1-800-275-4576
OWC ThunderBay Flex 8
Eight-Bay Thunderbolt Storage, Docking & PCIe Expansion Enclosure with SoftRAID
New | Open Box
Mfr P/N: TB3F8 OWC SKU: OWCTB3F80C000O
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Bundle Savings!
$8.99 off - Thunderbolt 2 Compatibility Bundle - Add an Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter (APLMMEL2AMA) and save! (Limit 3)
Must purchase with: Apple Genuine Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter
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The Industry's First Thunderbolt 3 All-In-Wonder
- Eight drive bays: use a mix of SATA/SAS and U.2/M.2 NVMe drives for virtually limitless capacity and real world speeds up to 2750MB/s
- Future ready: top four bays can use U.2 SSDs…the emerging M&E industry storage standard
- Includes SoftRAID: robust software for creating, monitoring, and managing advanced RAID sets
- Do more: second Thunderbolt 3 port for daisy chaining devices or additional display(s)
- See more: DisplayPort 1.4 for connecting up to an 8K display
- Fast media ingest: front-side SD 4.0 and CFexpress card readers with up to 985MB/s speed
- Play your card: (1) PCIe slot for audio/video capture, networking, SSD storage, hardware RAID card, or I/O card
- Innergize™ Enabled: custom OWC software for complete health, performance, and field upgrade management when using OWC Atlas Memory Cards with OWC Atlas Card Readers and card reader-equipped products
- 2 Year OWC Limited Warranty
In Stock: Ships Same Day!$994.75
You Save $405.24
Limited supply! Only 1 available.
Tame your workflow with this highly configurable productivity platform for digital imaging, VFX, video production, and video editing professionals. With unrivaled FLEXibility, you can choose drive type(s), enjoy docking convenience, and expand your capabilities with PCIe cards.
FLEXible Storage
- Eight drive bays: use a mix of SATA/SAS1 and U.2/M.22 NVMe drives for for virtually limitless capacity and real world speeds up to 2750MB/s
- Future ready: top four bays can use U.2 SSDs…the emerging M&E industry storage standard
- Powerfully easy RAID: create, manage, and monitor advanced RAID sets with SoftRAID
Docking FLEXibility
- Do more: second Thunderbolt 3 port3 for daisy chaining devices or additional display(s)
- Connect more: (1) USB-C and (2) USB-A 10Gb/s ports for peripherals and mobile devices
- See more: DisplayPort 1.4 for connecting up to an 8K display4
- Fast media ingest: front-side SD 4.0 and CFexpress card readers with up to 985MB/s speed
FLEXpandable for Unique Needs
- Play your card: (1) PCIe slot for audio/video capture, networking, SSD storage, hardware RAID card, or I/O card
Flex Your Way Through Every Workflow
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 is a groundbreaking workflow solution for digital imaging, VFX, video production, and video editing professionals from the world’s leading Thunderbolt accessory manufacturer.
ThunderBay Flex 8 offers eight drive bays that support a mix of SATA/SAS1 and U.2/M.22 NVMe drives for virtually limitless storage capacity. Next, there’s a plethora of ports including two Thunderbolt 33, one USB-C, and two USB-A for device docking and charging.
See your work in greater detail by adding up to an 8K display4 via a built-in DisplayPort 1.4 connection. Ingest hi-res images and video via front-side SD 4.0 and CFexpress card readers. And when you want to expand your desktop capabilities, there’s a PCIe slot waiting for your specific project needs.
ThunderBay Flex 8 is the one Thunderbolt 3 desktop device that rules them all. With an irresistible economy of scale, this consolidated solution is ideal for anyone waiting for the right moment to invest in Thunderbolt technology.
NVMe. PCIe. What’s It Mean to Me?
At the heart of the ThunderBay Flex 8 capabilities are two cutting-edge technology standards: NVMe and PCIe. Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) optimizes the performance of modern flash technology over the Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) standard. It enables significantly faster SSD performance with a more direct and optimized path to a computer’s processor.
