# SSD on mac pro slow when installing?



## JT3_Jon (Nov 14, 2013)

I've noticed that the SSD on my mac pro is noticeably slower than the SSD on my laptop (Mac pro running Samsung 240 PRO, Laptop Samsung 240 EVO). 

For example, I was installing the demo for izotope Iris, and after double clicking the "instal" button in the disk image to launch the installer, on my laptop it opened after a second or two, on the mac pro it took 10+ seconds of bouncing in the dock before it work open. Then when I try to run the installer it takes a good 3-5min on just the "preparing" screen (laptop is done with the whole install in 5 seconds). Ive run the blackmagic disk speed test and its getting good numbers (257.8 MB/s Read, 269.5 MB/s write) so I dont know whats going on. 

Any ideas? I have of course run disk utility to repair permissions as well as made sure TRIM was enabled on the drive. I'm running disk warrior now, but I dont believe that will make any difference. 

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!


----------



## gdoubleyou (Nov 20, 2013)

Depends on the specs of the machines, it's possible the laptops have a faster bus speed, faster RAM, faster CPU.

8)


----------



## rJames (Nov 20, 2013)

I'll assume it's SATA 2 on Mac Pro and SATA 3 on laptop.


----------



## Gerd Kaeding (Nov 21, 2013)

JT3_Jon @ Thu Nov 14 said:


> I've noticed that the SSD on my mac pro is noticeably slower than the SSD on my laptop (Mac pro running Samsung 240 PRO, Laptop Samsung 240 EVO).
> 
> For example, I was installing the demo for izotope Iris, and after double clicking the "instal" button in the disk image to launch the installer, on my laptop it opened after a second or two, on the mac pro it took 10+ seconds of bouncing in the dock before it work open. Then when I try to run the installer it takes a good 3-5min on just the "preparing" screen (laptop is done with the whole install in 5 seconds). Ive run the blackmagic disk speed test and its getting good numbers (257.8 MB/s Read, 269.5 MB/s write) so I dont know whats going on.
> 
> ...



Hello ,

what rJames mentions above is correct.

With a MacPro 2008 ( and later) only using a PCIe based SSD solution overcomes the SATAII bottleneck of the MacPro series . ( This will change with the upcoming MacPro 2013)

An inexpensive and flexible solution comes from Sonnet :
The Sonnet Tempo SSD is a 6Gb/s SATA PCI Express adapter card that gives you the possibility to choose the SSD manufacturer and SSD size of your choice. No drivers needed if you run OS X 10.7.1 or higher . 
Info :
http://www.sonnettech.com/product/tempossd.html

Just put the SSD into the adapter , install the adapter in a PCIe slot. That's it .
However , you have to install a Firmware Update for the SONNET PCIe Card to get the full bandwith !!!
( http://www.sonnettech.com/support/kb/kb ... =b733#b733 ) 

The Sonnet _Tempo SSD_ or _Tempo SSD Pro _should be installed in Slot3 or Slot4 in a MacPro 2008 .

In later MacPro models you can install these PCIe Cards in any of the free PCIe slots. However , while the MacPro2008 model can hold both _Tempo SSD_ and _Tempo SSD Pro_ , the later MacPro's can only be equipped with the _Tempo SSD_ , due to the length of the PCIe Cards.





Best
Gerd


----------



## JT3_Jon (Nov 21, 2013)

Awesome! Thank you for the suggestion Gerd! I'll for sure be checking it out. Maybe Santa might have one in his goodie bag...I've been ever so good this year...


----------



## Malo (Nov 26, 2013)

> However, while the MacPro2008 model can hold both Tempo SSD and Tempo SSD Pro, the later MacPro's can only be equipped with the Tempo SSD, due to the length of the PCIe Cards.



@Gerd:
I have Mac Pro 4,1 Quad-Core 2.66 from 2009. Are you saying that the Sonnet Tempo SSD Pro will not fit in my Mac Pro 4,1?

According to the Sonnet site the Tempo SSD Pro fits into a PCI Express 2.0 x4, of which there are two in the Mac Pro 4,1.

It also says:
"Tempo SSD Pro is recommended for Mac Pro 1,1 2,1 and 3,1 instead of Tempo SSD. These early Mac Pros have PCIe 1.1 slots which will negotiate the two-lane Tempo SSD card down to one lane. These early Mac Pros will correctly negotiate with the four-lane Tempo SSD Pro." 

I just wondered if I have misunderstood the specs at Sonnet's web site?


----------



## Gerd Kaeding (Nov 26, 2013)

Malo @ Tue Nov 26 said:


> > However, while the MacPro2008 model can hold both Tempo SSD and Tempo SSD Pro, the later MacPro's can only be equipped with the Tempo SSD, due to the length of the PCIe Cards.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Hello Malo ,

good that you're asking :

Actually I was only referring to the pure physical size of the PCIe-Cards .
I have both a MacPro 3.1 - which hosts a "_Tempo SSD Pro_" as well as a "_Tempo SSD_" - , and a MacPro 5.1 which is equipped with two "_Tempo SSD_" models. 
The "_Tempo SSD Pro_" models are slightly too long , they simply don't fit into the MacPro 5.1 due to their length / size. 

As far as I remember the MacPro4.1 has the same physical architecture as the MacPro 5.1 . ( I hope I don't give wrong information here .) 
Therefore you should get the "_Tempo SSD_" model .

I'm using the SSD's attached to these PCIe-Cards for Samples only (Samsung 840 Pro / 512 GB models ), and I have to say that I don't see any difference between the two PCIe-Card versions for sample streaming tasks. This might be different for Video Streaming.

