How does the Mac Pro Drive Caddy Work?

bobbagumbobbagum
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
So are SATA connectors standardized to a point that it allows the connector on the computer to be fixed and the drives simply sliding in? I'm sure there'll be some drives that won't fit the Mac Pro.



Together with the whole RAM heatsink thing, The impression I'm getting from Apple with the Mac Pro is "Sure, third party commodity stuff works, but not as well as our overpriced Apple branded ones" They probably can't void your warranty for using 3rd party, but they sure do try to make you think that you need their RAM and HDD.



Fortunately, anyone needing the Mac Pro wouldn't probably be duped into buying this stuff. But again, if my company's paying, I sure as hell won't care too much if the RAM in the machine is overpriced.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 12
    placeboplacebo Posts: 5,767member
    I think the position of the connectors are standardized, for computers that work in exactly this way.



    And anyways, even if they weren't, you could just buy the exact same HD's that Apple is selling (SATA Seagates) on Newegg or even Ebay.
  • Reply 2 of 12
    leonardleonard Posts: 528member
    Great conspiracy work , but it's flawed. The memory thing was nothing. Most if not all of that type of memory comes with heatsinks and there are many 3rd parties you can buy it from. Any third party drive that follows the specs for the Mac Pro can be used in the drive sleighs. Quit trying to spread FUD. Apple uses standard components in their computer that you can buy anywhere.
  • Reply 3 of 12
    mordakmordak Posts: 168member
    I wouldn't buy anything other than Seagate or Maxtor anyways.



    On my MacPro, if I buy another stick of 1GB ram, do i need to buy a heatsink too?
  • Reply 4 of 12
    placeboplacebo Posts: 5,767member
    The heatsinks are just a bit of Apple polish to make the fans not have to work so much. It'll take any RAM that's to spec, but your fans might crank up a notch or two.
  • Reply 5 of 12
    o4blackwrxo4blackwrx Posts: 383member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mordak


    I wouldn't buy anything other than Seagate or Maxtor anyways.



    On my MacPro, if I buy another stick of 1GB ram, do i need to buy a heatsink too?



    Don't forget that memory has to be installed in PAIRS on the board with matching capacity. Slot 1 matches up with Slot 4, Slot 2 and 5 filled, etc...
  • Reply 6 of 12
    mordakmordak Posts: 168member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by O4BlackWRX


    Don't forget that memory has to be installed in PAIRS on the board with matching capacity. Slot 1 matches up with Slot 4, Slot 2 and 5 filled, etc...





    so if i want another gig i need two 512s?
  • Reply 7 of 12
    placeboplacebo Posts: 5,767member
    Yeah.
  • Reply 8 of 12
    cosmonutcosmonut Posts: 4,872member
    I guess I was under the impression that the sleighs have connectors in them that the hard drive plugs into and then the sleigh interfaces with the Mac Pro through it's proprietary plugs and layout.



    Is this right or wrong?
  • Reply 9 of 12
    mordakmordak Posts: 168member
    shit i'll probably just get two 1gb sticks then. hmm.. sounds like my machine is going to have 2x 512s in it when it arrives. darn
  • Reply 10 of 12
    placeboplacebo Posts: 5,767member
    I don't think you'll be running out of RAM slots too quick.
  • Reply 11 of 12
    bobbagumbobbagum Posts: 68member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Leonard


    GQuit trying to spread FUD.



    I'm not, Apple is, but I can see why certain configuration of ram heatsink won't be quite effective as Apple's for example



    Apple's heatsink on the ram goes like this:



    ========= FAN <- Airflow

    ========= FAN <- Airflow



    But if you were to put in heatsink that have their fins in this configuration:



    |||||||||||||||||||

    |||||||||||||||||||



    the airflow would be somewhat disrupted



    But most of the FB-DIMM i saw have just heat spreaders on them, so I guess they are allright.



    I do apologise for the ASCII art





    My point is that when I first look at the Mac Pro, my impression was really that these might be an actual issue, but then after some googling, and indeed after posting this that I was certain that the SATA connector wouldn't be an issue.
  • Reply 12 of 12
    isomorphicisomorphic Posts: 199member
    Question: Can you use SATA 1.5Gb/s drives in the Mac Pro?



    I know the specs say SATA 3Gb/s. Isn't SATA backwards-compatible?



    (The reason I ask is that I have old drives in PCs I'd like to put into the Mac Pro...)
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