1-800-275-4576
We're sorry, but this item is no longer for sale. However, there may be more External Drives & Enclosures items available.
This was an Open Box product listing.For more great deals on Open Box, Refurbished and Used items, keep an eye on our Garage Sale page. Or join our email list and be the first to know when new items become available!
OWC Express 4M2
Four-Slot Thunderbolt (40Gb/s) NVMe M.2 SSD Enclosure for NVMe M.2 2280 SSDs
New | Open Box
Mfr P/N: TB3EX4M2 OWC SKU: OWCTB3EX4M2O
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
video
Infinitely configurable. Infinitely reconfigurable.
- Four NVMe M.2 SSD slots - Add up to 32TB of storage
- Up to 2800MB/s
- Compact design
- Thunderbolt Certified for Mac and Windows
- Includes Thunderbolt (USB-C) cable
- 1 Year OWC Limited Warranty
- When using Express 4M2 with Mac Studio (M2 Max or M2 Ultra) or Mac Pro (M2 Ultra), some drives may require macOS 13.5 or later for proper operation.
You like to explore your own independent path, and digital storage is where you have fun, push hard and spark the imagination. You explore, you refine, and when ready, you share your vision with the world. The OWC Express 4M2 is the external drive built for the journey before you and the path yet to be explored.Customize your Express 4M2 with up to four NVMe SSDs, RAID them however you wish and connect it all with Thunderbolt 3 the fastest and most flexible interface around. The sheer performance of the Express 4M2 helps you meet deadlines faster, giving you more time to explore your creativity and push your projects further.
Pint-Sized Powerhouse
Small in stature. Big on capability. The OWC Express 4M2 is ready to serve with four easy-to-access NVMe M.2 SSD slots customizable for any workflow with vibration damping feet that allow for vertical or horizontal orientation. Install up to 32TB of capacity and experience up to 2800MB/s of mind-bending performance via Thunderbolt 3. The Express 4M2 is an amazingly small digital workhorse with world-renowned OWC quality and award-winning support built in.Ingest and duplicate dailies at breakneck speeds, work with higher resolutions, smoothly scrub through demanding timelines, and plow through thousands of photos with ease. The OWC Express 4M2 is one seriously fast drive to have by your side to take your digital capabilities to a new level.
Built Smaller and Faster from Input by Pros Like You
The OWC Express 4M2 is designed with superior ease-of-use in mind. We worked with award-winning creatives and listened to the kudos they heaped onto the OWC ThunderBay mini, and we put all that shared knowledge to good use when we set out to build the next-gen Thunderbolt 3 multi-bay drive. The result is the 57% smaller and 2.5x faster OWC Express 4M2.It's smaller and easier to fit into your workflow, studio and on stage. It's faster with four easy-access M.2 slots so you can swap, upgrade or expand your Express 4M2 to configure and reconfigure it to serve any project need.
Game-Changing NVMe SSD Performance
NVMe (Non-Volatile Memory Express) is a hyper-efficient communications interface protocol built from the ground up to properly take advantage of SSD technology and high-performance connection buses like PCIe. The result is exponentially faster and efficient SSD storage, and the OWC Express 4M2 has room for four NVMe SSDs.
DisplayPort
Display connection flexibility is yours with a convenient DisplayPort located right on the rear of the OWC Express 4M2. There's no need to worry about adapters or extra long cables. Just plug your display directly into the Express 4M2 and you're all set.
Multi-Drive
Configure and reconfigure your storage however you need by combining multiple OWC Express 4M2 drives together on Mac and Windows. Utilize the amazing capabilities of SoftRAID to RAID across multiple Express 4M2 drives, or add multiple Express 4M2 drives to your storage pool using Windows Storage Spaces.
More Powerful With SoftRAID
Need more power and protection? Choose a solution that includes OWC's powerful SoftRAID RAID software.
SoftRAID is the most powerful, intuitive software RAID utility on the market. Multiple RAID levels let you select the RAID level that fits you or your project’s needs best. If you need maximum volume capacity, optimum drive performance, data protection, or a combination of attributes, SoftRAID has you covered.
Packed with features like drive validation, verification and failure prediction—SoftRAID includes features you simply don’t get with hardware RAID. It’s like having a datacenter on your desktop! From home users looking to protect photos and documents to professionals needing to protect and quickly access projects, SoftRAID is the perfect solution.
Try SoftRAID COMPLETELY FREE for 14 Days
Start protecting yourself and your data today! Get all of SoftRAID's great disk checking and monitoring features, plus the fastest and most efficient software RAID there is.
Connect to Thunderbolt and Thunderbolt 2 Systems with Ease
The OWC Express 4M2 is fully backward compatible with Thunderbolt and Thunderbolt 2. Utilize Thunderbolt 3 performance to work at full speed, and step back to Thunderbolt or Thunderbolt 2 whenever connectivity compatibility is needed for your workflow. Add a Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter along with the appropriate Thunderbolt cable, and you're all set.
