you.
Yes, these are great for video editing and very fast. Good option for extra storage on a Mac for sure. Thanks for watching.
heating issue? did u faced anything
@@ZAMislive these get hot. Need good thermal pads and proper cooling with any gen 4 drive. Thanks for watching.
Great info. Thanks
Thanks for the feedback on this.
This is super review for someone like me who is not that techie, I can clearly understand the video. Perfect!
Thank you for the feedback and for watching the channel.
Well Done! Thanks a lot.
Thanks, they are fast for sure.
Thanks... I purchased the same items and am getting 2700+ MB/s speeds. Very fast and cheaper than other options.
Thanks for feedback. Glad it worked out.
I bought the same combo in March 23, and have similar speeds with an M1 Mac Studio Max. I just stumbled across this video today 👍🏽👍🏽
Thanks for this! Im gonna study this video and compare it with M2 Pro Mac Mini 1TB
Thanks for watching
Hi, Craig. Please receive my sincere thanks for this great video. I went out and got the Acasis case coupled with the WD black SSD for my Mac Mini Pro. Boy, what a great investment! I was able to transfer my photos and music to my external 2 TB SSD and therefore leave my 512 GB internal drive to run the system without pressure. Boy, it flies! And I saved hundreds of dollars, too. Thanks tons! You’re the best.
Thanks for the feedback and I'm happy it worked out. I appreciate it and also thanks for watching the video.
Craig can This run 8 TB externally ?
I am using the ACASIS 40 Gbps M.2 SSD Enclosure (TBU405) along with the Western Digital Black SN770 NVME SSD 2 TB on my M2 mac Mini. Speed here is just incredible, I moved a 20GB file over to the SSD in under 18 seconds. Very happy with this setup along saving some $$$ to boot! Thank you Craig for this informative video!
Thanks for watching. Yes, they can move quite a bit of data quickly and it is a nice setup.
thank you so much for this video! I will be doing this on my macbook pro M1pro to utilized the thunderbolt speed! thankyou!
Your welcome and thanks for watching
Great video Craig, very helpful. Subbed you right there and then
Thanks for feedback.
Thanks for this video. I've been using a couple of Crucial's 1TB external SSDs for video, but they fill up very quickly, and they do take a longer than what you demonstrated to copy files.
The WD Black SN770 has been pretty good for the money. Thanks for posting.
Thanks to you I got the new sdd installed with the enclosure . I was getting 2700 on the Blackmagic speedometer. I cloned the original HDD with Ventura on to the WD SDD .
Thanks you are a wizard . My system is fast like "polished chrome" .
Thanks for the feedback and for watching the videos. I appreciate it.
Thanks bro!
Welcome and thanks for watching.
I bought the enclosure and the hard drive and am getting 2692.5 write and 2795.9 read. Thanks Craig a video like this is soooo much more helpful then anything LTT has posted in years. Without you I would have bought a crappy docking station.
Thanks for the feedback and for watching the channel. I have to do all my filming, editing, and everything being a one man band. I hope one day to make it a bit more professional but for now I do my best. Thanks for the feedback.
I have the exact same results (2700MBps read/write with an Orico Thunderbolt 3 enclosure($60) new off eBay , the same WD Black SN770 1TB (64$ new )off my M2 Mac Mini base 256GB model. I also tried a WD Blue SN570 1TB and it runs also in the 2700 MBps R/W range. The difference is that the SN770 performs much better with smaller files and random writes by a lot! The orico is more plain looking, but does it fly when virtualizing Windows 11 and gaming off it.
Thanks for sharing all that info. Good to know for sure.
thank you !
Appreciate the feedback
Thank you🎉
Thanks for the feedback.
You sir have saved me some serious money! Thanks for making this video. I'm going to go get the SN770 WD Black! Now I just have to decide between 1TB and 2 TB :)
Thanks for feedback.
@@craigneidel Just wanted to give an update. I ordered the Acasis external closure and the SN770. I'm getting on the low end about 2300 MB/s and on the high end about 2700 MB/s. Simply fantastic! Great bang for buck too to get such amazing performance. I copied a 190 GB file in 68 seconds. Incredible. Thanks again for making this video and helping us all out! This is only a little slower than my built in SSD on my Macbook Pro. That's pretty impressive.
@@MrGuitarfreak132 thanks for feedback and nice words. Good luck with everything.
Hey @MrGuitarfreak132.. just wanted to know if you can use this external drive with macbook pro?
@@shubhammahajan9117 should work with any modern Mac with a usb c port from what I can tell.
I followed all your tips and bought your recommendations. It's absolutely flying. Super happy with it and in total it cost me 150euros. Thank you so much for a greta video.
Thanks for your post and appreciate it that you watched the channel. Thanks
Excellent content and presentation! Looking forward to watching more. Subscribed.
Thanks Nick, I have about 500 other videos online now but continue to make more each week. Thanks for the nice comment.
