USB 3.1 Gen. 1 vs Gen 2 SATA Dock

[CC268]

Hey guys,

I need to get a SATA dock for mounting/unmounting my HDDs. I am looking at a Startech model which is USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10Gbps) and an OWC model which is USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5Gbps). The OWC model is a much nicer dock, but the downside is that is is USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5Gbps).

OWC shows USB 3.1 Gen 1 as having read speed of 427 MB/s and write speed of 347 MB/s. Plenty fast for HDD. That said a typical SSD is capable of read/write speeds over 500 MB/s...so I would lose some speed capability there, right?

Stupid question, but just wanted to check before I purchased something.

Thanks.

 

[LTC8K6]

Not sure why you'd go with Gen 1 at this point.

 

[CC268]

Not sure why you'd go with Gen 1 at this point.

Well...like I said in my OP, the Gen 1 dock is a much nicer dock. Most these SATA docks are built like crap to be honest. OWC is one of the few that is built very well. But I do see your point. The Startech dock might be the best option because of the Gen 2.

 

[LTC8K6]

There are so many of those docks on Amazon...the Plugable Gen 2 one looks nice if you don't need two slots.

 

[CC268]

There are so many of those docks on Amazon...the Plugable Gen 2 one looks nice if you don't need two slots.

Yea there are a ton on Amazon...a lot of them are junk though. I did see the Plugable one, which does look nice, although I think I will purchase a dual dock. In that case the Startech is probably the way to go. Thanks.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

I need to get a SATA dock for mounting/unmounting my HDDs. I am looking at a Startech model which is USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10Gbps) and an OWC model which is USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5Gbps). The OWC model is a much nicer dock, but the downside is that is is USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5Gbps).

Is it by any chance the SDOCKU313 you're looking at? I can recommend it, been using it a lot for the last few year. It uses the Asmedia ASM1351 controller which is quite compatible with anything SATA really. From 2.5" SSDs to regular old spinning rust 3.5" drives.

Construction is, well plastic, but it seems quite robust and is reasonably heavy with textured rubber feet so it won't slide all over your desk when you place the disk in it.

BTW, if you're thinking to use 10Gbit USB3.1 get a short (<1m) high quality cable. It's notoriously fickle with cable quality.

OWC shows USB 3.1 Gen 1 as having read speed of 427 MB/s and write speed of 347 MB/s. Plenty fast for HDD. That said a typical SSD is capable of read/write speeds over 500 MB/s...so I would lose some speed capability there, right?

Sounds about right. Regular 5Gbit USB3.1 tops out at about 425MB/s R/W. The important bit is getting a dock with UASP support, it improves random R/W performance by quite a bit compared to BOT.

For 10Gbit there are a few additional considerations, but unless you're raiding drives they won't matter since SATA3 tops at 560MB/s.