Sonnet Thunderbolt 3 Upgrade Card Echo Express SE I

Thunderbolt 3 Upgrade Card for Echo Express SE I

This upgrade card replaces the Thunderbolt 2 interface board inside the Sonnet Echo Express SE I expansion system. It adds two Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports so the chassis can connect directly to Thunderbolt 3-equipped Macs or PCs. The card is designed for users who own the Thunderbolt 2 edition and need 40 Gbps connectivity without an adapter. It is not for buyers who want to add Thunderbolt to a system that lacks the Echo Express SE I chassis.

Bandwidth increase of 30% to 100% over Thunderbolt 2

The single specification that decides fit is the throughput gain: the upgraded system delivers 30% to 100% more bandwidth than the original 20 Gbps Thunderbolt 2 link. This extra headroom lets high-bandwidth PCIe cards such as 16 Gb Fibre Channel or 4K video I/O cards run at higher performance. If the installed PCIe card does not need more than 20 Gbps, the upgrade will not change its speed.

Requires Echo Express SE I (Thunderbolt 2 Edition)

The card installs inside the existing Echo Express SE I expansion system, replacing the original interface board. It operates from 0 to 35 °C and is RoHS compliant. Macs need macOS 10.12.1 or later; PCs need Windows 10, 8 or 7 with a Thunderbolt 3 port. It does not work with other Sonnet chassis models or with computers that only have Thunderbolt 2 or USB-C ports lacking Thunderbolt 3 protocol support.