Perfect, it works great. i have a macstudio and the results are pretty good. 2700/2700 - SSD disk WD Black SN770 NVMe 2TB / Acasis enclosure
Thanks for sharing. That is the same combo I used and it's normally 2700 to about 2850 MB/s. With some more expensive drives you can push 3000 but not worth the extra costs.
Excellent video, Craig. I have Mac Mini m2 and satechi usb hub without storage. Considering buying this acasis you reviewed. Can I connect both to both TB4 ports on the Mini?
Thanks, Craig. Will recommend your channel. Keep it up.
Thanks for watching. You should be able to run both devices on the Mac mini.
Bravo! ✊🏾
Thanks for feedback.
awesome!
Thanks for watching the channel
Great videos im a 20 plus windows user just starting with mac os thanks for taking your time to help us any way u can show how to move these files off and on Mac os or point me somewhere appreciated
Format the external as exFAT and the drive will work on both Win and Mac if you need to move files. Thanks.
Thanks for sharing. You just saved ~$250.
Thanks for watching
It would be interesting to see you actually build the drive and the steps you took to assure that the heat tape was touching the enclosure. Thanks for all of your videos and suggestions.
I really just put on both strips and felt it touch when I screwed the enclosure up. Thanks
Did the drive not fit into the assy ?
I have the 980pro 2TB in an older Thunderbolt 3 case and it's slightly faster, but also what I love about it is it doesn't overheat as easily as other NVME SSDs. You should always try a large file test as small files go into much faster DRAM storage before going onto the drive and some lesser drives have more of a tendency to overheat. Try at least a 200GB test copy to work out the actual xfer speed. Really, at 40Gbs /sec you should be getting much closer to the advertised transfer speeds. Thats 5GB/s or about 5000MB/s minus a by for overhead. The cases are so expensive my advice is to go straight to 2TB as a minimum and 4TB if you can find a good one.
I have tested most of the Thunderbolt 4 enclosures and you will not get 5000 MB/s. The top limits are around 3,000 MB/s. There is overhead on Thunderbolt 4 for video transmission and other items and with the overhead you won't get anywhere around 5,000 MB/s on these enclosures. So far after testing a bunch the 3,000 is about the limit give or take a little bit as some go slightly higher.
I have seen similar results. I have a M2 Mac Mini (24GB RAM / 512GB SSD) and a 2TB Samsung 980 PRO installed in an Acasis enclosure (TBU401E). Internal performance is W: 3339 MB/s & R: 2985 MB/s versus 980 performance of W: 2790 MB/s & R: 2713 MB/s.
Thanks for sharing that info. That helps others trying to build this out.
Apple uses a large proportion of its SSD chips from Samsung. There's a big chance they are running the same chip😉
What cable do I need to use that enclosure for that drive to the Mac mini 2??
@@azwb it comes with thunderbolt 4 cable.
@@azwb I used the cable that came with the enclosure.
Great video Craig, I wanted to know if you would recommend a newer NvMe SSD by WD or just stick to the on in your video?
I just tested the one in the video but you can go by their recommendations on the website also.
I just discovered your channel. Excellent video. Thank you. Would I use my macbook pro Thunderbolt 4 type c port?
Thank you, Yes you would need to use the Thunderbolt port on the MacBook for this to work.
I'm currently using an older sn750 and am getting about 2700 MB/s read speed and about 2100 write speeds. I have the same exact nvme enclosure. It works pretty well for running programs.
Thanks for sharing that info.
I saw some really cheap enclosures on Amazon - would they work also ?
( why buy so expensive enclosure)
@@Sam-gi4qq from my research, the cheaper usb c enclosures are capped at 10gbps speeds. You may find a few 20Gbps rated enclosures for a decent price, but they are half the speed of the 40Gbps enclosures. It really is a give and take.
@@mvalido1126 oh ok - yes that makes sense - for my needs 10 gbs is fine - BTW is there is any brand name in that speed you know which is more reliable ?
@@Sam-gi4qq there are no cheap 40 Gbps Thunderbolt enclosures that can do this but if all you need is 800 MB/s the cheaper enclosures can work fine.
Thanks Craig for this great vid. I bought a SanDisk Extreme PRO for my new mini M2, 16GB/512GB (to replace my iMac 5K). Since I do need good storage and speed for massive photo/video/Ps/Ai files I assumed SanDisk would be solid due to its reputation. But the SanDisk external ssd was very underwhelming and did not provide a solid and steady connection. So looking for a better and more reliable solution I found your channel. I appreciate your lowkey presentation which gives the feeling of trust and that you are not just pitching the things or brands that pay your bills. I decided to go with the Acasis Enclosure (TBU401E) with a Samsung 980 PRO 2TB (haven't received the components but will report anything noteworthy). Just as an fyi, my Mac Mini's internal 512GB tests in Blackmagic steady at W:3300+ MB/s, R:3000+ MB/s. Once you are able to the channel more as a profession I'd suggest to not become too flashy but do add more "how to build/put together" content as well. But love your channel and of course we subscribed.
