8 HDD Maximum Capacity Configuration
Ideal for taming the voracious drive space appetite of RAW, 4K, large format, and VR workflows. Arrives pre-set with RAID 5 speed and protection. Plus, enjoy docking convenience and expand your capabilities by selecting a recommended PCIe card or add your own.
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.
Muscle-FLEXing Data Performance
Right out of the packaging, all eight bays are configured with SATA 6Gb/s 3.5-inch HDDs. With real-world read/write speeds of 2750MB/s that saturates the Thunderbolt 3 speed threshold, you’re ready to handle 4K/8K and even Phantom high-speed files.
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.
Includes SoftRAID XT: Easy and Complete Drive Management
SoftRAID XT is the most powerful, intuitive software RAID utility on the market. Multiple RAID options 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.
- Advanced: Create RAID 0/1/4/5/1+0 (10) arrays*
- Protected: SoftRAID Monitor constantly watches your disks and alerts you if problems are detected
- Validated: Volume validation ensures sectors can be read and parity is correct
- Certified: Checks disks before use to ensure they are safe for data storage
- Vigilant: Error prediction helps protect against unexpected failure
- Universal: Move SoftRAID arrays seamlessly between Macs and PCs with built-in OWC MacDrive technology
SoftRAID provides a level of performance that you simply can’t get with hardware RAID. Learn more about the power of SoftRAID XT.
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.
Includes
- (1) OWC ThunderBay Flex 8 External Storage Solution
- (1) 0.7M Thunderbolt Cable
- (1) External 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) OWC SoftRAID XT Software Bundle
- (1) Quick Start Guide for OWC SoftRAID XT
- (1) Manual & User Guide for OWC SoftRAID XT
- (1) Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office (1 Year Subscription)
OWC, TRUSTED BY PROS & ENTHUSIASTS THE WORLD OVER
We build our hardware to the highest standards of reliability and performance. Because 100% reliability is always the goal, we rigorously quality test and back our hardware with a 5 Year OWC Limited Warranty and award-winning customer support.
- 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).
- Apple Mac models with Thunderbolt 2/Thunderbolt ports can be connected using an Apple Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter (sold separately). 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.
OWC Thunderbay Flex 8 External HDD Specs
| Storage Capacity | 32 TB |
| Included Drives | 8 x 4 TB 3.5″ HDD |
| Initial RAID Configuration | RAID 5 |
| Interface | SATA III |
| Rotational Speed | 7200 rpm |
| Number of Bays | 8 x 2.5″/3.5″ |
| Pre-Format | None |
| I/O | 2 x USB Type-C (Thunderbolt 3 (40 Gb/s)) 1 x USB Type-C (USB 3.1 / USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gb/s)) 2 x USB Type-A (USB 3.1 / USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gb/s)) 1 x DisplayPort (Video) |
| Compatible Drive Interface | SATA III |
| Media Card Slots | SD/SDHC/SDXC CFexpress |
| Form Factor | Tower |
| RAID | RAID 0, 0+1, 4, 5, JBOD |
| Bridge Chipset | ASMedia ASM-2824 Intel JHL7440 |
| Hot-Swap Support | Yes |
| PCI Expansion | 1 x PCIe 3.0 x16 (x4 Electrical) |
| Supported PCIe Form Factor | Full-Height, Half-Length |
| Transfer Rates | 5000 MB/s |
| UASP Support | No |
| OS Compatibility | macOS 10.15 or Later *As of May, 2021: Check with manufacturer for the most up-to-date compatibility |
| Encryption | Yes |
| Security Features | Kensington Security Slot, Lockable Bay Door |
| AC Input Power | 100 to 240 VAC, 50 / 60 Hz at 4 to 8 A |
| Power Source | AC Adapter, Internal Power Supply |
| Power Consumption | 504 W |
| PSU Wattage | 1 x 504 W |
| Operating Temperature | 50 to 95°F / 10 to 35°C |
| Operating Humidity | 8 to 90% |
| Operating Altitude | -1,000 to 10,000′ / -304.8 to 3048 m |
| Storage Temperature | -40 to 149°F / -40 to 65°C |
| Storage Humidity | 5 to 95% |
| Storage Altitude | -1,000 to 40,000′ / -304.8 to 12,192 m |
| Certifications | BSMI, CE, FCC, RCM, VCCI *as per Manufacturer |
| Status Monitoring | LED Indicator |
| Cooling | 1 x 1600 rpm 120 mm Fan |
| Cable Length | 2.3′ / 0.7 m |
| Material of Construction | Aluminum |
| Dimensions | 15.4 x 13.7 x 5.9″ / 39 x 34.9 x 14.9 cm |
| Weight | 20.3 lb / 9.2 kg |
| Package Weight | 40.18 lb |
| Box Dimensions (LxWxH) | 23.5 x 21.2 x 12.6″ |
