- About the LACIE 2Big Thunderbolt 3 external HDD units...
- Utility Impressions
- How its tested??
- AS SSD Benchmark
- ATTO Benchmark
- Transfer Test
- Conclusion
- Online Purchase Links
Disclosure: Lacie 2big Dock 20TB Thunderbolt 3 Drive is loaned by Seagate
Lacie is a premium external storage brand owned by Seagate. Due to its design, it makes an appearance geared towards Mac users of various requirement. This is the LaCie 2big Dock Thunderbolt 3 HDD system with 2x Seagate IronWolf Pro 10TB HDD which I’ve tested as an internal drive a few days ago along with the 12TB IronWolf Pro.
You can use this for PCs, but designs of many LaCie drives make an impression to be made towards iOS MAC systems. Regardless, this is a two-HDD SATA dock system with hot-swappable cage system with a USB 3.0, a CF and an SD card reader on the front. The whole chassis is made of aluminium and has a very hefty weight even compared to a two-docked HDD NAS systems.
Packaging
The 2big dock’s packaging is done well for a unit which is preinstalled with two mechanical drives. This is important as the packaging needs to ensure it can handle any accidental bumps from factor to retail or shipping it via a courier to the buyer.
Specifications
| Internal Storage Media | 2 × 7200-RPM Seagate IronWolf/IronWolf Pro enterprise-class hard drives |
| Interface Transfer Rates | Thunderbolt 3: 40Gb/s USB-C: 5Gb/s USB 3.0: 5Gb/s |
| Interface Technology | Thunderbolt 3: Bi-directional, dual-protocol, and supports dual 4K displays or one 5K display. |
| RAID | Preconfigured HFS+ RAID 0 Hardware RAID 0/1/JBOD |
| Security | Kensington® lock compatible Integrated cable lock (2big Thunderbolt 2) |
| Cooling | Aluminum enclosure with improved internal heat dissipation Thermoregulated Noctua cooling fan: effective and whisper-quiet cooling |
| Additional Features | System monitoring and email alerts for failure and warning events Front-facing drive status LEDs |
| Minimum System Requirements | Thunderbolt 3: Computer with USB-C (Thunderbolt 3 or USB-C) or USB Type-A port Operating system:
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| Software | Intego® Backup Manager Pro for Mac Genie® Backup Manager Pro for PC LaCie RAID Manager (provides system monitoring and email alerts for temperature or RAID events) |
| Comments | * Actual data rates may vary depending on operating environment and other factors, such as chosen interface, RAID mode, and disk capacity. ** Maximum theoretical bus speed. |
Lacie provides storage capacity of 8TB, 12TB, 16TB and 20TB. Each storage capacity has IronWolf and Ironwolf Pro preinstalled variants. The standard variants have a three-year warranty while the units with Ironwolf Pro has a five-year warranty. There is no mention of any drive-less SKU.
2Big Dock Case Design
The front has no ventilation or mesh to allow air intake, but it does have an exhaust fan at the rear and a ventilation hole at its base. There is a subtle power switch, AC power connector, two Thunderbolt 3 Type C connector, a USB 3.1 Type C, a rest switch in a pin-hole, a DisplayPort connector and a Kensington lock. There are four rubber feet glued to its underside, therefore acting as a way to absorb any minor vibrations and providing space for the vents.
Adapters and Cables
Lacie provides a power adapter with multiple cables for different socket types. Additionally, it provides one Type-C to Type C thunderbolt cable and a USB Type C to Type A USB 3.1 cable. That’s a very short USB 3.1 Thunderbolt connector.
HDD Cage Design
To remove the HDD from the 2big dock, you need to pull out the front like a lever which ejects itself from the SATA connector internally which then you slide it out. The HDD cage is also aluminum with vents at its base.
I’ve tested the IronWolf Pro 10TB from this unit. You can check out its single SATA drive performance over here.
Ease of Maintenance
The plate on the rear panel can be removed easily, giving access to the rear fans. As you’ll notice, the Lacie 2big dock uses a Noctua NH-A6x25 FLX PWN fan. This is much appreciated as many NAS/DAS units have its fans installed internally with no access to clean the fans unless you manage to disassemble the entire unit which becomes harder to put them together.
