Single best external storage solution for Mac Pro & MacBook Pro ...?

Hello,
I'm still waiting for the Mac Pro delivery I have around me something like four external hard drives from different vendors and different sizes and all containing important data ... it is really a mess, cables, lack of redundancy, etc.
I wanted to replace all these once and for all by a single elegant long-lasting and reliable solution to combine with my new Mac Pro and MacBook Pro. The best I could find was OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 8.0TB containing four internal HDD in double RAID with multiple possible setups: RAID 0 and RAID 1, RAID 10 configurations:
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other%20World%20Computing/MEQX2T8.0S/
Looks like an excellent choice for the only one external storage solution! does anyone has experience with this model? are there better contenders?
Many thanks in advance,
Best regards,
Giovanni

Giovanni,
I have the OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 (6 TB) external HD array in a Raid 5 configuration (as received from OWC). I have found it to be excellent when connected to my Mac Pro using a PCI SATA card and the SATA output on the Elite-AL Pro Qx2. The speed of the system under Raid 5 easily supports all but uncompressed high definition video, and the system came with Prosoft's Data Backup software which does an excellent job of backing up other external drives installed on my Mac Pro.
I highly recommend the Qx2 and think you will find it is a good single source solution to providing you with reliable and safe storage for your data. With Raid 5 if one of the HD's in the Qx2 fails, you simply remove it and allow the system to rebuild the data when you insert a new HD. Thus unless two HD's fail simultaneously (high unlikely) you are protected against data loss. Note also that your Mac Pro does not have to be left on while the Qx2 is rebuilding.
Tom

Similar Messages

Can anyone suggest the best external hard drive for MAC PRO?

As my tower is whirring like the proverbial jet, I was told at the Genius Bar to back everything up before trouble-shooting. I've researched various 500 GB ext. hard drives, but they all seem to have drawbacks. My biggest priority is reliability. Any ideas? Thanks.

You will find suitable products at MacSales.com or you can purchase a hard drive separately and install it in an external Firewire enclosure. You will find enclosures at:
MacSales.com
CoolDrives.com
FirewireDirect.com
NewEgg.com
In the future please choose the proper forum for your topic. You posted this question in the MacBook Pro forum instead of the Mac Pro forum.

What's the best external backup solution for the 2011 MacBook Air?

I'm really considering moving to a new 2011 13" MacBook Air for my primary machine and I'm curious to know what ya'll might suggest for the ideal backup solution.
Currently I use a Firewire 800 drive with my MacBook Pro consisting of a Bootable OS backup, Media volume backup, Time Machine backup + blank volume for files.
The current external options available —Thunderbolt release date anyone?—are: USB 2.0 and Time Capsule. Lately—and a first up until now—I've started thinking about potentialy moving my backup solution online. I'm curious if anyone has experience with an affordable, simple, online solution?
Also, don't suppose any kind of storage solutions could utilize the SD card slot in any way?
I look forward to hearing about your backup solutions!
All the best,
—Jordan

Redundancy is more important than speed when it comes to backup.
I like a have a clone of my internal drive to an external drive of the same size. If your internal drive fails you can boot from your external clone. I use SuperDuper!
If your data is important to you, you should keep a backup off-site and have more than one backup set.
Cloud storage is an option if you have fast broadband and small data volumes.
I like the simplicity of Time Machine with Time Capsule for incremental and version backups.
Rather than invest in Thunderbolt (expensive and fast), invest in redundancy (cheap, slow).

What is the best external hard drive for Mac Pro for photography

Hi,
Can anyone recommend a relatively inexpensive portable external hard drive that can transfer large photos between my laptop and the external drive?
I'm thinking something that has Firewire, around 500gb or more and is lightweight.
An absolute must is Dependable. Something that doesn't* break or disconnect on me continually after 6 months.
Any help would be much appreciated!!!
Thank you guys and gals!
Mari

I ALWAYS build my own drive (takes 5 mins). More storage and less money.
Use FireWire not USB.
USB is packet oriented and data transfer is managed by the CPU, Firewire is a streaming protocol and data transfer is managed by the CPU only to initiate transfer, after that, Firewire handles the rest dropping CPU load to nearly 0%.
Put the drive below, in the enclosure at the bottom. Note how the enclosure has a cooling fan, and that the drive is mounted on vibration mounts. I know of no other hard drive enclosure with those features.
A hard drive has three enemies 1) Heat, 2) Vibration, 3) A Windows 7 installation.
http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-Intellipower-Desktop-WD20EADS/dp/B001RB1TI S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1258862242&sr=8-1
http://www.cooldrives.com/ox93saiihadr.html

Best External Hard Drive for Mac Pro

I have been searching the forums and can't seem to get a good answer for a fast, quality external to store video files with. 500gb Time Capsule is the same price as a 1tb raid Western Digital Mybook? Any suggestions?

http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other%20World%20Computing/MESATATBEK/
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Firmtek/SATA2EN2/
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Firmtek/SATA5PM/
http://eshop.macsales.com/search/rocketraid
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Sonnet%20Technology/TSATAIIE4P/
The ONLY way I have managed to create NTFS partitions was:
Convert FAT to NTFS in Vista;
Delete FAT and create in Vista (essential to install Vista)
Format a drive as MBR in Disk Utility and use MacFuse + 3g

Can anyone suggest best 500 GB external hard drive for MAC PRO?