Thanks for watching and the nice comments. Let me know how it goes. I didn't test that NVME but it is one of the ones that Acasis recommends so I'm guessing it should be quick too.
@@craigneidel Just received the Acasis Enclosure (came with two thermal pads a 1mm and a 0.5mm) and the Samsung 980 PRO. Easy to put together and the 1mm thermal pad was enough to have everything snug. Tests in Blackmagic: steady at W:2800+ MB/s, R:2700+/- MB/s.
@@reverieretreat168 Hello Reverie I am also going with Samsung 970 pro - but for my needs I am looking for cheaper enclosure ( Acasis is too expensive) - in your research did you come across any cheaper enclosures which will work with Samsung 970 pro?? Thanks
I did do some research on an external ssd after my SanDisk failure and as far as I have found here and many other places the Acasis is one of the best bangs for your buck.
If you want to get the most out of your Samsung 970 pro (are you sure it is the 970 pro which I believe is around $250 for 1TB? I got the Samsung 980 pro at $140) you need an external enclosure that can really use the ssd. Everything of course depends on what you need it for but if you have the need for speed then get an enclosure that can give it. I am going to assume that you are getting the Samsung 980 pro because if you are getting the 970 pro your question does not make any sense.
As others here mentioned Orico also has good enclosure's but they run around $125-$150 and the Acasis is $115. In all honesty I don't see how that is to expensive if you are going to put an ssd in it that is of good quality and speed.
If you really want things to be cheaper go with a cheaper ssd and still get a good quality enclosure so that you can always upgrade the ssd if you want/need to.
As mentioned by others here as well, do you need those speed? If you do do it right and if you do not get something cheaper. I for instance have things that really have a need for speed and that is what I use the Acasis/Samsung 980 pro for and I have other files and backups that do have a need for speed and for those I have a Seagate Portable 5TB External HDD.
I'm curious what your setup is and what you are going to use it for.
And if you don't need super speed but want external ssd cheaper @craigneidel has other vids: czcams.com/video/I_PDRqBfs0U/video.html
@@reverieretreat168 Many thanks - My scenario is that I am helping a friend of mine with her older Imac ( 2017) - she does not want to spend a lot of money as she is going to buy the new iMac soon ( when it comes out ) - so this is just a "temporary setup" to speed up her old iMac which does not have an SSD
So I am getting her an external ssd to boot from - at this point I think I may go with Sabrent enclosure with Samsung 970 evo plus ( so to speed up her iMac until she buys a new iMac soon)
Many thanks for info & the video link I will watch that before I make any purchase !
Thank you for such a brilliant and insightful video . I hope you might be able to help me out here .
So I have a mac mini M2 16 Gbyte 256 Hd. I bought the Satechi Hub with the NVME enclosure underneath . I only got it a few days ago .
Am I correct in saying that the Satechi hub would slow down the performance of the WD Black SSD and if so if I buy the enclosure and the WD Black does it work better when connected to the actual Mac Mini and not the Satechi hub . ?
Sorry if this is a silly question .
Thanks.
Thanks for the feedback. Yes the Satechi hub is a 10 Gbps hub so you might only bet about 800 to 900 MB/s. with the WD black drive and for sure the hubs and enclosures slow down the SSDs. But, the question will be is that fast enough and for most it's fine. If you want to get faster performance you need something like the Acasis Thunderbolt enclosure in the video but those are more expensive at $140. Plus you don't get the features of the hub. Finally, you can't put the SSD into your computer direction on Macs but for instance the WD black on a PC could get up to 5,000 or more MB/s if installed directly on the motherboard but you just can't do that on the Mac mini M2. So you need to use enclosures and choose either a 10 gbps enclosure like the Satechi Hub (up to about 900 MB/S) or go with the Acasis Thunderbolt 4 enclosure with is a 40 gbps enclosure or (up to about 2,850 MB/s). In the end you may not need all that speed unless you are doing things like high end video editing or the like.
hi,very nice video. i used to have one that i have got so many problems, unable to detect ssd inside. i wonder why you don't have these issue. i end up return the unit. now that i have seen your video how well it works, i am thinking to either try again or try the Orico m2v02. would you happen to have tested orico's enclosure? ssd i have is the kingston fury reg 2tb
Hello, I have not tested the Orico enclosure yet. Also, I have not seen any issues with the Acasis one like you saw but only tested on the WD drive in the video and I will assume the drive could make a difference for sure.
thanks Craig, I have a 2013 iMac with about 700gb of data on the 1TB internal storage and have just purchased a Mac Mini M2 Pro with 512gb of memory. I have jsut ordered the Acasis enclosure and a 2tb WB SN770 NVME SSD and plan on storing my Music (140GB) Movies (120GB) and Photos (51GB) on the external drive and keeping the internal drive free for day to day work. 2TB of external memory plus the acasis case cost me AUD$400, versus AUD$900 to upgrade Mini M2 to 2TB, so much much cheaper (1TB would have probably done me but the difference between 1TB and 2TB was that much so went with 2TB)
Thanks for watching and good luck. I agree and just get the 2TB if you think you will use it as they are not too much more. That should work great for storing music and video and provide you with some nice space.