Tying both of these technologies together is the Thunderbolt 3 interface which uses the PCIe bus. This interface offers the fastest data transfers possible on a single cable between computers and peripherals like storage solutions, docks, and expansion devices while also supplying 85W of power to keep your laptop ready to go at a moment’s notice.
The Future Standard of Storage Available Today
Right out of the packaging, all eight bays can utilize SATA 6Gb/s 2.5-inch SSDs or 3.5-inch HDDs. To take advantage of 40Gb/s PCIe technology, the top four bays are NVMe U.2 SSD ready. These emerging super-fast SSDs enable ThunderBay Flex 8 to meet the future storage needs of content creators and video production pros.
Muscle-FLEXing Data Performance
Are you a video pro working with 4K/8K and even Phantom high-speed files? The ThunderBay Flex 8 offers a variety of drive configurations that deliver real-world read/write speeds of 2750MB/s that saturate the Thunderbolt 3 speed threshold. Try any of these options:
- A single U.2 NVMe SSD in Bay A
- Multiple U.2 SSDs installed in top four bays (A-D) in RAID 0
- Six or more SATA SSDs in any bays in RAID 0
- Swap out the built-in SATA drive controller card with a SATA/SAS hardware RAID card and configure 8 x SATA/SAS drives in hardware RAID 0
Done with the drives but need the docking connectivity?
Eject the ThunderBay Flex 8 drives and any external drives in a single click with the free OWC Dock Ejector app. It ensures all data has been written before any drive is unmounted to protect against data loss. It will even warn you from accidentally ejecting an in-use drive.
Docking FLEXibility
A virtual buffet of productivity-enhancing possibilities awaits you with the docking connections built into ThunderBay Flex 8. Power your notebook with up to 85W power delivery while capturing multi-stream hi-res footage at full frame rate. Connect audio and video mixers, digital camera, keyboards, and other peripherals and charge mobile devices via one USB-C and two USB-A 10Gb/s ports. Ingest and work with 4/8K RAW video and RAW photo files immediately at speeds up to 985MB/s with frontside SD 4.0 and CFexpress card readers. Add more viewing space with up to an 8K monitor via the DisplayPort 1.4 interface. And if all that’s not enough to satisfy your project needs, daisy-chain up to five additional Thunderbolt 3 devices!
FLEXpandable for Unique Needs
By removing the enclosure’s side panel, you can expand your capabilities by installing a half-length, full-height, single-width expansion card in the PCIe x16 connector/x4 lanes slot. Add a 4K video capture card for direct ingest of multi-stream high-res footage. Record high-quality tracks with an audio card and then edit and archive tracks.
Create a powerful file server with a high-speed networking card. By replacing the built-in SATA drive controller with a SATA or SAS RAID card, you can turn ThunderBay Flex 8 into a hardware RAID storage solution while keeping a PCIe slot open for other cards.
A FLEXtraordinary Platform
ThunderBay Flex 8 is a user-configurable platform that you can use to launch into projects with a new realm of time and money-saving results. To get you started, we suggest three sample configurations that make the most of the extraordinary highlights that have made OWC solutions the choice of performance enthusiasts and cinematographers around the world:
Sample Configurations
- FLEX Empty Enclosure: An empty enclosure that lets you add your choice of drives and PCIe cards. You can remove the SATA drive controller card to add a RAID or SAS drive controller card.
- FLEX Bottom Four: The bottom four bays populated with SATA drives and top four bays left empty for use with U.2 NVMe drives, M.2 NVMe drives with adapter, or SATA/SAS drives.
- FLEX Full: Achieve maximum capacity and performance with all the bays filled with SATA drives. One drive left as cold spare. The other seven preconfigured in RAID 0 or RAID 5 with SoftRAID.
The Most Powerful RAID Tool on the Planet.
SoftRAID is the world’s fastest and most flexible application to configure, maintain, and protect your RAID volumes on Mac and PC. OWC enclosures include 3 Years of SoftRAID Premium.
