Other World Computing announced today it has expanded the storage capacity of its high-performance OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 desktop hardware RAID storage line to 16.0TB by utilizing four of the industry’s only 3.5″ 4.0TB SATA 6Gb/s hard drive in the Qx2’s four hot swappable drive bays.
In addition to offering massive storage/backup capacity in a desktop sized footprint, the Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 features a “Quad Interface” of FireWire 800, FireWire 400, USB 2.0, and eSATA ports and four selectable Hardware RAID settings – 0, 1, 5, 10 – for high speed, highly reliable Plug and Play use with Macs and PCs.
Five Prosumer Models Available
- 12.0TB OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 (3TB x 4) – $1429.99
- 16.0TB OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 (4TB x 4) – $1997.99
The Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 is available in four Enterprise Class options up to 12.0TB and a 0GB kit (no drives included) option. All Qx2 models include a disk utility software bundle retail valued at more than $100, all interface connection cables, and a three-year warranty.
Comprehensive “Burn-in” Test Ensures Highest Reliability
Unlike most other brand solutions that are assembled then shipped with little or no testing, all OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 solutions undergo a multi-hour “burn in” performance certification procedure prior to shipping to ensure the unit is operating properly and that the installed drives are ready for demanding use. The new 16.0TB model test takes over 30 hours to complete while lower capacity Qx2 models testing hours start at 10 hours and go up to 24 hours.
Built for Demanding Performance-Intensive Applications
The OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 is built for demanding performance-intensive professional applications such as Audio/Video editing, HD-video, digital photography, professional music, graphics, redundant backup, and any use requiring data storage performance and reliability. Pre-configured in a Hardware RAID 5 mode to provide data redundancy to ensure uninterrupted access to stored data, as well as protecting against data loss, the Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 can also be configured to automatically perform one of the other three hardware RAID settings: 0, 1, or 10, as well as a Span (NRAID) setting.
Plug & Play Desktop RAID for Mac & PC
The OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 offers a variety of convenience features that make adding it to any Mac or PC Plug & Play easy: FireWire 800, FireWire 400, USB 2.0, and eSATA interfaces provide compatibility with multiple operating systems and computers; front panel LEDs give quick, at-a-glance system status; and a removable key lock ensures the installed hard drives and selected RAID mode remain secure.
Highest Capacity, Lowest Environmental Impact
The new 4.0TB hard drive built into OWC Mercury storage solutions employs a halogen-free design and power-efficient operation — up to a 28 percent idle power savings — to complement OWC’s well-regarded environmental practices. The drive also uses Advanced Format, which increases the sector size from 512 bytes to 4096 (4K) bytes, thereby increasing capacities and improving error correction capabilities.
Backed by the Best Support in the Industry
The best warranty is one a consumer should never have to use, but should the need occur, OWC is proud to provide a superior level of support and warranty coverage. All OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 storage solutions come fully backed by free lifetime US-based 24/7 technical support and up to a five-year warranty which includes a 48-hour repair turnaround time with six months of complimentary Level 1 data recovery.
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Is there a downloadable firmware for the older Qx2 so I can use 4@4tb drives yet or is that still done in-house? I’d love to upgrade the capacity of the enclosure. Also, is there a current approved drive list available for that chassis?
I’m sorry to say we do not have an update for the older Qx2s to enable support for drives over 2TB. A new Qx2 would be needed in this case.
is there a download available yet to update the firmware please?
i purchased 4x 4tb drives but the enclosure does not accept these yet.
do i have to buy a new one?
There is not an update to the prior units for over 2TB support. In this case a new unit would be recommended for utilization of 4TB Drives. It’s not our preference, but it is the reality with this higher capacity support.
Can I use the firmware of Akitio Hydra Super-S LCM on Mercury Elite Pro Qx2? This seem it is the upgrade model of OWC one, please clarify?
While the casing is similar, the products are not the same.
