ASUS ThunderboltEX 4 with Intel® Thunderbolt™ 4 JHL 8540 Controller, 2 USB Type-C Ports, up to 40Gb/s bi-Directional Bandwidth, DisplayPort 1.4 Support, up to 100W Quick Charge.

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Standalone microphones can provide excellent audio quality for broadcasting your stream. Gaming headsets with built-in mics are another good option. For those who need professional sound quality and features, connect an XLR mic with a Thunderbolt™ audio interface. The card has two USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports, which can deliver data up to a theoretical limit of 40Gbps. The actual data transfer rate is dependent on the connected device and the cable. You can daisy chain up to ten devices (five per port) with the card. However, one should remember that if at any moment one of the devices is directly connected to the card, the daisy-chain link is broken, and you will have only two devices working. This ensures that none of the devices is damaged. You can Thunderbolt 3 to your motherboard using a Thunderbolt 3 PCIe card if the motherboard has a Thunderbolt header. Does Thunderbolt use PCIe lanes? Intel announced its latest proprietary USB technology last year, and different manufacturers have been trying to catch up ever since. To a novice, not much has changed in the Thunderbolt 4 specification, but as is always the case with the data bus market, the devil lies in the details. While Thunderbolt 4 offers the same maximum capabilities, its minimum capabilities are much higher than Thunderbolt 3. The card comes with three cables. Two Mini-DisplayPort cable and one system link (THB_C header) cable. The THB_C header links the Alpine Ridge’s Thunderbolt header to the one on the motherboard. Use the Mini-DisplayPort cables to connect the card to the DisplayPorts of the graphics card in the motherboard. Update the system BIOS after successful installation to enjoy the full force of Thunderbolt 3.

We even ran a USB logger that catches all USB events (connects, disconnects, errors, etc). Everytime the log doesn’t show a single thing happening. So it’s hard to say for sure what the cause is, outside of pointing out that this didn’t begin to happen until the card was installed. Again, not a show-stopper as everything is working fine. It is simply something that catches you off guard as you first thought is “wait, what just disconnected?” Our Conclusion A 14-1 pin Thunderbolt header cable for connecting the Thunderbolt 3 header on the adapter to the motherboard’s Thunderbolt 3 header. Of course, this business strategy has nothing to do with the quality and functionality of Gigabyte’s GC Maple Bridge, which is in a league of its own for more than one reason. The card makes full use of the exceptional data and power transfer capabilities of the Thunderbolt 4 technology by providing 40 Gbps and 97 Watts Power Delivery 3.0. Connectivity The Thunderbolt 4 ports on this card allow dual external displays up to 4K at 60Hz, daisy-chaining up to five devices per port, and Power Delivery up to 97W. It’s an overall well-built PCIe card and works flawlessly with compatible GIGABYTE motherboards. Our Take When looking to buy a Thunderbolt 3 PCIe card, you must ascertain your motherboard has a Thunderbolt header and a PCIex4 slot. Power DeliveryTo connect a Thunderbolt Display, you must connect the DisplayPort output port on the motherboard or graphics card to the DisplayPort input port on the ThunderboltM4 8K card or both Type C ports only support USB 3.2 data transmission.

USB 2.0 cable for linking the USB 2.0 header on the motherboard card to the adapter’s USB 2.0 header. The card, however, supports two displays at a time, just like the Gigabyte GC-Titan Ridge. You can use daisy-chaining to connect more than two monitors on the same port. Our Take Among the reasons why we love Thunderbolt so much is the power delivery. PD is an essential requirement for all thunderbolt hosts. Most of the featured add-in cards deliver 36 watts of power, while some can push up to 100W. A simple way of putting this is that Thunderbolt 4 guarantees the best possible version, while USB4 does not offer that guarantee. Transfer speeds for USB4 are written next to the port, while Thunderbolt 4 ports have a thunder sign with the number 4 written below or next to it. What is a Thunderbolt header? The most standing-out feature of the GC-MAPLE RIDGE is the additional DisplayPort output that lets you connect a native DisplayPort monitor without needing dongles—most Thunderbolt 4 add-in cards include only the two Thunderbolt 4 ports.The Mini DisplayPort cables included in a Thunderbolt PCIe card enable display output from the Thunderbolt ports. Connect one of the Mini DisplayPort cables to the DisplayPorts on your GPUs and the other end to the DisplayPort inputs on the Thunderbolt PCIe card. Can I add Thunderbolt 3 to my motherboard? Asus ThunderboltEX 3 comes with two cables: one mini DisplayPort cable and a single TB header cable. Like most Thunderbolt 3 to PCIe cards, ASUS ThunderboltEX 3-TR comes with multiple accessories for easy installation process. Here are all the bundled cables and connectors: Dual Thunderbolt™ 4 ports (USB-C®), with support for up to five Thunderbolt devices in a daisy chain Headsets provide accurate directional audio for identifying sound sources and have built-in microphones for communicating with teammates.