Hey Craig great video! I just got the M2 Mac Mini, and I have a question, do you think installing the Mac OS onto this device (with same ssd that you used but 2TB) would be better for someone who has 256 GB of internal storage. I'm looking to install Final Cut Pro, and in order to install it onto this external SSD I need to install Mac OS onto it. I don't know if the performance for the OS and FCP will lessen if I install it onto this external storage over the internal storage.
To be honest I have made a bunch of videos on installing MacOS on external SSDS in the past (search for them), but those were older Macs. I have not tried it with this enclosure or on any M1 or M2 Macs yet. So I really don't know and would need to test that out. Maybe in the future I will do that but right now I'm not sure how the M1 and M2 Macs would respond. In the past it made a huge difference on the older Macs.
Clear to the point. Not a lot of fluff. I used your amazon links for my purchase, right from the CZcams app
Thanks for watching and for the help supporting the channel. I do this as a hobby so I can't make the best 100% clean videos but one day hope I can do it full time.
Craig Neidel ThanksMuch!
It is also possible to increase performance even further if you create a RAID-0 between the two Thunderbolt outputs via Disk Utility
Ok, thanks for the tip. What speeds were you able to get doing that?
Many, many thanks. This is just the advice I needed. I have a low-end refurb Mac Studio coming from Apple. I'd planned to get a Mac mini, but when I configured it like I wanted, the refurb Mac Studio was cheaper because those with those features come stock. Where I refused to pay Apple's Robber Baron upgrade prices was in the SSD. I ordered it with 512 GB despite the fact that the data on my existing 2012 Mac mini takes up almost 500 GB. I desperately need an external SSD.
Thanks. Hope it works out for you.
Thanks!! I am buying this today especially since Prime Day prices are active. My concern is Time Machine Back Ups. Adding all this fast storage increases the size of the back up. What is your back up setup?
Good luck with everything. I have so many test systems that many I don't back up etc. In the ned I do use time machine for some.
That’s what you call speed. Very informative episode. Can I apply the same external drive to my late 2014 Mac mini to get or least boost my speed from 35mbps built in hdd, 395 mbps Samsung T9 external drive and at least half of what your speed was. Anticipating for your kind advice. Ty very much
This would not work with older mac's like that since they don't have the correct thunderbolt port. Also not sure if worth the money on an older system since you could sell that and put the money you would spend on enclosure toward new device. Thanks for watching.
There are adaptors to use newer Thunderbolt 3/4 devices with older Macs that have TB2 ports. I had a 2015 Macbook Pro and used a TB3 docking station with it for some time. I believe all gens of TB 2-4 have the same 40GB/s bandwidth limit so go look into it!
Craig, considering this acasis or the owc envoy you just presented. What about heat problems?
I have not had any issues but both will get warm. Per my last message I'm just showcasing the products and didn't have enough time to go through tests with multiple drives and things like that. Thanks for watching.
Hi Craig, I like your iMac stand substitute. What’s it for? External storage? battery UPS? Where can I buy it?
I have a video on it. Check out my channel and search for Minisopuru iMac hub.
I see the SSD cards are offered with a heat sink. Is there a reason to not get that version? Great video as 1 need access to my photo library.
It depends where you are going to put it. Some of the enclosures won't fit an M.2 SSD with a heatsink but they are all different so it's a trial basis.
I have the TBU405 ACASIS enclosure but I use the WD SN570 2TB on M1 Mac mini (MacBook M114" as well ) with about 2600 Read & Write...
Thanks for sharing results.
@@craigneidel I purchased another TB405 enclosure with the SN77 2TB, about the same R-2700MB/s W-2600MB/s... The enclosure comes with Thunderbolt 4 cable instead of Thunderbolt 3 cable.
@@phoenixbwp yes I noticed it says tb3 but I also received tb4 cable. Thanks.
Hello, I see thermal pads on your desk, did they come with the Acasis Enclosure?
I have a section on that in the video. 2 come with it but not thick enough so I picked up blue one myself. So it touches enclosure.
Just followed your instructions on M1 Mac and works GREAT but have a question. Should I enable Trim in macOS from the terminal application?
I didn't do that but it's optional if you think you want to. I didn't test it that way and I'm really just showcasing the product but there are a ton of different things to test beyond my video. Good luck and thanks for watching.
@@craigneidel thanks for the reply, keep up the good work!
@@dgordon2991 thank you
did u test how fast can it be if export directly to the drive from Final Cut Pro ProRes 422? Thanks for the video.
