KVR Audio

TS-12 · Post by **TS-12** » Fri Jul 26, 2019 9:34 pm

looking for reliable Thunderbolt card or adapter for Windows 10.
motherboard is Gigabyte Z390 Gaming X,
in the manual it says "Thunderbolt™ add-in card connector".

TS-12 · Post by **TS-12** » Fri Jul 26, 2019 9:55 pm

Im thinking of getting UA Apollo Twin MKII audio interface but its ThunderBolt 2, so I need a thunderbolt 2 card not 3 for the motherboard ?

Pictus · Post by **Pictus** » Sun Jul 28, 2019 5:15 pm

You must use a card that is compatible with your motherboard
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gigabyte-GC-TI ... B07GBZL93X
This card is Thunderbolt version 3, so you need an adapter https://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-Thu ... B019FPJDQ2
and a cable https://www.amazon.co.uk/StarTech-com-W ... 00CIDLJWK/
There is no Thunderbolt 2 card for your motherboard or any modern PC motherboard.

Kaine · Post by **Kaine** » Tue Jul 30, 2019 3:11 pm

OP - Pictus's advice is absolutely correct. Also, note that each interface will tend to have an advised converter cable to use, UAD prefers Startech, Focusrite prefers Apple etc...

I strongly advise that you look up the advice for your specific model and follow it, it'll save you a whole world of headaches!

TobyB · Post by **TobyB** » Sun Aug 25, 2019 4:01 pm

I have the Asus T3 card with an Asus motherboard for a UAD Apollo x8 and the Startech T2 adapter for a Twin mkII ... it works really well as long as you carefully switch on the Apollo's before the PC and only off after the PC shutdown... otherwise all sorts of hassle requiring CMOS battery removal from the card to reset it ...
Really impressed by the UAD stuff, well worth acquiring...

Kaine · Post by **Kaine** » Thu Aug 29, 2019 1:19 pm

That "reset the CMOS issues" was a bug seen on a specific combination of FW card and mainboards a few years back. I know the current cards don't do it, nor do any current generation boards.

I would hope that a card firmware flash, mainboard BIOS update and the latest driver would solve it for you, but then I couldn't say for any combination if that's going to work 100% and it depends on them going back and updating the BIOS on that specific model to solve it. It might be a case of being that if you have a working solution and it's only a minor inconvenience that it's probably not worth fiddling with and running the risk of causing knock-on effects.

TobyB · Post by **TobyB** » Thu Sep 19, 2019 12:18 pm

Thanks Kaine, I wish it was true, but the card is new this year, the MB a year older ... and all fully up to date drivers and BIOS ... it all works brilliantly... as long as you understand its foibles...

Kaine · Post by **Kaine** » Fri Sep 20, 2019 4:11 pm

Bugger, well that's annoying :-/

fmr · Post by **fmr** » Fri Sep 20, 2019 4:19 pm

I recently assembled a new computer, and I chose the Z390 Aorus Xtreme exactly because of the Thunderbolt.

I have a RME UFX+ connected with a Startech Thunderbolt 2 CABLE, and an Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter. Everything is working fine, as it should. And I don't have to have any kind of special care. It just works