Whether you’re looking for a Thunderbolt 3 PCIe card or a Thunderbolt 4 PCIe card, the following factors will help you find just the right adapter for your motherboard. Alternatively, if you’re considering a broader upgrade, you can get a motherboard with a built-in thunderbolt 4. Thunderbolt PCIe Card Compatibility – Pin Layout I would be interested to know why TB wasn’t included with the DDR4 Alder Lake models. What was the company’s strategy for this? Either it was placing pressure on customers to adopt DDR5, or it was a mere attempt to gain a little extra profit. The system I am typing on now is a 2016 model and it has DDR4 and TB. So it does feel a bit odd that they would do this. A Thunderbolt 3 PCIe slot lets you integrate Thunderbolt 3 technology in your PC without having to upgrade to an entirely new system. All the featured TB3 add-in cards in this post achieve the same thing of implementing Thunderbolt 3. Two internal slots let you connect the card to your motherboard: a Thunderbolt header and a PCIe x4 interface. Alternatively, you can use other PCI Express slots, x16/x8, depending on the motherboard you’re using. Accessories Unfortunately, this card won’t work with other types of motherboards as it uses a 2×5-pin Thunderbolt header. Most Thunderbolt 3-enabled motherboards have a 5-pin header. Our TakeThe installation process is simple, with no cables required. Replace the Thunderbolt 2 interface board in the Echo Express with this Thunderbolt 3 add-in card via the PCI Express slot. With just a few steps, you can upgrade the transfer speeds from 20Gbps to the remarkably 40Gbps of Thunderbolt 3. Our Take Nobody likes bugs, but sometimes they are inevitable. This may also have something to do with why it has taken so long to reach the market. It isn’t a show-stopper, but worth pointing out. Ever since installing the card, we have noticed phantom USB disconnect sounds within Windows. Sometimes it is completely at random while sometimes oddly timed to shaking the mouse and waking up the monitors connected to the PC that it is installed in. Nothing is disconnected though.

Connect the DisplayPort or Mini-DisplayPort cable to the (mini) DisplayPort on the TB3 PCIe card to the DisplayPort on the onboard graphics card. You can connect your external display through the Thunderbolt ports and enjoy high-definition visuals. Most modern laptops come with Thunderbolt 4 ports included, including those featuring 11th Gen, 12th Gen, or 13th Gen Intel Core CPUs, and they're generally thin Ultrabooks focusing on performance in a thin and light body. That changed further from its launch, with gaming, business, and workstation laptops jumping on board with Thunderbolt 4. A Thunderbolt™ SSD is also useful for saving gameplay footage as they provide the high throughput needed for editing large video files. Update the BIOS of your motherboard to the latest version. Reboot into BIOS and enable Thunderbolt 3.A 4K HDR monitor brings out more color and detail. You can also run a dual 4K setup at 60Hz. Alternatively, connect a single 5K or 8K monitor to play a growing number of titles that support these ultra-high resolutions. The overall installation process is easy and straightforward. Update the BIOS settings accordingly and enjoy unlimited Thunderbolt 3 possibilities. Our Take Thunderbolt is a proprietary technology, and it does not work with every motherboard out there. Therefore, the Thunderbolt 4 card you buy will most likely only work with a motherboard from the same manufacturer. For example, the ASUS ThunderboltEX 4 works only with a handful of ASUS motherboards. So this makes system compatibility the most crucial consideration while buying a Thunderbolt 4 add-on card.