Akitio’s site lists clearly: “This firmware is only for Akitio’s standard products and specifically the model(s) as mentioned above. DO NOT use this firmware for any other devices!”
Is there a customer firmware upgrade option available yet or do I need to send in my Qx2s? Thanks.
The firmware is not yet available via download, but we can do the firmware update for you in-house. Please contact our Customer Service team at 1(800)275-4576, via email or live chat to make the arrangements.
Help, I need to update my firmware on my QX2 drive, I purchased (4) 4TB DESKSTAR drives and I am only able to use 8TB with the current settings. I am using the approved drives, but it appears that my case needs to have the firmware updated. Please help, I don’t want to send it in if I don’t need to.
Units shipped prior to 2/18/11 will require a firmware update to recognize and utilize 4.0TB hard drives. At this time, the firmware update does need to be completed in house. We are currently working on a distributable firmware updater but it is not available yet.
How do I go about getting my OWC Mercury Elite Pro Qx2 firmware updated to allow 4tb drives? I know it was shipped before 2011. Thanks.
Contact our Customer Service Team via phone at 1(800)275-4576, email or live chat to make arrangements.
Yep, I’ll jump on the Thunderbolt waiting list. I love your products guys, and the Elite Pro Qx2 is a very compelling product, but I have been holding off purchasing one until Thunderbolt is added, so I can build a home server around a Mac Mini and one of these units.
I AM honestly surprised you guys have taken so long. But I know you will deliver the goods. May you shed some light on why it’s taken so long? Is it an issue of learning the technology? Issue of licensing? Or of cost? Or does it simply take this long to get the controller developed?
Scott
I purchased 12TB and 0TB versions of the QX2 on 2/15/11. The info page for the 0TB version now states that a firmware update is required for units shipped prior to 2/18/11 to recognize 4TB drives. Is there a specific reason that this date was chosen? If I am required to update the firmware, how involved is the process? Also, is there any word on the compatibility and availability of the Hitachi 7K4000 7200RPM drives? Thanks in advance.
At this point, the firmware updater is not available. Units that need the firmware update to accept 3.0 or 4.0TB drives would need to be sent in to us to apply the update, or wait for that updater to be available.
That said, I have good news for you – in checking into your order, your particular 0TB version has had the firmware update applied already. We listed the 2/18/11 on the website as that was the hard date that every unit we had in stock is guaranteed to have had the update applied. And the 12TB obviously has the update as it contains four 3.0TB drives.
We don’t have the Hitachi 7K4000 7200RPM drives available at this time. Unfortunately, I have no information as to ETA or availability, but we do have a few other options for 4.0TB 3.5″ hard drives.
Thanks for the info. Can you confirm that the Seagate Barracuda XT 4TB drives are compatible with the Qx2?
Not yet, still looks like we’re still 11 days out ’till we receive them in, we’ll be able to test & qualify them at that time.
Okay, thanks. I’ll keep an eye out for any updates.
Why are you not leading the Thunderbolt market instead of allowing lesser drive companies to pass you?
We’re working on developing our own Thunderbolt-equipped solutions, and much like we did with our Solid State Drives, we may be a little late to the party, but boy…what an entrance we made and are now the life of the party ;-) Believe me when we say the wait will be worth it!
For the love of god make a TB to eSATA dongle!!!!!! How would that not help you sell these things??? Forget the TB port on these HDD monsters, BUT GIVE US THE DONGLE!!! How many iMacs and laptops has Apple sold in the last year? Millions of potential customers! I swear if I could make one of these things I’d make a billion dollars. Why are you limiting your self to Mac Pro users?
All we’ve announced so far is that Thunderbolt is indeed coming to our products. Have patience and all will be revealed in due time. In the meantime, we do carry the Sonnet Echo and paired with an eSATA ExpressCard that would give you the functionality you desire without having to wait.
when will we get this great box with thunderbolt connection?
http://www.macworld.com/article/165326/2012/02/thunderbolt_one_year_later.html