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REVIEW: FirmTek ThunderTek/PX2+2
Thunderbolt Storage Bundle

Originally posted May 28th, 2014 by rob-ART morgan, mad scientist

FirmTek is now shipping the ThunderTek/PX2+2 which bundles the ThunderTek Thunderbolt-to-PCIe Expander with the SerTek/6G2+2 PCIe SATA adapter which enables you to mount two 2.5" drives directly on the card. We tested it connected to the 2013 Mac Pro 8-Core.

GRAPH LEGEND
Two SSDs = ThunderTek/PX2+2 with dual 500GB Samsung 840 EVO 6Gbps SSDs mounted on the SeriTek/6G2+2 and striped (RAID 0) using Disk Utility's software RAID function
One SSD = ThunderTek/PX2+2 with one 500GB Samsung 840 EVO 6Gbps SSD mounted on the SeriTek/6G2+2

SIMULATED 4K VIDEO CAPTURE and PLAYBACK
We used AJA System Test to test file level sequential transfer speed of a 16GB test document. It also simulates capture and playback of a 4096x2160 10-bit RGB video. (HIGHEST number means FASTEST in Megabytes per Second.)

INSIGHTS
The ThunderTek/PX2+2 Storage Expansion Bundle is a unique way to adapt the SeriTek/6g2+2 (and other half length PCIe adapters) to a Mac with Thunderbolt ports.

Though the ThunderTek has a single PCIe slot, it accommodates wider PCIe adapters like the SeriTek/6g2+2 on which we mounted dual 6Gbps SSDs. That, in effect, makes it a standalone Thunderbolt storage device. Of course, with the two external eSATA ports of the 6g2+2, this bundle can also support two direct connect eSATA enclosures or two Port Multiplier enclosures or a combination of both.

KEY FEATURES OF THE ThunderTek/PX2+2 BUNDLE INCLUDE . . .

  • Mac OS and Windows certified for Thunderbolt
  • Mount up to two 2.5" HDD, SSD, or SSHD drives - right on the card
  • Two external eSATA ports for connecting external direct-connect and port-multiplier eSATA enclosures
  • Bootable: Supports Mac OS X 10.6.x - 10.9.x)
  • Supports Windows 8.x (including via BootCamp) but non-bootable
  • Compatible with 2011 or later MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, Mac mini, 2013 Mac Pro and other Thunderbolt equipped computers.
  • Compatible with SATA I, II, III drives (1.5Gbps, 3Gbps, 6Gbps)
  • Compatible with software based RAID solutions
  • Supports direct-connect SATA enclosures
  • Supports port-multiplication SATA enclosures with Sil3726 & Oxford 936 chipsets
  • PCIe expansion via Thunderbolt offers up to 10Gb/s dual channel data transfer rates
  • Thunderbolt/PX chassis supports compatible PCIe cards for eSATA, USB 3.0, 8Gb Fibre Channel, 10G Ethernet, audio and more; single half-length PCIe 2.0 x1, x2 or x4 cards up to 6" in length
  • Energy Saver Mode: Automatically powers on/off with your computer
  • Light-weight, rugged, aluminum case for maximum durability and heat dissipation
  • Ventilated case with quiet fan operation
  • Single Thunderbolt connector; single power connector

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WHERE TO BUY THE FIRMTEK THUNDERTEK/PX2+2
The FirmTek ThunderTek/PX2+2 storage expansion chassis is avaiable from distributors, resellers, or directly from FirmTek. Be sure to check out FirmTek's other storage products.

WHERE TO PURCHASE FAST, HIGH CAPACITY SSDs

WHERE TO PURCHASE HIGH CAPACITY NOTEBOOK HDDs

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copyright 2014 Rob Art Morgan
"BARE facts on Macintosh speed FEATS"
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