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M2pro 16gb Mac Mini, OSX 13.2.1

BenQ PD32220u Monitor (with USB interfaces)

Samsung T5 SSD 2TB (USB 3.1 gen2)

I've recently upgraded my workstation, have been using a T5 External drive for some time at expected (near max) R/W speeds (~475-500MBS) previously on imac 2013.

Now I am experiencing variable performance depending on the interface and configuration I use in my new setup - most perplexing I am seeing faster R/W speeds when the drive is connected to USB hub on my monitor, than when connected directly to the macmini. Summary of my configurations and the Black Magic Disk results below. I am using Samsung supplied cables in all cases. Respective results are consistent across multiple cycles.

[Connection configuration | Write Speed,Read Speed MBs]

T5 --> BenQ Monitor (USB C to USB A) --> Macmini (USB C Thunderbolt 3) enter image description here

T5 --> Macmini (USB C to USB A) T5 --> Macmini (USB C to USB A)

T5 --> Macmini (USB C to USB C) enter image description here

Why does a direct connection to the macmini (using the same supplied cables) result in degraded performance? Unfortunately leaving the drive connected to the monitor isn't practical, as it disconnects whenever the monitor sleeps.

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  • All your devices seem to support USB C, so where are you using USB A? I would think that Thunderbolt is faster than USB C, so perhaps does a better job.
    – harrymc
    Commented Apr 1, 2023 at 19:00
  • @harrymc Agreed Using USB C would typically be the go to, which is why I noticed the discrepancy, because that was my first configuration. Testing disk speed showed that I was getting worse results than what I expected. The ssd comes with both USB C to USB C and USB C to USB A cables. I started experimenting and found that connecting using USB A yielded different results, as demonstrated above. The confounding issue is why the performance is worse when directly connected, regardless of the interface.
    – Jr M
    Commented Apr 1, 2023 at 19:28
  • My opinion is that Thunderbolt is responsible for the speed improvement, and the monitor does a good job as a dock.
    – harrymc
    Commented Apr 1, 2023 at 19:33

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