- High-Performance RAID 0/1/4/5/1+0 (10) volumes
- Predictive Health Monitoring proactively notifies of Volume and Disk issues well before failure — provided on your computer and remotely
- 35+ Years of Experience of Pro Support to provide peace-of-mind with setup help, ongoing questions, or urgent disk issues
- And many more unique features.
- Learn more about SoftRAID
SoftRAID works with macOS 10.14+, Windows 10+, and Windows Server 2019/2022. M1 Macs require macOS 11.3 or later. SoftRAID is licensed per computer.
A Protective, Economical Post-Production Solution
Sending a drive from set to post-production typically entails tedious and time-consuming drive enclosure disassembly to access the storage drive or costly shipping of the entire enclosure to the post lab. But ThunderBay Flex 8 offers yet another option.
By installing an OWC U.2 NVMe Interchange System carrier tray (sold separately) with a built-in U.2 connector into a ThunderBay Flex 8 drive tray, you can protect the U.2 SSD drive’s connector from repeated install/removal wear for improved drive longevity and investment. When done with your shoot, just ship the lightweight protective carrier and drive to the lab where the carrier can be installed into an OWC Helios 3S equipped with the OWC Interchange System. It’s a complete solution to safeguard your data while lowering shipping costs.
End-To-End Workflow Possibilities
FLEX On-Set
+ OWC Interchange System Carrier Tray with SSD
+ OWC ThunderBay Flex 8
Protects U.2 SSD drive connectors from install/ removal wear to improve drive longevity and extend your drive ROI.
Transit to Post
+ OWC Interchange System Carrier Tray with SSD
+ Small and economical. Ship only what you need.
Lightweight protective carrier safeguards data while lowering shipping costs vs shipping the entire enclosure.
Post-Production Lab
+ OWC Interchange System Carrier Tray with SSD
+ OWC Helios 3S (sold separately)
+ OWC Interchange System (sold separately)
Desktop U.2 NVMe SSD swappable storage for fast processing of footage.
OWC Thunderbolt Cable Included
OWC ThunderBay Flex 8 comes with a certified 0.7 meter OWC Thunderbolt cable, with other lengths from 0.5 meter to 2.0 meters available separately.
Innergize Your Workflow with Highest Performance and Reliability
OWC Innergize™ is the first stage of the Capture to Completion™ ecosystem of OWC products designed to seamlessly propel professional photographers, videographers, and content creators to the highest level of workflow performance and reliability. This OWC custom-designed app is a complete health, performance, and field upgrade management tool when using OWC Atlas memory cards with OWC Atlas readers and reader-equipped products.
- Health: Over time and use cycles, flash memory does wear out. Innergize verifies and reports the percentage of use life remaining. Now you can work with full confidence your OWC Atlas memory card will deliver the reliability you can trust.
- Sanitize: Writes, deletes, and formatting all take their toll on memory cards. Innergize cleans and restores the flash memory performance of your OWC Atlas memory card so you can get the best results on every use.
- Field Upgrade: When new cameras or firmware updates to existing cameras are introduced, they may not work properly with flash memory cards. Innergize gives OWC Atlas memory card users the ability to quickly upgrade their firmware in the field for full compatibility, additional performance enhancements, and bug fixes for optimal reliability.
Innergize is free to use with OWC Atlas memory cards, card readers, and card reader-equipped products. Download for OWC Innergize for Mac or OWC Innergize for Windows.
- SAS drives are supported with SAS drive controller card (available separately).
- Up to four U.2 drives are supported. M.2 drives are also supported with M.2 to U.2 adapter (available separately).
- 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.
- Full DisplayPort 1.4 capabilities depends on host computer support of DisplayPort 1.4 specification through its Thunderbolt 3 connection, host computer GPU capabilities, and connecting cable capabilities.
- Select SSDs have been tested by OWC and shown to be incompatible with Mac systems running macOS 10.14 'Mojave' and later regardless of how they are connected to the host computer. Please consult the article "Incompatible SSD List: macOS 10.14 'Mojave' and Later" for a list of affected SSDs.
