Areca ARC-8050T5U-6M Thunderbolt™ 5 80 Gb/s Enclosure | USB 3.2 RAID 6x SAS/SATA

Areca ARC-8050T5U-6M – 6-bay Thunderbolt™ 5 hardware RAID array for SAS and SATA drives

Professional Thunderbolt™ 5 RAID array for production and data archiving environments

The Areca ARC-8050T5U-6M is a professional 6-bay enterprise-class RAID array equipped with a hardware RAID controller and the latest Thunderbolt™ 5 interface, providing bandwidth of up to 80 Gb/s, and up to 120 Gb/s thanks to Bandwidth Boost technology. This model is designed for users who need a reliable and high-performance storage system based on 12 Gb/s SAS and 6 Gb/s SATA drives, without NVMe support. It is the ideal solution for post-production studios, photographers, data archiving companies, and businesses requiring maximum security and high performance.

Key Features

• Thunderbolt™ 5 with bandwidth up to 80 Gb/s
• Bandwidth Boost technology up to 120 Gb/s
• 6 bays for 12 Gb/s SAS and 6 Gb/s SATA drives
• professional enterprise-class hardware RAID controller
• two Thunderbolt™ 5 ports
• compatibility with Thunderbolt 5, Thunderbolt 4, Thunderbolt 3 (Mac), and USB-C (USB 3.2 Gen 2)
• capability to daisy-chain up to 6 Thunderbolt devices
• DisplayPort 2.1 output for high-resolution monitors
• Mini SAS HD SFF-8644 expansion port for connecting an additional drive shelf (expander)
• hardware-based data encryption
• support for SED (Self-Encrypting Drives)
• Very quiet operation—approximately 35.5 dB.

Thunderbolt 5—Maximum Performance for Professionals

The Areca ARC-8050T5U-6M utilizes the latest Thunderbolt™ 5 technology, which offers twice the bandwidth of Thunderbolt 3 and 4. This enables smooth editing of 4K, 6K, and 8K content, fast copying of massive data sets, and simultaneous use of professional high-resolution monitors.

With two Thunderbolt™ 5 ports, users can daisy-chain additional devices while maintaining full performance across the entire workstation.

Hardware RAID for data security

The ARC-8050T5U-6M model uses a high-performance Raid-on-Chip (ROC) controller with ECC cache, ensuring that all RAID operations are performed in hardware without taxing the computer’s CPU.

Supported RAID levels:

• RAID 0
• RAID 1
• RAID 1E (10)
• RAID 3
• RAID 5
• RAID 6
• RAID 30
• RAID 50
• RAID 60
• JBOD
• Single Disk

The array also offers enterprise-class features such as automatic array rebuild (Auto Rebuild), online RAID level migration, capacity expansion without downtime, and disk health monitoring.

Designed for Apple Mac and Windows computers

The Areca ARC-8050T5U-6M works seamlessly with the following computers:

• Mac Studio
• Mac Pro
• MacBook Pro
• Mac mini
• Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3, M4, and newer)
• Windows computers equipped with Thunderbolt 5 or Thunderbolt 4

Additionally, the device can also work with computers equipped exclusively with a USB-C port (USB 3.2 Gen2), which increases its versatility.

Expandability

The 6M model is equipped with a Mini SAS HD (SFF-8644) expansion port designed to connect an external drive shelf with a SAS expander. This allows you to easily increase the system’s capacity without having to replace the entire array.

Technical Specifications

• Model: Areca ARC-8050T5U-6M
• Number of bays: 6
• Host interface: 2 × Thunderbolt™ 5
• Bandwidth: up to 80 Gb/s (120 Gb/s Bandwidth Boost)
• Compatibility: Thunderbolt 5, Thunderbolt 4, Thunderbolt 3 (Mac), USB 3.2 Gen2
• Supported Drives: 12 Gb/s SAS, 6 Gb/s SATA
• Expansion Port: 1 × Mini SAS HD SFF-8644 (2-lane)
• Controller Type: Hardware RAID (ROC)
• Cache: 2 GB DDR3 with ECC protection
• Supported RAID modes: 0, 1, 1E, 3, 5, 6, 30, 50, 60, JBOD, Single Disk
• Video output: DisplayPort 2.1
• Daisy chain up to 6 devices
• Cooling: Intelligent fans
• Noise level: approx. 35.5 dB
• Power supply: Built-in 180 W power supply + 4-pin XLR DC input
• Dimensions: 146 × 255 × 290 mm
• Weight: approx. 6.0 kg
• Operating systems: macOS, Windows, and USB (operating system-independent)
• Includes an active Thunderbolt™ 5 cable

Ideal Applications

The Areca ARC-8050T5U-6M is perfect for:

• professional editing of 4K, 6K, and 8K footage,
• film post-production,
• photography and graphic design,
• data archiving,
• DIT environments,
• backing up large data sets,
• business applications requiring high reliability,
• and integration with Adobe Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro, and Avid Media Composer.

Why buy from Abart Pro?

Abart Pro is the official distributor of Areca solutions in Poland. We offer professional Thunderbolt RAID arrays, hardware controllers, and SAS and Fibre Channel solutions for macOS and Windows users. We provide expert technical advice, assistance in selecting the optimal RAID configuration, and support for implementing storage systems for film studios, photographers, production companies, and data centers. Thanks to our many years of experience, we help you choose solutions that guarantee maximum performance, data security, and operational reliability.