Best
Gerd


----------



## Malo (Nov 26, 2013)

Hey, Gerd! Thanks for your swift reply!

This page seems to verify that the 4,1 and 5,1 have the same PCIe slots.

http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/mac_pro/faq/mac-pro-how-to-install-pci-card-how-many-pci-slots.html (http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/m ... slots.html)

It seems that the 3,1 has 2 Double Wide, 16-Lane (2.0), and 2 4-Lane (1.0), whereas the 4,1 has 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0, and 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0.

So, the Double Wide slot seems to be the one seperating the two.

However: (I'm doing research as I write) 8) 

On page 5 in the Tempo SSD Pro manual:

http://www.sonnettech.com/support/downl ... ro_qsg.pdf

Tempo SSD Pro Card Installation Steps
Hardware Installation Steps for All Users
1. Shut down your computer or expansion chassis, disconnect its power cable, and then open it to access the expansion card area (PCI Express slots); refer to the user manual for specific information
2. Locate an available PCI Express slot and remove its access cover if necessary. Windows users skip to the next step; OS X users:
• Mac Pro (Mid 2012), Mac Pro (Mid 2010), Mac Pro (Early 2009) and pre-2008 Mac Pro users may install the card into any available slot.
• Mac Pro (Early 2008) users must only use slot 3 or 4.


I would say that this more than suggests that both your 5,1 (Mid 2010) and mine 4,1 (Early 2009) should be able to house the Pro card.

Are you as confused as I am? :shock:


----------



## Gerd Kaeding (Nov 27, 2013)

Malo ,everything you are quoting from the manuals is correct.

But besides all the infos about the compatibility concerning the internal structure/technology of these PCIe-Cards , it was simply not possible for me to put the "Tempo SSD Pro" Card into my MacPro5.1 . 
I tried at least an hour to put the "Tempo SSD Pro" into that machine , trying this ... trying that ... . No chance . It was _too big_. Period.


If you are still undecided , get both cards , try to install them , and then send back the one that didn't fit into your computer.

Best
Gerd


----------



## Simon Ravn (Nov 27, 2013)

Gerd, are you sure you retracted the grey plastic box to the left, that secures long PCI cards, by pressing the black button on it and pulling it left? I thought the Tempo wouldn't fit into mine (mine is a mid 2010 6-core), but after realizing I had to do this, it fit!


----------



## Malo (Nov 27, 2013)

@Gerd:
Thank you very much! I'm buying a Tempo SSD Pro that has been opened and tested, so they give me a discount. They also said they would take it back if it won't fit.

@Simon:
I read something about that grey plastic box. This gives me hope that this will work! Thank you for chiming in, Simon!

I'll probably go with two of those Samsung SSDs you are using Gerd.


----------



## Gerd Kaeding (Nov 27, 2013)

Simon Ravn @ Wed Nov 27 said:


> Gerd, are you sure you retracted the grey plastic box to the left, that secures long PCI cards, by pressing the black button on it and pulling it left? I thought the Tempo wouldn't fit into mine (mine is a mid 2010 6-core), but after realizing I had to do this, it fit!



Hi Simon , thanks for the info! Much appreciated.

Actually , I really tried that too , but for what reason ever the PCIeCard was/is still some millimeters too long. (_Just with some more brutal pushing it would fit_) . 
At a certain point I gave up, because I was afraid to break the PCIe-Card. 
Maybe I should have been more brutal ... ( oh boy, I'm such a bloody pacifist ) ... 

Best
Gerd


----------



## synergy543 (Dec 24, 2013)

Gerd Kaeding @ Thu Nov 21 said:


> An inexpensive and flexible solution comes from Sonnet :
> The Sonnet Tempo SSD is a 6Gb/s SATA PCI Express adapter card that gives you the possibility to choose the SSD manufacturer and SSD size of your choice. No drivers needed if you run OS X 10.7.1 or higher .
> Info :
> http://www.sonnettech.com/product/tempossd.html


My Sonnet Tempo (probably a newer B version, not PRO) worked fine out of the box with 10.6.8 and booted without issue. There may be older versions of the card though that may require drivers.



Gerd Kaeding @ Thu Nov 21 said:


> Just put the SSD into the adapter , install the adapter in a PCIe slot. That's it .
> However , you have to install a Firmware Update for the SONNET PCIe Card to get the full bandwith !!!
> ( http://www.sonnettech.com/support/kb/kb ... =b733#b733 )


Is this only for the PRO card or older versions? I didn't do this and I'm getting 500 GB/s. I doubt it could get faster....but one can wish I guess.



Gerd Kaeding @ Thu Nov 21 said:


> The Sonnet _Tempo SSD_ or _Tempo SSD Pro _should be installed in Slot3 or Slot4 in a MacPro 2008 .
> 
> In later MacPro models you can install these PCIe Cards in any of the free PCIe slots. However , while the MacPro2008 model can hold both _Tempo SSD_ and _Tempo SSD Pro_ , the later MacPro's can only be equipped with the _Tempo SSD_ , due to the length of the PCIe Cards.


Yes, this is what I read in the manual too. But by mistake, I put mine in slot 2 and it was MUCH FASTER. And the tech at Sonnet agreed with me. So take your pick, and YMMV. Slot 2 is working nice and fast for me!
--------------------------
Hi Greg,

You’ll definitely want that card back in Slot 2, since the Mac Pro 3,1 (2008) is broken down as follows:

Slot 1: PCIe 2.0
Slot 2: PCIE 2.0
Slot 3 and 4: PCIe 1

So you will definitely get a decrease in performance in the top two slots (which you’ve already experienced).
-------------------------


----------