OWC Thunderbolt cable
OWC Express 4M2 comes with an OWC Thunderbolt cable which is Thunderbolt certified for Mac and Windows, with additional 0.5 meter to 2.0 meter lengths available separately.
Quality You Can Trust
Like all OWC drives, the OWC Express 4M2 is built to the highest standards of reliability and performance and Thunderbolt Certified for Mac and Windows. Because 100% reliability is always the goal, Express 4M2 is rigorously quality tested and backed by our award-winning customer support.
- Thunderbolt 2/Thunderbolt compatibility requires a certified Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 (mDP) adapter and a Thunderbolt 2 cable (not included). This configuration provides data transfer at up to 20Gb/s but does not support notebook charging.
- Advanced RAID features require RAID management software (such as OWC SoftRAID, available separately).
Includes
Back to top
- (1) OWC Express 4M2 External Storage Enclosure
- (1) 0.7M (28") Thunderbolt (USB-C) Cable
- (1) Power Supply and Power Cable
- (4) SSD Mounting Screws (pre-affixed to the circuit board, opposite the M.2 connectors)
- (1) Quick Start Guide for OWC Express 4M2
- (1) Assembly Manual & User Guide for OWC Express 4M2
- 1 Year OWC Limited Warranty
Specs
Back to top
Drive Bays
- 4 bays supporting: M.2 drives
- Supports single-sided and double-sided M.2 2280 "M Key" drives
- NVMe SSDs with a heatsink are not supported.
- Each bay offers PCIe 3.0 x1 performance.
Hot Plug Support
- Yes
Boot Support
- All four drive bays are bootable on macOS. SSDs with 512 byte sectors require macOS 10.13 or later. Boot Camp is not supported.
RAID Capable
- Yes
RAID Features
- Software RAID
Device Ports
- (1) Host Port - Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) up to 40Gb/s (5000MB/s)
- (1) Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) Port
- (1) DisplayPort Port
Power Delivery
- Two Thunderbolt 3 ports with 15W power delivery each.
Display Support
- Up to one 4K display @ 60Hz,
- or one 4K display @ 30Hz,
- or two 4K displays @ 60Hz
Display Support by Port
- DisplayPort 1.2: Up to 4K @ 60Hz
Data Transfer Rate (Maximum)
- Thunderbolt 3 : Up to 40Gb/s (or 5000MB/s)
Chipset / Controller
- (1) Thunderbolt 3 - Alpine Ridge DSL6540
MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures)
- Varies depending on drive mechanism installed
Contact Start Stops
- Varies depending on drive mechanism installed
Host Interface Requirements
- Thunderbolt (USB-C) port (backward compatible with Thunderbolt 2/Thunderbolt1)
Mac OS Compatibility
- macOS 10.12 Sierra
- macOS 10.13 High Sierra
- macOS 10.14 Mojave
- macOS 10.15 Catalina
- macOS 11.x Big Sur
- macOS 12.x Monterey
- macOS 13.x Ventura
- macOS 14.x Sonoma
- macOS 15.x Sequoia
PC OS Compatibility
- Windows 10 32-bit Edition
- Windows 10 64-bit Edition
- Windows Server 2019
- Windows Server 2016
- Windows Server 2022
- Windows 11
Driver Required
- No
Other Requirements
- When using Express 4M2 with Mac Studio (M2 Max or M2 Ultra) or Mac Pro (M2 Ultra), some drives may require macOS 13.5 or later for proper operation.
- When using one or more SSDs with 512 byte sectors, macOS 10.13 or later is required.
External Power Adapter
- Yes
Power Supply
- External UL-listed universal auto-switching power supply
- Need an additional power supply? Secondary/replacement power supplies are also available.
AC Input
- 100-240V, 50-60Hz, 1-2A
DC Output
- +12V, 6A
Wattage
- 72W
Cooling
- (1) 60mm 2,800RPM cooling fan
Security Slot
- No
Power/Activity LED
- Yes
Housing Color
- Black
Housing Material
- Aluminum
Dimensions
- Height: 6.0 cm (2.4 in)
- Length: 11.3 cm (4.4 in)
- Width: 13.6 cm (5.4 in)
Weight
- 800.0 g (1.76 lbs)
Certifications
- CE
- FCC
Country of Origin
- Taiwan
TAA Compliance
- Yes
Ambient Temperature
- Operating: 32°F to 104°F (0°C to 40°C)
- Non-Operating: -4°F to 158°F (-20°C to 70°C)
Altitude
- Operating: -304.8 m to 3,048.0 m (-1,000 ft to 10,000 ft)
- Non-Operating: -304.8 m to 12,192.0 m (-1,000 ft to 40,000 ft)
- Thunderbolt 2/Thunderbolt compatibility requires a certified Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 (mDP) adapter and a Thunderbolt 2 cable (not included). This configuration provides data transfer at up to 20Gb/s but does not support notebook charging.
- Advanced RAID features require RAID management software (such as OWC SoftRAID, available separately).
