Sonnet Adds Thunderbolt 2 to PCIe Expansion Chassis

Sonnet Technologies Inc.
announced the Echo
Express SE II, the replacement for the Echo Express II
Thunderbolt-to-PCIe expansion chassis.

This model adds capabilities and sells at a lower price, and
includes a coupon for a free upgrade to exchange to Thunderbolt 2
when it becomes available this fall. The two-slot Thunderbolt
2-to-PCIe expansion chassis enables the use of high-performance PCIe
cards – originally designed for use in desktop computers – with any
Mac computer with a Thunderbolt port. Accommodating cards up to 7.75
inches long, it supports nearly every Thunderbolt-compatible PCIe
card on the market, including double-width cards (PCIe card plus
daughter card).

The 10Gb/s Thunderbolt interface provided bandwidth for external
expansion, sufficient to support the maximum performance of most PCIe
cards. However, some high-bandwidth cards, such as 16Gb FC and
multiport 10GbE cards or multiple bandwidth-hungry cards,
require more than 10Gb/s.

Thunderbolt 2 removes this barrier by providing more bandwidth for
demanding applications. Featuring 20Gb/s Thunderbolt 2 technology,
the chassis squeezes every bit of performance out of the PCIe cards,
ensures optimum performance with compatible computer, and is backward
compatible with computers equipped with 10Gb Thunderbolt. Equipped
with Thunderbolt 2 it will be available when Thunderbolt 2 hosts,
such as the new Mac Pro, ship this fall. Until then, the company will
ship the expansion chassis equipped with 10 Gb/s Thunderbolt, and
will include a coupon for a free exchange to Thunderbolt 2 (the
customer pays only shipping and handling costs). 

It was designed for users needing a simple way to connect two
adapter cards to their computers, and it supports all but the longest
Thunderbolt-compatible PCIe cards. Weighing 3.7 pounds and measuring 6.5 inches wide by 11 inches long by 4.6 inches tall, it is
compact and lightweight, yet its rugged aluminum case provides
protection for the cards. The chassis supports two half-length (up to
7.75 inches long), full-height, single-width PCIe 2.0 x8 cards, and
provides an additional space for a daughter card. Some specialty
cards, such as RME’s HDSPe MADI FX card, Blackmagic Design’s DeckLink
4K Extreme, and the Lynx AES16e-50, include a daughter card that
mates with and provides additional external connections to the main
card. A daughter card occupies an adjacent PCIe card space without
filling a slot. The SE II provides the space and mounting support for
a daughter card without sacrificing a PCIe slot.

The Echo Express SE II ships with an external, 80W power
supply. Like all Echo Express expansion chassis, it has dual
Thunderbolt ports to support daisy-chaining of devices and features a
large temperature-controlled fan to help keep hot-running cards cool.
When not needed, the fan slows down to a whisper, making it Sonnet’s
quietest two-slot expansion chassis. It also conserves energy by
powering off when the computer to which it is attached sleeps or is
disconnected.

It enables iMac, Mac mini, new Mac Pro, MacBook Air, and MacBook
Pro computers equipped with a Thunderbolt port to use
Thunderbolt-compatible professional video I/O, audio interface, SAS
and SATA HBA, 16Gb and 8Gb FC, 10GbE, and RAID controller
cards. The list of compatible cards is available on the website and
is expanding as more cards are tested and certified. Like the other
models in the family, the Echo Express was designed, engineered, and
built by the company in California.

"We are excited to collaborate with Sonnet on new levels
of external PCIe performance," said Jason Ziller, director
of marketing for Thunderbolt, Intel
Corp. "With breakthrough speed, these products will
provide a variety of workflows in a portable package."

"Our new chassis offers a much quieter replacement for our
Echo Express II two-slot Thunderbolt-to-PCIe expansion chassis, which
provides 20 Gb/sec Thunderbolt 2 technology and is priced even more
affordably," said Robert Farnsworth, CEO, Sonnet. "Now, users considering the purchase of the new
Mac Pro and other Thunderbolt 2 technology-enabled computers will be
able to take advantage of the groundbreaking performance of
Thunderbolt 2 technology using Sonnet’s Thunderbolt expansion chassis
for PCIe cards."

It will be available September 23, 2013
for $499.