- SoftRAID works with macOS 10.14+, Windows 10+, and Windows Server 2019/2022. M1 Macs require macOS 11.3 or later.
- SoftRAID is licensed per computer.
Includes
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- (1) OWC ThunderBay Flex 8 External Storage Enclosure
- (1) 0.7M Thunderbolt Cable
- (1) US Power Cable
- (2) Security Keys for Front Panel Lock
- (1) Hex Key
- (1) Quick Start Guide for OWC ThunderBay Flex 8
- (1) Quick Start Guide for OWC ThunderBay Flex 8
- (1) Assembly Manual & User Guide for OWC ThunderBay Flex 8
- (1) 3 Years of SoftRAID Premium Access (License located on device)
- (1) Quick Start Guide for OWC SoftRAID (Digital)
- 2 Year OWC Limited Warranty
Specs
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Drive Bays
- 4 bays supporting: 2.5-inch SATA drives, 3.5-inch SATA drives, 2.5-inch U.2 drives, M.2 drives (with M.2 to U.2 adapter), 2.5-inch SAS drives (with SAS drive controller card), 3.5-inch SAS drives (with SAS drive controller card)
- 4 bays supporting: 2.5-inch SATA drives, 3.5-inch SATA drives, 2.5-inch SAS drives (with SAS drive controller card), 3.5-inch SAS drives (with SAS drive controller card)
Hot Swap Support
- Yes
Hot Plug Support
- Yes
Boot Support
- Dependent upon configuration. Independent Mac volumes should boot in most scenarios.. Boot Camp is not supported.
RAID Capable
- Yes
RAID Levels Supported
- RAID 0
- RAID 1
- RAID 0+1
- RAID 4
- RAID 5
- JBOD
RAID Features
- Software RAID
Expansion Slots
- (1) PCIe 3.0 x16 physical, x4 electrical, full-height, half-length, single-width
Device Ports
- (1) Host Port - Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) up to 40Gb/s (5000MB/s)
- (1) Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) Port
- (1) USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Port up to 10Gb/s (1250MB/s) - USB 2.0/3.0 backwards compatible
- (2) USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A Ports up to 10Gb/s (1250MB/s) - USB 2.0/3.0 backwards compatible
- (1) DisplayPort Port
Memory Card Slots
- (1) CFexpress 2.0 Type B
- (1) SD
Power Delivery
- Thunderbolt 3 host port provides up to 85W of power to the host computer.1
- Thunderbolt 3 device port (for external drives and other devices) provides 15W of power.
Display Support by Port
- DisplayPort 1.4: Up to 8K @ 60Hz or 4K @ 120Hz
- Thunderbolt 3: Up to 5K @ 60Hz via a native Thunderbolt 3 display or 4K @ 60Hz via a Thunderbolt display or a USB-C display adapter
Data Rate
- Thunderbolt 3: 40Gb/s (or 5000MB/s)
Data Transfer Rate (Maximum)
- Thunderbolt 3 : Up to 40Gb/s (or 5000MB/s)
Chipset / Controller
- Thunderbolt: Intel JHL7440
- PCIe Switch: ASMedia ASM-2824
- USB Controller: Genesys Logic GL-3590
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 10.15 Catalina
- macOS 11.x Big Sur
- macOS 12.x Monterey
- macOS 13.x Ventura
- macOS 14.x Sonoma
- macOS 15.x Sequoia
- OWC Innergize is currently supported on macOS version 12.x, macOS 13.7.2 and earlier, macOS 14.7.2 and earlier, and macOS 15.2.1 and earlier. We are aware of an issue in macOS 13.7.3, macOS 14.7.3, macOS 15.3.x, released 01/27/25 that makes OWC Innergize unable to be used with OWC Atlas USB4 and USB-C readers. The Thunderbolt interface equipped OWC Atlas FXR reader remains supported in macOS 15.3.x over USB. Apple has been informed of this issue and we are diligently pursuing a resolution.