- Reads and 711MB/s Writes due to the bandwidth of the 1X PCIe3.0 bus.
- When installed, the following SSDs will only be compatible with Windows 10 systems: Hynix Gold P31, Samsung PM981a
- Does not support Dual-Mode DisplayPort (DP++), however it does support Multi-Stream Transport (MST) in Windows 10.
- Dual display support, including available resolution and refresh rates, is dependent on host hardware and drivers.
- Apple silicon M1/M2/M3 Pro, M1/M2/M3 Max, and M1/M2 Ultra Mac models, Apple Intel-based Mac models, and Thunderbolt 4 PCs can support up to two displays at up to 4K @ 60Hz via Thunderbolt.
- Apple silicon M1/M2/M3 Mac models can support one external display up to 4K @ 60Hz via Thunderbolt. - The following Apple silicon M1/M2/M3 Mac models support a single display over a Thunderbolt port:
- MacBook Pro (14-inch, M3, 2023)
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, M1, 2020) - MacBookPro17,1
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, M2, 2022) - Mac14,7
- MacBook Air (M1, 2020) - MacBookAir10,1
- MacBook Air (M2, 2022) - Mac14,2
- Mac mini (M1, 2020) - Macmini9,1 - The following Mac models provide only partial support for DisplayPort 1.4, including limiting resolution to 5K or 6K at 60Hz. Please review Apple's display specifications for your specific Mac to determine the maximum supported resolution and color depth:
- MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2018) - MacBookPro15,1
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2018, Four Thunderbolt 3 ports) - MacBookPro15,2
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2019, Four Thunderbolt 3 ports) - MacBookPro15,2
- MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2019) - MacBookPro15,1 and MacBookPro15,3
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2019, Two Thunderbolt 3 ports) - MacBookPro15,4
- MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2019) - MacBookPro16,1 and MacBookPro16,4
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, Four Thunderbolt 3 ports) - MacBookPro16,2
- MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2020, Two Thunderbolt 3 ports) - MacBookPro16,3
- MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2018) - MacBookAir8,1
- MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2019) - MacBookAir8,2
- MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2020) - MacBookAir9,1
- iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2019) - iMac19,1
- iMac (Retina 4K, 21.5-inch, 2019) - iMac19,2
- iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) - iMac20,1 and iMac20,2
- Mac mini (2018) - Macmini8,1
- Mac Pro (2019) - MacPro7,1
- Mac Pro (Rack, 2019) - MacPro7,1 - Multiple drives will not be recognized by a Thunderbolt 4 PC connected over a Thunderbolt 4 port when using Aura Ultra IV SSDs with the Express 4M2.
- When using Express 4M2 with Mac Studio (M2 Max or M2 Ultra) or Mac Pro (M2 Ultra), some drives may require macOS 13.5 or later for proper operation.
Videos
Back to top
M.2 SSD Install Video
Learn More
Customer Reviews
Back to top
Works Great!
This worked great. Easy to install the (not included) drives. Plug and Play. Super fast.
I would recommend this product to a friend!
Verified Purchase.Reviewer3776135135,
Feb, 6 2025
- Reviewer:Reviewer3776135135
Response from OWC, Support
Thank you so much for your fantastic review! We’re thrilled to hear that everything worked great for you and that the installation was a breeze. It's awesome to know you’re enjoying the plug-and-play convenience and speed! Your satisfaction means the world to us. Keep enjoying your setup!
Super fast and works great
Very happy with my new 4 x 4TB array hosting content and VMs, was extremely easy to setup using SoftRAID
I would recommend this product to a friend!
Verified Purchase.fhlipzero,
Jan, 8 2025
- Reviewer:fhlipzero
Response from OWC, Support
Wow, thank you so much for your fantastic review! We're thrilled to hear that you're loving your new 4 x 4TB array and that it’s working great for your content and VMs. It's awesome to know that the setup with SoftRAID was a breeze for you! We appreciate your feedback and can’t wait to see what you do with it next. Enjoy the speed and reliability! Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions, comments, or concerns. https://eshop.macsales.com/Service/
Blazing fast
I have complete trust in OWC and have been a customer for many years. I bought the OWC Express 4M2 to replace a HDD RAID that was a serious bottleneck in my film editing workflow. The 4M2, filled with 32Gb of Sandisk WD Black SSDs is a blazing fast drive. The performance is a remarkable upgrade. No bottlenecks now.
I would recommend this product to a friend!
Verified Purchase.SuccessfulRaven-97732,
Oct, 29 2024
- Reviewer:SuccessfulRaven-97732
Response from OWC, Support
Wow! We're thrilled to hear how the OWC Express 4M2 has transformed your film editing workflow! It's fantastic to know that after years of trust in us, you've found such a powerful upgrade to eliminate those bottlenecks. Your experience truly energizes our commitment to providing top-notch solutions. Thank you for sharing your excitement and being a valued part of the OWC family! Enjoy that blazing fast performance!
View More Reviews
…
Related Items
Back to top
