The Areca ARC-8050T3U-6 is a professional-grade 6-bay desktop RAID storage enclosure designed for high-performance workflows requiring fast data access and reliable storage management.
Equipped with dual Thunderbolt 3 ports delivering up to 40 Gbps transfer speeds, this system supports simultaneous 4K video input and output, making it ideal for content creators and media professionals.
The enclosure features a hardware RAID controller with advanced configuration options, DisplayPort 1.4 connectivity for 8K 30Hz display output, and support for both SAS and SATA drives.
Original price was: £ 5,175.00.£ 4,199.95Current price is: £ 4,199.95. | £ 5,039.94 inc VAT
In Stock
We pride ourselves on knowing, selling and supporting Areca RAIDs & Controllers better than anyone else in the UK!
All our Areca RAIDs ship pre-configured & tested (RAID5 or RAID6, for Mac or PC). Please allow us 1-2 days to do this for you for free.
Seen a better price elsewhere? Let us know & we’ll do our best so you also benefit from our Areca knowledge, expertise & totally free after-sales support.
– The UK’s Areca RAID Experts!The Areca ARC-8050T3U-6 is a desktop RAID storage solution engineered for professionals working with large media files and demanding data workflows.
This 6-bay enclosure combines high-speed Thunderbolt 3 connectivity with enterprise-class hardware RAID capabilities, enabling reliable data management without consuming host system CPU resources.
The system features dual Thunderbolt 3 ports capable of 40 Gbps data transfer speeds, which is twice the bandwidth of Thunderbolt 2 and four times faster than USB 3.2 Gen 2.
An additional Thunderbolt 3 port enables daisy-chaining of up to six devices, while the DisplayPort 1.4 output supports 8K 30Hz display configurations.
When connected via USB-C to a non-Thunderbolt host, the enclosure automatically activates its internal USB device controller, functioning as a standard USB 3.2 Gen 2 device.
At the core of the ARC-8050T3U-6 is a dual-core Broadcom SAS3108 RAID-on-Chip (ROC) processor running at 1.2 GHz, delivering true hardware RAID functionality independent of the host system's CPU.
The controller includes 2GB of DDR3-1866 SDRAM with ECC protection and supports PCI Express 3.0 with 8.0 GT/s throughput and 1GB/s per-lane bandwidth.
This architecture offloads RAID processing from the host system, reducing CPU load compared to software RAID solutions and maintaining performance during array rebuilds.
The enclosure accommodates six 3.5-inch or 2.5-inch hard drives or solid-state drives via 12Gb/s SAS or 6Gb/s SATA connections.
Maximum capacity reaches 96TB with six 16TB drives or 108TB with six 18TB drives, providing substantial storage for professional workflows.
The system supports multiple RAID configurations including RAID 0, 1, 10, 3, 5, 6, 30, 50, 60, single disk mode, and JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks).
The ARC-8050T3U-6 offers online RAID level and stripe size migration, allowing users to reconfigure arrays without data loss or downtime.
Global and local hot spare support enables automatic failover in the event of drive failure, while disk scrubbing and array verification scheduling maintain data integrity.
Additional capabilities include multiple SSD/HDD disk cloning, SSD automatic monitor cloning (AMC), and Self-Encrypting Drive (SED) function support for enhanced security.
A single 2700 RPM cooling fan exhausts heat from the rear of the enclosure, maintaining optimal operating temperatures for sustained performance.
The system draws 180W of power, supplied by an internal power supply unit.
The desktop form factor measures 4.84 x 8.45 x 9.11 inches (146 x 255 x 290 mm) and weighs 13.2 lbs (6.0 kg), making it suitable for studio and desktop environments.
The enclosure features an SFF-8644 expansion port with 2-lane support for additional connectivity options.
The ARC-8050T3U-6 supports macOS 10.12 or later and Windows 8/10 or later when connected via Thunderbolt 3.
When operating in USB mode, the enclosure is OS-independent, functioning with any system that supports USB 3.2 Gen 2 connectivity.
M1 Apple computers require specific driver installation for full Thunderbolt 3 functionality.
| Form Factor | Desktop 6-Bay |
| Connection Ports | Thunderbolt 3 x 2 / DisplayPort x 1 |
| Computer Port Type | Thunderbolt 3 & USB 3.2 Gen 2 |
| Thunderbolt 3 Bandwidth | 40 Gbps |
| Disk Ports | 6 x 12Gb/s SAS or 6Gb/s SATA |
| Expansion Support | SFF-8644 (2-lanes) |
| I/O Processor | Dual Core 1.2 GHz Broadcom SAS3108 RAID-on-Chip |
| On-Board Cache | 2GB DDR3-1866 SDRAM with ECC Protection |
| Maximum Capacity (16TB drives) | 96TB |
| Maximum Capacity (18TB drives) | 108TB |
| Supported Drive Types | 3.5-inch and 2.5-inch SAS or SATA HDD/SSD |
| RAID Levels Supported | 0, 1, 10, 3, 5, 6, 30, 50, 60, Single Disk, JBOD |
| RAID Features | Online RAID level/stripe size migration, global and local hot spare, disk scrubbing, array verification scheduling, SSD automatic monitor cloning (AMC), Self-Encrypting Drive (SED) support, bootable drive support, controller-level hardware encryption |
| Maximum Stripe Size | 1MB |
| Cooling | 1 x 2700 RPM cooling fan |
| Power Supply | 180W internal |
| Physical Dimensions (H x W x D) | 4.84 x 8.45 x 9.11 inches (146 x 255 x 290 mm) |
| Weight | 13.2 lbs (6.0 kg) |
| Operating Temperature | 0°C to 40°C |
| Operating Humidity | 5% to 95% non-condensing |
| OS Support - Thunderbolt 3 | macOS 10.12 or later & Windows 8/10 or later |
| OS Support - USB | OS Independent |
| Warranty | 3 Years |
In general, next working day delivery services (UK Mainland) are available on Areca equipment orders placed before 2pm (subject to stock availability).
We kindly advise you let us preconfigure each Areca RAID (as RAID5, RAID6 etc), so they arrive properly setup, ready to “plug’n’play”.
This is a free service, and takes 1-2 days prior to shipping.
Non-timed deliveries should be delivered between the hours of 9am and 6pm.
Orders placed after 2pm on Fridays and on weekends will be processed as normal the following Monday.
Orders placed on Bank Holidays will be processed the next working day.
If urgent, please call one of our helpful account managers so they may double check everything for you, enabling you to place your order with confidence.
Please note: these product details are for guide purposes only, and may contain errors.
We always recommend double-checking the product specs and features on the the manufacturer website, or contact us if unsure before ordering.
