9400-16i does not recognize U.2 connected drive

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UncomfortablyLucid

New Member
Nov 10, 2022
12
2
3
I decided this past weekend to sell some of my less used items and in the end I had two Samsung 970 NVMe SSDs left over.
Since I had a spare port on the LSI 9400-16i, I got an U.2 shuttle by OWC (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09TXTKFQK?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details) and a connector by DiLinKer (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JH92TD9?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details); which seemed like it should work based on the published compatibilities of each item.

However, when I plugged it in there was nothing. Not even the BIOS recognized a connected drive. I tried connecting it to all of the ports but still didn't get anything detected.

The 9400 is using the Mixed Profile and has the latest firmware and drivers (P24).

What else could I be missing or am I just not supposed to be able to connect all of these?
 

mattventura

Active Member
Nov 9, 2022
443
210
43
Uh oh.

Broadcom Tri-Mode HBAs require special cables for NVMe (search for "broadcom U.2 enabler"). This is because the NVMe pinout and SAS pinout aren't compatible. The card uses the SAS pinout, so you need a cable to convert it to the NVMe pinout. Pure NVMe solutions like redriver/retimer/SAS cards (or even just dumb passthrough cards) don't have this issue, since they can just natively use the NVMe pinout rather than worrying about SAS compatibility.

The bad news is that the cables are relatively expensive ($80+ for a 2-port cable).

The worse news is that you may have fried the drives by using the wrong cable.
 

UncomfortablyLucid

New Member
Nov 10, 2022
12
2
3
Well… that sucks.
I’ll see if I can test those in another device.
But just in case I didn’t fry them…regarding this “broadcom U.2 enabler”; the only ones I can find go SFF8643 to SFF8643. But the shuttle I have for the NVMe drives is an SFF8639 connector (hence why I got the 8643 to 8639 cable).
So, is there a different backplane that this HBA has to be paired to which uses 8643?
 

UhClem

just another Bozo on the bus
Jun 26, 2012
435
249
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NH, USA
... Now, on to figure out how much damage I have done!
No problemo!
Power (from the cable's Sata_15pin pigtail) is going where the OWC_Shuttle expects it. If SAS signals go where PCIe signals are expected, "it just won't answer the phone".
@mattventura:
The bad news is that the cables are relatively expensive ($80+ for a 2-port cable).
OR ... Maybe not! :cool:
Here's the cable you want. [Link] (At that price, get two! [surplus U.2 drives can be a bargain])

@UncomfortablyLucid Maybe, you can do me a small favor. I'll send you a PM in a day or two.
=====
I'm not cheap; I'm capital-efficient.
 

mattventura

Active Member
Nov 9, 2022
443
210
43
Ah, forgot about those. Shame they don't have one that goes to 8643 or OcuLink which are my two current NVMe options.
 

UncomfortablyLucid

New Member
Nov 10, 2022
12
2
3
No problemo!
Power (from the cable's Sata_15pin pigtail) is going where the OWC_Shuttle expects it. If SAS signals go where PCIe signals are expected, "it just won't answer the phone".
@mattventura: OR ... Maybe not! :cool:
Here's the cable you want. [Link] (At that price, get two! [surplus U.2 drives can be a bargain])

@UncomfortablyLucid Maybe, you can do me a small favor. I'll send you a PM in a day or two.
=====
I'm not cheap; I'm capital-efficient.
Yeah, I saw that cable, but I don’t have two open ports :(
 

ericloewe

Active Member
Apr 24, 2017
293
128
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The worse news is that you may have fried the drives by using the wrong cable.
Not at all likely, since SATA, SAS, U.2 and U.3 all use the exact same pins for power. It's just data that's a wildcard for U.2 and U.3 - U.2 adds a new set of pins for all the PCIe signals and U.3 backplanes cut that down by sharing pins. U.3 disks are backward compatible with U.2 backplanes because the disk can just choose which pins to use relatively easily.