Genius Bar rep told me to back up hard drive before delving into whirring tower... Any suggestions for a 500 GB automatic external hard drive? I've researched several, but they all seem to have drawbacks. Reliability and a quiet fan are priorities. Thanks.

Thanks so much for sharing that. Just talked to Apple support .... MAC PRO apparently has 4 slots for drives, and they would be covered under the Apple Protection Plan. With Leopard, they could be set to back up automatically. Thx again!

Best external hard drive for mac book pro

I have tried many external hard drives, I just want something I can plug in copy my data on my mac pro without all the formatting, Is there one out there somewhere :-)

Most, if not all HDDs come formatted for Windows computers. You will have to format the HDD in Disk Utility>Erase or use a third party application such as Paragon or Tuxera. If you need directions, just ask.
Any 2.5" SATA HDD will be compatible with your MBP for both internal and external use. Here is a range of options for external drives from OWC:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/firewire/
Ciao.

Best options for external DVD burner for MAC Pro

The internal DVD/CD burner died in my MAC Pro -
PIONEER DVD-RW DVR-111D
it wasn't ever reliable so I want to replace it with an external drive so when that one dies I don't have to take my computer to the Apple store to get it replaced & the worst part being without my computer for 3-4 days.
Any suggestions on a good reliable DVD burner are greatly appreciated.

A good bootable multi-interface enclosure (empty) for an external CD/DVD drive will run about US$70.
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/MRSFW8U2RF/
They also sell SATA drives pre-installed in that same enclosure.
Many users find installing an internal drive themselves no more difficult than doing a memory upgrade themselves.
Others prefer not to work inside their computer.
Based on your graphics card and the original drive, I expect your Mac Pro is an older model. All before 2009 accept an ATA INTERNAL drive such as this:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/superdrive/Mac_Pro_Xeon
That page also has a video of how to install a replacement DVD drive.

External hard drives for mac pro, external hard drives for mac pro

my laptop always says there is not enough space and I notice my hard drive it out of room, what would be a best external hard drive that will support the Mac Book Pro?

huge storage, low cost, high quality, very small and portable.
BEST FOR THE COST, Toshiba "tiny giant" 15mm thick 2TB drive (have several of them, lots of storage in tiny package)    $100
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Connect-Portable-HDTC720XK3C1/dp/B00CGUMS48    /ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1390020791&sr=8-3&keywords=toshiba+2tb
best options for the price, and high quality HD:
Quality 1TB drives are $50 per TB on 3.5" or $65 per TB on 2.5"
Perfect 1TB for $68
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Portable-Hard-Drive/dp/B005J7YA3W/ref=sr_1_ 1?ie=UTF8&qid=1379452568&sr=8-1&keywords=1tb+toshiba
Nice 500gig for $50. ultraslim perfect for use with a notebook
http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-Canvio-Portable-External-Drive/dp/B009F1CXI2/ref=s    r_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1377642728&sr=1-1&keywords=toshiba+slim+500gb
*This one is the BEST portable external HD available that money can buy:
HGST Touro Mobile 1TB USB 3.0 External Hard Drive $88
http://www.amazon.com/HGST-Mobile-Portable-External-0S03559/dp/B009GE6JI8/ref=sr    _1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383238934&sr=8-1&keywords=HGST+Touro+Mobile+Pro+1TB+USB+3.0+7 2 00+RPM
Most storage experts agree on the Hitachi 2.5"
Hitachi is the winner in hard drive reliability survey:
Hitachi manufacturers the safest and most reliable hard drives, according to the Storelab study. Of the hundreds of Hitachi hard drives received, not a single one had failed due to manufacturing or design errors. Adding the highest average lifespans and the best relationship between failures and market share, Hitachi can be regarded as the winner.

Best display calibration unit for mac pro under $100?

I have come to the conclusion that calibration by eye is a suckers bet. So looking at calibration units, for example spyder 3 express.
Wondering what units work best with mac pro (2008 8 core).
Thanks for replies.

My experience is that it comes down to multiple factors. The monitor, the application you're using, along with the color profiles you're using.
I use a 30" Dell display hooked to a 5770 graphics card and I make sure the color profiles are consistant over the applications I use.
At one stage I bought a Huey Color Correction device. I eventually put it on the shelf and forgot about it.
My conclusion is, after years of consistently good color printing results, is that if you've got the components right like a good monitor and working with consistant color and press profiles then the "Expert Mode" is Apple's Color Calibration in System Preferences is completely adequate.
I spend every day color correcting in our graphic design business and we get terrific, predictable results.

