Question 1

is this just for monitors or can it be used as a thunderbolt 3 connectivity card for an external RAID storage device?

Accepted Answer

Yes, this works for drives. I haven't tried a display yet, but working on a GA-Z170X-UD5 as the Alpine Ridge is basically impossible to find in the states. Had to put it in that last long pic slot to work, 4x slot.

Question 2

does this card require the mb to have thunderbolt to work?

Accepted Answer

Yes, your motherboard MUST have a Thunderbolt header in order to use this card.

Question 3

What is a "Thunderbolt header" my MB has to have to work with this device?

Accepted Answer

This is a special 5-pin header that ASRock places on their high-end ATX MBs that is needed by these Thunderbolt add-in cards (AICs) to interface with the MB, above and beyond the PCIe lanes. Look at the specification of the MB you have. In the 'Connector' section, you'll either see a 'Thunderbolt AIC connector' listed or not. If it's listed, you can use this card. Alternatively, go to the ASRock site and download the manual for this card. It lists the motherboards that are compatible with this AIC. Note that if you do not have an ASRock MB, it is almost certain that you will not be able to use this card. It seems that unlike most other AICs (NICs for example), you must use the same manufacturer for MB and Thunderbolt AIC, though I've never found definitive statements from Intel to confirm this. It's better to be safe here though.

Question 4

Can a dongle be used to connect Thunderbolt 2 devices to the Thunderbolt 3 port (With 20GB/s speeds)?

Accepted Answer

Yes they can, however your mileage may vary. I have gotten thunderbolt 2 drives and displays to work but not some devices like interfaces and capture devices.

Question 5

Will this work on a MSI X99A SLI KRAIT EDITION LGA 2011-v3 Intel X99 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard?

Accepted Answer

I think it will, as long as that mb supports thunderbolt.   On mine, pcie 4 is the dedicated slot for the card.

Question 6

I have an asrock z370 k6 mobo with a thunderbolt header. However, instructions show that I also need 2 additional display ports available either on my graphics card or I/O to use this?? I only have one left on my graphics card, wouldn't plugging in the TB header be enough to power this? Why the additional connections??

Accepted Answer

The only reason you would connect a graphics card is if you wish to use a usb C monitor through this card. Otherwise it's not necessary to connect a graphics card at all.  I use this device to connect drives, card readers and interfaces like PCI express boxes. If you only plan to uses it as a device interface and not as a display hookup then you don't need to connect a graphics card. The display port connection on this card is just a pass through anyway.

Question 7

Will this work in a 2009-2010 Mac Pro?

Accepted Answer

you need a thunderbolt header on your motherboard for this to plug into, not just the pcie slot, the macs dont have that header so it will not

Question 8

Does the DPI in slot work as a Thunderbolt 2 data transfer port?

Accepted Answer

No it does not, its only for syncing the Thunderbolt 3 ports with your graphics card, you need to buy a Thunderbolt 2 to Thunderbolt 3 adapter, learned the hard way.

Question 9

I noticed that this card has video in as well as thunderbolt 3, so would the display ports be detected by capture software (O.B.S, XSplit ,etc) or is it treated more as a converter to thunderbolt 3? Thank you for your time!

Accepted Answer

Short answer: No. Long answer: The inputs are not truly inputs "in" to the computer, but are to allow the insertion of the video signal from the GPU into the Thunderbolt signal for use downstream with Thunderbolt displays. Think of it as more of a loop-through- Out of GPU card, in to the Thunderbolt card, then out of the Thunderbolt card to your Thunderbolt /DisplayPort capable display. The video input signal is never actually passed on to the OS, but remains in the card for reuse with external displays.

Question 10

Is the ASRock Thunderbolt 3 AIC better than a Thunderbolt 4 add-in card?

Accepted Answer

Choose the ASRock Thunderbolt 3 AIC when your motherboard is on ASRock's supported list and you need two 40 Gbps Thunderbolt ports, one 5K display, or two 4K displays. Choose a Thunderbolt 4 card such as the Gigabyte GC-Maple Ridge when you need newer Thunderbolt 4 requirements, broader USB-C device behavior, higher display support, or greater device-charging capability. Both generations use a 40 Gbps headline bandwidth, so the practical difference is primarily compatibility, minimum feature requirements, display support, and power delivery rather than peak link speed. ([asrock.com](https://www.asrock.com/mb/spec/product.asp?Model=Thunderbolt+3+AIC))

External Ports	2 x Thunderbolt 3 Type-C Ports (with up to 40 Gbps bandwidth) Supports daisy-chaining of up to six Thunderbolt devices 1 x DisplayPort IN Port 1 x Mini DisplayPort IN Port 1 x TBT Header
Data Transfer Rate	Supports 40 Gbps bi-directional bandwidth per channel with Thunderbolt 3 port
Operating Systems Supported	Microsoft Windows 10 32-bit / 10 64-bit / 8 32-bit / 8 64-bit
Specifications	PCI Express 3.0 x4 interface Supports ThunderboltTM 3 interface with max. resolution of 5K (5120 x 2880)@ 60 Hz for one display over a single cable connection Supports ThunderboltTM 3 interface with max. resolution of 4K x 2K (4096x2160) @ 60 Hz for dual displays over a single cable connection Supports up to two streams (eight lanes) of DisplayPort video bandwidth; supports daisy-chaining of multiple DisplayPort monitors

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ASRock Add-On Card Model THUNDERBOLT 3 AIC

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Item#: 9SIC6E1M518669