OWC Mercury Elite Pro with USB 3.2 (5Gb/s)

This guide is intended only for macOS computers. The product in this guide may support mobile devices and Windows computers, however this guide is only written to support macOS computers. If you are seeking support for something other than macOS, please contact Tech Support.

Before going through any of the specific issues it is best to confirm the computer being used with the device is compatible. At the time of writing this guide the Mercury Elite Pro with USB 3.2 (5Gb/s) has the following requirements for its host computer:

Minimum macOS: 10.6.8

Computer connection: USB-A or, with a USB-A to USB-C adapter, USB-C or Thunderbolt (USB-C) port

1. The blue LED behind the front grill indicates power and drive activity. It is possible the LED is not functioning, but the rest of the unit is fully functional. With the power switch in the on-position check whether the drive is mounting properly on the computer it is connected to.
   1. To check if the drive is mounting properly on the computer first make sure the power switch is in the on position and the drive is connected to the computer with a USB cable.
   2. On the Mac click on Finder located on the dock, this will open a Finder window if one was not already open. Navigate up to the “Go” menu in the menu bar and select “Computer.” Within, the Finder window the Mercury Elite Pro’s volume(s) will be listed
   3. If the Mercury Elite Pro is mounting properly, it means the LED is faulty.
      1. If the Mercury Elite Pro is under warranty you may request a return for warranty work
      2. If the Mercury Elite Pro is not under warranty there are a few options. The LED is not a user serviceable part. While the LED is convenient to tell when the drive is on and the drive is in use, it is not an essential component, and the drive can still be used as usual. If desired, an out of warranty repair could be an option, contact Tech Support for details.
2. If the drive is not mounting, the power switch on the Mercury Elite Pro needs to be checked first. Toggle the switch off and on. There should be a firm snap when changing the position.
   1. If the power switch is loose or does not have a snap to it:
      1. If the Mercury Elite Pro is under warranty you may request a return for warranty work
      2. If the Mercury Elite Pro is not under warranty the power switch is not a user serviceable part. If desired, an out of warranty repair could be an option, contact Tech Support for details.
3. The power adapter will need to be inspected next
   1. With the power switch in the off position. Disconnect the power plug from the back of the Mercury Elite Pro and reconnect it. When connecting the power plug there should be firm resistance and minimal wiggle once fully seated.
      1. If there is no resistance or an excessive wiggle with the power plug, contact Technical Support. If possible, have a short video available to show how the power plug interacts with the Mercury Elite Pro
   2. Follow the power cable from the Mercury Elite Pro to the power brick, checking for any nicks, cuts, or kinks in the power cable.
      1. If any damage is found to the cable the power adapter should be replaced. Physical damage is not covered under the warranty; however, a replacement power adapter can be purchased here.
4. Disconnect the power brick from the outlet. The power plug is adapted to the power brick . Inspect the power plug adapter to ensure it has no wiggle to it
   1. If there is a wiggle and the Mercury Elite Pro is under warranty you may request a return for warranty work
   2. Connect the power adapter to a different outlet, if a surge protector or UPS was being used bypass those and connect the power adapter directly into the wall outlet
5. If the Mercury Elite Pro still is not powering on:
   1. If the Mercury Elite Pro is under warranty you may request a return for warranty work
   2. The Mercury Elite Pro is not under warranty, an out of warranty repair could be an option, contact Tech Support for details.

1. Make sure the Mercury Elite Pro is connected to your computer and powered on.
2. There is a setting in macOS that will not show external drives on the desktop, this is typically enabled by default.
3. We want to confirm the Mercury Elite Pro is properly mounting first.
   1. To check if the drive is mounting properly on the computer first make sure the power switch is in the on position and the drive is connected to the computer with a USB cable.
   2. On the Mac click on Finder located on the dock, this will open a Finder window if one was not already open. Navigate up to the “Go” menu in the menu bar and select “Computer.” Within, the Finder window the Mercury Elite Pro’s volume(s) will be listed
4. If it is not mounting, you’ll want to skip down to the Drive is not mounting or Drive will not mount section
5. If the drive is there, we can enable the drive to show on the desktop by clicking on the Finder menu and then choose “Settings” (on older OSes it may be called “Preferences”). Under the General tab we need to check the “External disks” under the “Show these items on the desktop:” section.