PC OS Compatibility
- Not compatible with Windows PCs
Driver Required
- SoftRAID Only
- The SoftRAID driver is installed within the SoftRAID application.
- For PCIe cards that require a driver, please check the manufacturer web site. Drivers for PCIe cards must be Thunderbolt-aware to function.
Supported PCIe Cards
- Supports one full-height, half-length, single-width card (driverless or with Thunderbolt-aware driver). GPUs not supported.
Other Requirements
- macOS 10.15.1 or later required.
External Power Adapter
- No
Power Supply
- Internal UL-listed universal auto-switching power supply
AC Input
- 100-240V, 50-60Hz, 3.5A-7.0A
DC Output
- +12V, 37A
Wattage
- 450W
Cooling
- (1) 120mm 1,600RPM cooling fan
Security Slot
- Yes
Power Button
- Yes
Power/Activity LED
- Yes
Housing Color
- Black
Housing Material
- Aluminum
Dimensions
- Height: 34.9 cm (13.7 in)
- Length: 39.0 cm (15.4 in)
- Width: 14.9 cm (5.9 in)
Weight
- 9.2 kg (20.26 lbs)
Certifications
- BSMI
- CE
- FCC
- RCM
- VCCI
Ambient Temperature
- Operating: 50°F to 95°F (10°C to 35°C)
- Non-Operating: -40°F to 149°F (-40°C to 65°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)
Humidity
- Operating: 8% to 90% non-condensing
- Non-Operating: 5% to 95% non-condensing
Shock
- Operating: Varies depending on drive mechanism installed
- Non-Operating: Varies depending on drive mechanism installed
Noise
- Varies depending on drive mechanism installed
- 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.
- SoftRAID works with macOS 10.14+, Windows 10+, and Windows Server 2019/2022. M1 Macs require macOS 11.3 or later.
- SoftRAID is licensed per computer.
- GPUs are not supported.
- While we do not bundle or recommend specific RAID/SAS card setups at this time, we do provide an unofficial guide as a courtesy, to customers who wish to attempt this workflow.
- A firmware update is required to use OWC ThunderBay Flex 8 with OWC Innergize software. Please consult the "Innergize for PC: Firmware Update" or "Innergize for Mac: Firmware Update" guide for download and installation instructions.
Videos
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Customer Reviews
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Happy with the enclosure.
The enclosure went together well and is working with 5x 12Gbps SAS and 2x 4TB NVMe. So far so good. Biggest issue was finding a SAS solution for my M1 Mac. Ended up with a HighPoint R710L which is working well. I also tried a few other including ATTO however every time I tried doing a Black Magic speed test with the ATTO the system would hang and reboot. The HighPoint was less expensive.
I would recommend this product to a friend!
Verified Purchase.Reviewer2341138111,
Jul, 8 2024
- Reviewer:Reviewer2341138111
Response from OWC, Support
Thank you for the amazing feedback! We're thrilled to hear that the enclosure is working well for you, especially with your M1 Mac setup. We appreciate your support and are always here to help with any future tech needs. Enjoy your high-speed storage solution!
Slow startup
It’s great to have such mega storage, but every time it goes to sleep, or when I first plug it in, it takes way to long to boot up and be recognized by my max.
I would recommend this product to a friend!
Verified Purchase.Official-Moretti,
Sep, 11 2023
- Reviewer:Official-Moretti
Response from OWC, Support
Thank you for the feedback on the ThunderBay Flex 8. It is great to hear that you are enjoying the space that this enclosure holds. Please contact our technical support representatives to assist you with this enclosure going to sleep. Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions, comments, or concerns. https://eshop.macsales.com/Service/
Just works as advertised
Again another purchase of computer equipment from OWC that meets and exceeds my expectations.
I would recommend this product to a friend!
Verified Purchase.BraveButterfly-43240,
Feb, 23 2023
- Reviewer:BraveButterfly-43240
View More Reviews
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