CES: OWC 8-Bay ThunderBay 8 and ThunderBay FLEX 8 Thunderbolt 3 Storage Solutions

OWC (Other World Computing, Inc.) announced 2 additions to its ThunderBay product family – the ThunderBay 8 and ThunderBay FLEX 8.

ThunderBay 8
The ThunderBay 8 is a professional-grade 8-bay Thunderbolt 3 storage solution for pros. Think of it like a high-performance personal data center offering a multitude of configuration possibilities and almost limitless storage capacity for filmmakers, video production gurus, photographers, graphic designers and small business workgroups. With 8 hot swappable drive bays, it offers professional-grade storage capacity in a Thunderbolt 3 desktop-sized design. Mix 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch HDDs and/or SSDs in any combination up to 112TB of capacity and use them independently or match drives and combine them in a speed and/or redundant RAID with the included SoftRAID setup and management software.

Capacity, bandwidth
Need more capacity? Daisy-chain up to 6 of these storage behemoths together for up to a staggering 672TB to create your own custom, one-of-a-kind data center. With real-world tested speed up to 2,586MB/s via Thunderbolt 3 and the ability to SoftRAID together 8 SSDs or HDDs, ThunderBay 8’s rugged aluminum design has the under-the-hood horsepower needed to conquer high bandwidth requirements. You can also connect multiple ThunderBay 8 solutions to multiple Thunderbolt 3 ports on Mac or PC to achieve exponential speed increases.

Highlights:

Pro-grade transfer speeds – Up to 2,586MB/s of real-world tested speed via with Thunderbolt 3 port (Thunderbolt 2/Thunderbolt backward compatible)
Capacity – Store up to 112TB of critical footage, images, and files
Create a data center – Daisy chain 6 units together for up to 672TB of storage capacity
Eight hot-swappable universal drive bays – Mix or match 2.5-inch (no adaptor needed) and 3.5-inch HDDs and SSDs
SoftRAID – Software for creating, monitoring, and managing advanced RAID sets
See your work: DisplayPort 1.2 for connecting up to 4K monitor
Daisy-chain expansion: Second Thunderbolt 3 port for adding up to 5 additional Thunderbolt devices
Deployment ready – Pre-configured solutions undergo multi-hour drive burn-in
Hardware plug-and-play – No drivers needed; includes Thunderbolt 3 cable
ClingOn-ready: Cable stabilizer prevents work session interruption and possible data loss
Worry-free – Up to 5-year company’s limited warranty with 1-year Level one data recovery

Pricing and availability:
ThunderBay 8 will be available in 1Q20 in capacities from 0GB (adding your own drives), or from 16TB to 112TB with pricing starting at $1,228.99.

ThunderBay FLEX 8
Available, whether you call it a workflow workhorse, a productivity platform, or a configurable command center, one description of the ThunderBay FLEX 8 says it best. It was designed as the solution for demanding workflow needs. It’s a 3-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 storage, docking, and PCIe expansion solution from the Thunderbolt accessory manufacturer.

The ThunderBay FLEX 8 offers 8 drive bays that support a mix of SATA/SAS/U.2 NVMe drives for up to 128TB of storage capacity. Next, there are a ports including 2 Thunderbolt 3, 1 USB-C and 2 USB-A ports for device docking and charging. See your work with clarity by adding an up to 8K display via the built-in DisplayPort 1.4 connection. Ingest hires images and video via front-side SD 4.0 and CF-Express card readers. When you want to expand your desktop capabilities, there’s a PCIe x16 slot waiting for your specific project needs.

ThunderBay FLEX 8 was built to address the storage standards. All 8 bays can utilize legacy 6Gb SATA 2.5-inch SSDs or 3.5-inch HDDs. To take advantage of the direct connection PCIe technology offers to achieve transfer rates up to 40Gb/s, the top 4 bays are NVMe U.2 SSD ready. With these fast SSDs emerging as the preferred drive form factor of media and entertainment industry professionals, ThunderBay FLEX 8 is ready to meet the future storage needs of content creators and video production pros.

Highlights:

8 FLEXible drive bays with up to 2,750MB/s real-world tested speed:

4 top bays: Install your choice of U.2 NVMe SSDs (1 bay PCIe 3.0 x4, 3 bays PCIe 3.0 x1), 2.5-inch 6Gb SATA SSDs or 3.5-inch HDDs.
4 bottom bays: Install your choice of 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch 6Gb SATA drives.
Capacity: Store up to 128TB of critical footage, images, and files
Connect up to 5 additional Thunderbolt devices in a daisy-chain
Includes SoftRAID: software for creating, monitoring, and managing RAID sets
Deployment ready: pre-configured solutions undergo multi-hour drive burn-in
Connect and charge your devices: 1 USB-C and 1 USB-A ports for audio or video mixers, digital cameras, peripherals, and mobile devices
See your work: DisplayPort 1.4 for connecting up to 2 4K displays or one 8K display
Fast and easy camera uploads: up to 985MB/s with frontside SD 4.0 and CFexpress card readers
Play your card: 1 PCIe (x16) slot for half-length, full-height, single-width audio and video capture cards, high-speed networking card, SSD storage card, hardware RAID card, and even I/O cards like FireWire, FC, or USB 3.2.

Power to spare: 500W handles drives, expansion cards, and charging up accessories

Availability
The ThunderBay FLEX 8 integrated storage, docking and PCIe expansion solution will be available in 1Q20 as a 0GB enclosure (add your own drives) or from 16TB to 128TB solutions.

Read also:
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OWC Accelsior 4M2 PCIe Board for Four M.2 NVMe SSD
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