I have not tested that specific thing. On most editing tasks they are just as fast as the internal M1 Air disk.
nice
Thanks for watching.
3:20 would you recommend then buying a SSD with a heatsink already installed and use the enclosure without the top lid?, awesome video and thanks for the best bank for buck recommendation !!
That could work but they are all different sizes so just make sure it fits. A good thermal pad works OK too.
@@craigneidelthanks!!, there are awesome deals going on right now, and your recommendation for the WD SSN770 was a real money saver for me!!, keep it going with the channel and you just gained an early supporter sir!
Good luck with everything and thanks for the sub.
Excellent video, thanks! One question: I currently have an M1 mini, but within the next year or so I'm hoping to graduate to M2 (or beyond). So, would this configuration work on my current M1 in the meantime? Cheers!
Yes, that is what I used for this. It will work good.
@@craigneidel Great, thank you so much!
@@thormusique welcome
How does the TBU405 get all four lanes of PCIe to be available to the SSD, while products by reputable brands like OWC and Sonnet only spare one or two lanes? Which versions of PCIe and NVMe does the TBU405 employ?
I'm not sure about that. I am just performing a product showcase and there are many variables.
Question, considering switching to Mac Mini from Desktop PC. I own several apple products, I only use computer for media viewing and editing CZcams videos for my tennis channel. Don't do gaming on computer at all. I see there is rumor of M4 processor coming to Mac Mini end of this year potentially. Should I wait since my PC is still working fine or go ahead and buy a mac mini with 16GB RAM and 256GB hard drive plus external drive as you mentioned? If you recommend buying mac mini now and not to wait, do I need to get the M2 Pro?
You don't really need the pro for what you describe but just get 16 GB of ram as that is key. Don't get 8. I might wait to see what comes out after WWDC at start of June as a new mini could come out. Then make your determination off sales and pricing. The M2 with 16 GB is totally capable of editing 4K videos so no worries there if the price is right.
I have had issues moving large files to external nvme drives formatted in exfat.
They copy to the device but won’t open. You can then copy the files back to the Mac or even a PC and the file won’t open.
I don’t know if this happens when the external nvme is formatted using Apple’ s proprietary file system.
I do know that copying the files to a slower usb device such as a Samsung Bar series usb thumb drive did result in the files being able to be opened, played, and recopied onto other devices.
I have not seen that in my experiences before but it's good to hear issues if you are experiences that.
Nice review.
Will WD SN850X perform better with these type of enclosures? Will it perform any better than SN770?
Please suggest.
It should but I was only able to test sn770
@@craigneidel technically the max speed of both these two drives are lot faster than what these 40Gbps enclosure can provide. So, how much performance difference I’ll get between sn770 and sn850x?
Sn850x has DRAM, will it be a major factor when using with the enclosure. I can understand if I had to compare these as internal drives then 850x is a clear winner.
So when using with enclosure what’s the recommended SSD between these two?
Some drives just perform better using each specific enclosure for a number of reasons but it's not really that big of a deal. I tested the SN770 and it works great so I would just go with that. Another 100 MB/s when you are talking 3,000 MB/s won't make much of a difference at all.
Hi Craig, great video !
I do have 1 question. On the Acasis website, they had stated "[Notes]: Due to the firmware limitation of the Macbook M1 chip, the read speed is around 2000Mbps but its write speed is only around 1000Mbps. Chip M1 Pro and M1 Max doesn't have such a limitation.". Was your test done on that M1 iMac? Does it have the same (base) M1 chip as the Macbook M1? Or does it have a M1 Pro or higher chip? I was just wondering why you didn't hit the 1000 Mbps limit mentioned by Acasis.
Yes, I was on a M1 Chip and tested it on both my M1 27" iMac and my M1 MacBook Air and was able to get the speeds in the video. So I think that must be a typo or something on their website as you can for sure get 2750 or more MB/s on this.
Thanks for the clarification, Craig. I've tested a WD Black SN770 with the Acasis TBU405 and did get read/write speeds of 2600-2700 MB/s indeed. I also did another test on a Crucial 2 TB drive and got about 2200 MB/s
@@ChanKahFatt thanks for the info.
Most likely this issue existed before and they have fixed it. You can buy similar brand and they should work fine as they are using the same Intel 7440 chipset.
I wonder if this can be updated for the M2 Mac Mini Pro with 16 or 32 GB, but also for other memory chips such as Samsung 990 Pro, or other drives that maybe 4TB if possible. In addition is it possible to use the Hynex Chips, and why those may not work? Can if its suitable to format it for Windows and Mac and still have no compatibility issues? What is the Mac Mini Pro M2 internal SSD format anyway?
I'm not sure what you mean "can be updated for the M2" but it should work on that system. Yes, you can also format for Mac or PC. For Mac I used APFS.
Thanks for the info. The only thing I'm not sure of is the tape part. Where do you get the tape? And it just has to touch the lid when closed?
yes, I just picked some up on Amazon and a bit thicker then normal. It should touch the top of the case if possible. Or you can just leave the enclosure open for more air and that seems to work great too.