External graphic card for mac pro (early 2008)

I have a Mac Pro (early 2008) where the graphics card seems to be dead.
I have no replacement and a new one is a little too expensive for what I'm gonna use it for. (400$).
Also the harddrive died.
So now I have an unconfigured Mac Pro with no display.
I can't figure out if there is a way to boot it and have it somehow share its screen during a first install?
Is there an external USB/firewire graphics card that will act as a master display output already when plugged in?

macvidcards on ebay can held on gpu, and disk drives are easy and shouldbe aregular yearly upgrade

The best external hard drives for macs

Can anyone recommend a good external hard drive for a mac computer; preferably the IMac OS 10.5.6 desktop. Thanks!

Personal Experience with the One Touch Series:
Keep a VERY CLOSE EYE on that Maxtor One Touch!
I had two of the 1TB Firewire 800 models at one point. Hard drives failed on one of them within a month. Warranty replaced the unit but not the data. After a year, the tiny fans died and the drives overheated, resulting in total loss of both enclosures and all the data on them (within a week of each other).
Those things are not meant for continuous use. If you only use them for periodic backup purposes, and then shut them off, they may be fine.
Maxtor's setup software for the Mac was a PITA, too. The version included on the disc was worthless. Disk label indicated one version, actual version on the disc was an older, incompatible version. Maxtor sent a replacement disc. It was the same disc with the same problem. Finally located the correct installer on their website. That was a few years ago.
I'll never touch the touch series again as a result.
On the other hand, I've had a SmartDisk FireLite 60 GB (FireWire model) for my Powerbook for 5 years now with excellent performance. I have no problem recommending SmartDisk drives.
-mt

What's the best external hard drive for mac?

I recieved the email from Apple saying that my 1tb hard drive may fail becuase it was bought between October 09 and July 11. Anyways, im now looking for an external hard drive to back up all my stuff too. I know i should of thought about getting one a long time ago. I was just wondering what would you guys recomend as a good ehd. I was looking at the Seagate Backup plus 1tb one, and the Western Digital My passport for mac 1tb. Anybody have any bad experiences with those?

It's really just personal preference. I usually just recommend if you've got a 1TB drive in your Mac get a 1TB external drive for time machine. If you want to have a secondary drive after that for storing movies or anything you don't necessarily want to have backed up (you can also setup exclusions in Time Machine) or to save space on your iMac drive that works as well.
If you really want to get good backups a lot of people recommend the 3, 2, 1 model..... 3 backups on 2 different types of media with 1 of those being offsite.
I've got 1TB in my iMac, then I've got a 1TB external drive for Time Machine. Then I have two external 1TB drives I back my system up to (using an app called SuperDuper) that I rotate at a family members house. I'll periodically do a backup, drop it over at their house then bring the other drive back and repeat once a month or so. I've got another drive that I occasionally copy things I don't need access to or care to be backed up.

Wireless storage solution for mac and pc network?

I am trying to figure out a way for my pc's and power book to share files through a shared wireless hard drive. I need a new hard drive anyway, as mine is just about filled, but it seems silly to save all of my music to each computer instead of one location that all of them can access. Linksys has one, model # EFG250. Does anyone know if it will work. Will it work with a mac? Are there other solutions out there?

You can always set up a network and keep the music on one computer and point all the other computers to that one library. I keep all my music on my iMac and have my BlackBook and three PCs pointed to it to share the music over the network.
Those NAS drives are very expensive for what you get. Since you are planning on upgrading your drive, get a large drive and save the money.
If you really want to do this externally, the new Airport Express base station has a USB port in it that can be used to access an external drive over the network. I understand you can also use a USB hub to hook more than one drive into it.
That might be worth looking into.

New external hard drive for Mac Pro & FCE

I wasn't sure where to post this question, but as most of my Mac work is using FCE I thought this would be the best place to ask.
My Western Digital 1TB Studio External Drive keeps going into sleep mode and I'm concerned it may go to sleep soon and not come back to life again. I'm looking for a similar hard drive with Firewire 800 on it.
Apple store recommended Lacie D2 hard drive which I have previously heard bad reviews about their reliability and customer service. I have over the years on my PC used Maxtor or Western Digital, however this is my second WD Studio drive in last 6 months that has gone into deep sleep mode.
Any recommendations of a good, reliable with decent manufacturer support if needed?
Thanks in advance.
Matt

Stay away from general purpose backup drives. They are not designed to deal with the demands of video.
If you want a dedicated A/V enclosure that comes supplied high performance drives, Caldigit is seriously recommended. If you are looking for bare firewire enclosures where you can add quality drives, Granite Digital and OWC are good sources. The WD Caviar Black drives as well as the Seagate series Martin recommended are good choices to fill the enclosure.
fwiw - LaCie makes a LOT of drives and a certain percentage are bound to fail fairly quickly. Still, the main problem with them is you have no idea what physical drive mechanism is inside. Some are ok, some are junk.
x

Single best external storage solution for Mac Pro & MacBook Pro ...?

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for