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How to manage external drives!?

Tags:
  • SATA
  • Storage
  • Enclosure
  • Cable
  • External USB
Last response: in Storage
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August 11, 2014 1:22:59 PM

Okay so I'm brainstorming something I'd like to do. Basically, I need (want) to be able to connect 4 or more drives (probably SATA HDDs) to my MacBook Pro Retina. And I need to do this with a single USB cable, because (unfortunately) I have exactly 2 USB ports at my disposal with everything unplugged. I know there are several solutions out there such as this one, but I really don't want (cant afford) to spend a hundred bucks on the enclosure when I still have to buy a couple of drives. So I searched around a bit and found these:

this
and
this

Now... I have a PSU from an old computer that I think I could use to power all the drives through these cases. Now, how do I get all four SATA cables into a single USB 3.0 cable or even a thunderbolt cable?

I have thought about buying a few SATA to USB cables and using a USB hub, but almost every one I can find (like this) provide both the data and power in the same connector. Since the drives will already be powered, I only need the data portion going through USB. Does anyone know of a part that will do that? Also, does anyone know of good USB 3.0 hubs for about 10 bucks? Or is my idea complete crap?

Thanks!
Noah

More about : manage external drives

August 12, 2014 12:14:39 PM

Bump :) 
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August 12, 2014 8:43:29 PM

the money you might save you will lose in time, it will look ghetto, and will be more headache than worth. I am not a mac fan but does it support "port multiplying"? Just get a (2) Thermaltake duet toasters and be done with it. You will not find a USB3 hub for under $25 IMO. I have two powered hubs and I paid $30-40 per and couldn't believe how expensive they were.
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