Thanks.@@craigneidel
Welcome
Hey what file format do you use for the ssd enclosure for WD SN770?
APFS if for Mac.
Do you find choosing the cheapest drive as you did detrimental to performance when you start to fill up the drive? I went with a couple of cheaper kingston sticks and although they were blazing fast at first after filling them up to over 60%, performance dropped by over 75%. I’m now inclined to stick to the more expensive pro sticks.
The drive I used which was a wd sn770 is not really a cheap drive and it performs very well as external storage. Thanks for watching
QUESTION - I am building this drive for a new Mac Mini M2 Pro. The enclosure, when i look at Amazon description, there also is showing another model, the TBU405 Pro M1. This other one states it works with the M2 (and has a fan). Should I go with this TBU405 Pro M1 or just the recommended TBU405?
I have not tested that other one so I'm not sure. If you get the one I tested you should get the same performance I would think but maybe see if you can find anything under the Amazon notes. I'll maybe try and do a video on the new one in the future.
I use the one from Orico , it has builtin fan , SSD never overheats . I get consistent 3500MB read write with WD SN580
Nice, I have a few I tested with the Fan and will be testing a few more.
does this drive get same speeds in m1 macbook air? @Craig Neidel? I'm looking forward to buying these, so do let me know!
The drive/enclosure is actually about the same speed as the M1 Base MacBook Air. So very fast for sure.
I have two of these I run in raid 0 to separate TB ports. Read speed is 5100s write is 4500s. Single is 3.1k read 2.9k write. It’s all about the drive you use plain and simple. Some M.2s are on the edge of what thunderbolt can provide not including the pcb interface. Samsung 990s while pricey are power efficient. A plus to raid is you multiply your SLC cache accordingly. Even if you drop down to TLC speeds 990s drop to 1300-1500mb per sec so you’re still typically operating at a single TB max speed. U.2 is making more sense for TB/$. Don’t spend 2-300 for an enclosure. 15-30$ in m.2 to U.2 plugged in to the thunderbolt enclosure you already have works. Get the adapters that have a 4 pin connector on the PCB. U.2s require 2-3x more watts. A 40 plus watt power adapter will take care of it. Used 6.4TB drives compatible with macOS can be had for mid 200s. They are built for 3 drive capacity writes per day or 6x the average m.2.
Thanks for sharing all of this and that is crazy fast when run in Raid 0. I'll have to give all this a try and if I do I'll let you know. Thanks.
What cables are you guys are using? Thanks
Cable that can with it. It came with thunderbolt 4 cable
can this configuration be used with the Mac Mini with the Intel Chip?
I would check the connections. It would need to have Thunderbolt.
Very Nice 👍🏻
*Is there 1TB External SSD which matches these speeds or faster, need to use it with my S23 Ultra for backup*
Thanks
I'm not sure but I if you build this one it would have the 1TB you need and the speeds. I think some of the external pre-built SSDS are only around 1,800 MB/s but I'll need to look because I think OWC has a few that have higher speeds on pre-built enclosures.
@@craigneidel
Thanks
Also please let me know how safe are these enclosure vs the T7 pre built External SSD
I seen that they have the pro version of the SSD is that a better option?
Since you are limited by the ssd enclosure it won't make a difference on the external speeds.
did use the Orico 40Gbs with a (PCI3) WD 570 And it is racing, 3148 MB/s on read and 2813 MB/s on write tested with AmorphousDiskMark 4.0 Also tested a 550GB FCP library (with a lot of render files in it. And it took 2.8 minutes Did it several times and it is quick. On the SSD I put on the supplied heat strip twice on top of each other Both controller and ram chip(SSD) and put on top of that the supplied heatsink. I am very very happy with the result. BTW the 2 TB WD SN570 was 130 euro’s and the Orico was 140 euro.
So no need for a PCI4 ssd a good PCI3 (cheep) SSD wildo also (IMHO)
Thanks for sharing. I just read the comments and many less expensive drives didn't perform this fast in the enclosure but it's going to be case by case. I just reviewed the one drive but I'm sure others will work good too. Thanks for watching.
Which model did you get of Orico? As their 20Gbps version are really slow on my Mac Mini M2 Pro. I barely was getting 1000MB/s.
@@greenpulp. Thats the maxium you can get (USB3.2) it is 10GBbs not 40Gbs (USB4 Thunderbolt4)
@@MrTriumphST Currently waiting on a INDMEM 40gbps enclosure. I hope that one is a lot better :)
Can I use this SSD for my 2019 Imac desktop? It's been incredibly slow and I need to upgrade or possibly this would fix my problems
I'm not sure what you are asking. You can use it for data storage but you would need to boot off the external disk and reload the OS etc. on that in order to see speed improvements. In any case just having it as external storage won't do too much if your computer is slow since your main drive is still onboard the imac.