1. It is important for us to make sure we are only working with the Mercury Elite Pro, so unmount and disconnect any other drives that are connected to the computer.
2. Make sure the Mercury Elite Pro is connected to your computer, if possible, connected directly to the computer (do not use a hub, dock, or adapter), and powered on. If the blue LED on the front is not coming on, work through The Mercury Elite Pro is not powering on. The blue light is not working. section above first
3. The Disk Utility application needs to be opened. From Finder, click on the “Go” menu in the menu bar and then select “Utilities.” Disk Utility will be found in the window that opens.
   1. If available, click on the “View” menu in the menu bar and select “Show All Devices”
   2. On the left sidebar the Mercury Elite Pro should be listed.
      1. If the Mercury Elite Pro is not listed.
         1. Power off the Mercury Elite Pro and try a different USB cable, preferably one that we know that works. Power on the Mercury Elite Pro and check to see if it shows in the left side bar again.
         2. If the Mercury Elite Pro is still not listed, power off the Mercury Elite Pro and try a different USB port on computer. Also, if an adapter, hub, or dock is being used, if possible, try a different adapter, hub, or dock.
         3. If the Mercury Elite Pro continues to not be listed, if possible, try connecting the Mercury Elite Pro to another computer.
            1. If the Mercury Elite Pro works on the new computer, but not the original computer please contact the computer manufacturer for assistance in troubleshooting the computer’s USB port.
         4. If the Mercury Elite Pro is still not seen and the Mercury Elite Pro is under warranty you may request a return for warranty work
      2. If the Mercury Elite Pro is listed on the left sidebar.
         1. Below the Mercury Elite Pro the volume name will be indented.
            1. If the volume name is correct, click on the volume name, and then click on the “Mount” button in the upper right of the window.
            2. If the drive does not mount or the volume name is not correct, try running First Aid.
               1. On the left side pane of Disk Utility find the Mercury Elite. Select the lowest disk icon on the hierarchy of the drive.
               2. Click on the “First Aid” button and then click on the “Run” (on older macOSes it might be “Repair Disk” button)
                  1. When the repair is complete review the results. If there is any entry that states something was fixed, click the “Done” button and click the “First Aid” button again and run through the process once more.
               3. Repeat this process working up the disk hierarchy, running first aid on the remaining disk icons
               4. If a First Aid fails, try running it once more. If it continues to fail, please contact Tech Support

1. There are many factors that can affect the transfer speeds of drives. Just to name a few: How a drive is connected to the computer. The type of files being transferred. The type of drive the data is being transferred and being transferred to. In the case of hard drive units (all pre-built Mercury Elite Pro models), how full the drive is. In most cases where drive performance comes into question there is nothing wrong with the drive. Most of the time for drive performance concerns there is a realignment of performance expectations needed.
2. The Mercury Elite Pro USB 3.2 model can negotiate at USB 3.2 5Gbps. The 7200RPM hard drive installed in Mercury Elite Pro models is the bottleneck for performance in most cases. However, if the Mercury Elite Pro is only negotiating at USB 2.0 speeds the performance will be quite limited.
   1. With the Mercury Elite Pro powered on and connected to the computer, click on the Apple menu in the top left corner of the screen. While holding down the “option” key click on “System Information” in the Apple menu.
   2. Click on the “USB” section in the left sidebar. In the top section find “Mercury Elite Pro” and click on it. In the bottom section find the “Link Speed:” it should say “Up to 5 Gb/s” if connected through a USB 3 connection on the computer
      1. If it reads “Up to 480 Mb/s” then it is only working at USB 2 speeds.
         1. If your computer is capable of USB 3 try another USB 3 cable or port on the computer. Be sure to unmount the Mercury Elite Pro before disconnecting the USB cable. If using an adapter, hub, or dock, if possible, try connecting directly to the computer. Note: System Information will need to be refreshed once the new cable has been connected. From the “File” menu in the menu bar select “Refresh Information”
            1. If the Mercury Elite Pro is now negotiating at USB 3 (5 Gb/s) speeds it will be performing at its highest level.
            2. If the Mercury Elite Pro continues to negotiate at USB 2 (480 Mb/s) speeds contact Tech Support
   3. To gauge the performance of a drive our preferred benchmarking tool to recommend is the free application, AJA System Test Lite. Please download and install AJA System Test Lite.
      1. If we want an accurate measurement of the true performance of the Mercury Elite Pro, it needs to have no data on it or very little data. Hard drives, the storage mechanism in the Mercury Elite Pro, will exponentially lose performance as they begin to fill up with data.
         1. If possible, backing up the data on the Mercury Elite Pro to another drive and then erasing it is recommended. If you have any questions or need help with this process, please contact Tech Support. This will give us the best numbers to compare to OWC’s baseline benchmarks
      2. Open AJA System Test Lite from the Applications folder.
      3. The settings OWC most often uses are the following:
         1. Under the Resolution menu select “4096x3112 4K-Full”
         2. Under the Test File Size menu select “16 GB”
         3. Under the Codec menu select “10 bit RGB”
      4. Under the Target Disk select the name of the volume for the Mercury Elite Pro
      5. Click the “Start” button. The test will begin, which can take a few minutes to complete.
      6. For a Mercury Elite Pro with no data on the it and connected over a USB 3 connection, AJA should show a read and write speed above 230MB/Sec.
         1. As previously mentioned, results may vary due to a variety of issues. If the numbers are lower than expected please contact Tech Support. Please have a screenshot of the test results ready.