Hi Craig, do you think you could enclose the SSD into the Mac mini … taking advantage of its fan? The usb connection could exit at bottom and connect to back. Thanks.
Maybe but I'm not sure if the SSD would overheat the Mac mini then. It can get some heat going so it would be something that would need to be tested. Thanks.
@@craigneidel If formatted for apple, could it then be temporarily connected to M2 iPad for download?
I have not tried that but I think that should work. Check out the comments on the Amazon page as I'm sure somebody tired that.
hi!! how do you make the Western Digital Black SN770 NVME SSD 1 TB, mine hub is not recognizing it, and sate chi says that only SATA are compatible not NVme?
Your hub must only take SATA M.2 SSD Drives and not M.2 NVMe SSDs. They look the same but are different. What is the enclosure since I'm guessing it's just rated for SATA.
Using the Samsug 980 pro and acasys thunderbolt case but have a huge problem. Booting often fails due to crash and when it boots it takes like 10 min!!! Once it boots it runs perfectly, 2700 write 2000 read . Same M1 iMac as yours. Any ideas?
I wasn't booting the OS from the external. Is that what your trying to do?
Are they any hubs with the nvme encloser that are close to these speeds?
You mean with ports also?
Question
About WD BLACK SN770 250-500gb does it support Android like Samsung S10e im just gonna used it as a Portable Xternal SSD to free up some space.
Thank
I would just do a search on the Amazon page for what it will support to confirm but I think it should.
Is it possible to use the enclosure as the boot disk?
Should be but I will need to test that on a Mac. I would look at comments on Amazon to confirm but I don't see why not. I just did a video on another cheaper enclosure for only $89 that can do about 1,500 MB/s and lists in the directions it can be used as Mac Boot drive if that one interests you. Check out my channel for the video and it's from OWC.
Is there any external enclosure that can hold Nvme and SSD drive and fits nicely under the Mac Studio? The OWC stackable can only go up to 800MB on the Nvme(samsung 980 pro) and 400MB on SSD drive? If you are using lot of drives it becomes a mess around the Mac Studio and eats up all the ports, anything our there that can help with this scenario ? Thanks
I'm not sure if this is what you meant but here is one that could work. Still not going to get over 800 to 900 MB/s though - czcams.com/video/486zUPvifTQ/video.html
Great video. I'm doing the same thing, but I ran into a serious problem - the sustained write fails across many SSDs. I've tested about 12 cards and 3 controllers, and this is a major problem with the cheaper SSDs. Every time I get above 2500mb/s write and read speeds on blackmagic test for 5gb. But once I ask it to transfer a 1tb folder or more, it'll say 12min, but I come back in 12min and all of a sudden it's up to 30min. Then I check the speed on blackmagic and it's dropped from 2500 to 30 or 60! It's just slowed to a crawl. I've tried two WD black chips so far, and both seemed to be duds - maxxed out at 950mb/s. The only one I've found so far that was even reasonably cheap was the Crucial 4tb. But will continue to test.
It must be overheating is my guess. Have you tried some higher end thermal pads etc.? I have not see this to the level you talk about here but some drives heat up for sure if you are doing 1 TB transfers.
I had this issue on a Yottamaster 10Gpbs enclosure with the same SN770. Your NVME's might not have DRAM and needs to talk to the host memory buffer (HMB) which I believe is the issue with slowdowns on subsequent passes. Oddly, I didn't face this issue when I connected the drive to a dock and USB-C 10Gpbs port (instead of MPB's thunderbolt port). I tried another 20Gpbs rated port with a different chipset and that worked. Of course, this review is for a thunderbolt port and that will work.
Yes, I was using on Thunderbolt and it works great with this specific setup.
where did you get the heatsync tape?
Just on Amazon. I think I have a link to it in the description but there are hundreds of offerings.
HI, I bought the exact suggestion from here but I have an issue, the enclosure gets extremely hot, I am afraid to run... I do not have a probe or a thermometer to precisely measure the temperature but is is HOT. I wish I knew this before.
All NVMe drives will get warm to hot when running and moving data. Make sure you get a thicker thermal pad that touches the metal to move the heat out. It should not be an issue but of course all setups and thermal pads are different so try a few cheap ones to see what works best.
Craig, where can I find those tapes?
Amazon. I think I have it in video description
Can this be used for MacBook Pro laptop?
Yes a newer one with thunderbolt port
What does a portable ssd do thats different, are they just slower. And will they connect to phones, Samsungs and iphones, ipads etc
It's basically the same but you need a Thunderbolt 4 connection on the computer/or device to get the max speed of the enclosure. This is more for Mac users or video editors who want to edit off this space externally etc.
good info, thank you. i get my numbers mixed up, but given your final 2800 speed, wouldnt a 5 or 10 GB enclosure yield the same or similar results? BTW its 6/28/13 as I write this. I just picked up an acasis 40GB enclosure from the acasis site where it is on sale for $110 w free shipping! and! first time customers can take $10 off, So it ran me a total of $100!
Still, I'd like to know if the same results can be had for even less $. Like this vid has already saved me $. My first build was a 2TB WD Black 850X inside the same acasis box, and I get exactly the same Black Magic reading you're getting on a less expensive though still WD Black quality drive. Again, thank you.
I looked the samsung over, i've had no experience with them, but they seem to give off a vibe that in this field they are the ones with the magic secret sauce no one else can duplicate, but i don't see that in any specs, or from a collection of + and - reviews.Their prices suggest they think they do. ok that was so MEOW lol. God bless Samsung, unless that wouldn't help them. öŌ
No a 10 Gbps enclosure is much slower. You need to divide bytes and bits. A 10 Gbps enclosure is capable of 10000/8 = 1250 MB/s. Then add in overhead so realistically 800 to 1000 MB/s. 40 Gbps is 40000/8 = 5000 MB/s but again with overhead top enclosures and drives can only get about 3200 MB/s. So maybe 3 or 4 times faster with right drive. So much faster with thunderbolt enclosure if you need that. But most can use slower speeds just fine.
I just put together this setup. Mac Mini M2 16GB Ram, 256GB Internal SSD, and added a Acasis TBU401 SSD Enclosure with a Western Digital Black 1TB SN770. Works great, and it's fast! But it gets disturbingly hot. I now have it sandwiched between two heatsinks, and they cook too. This can't be healthy for the SSD and my data. I think I may consider something slower and cooler.
Thanks for sharing. I haven't seen that hot of temps but they do get warm. But, all external M.2 NVMe are going to get toasty for sure and finding the right cooling solution is half the battle. Thanks for sharing.
@@craigneidel Hey Craig...Just a follow up on my external storage solution using the Acasis enclosure. The excessive heat was just too troubling for me. I'm an old timey Computer Field Engineer. I've worked on everything from Micro's, Mini's, to Mainframe Systems. I know what heat can do to hardware, and in turn to Data (Start looking for backups!). I decided to move my M.2 NVMe SSD to a Qwiizlab UH25 Pro. No loss of Data in physically moving the SSD. Yes, it's slower being the Qwiizlab is Gen 3 but right off the bat it's not cooking. I appreciate your both reviews on Acasis and the Qwiizlab.
Thanks for the update on this.
Craig,
Thank you for your video. I am contemplating moving from my Windows 11 Pro, 64GB Ram, PC to the Apple Mac Mini M2 or M2 Studio. I am struggling with my manufacturer releasing GPU drivers as fast as Microsoft releases its O/S updates. I am sick of the dark screens after a bootup and the subsequent rollback on O/S. My GPU manufacturer recommends a different GPU. My concern is that what is next, the motherboard, CPU, power supply, RAM, etc.?
Not terribly long ago, I used a 15" Macbook Pro and loaded VMWare Fusion that enabled me to use both the Apple O/S and Windows O/S. My challenges were with drivers and keyboard functionality. I understand that Parallels is another option. However, I have no experience with it. We need some Windows applications and, frankly, I have more familiarity with Photoshop key functions than with Apple. Canon no longer supports our old but reliable Canon printer on Mac's. However, they do have current drivers for our Windows PC.
My questions to you are:
1) would you migrate to the Mac Mini M2 with two operating systems, Apple and Windows 11 Pro?
2) what is your recommendation to port over 11 TB from five disk drives (one Intel SSD and four WD's) that reside on my PC?
3) does your Acasis device use a Thunderrbolt-4 connection?
4) can you tell me what the manufacturer's life span is on a WD SN 770? Are those devices as reliable as either a SSD or conventional SATA drive?
5) could I use my wired Steelseries keyboard and mouse or would I have to use my bluetooth Logitech MX series devices or Apple products?
6) May I use my 27" LG 4K monitor, using an HDMI cable?
When I reviewed the M2 specifications, I was concerned that I did not have enough ports to connect everything. I assume that one option might be to format the drive you recommended to be used on a PC or MAC, then to transport all my data to that device.
Thank you.
John
Thanks and good lock with everything. You can imagine I get hundreds of questions so I can't research and answer them all and am sorry for that. I would do a search on google for some of these answers. Yes, the Acasis uses an unbranded Thunderbolt 4 cable and is 40 Gbps. You can see the speeds I was able to get in the video and it's around 2,800 MB/s give or take as long as connected to the right port. The M2 Macs are great systems and if you think you can live in Apple's ecosystem then they should work great for you. Note that you need to make sure all your applications would be compatible on MacOS. Yes, you can run apps and data off an external drive if need be and that should work. I"m no sure about the TBW or the Monitor questions but I'm sure you can look those up and see if they meet the needs you have. On the website (Amazon) it lists other drives that will work good too. Thanks for watching.
@@craigneidel- Thank you!
@@johnpeterka8355 welcome and thanks again