Sonnet Technologies Allegro
2-Port SuperSpeed+ USB 3.2 (10Gb/s) PCI Express 3.0 Expansion Card
Mfr P/N: USB3C-2PM-E OWC SKU: STIUSB3C2PME
Add SuperSpeed+ USB Technology
- SuperSpeed+ USB Technology—Adds two 10Gbps USB-C (USB 3.2) ports to your Mac Pro with PCIe slots, Windows PC, Linux computer or Thunderbolt to PCIe card expansion system; transfers data up to 2x as fast as USB 3.0 connections
- Super-Powered Ports—Supports USB-C bus-powered SSD, SSD RAID, and hard drive devices with up to 15W (3.0A) power per port
- Protected Ports—Independent power regulation isolates each port to prevent cross-coupled power glitches that may cause accidental disconnects
- Resettable Fuses—Device overcurrent fuses are resettable, just shut down your machine to reset a fuse without permanent damage to card or computer
- PCIe Data Link Auto-Negotiation—Card auto-negotiates one lane data link in a PCIe 3.0 slot and two lanes in a PCIe 2.0 slot, ensuring full 10Gbps performance in either generation PCIe slot
- Broad USB Device Support & Compatibility—Supports storage, hubs, and other USB-IF compliant USB devices
- Supports Hot-Swappable Device Connection—Plug in and disconnect peripherals without shutting off your computer
- Optimized for Thunderbolt—Provides maximum performance over Thunderbolt
- Easy Installation—Quick and easy user installation into any available PCIe slot
- Sonnet Technologies 2 Year Limited Warranty
Up to 2X as fast as USB 3.0 and USB 3.1 Gen 1 connections
When it comes to supporting the fastest USB drives available, your computer's USB 3.0 ports are perfectly adequate… for connecting peripherals that don't depend on the ultimate USB 3.2 speeds. However, common USB 3.0 ports can be underachievers at 5Gbps, they can't support the maximum performance from many storage devices, and may not provide enough power to enable them to operate. You need SuperSpeed USB-C!
The Allegro™ USB-C PCIe supports data transfers at up to twice as fast as USB 3.0, and can also deliver 15W of power per port to USB-C bus-powered devices (three times the 4.5W specified in the USB 3.0 spec). Don't settle for mediocre performance or insufficient power for the fastest SSDs install an Allegro USB-C card to instantly add two Gen 2 USB 3.2 ports to your system and take full advantage of today's SSD performance.
Speed and Power
Sonnet's Allegro USB-C PCIe computer card supports data transfers up to 960 MB/s when connected to a USB-C Gen 2 SSD RAID device transfers complete in half the time compared with using a USB 3.0 2.5-inch SSD! Sonnet specially engineered the Allegro USB-C card to provide 15W of power through each of its ports. The ports communicate with the host that 3A of VBUS current is available, enabling this Sonnet solution to support USB-C bus-powered SSDs and SSD RAID devices that need 15W during demanding write operations.
Regulates Power to Each Port
Ordinary USB-C adapter cards deal with power delivered through the ports as an afterthought, requiring an additional power source for the card and providing little regulation. The Allegro USB-C PCIe is no ordinary adapter card. The Allegro card regulates its own power without requiring a back-of-the card power cable connection, thus enabling full compatibility in any computer or Thunderbolt expansion chassis that doesn't have these power connectors available.
Sonnet's Allegro USB-C is unique in regulating power to each port independently, giving each one protection from power glitches on the adjacent port. Without this protection (such as found on an ordinary card), connects and disconnects of one device may cause auto-disconnects of the other.
Resettable Fuses
The Allegro USB-C card features a resettable fuse on each port to protect the card and computer should there be a cable or peripheral failure. Should a fuse trip on the Sonnet card, you can reset it simply by shutting down the computer.
PCIe Auto-Negotiation
Sonnet's Allegro USB-C PCIe features PCI Express auto-negotiation. The card automatically negotiates to a x1 data link in a PCIe 3.0 slot, and to a x2 link in a PCIe 2.0 slot, giving full bandwidth to both generations of PCIe slots, ensuring great performance in any configuration.
Optimized for Thunderbolt™
Got a Thunderbolt connection, but no PCIe slot? The Allegro USB-C PCIe card is ideal for use in any Thunderbolt 2 or Thunderbolt 3 to PCIe card expansion chassis, including Sonnet's Echo Express™ or xMac™ Thunderbolt to PCI Express card expansion systems, offering full performance wherever you install it now you can add dual USB-C ports in any current Sonnet Thunderbolt chassis.
Easy Installation
This Allegro USB-C PCIe card installs easily into any PCIe x4 (mechanical) slot; both low-profile and full-height mounting brackets are included. The Sonnet card features hot-pluggable and hot-swappable device connection support with automatic device configuration, and works with all USB-IF compliant USB peripherals.
Includes
- (1) Sonnet Technologies Allegra 2-Port SuperSpeed+ USB 3.2 (10Gb/s) PCI Express 3.0 Expansion Card
- (1) Documentation
- Sonnet Technologies 2 Year Limited Warranty
Specs
Standards Supported
- Complies with OHCI (Open Host Controller Interface), EHCI (Enhanced Host Controller Interface), and xHCI (eXtensible Host Controller Interface) standards
Hot Plug Support
- Yes
External Connectivity
- (2) USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C ports
Power Delivery
- 3A per port advertised using USB Type-C Charging
15W per port for operation or charging
Card Interface
- PCIe
PCIe Bus Interface
- PCI Express 3.0 x2
PCIe Form Factor
- PCIe x4 full height, half length
- Compatible with PCIe x4 slots or larger
Chipset / Controller
- ASMedia 3142
Mac OS Compatibility
- macOS 10.12 Sierra
- macOS 10.13 High Sierra
- macOS 10.14 Mojave
- macOS 10.15 Catalina
- macOS 11.x Big Sur
- macOS 12.x Monterey
PC OS Compatibility
- Windows Server 2008
- Windows Server 2008 R2
- Windows 7 32-bit Edition
- Windows 7 64-bit Edition
- Windows 8 32-bit Edition
- Windows 8 64-bit Edition
- Windows 8.1 32-bit Edition
- Windows 8.1 64-bit Edition
- Windows Server 2012
- Windows Server 2012 R2
- Windows 10 32-bit Edition
- Windows 10 64-bit Edition
- Windows Server 2016
- Windows 11
Other OS Compatibility
- Linux Kernel 5.4.0+
- Ubuntu 20.04.1+
Other Requirements
- macOS support requires macOS 10.12.6 or later
- Minimum: Mac or PC featuring PC with a PCIe 1.1 x2 slot
- Recommended: Mac or PC featuring PCIe 3.0 x2 or higher slot
- Thunderbolt PCIe Expansion System Compatibility: Supports USB 3 devices when card is installed in a Thunderbolt to PCIe Card Expansion System
RoHS Compliant
- Yes
- Product complies with USB 3.2 Gen 2 specification, which supersedes USB 3.1 Gen 2. Product package may still list USB 3.1 Gen 2.
- No computers support booting through this product at this time.
Compatibility & Installation Videos
Notes:
- Must use in slot 6 in Mac Pro 14,8.
- The maximum Apple-supported OS for the Mac Pro 3,1 is OS X 10.11. Per Sonnet, unofficial patchers exist to allow installation of newer versions of macOS for the MacPro3,1. The Apple USB 3 driver in these patched newer versions will support the Allegro card, though in such cases performance may be limited by the MacPro3,1 PCIe 1.1 slot bandwidth.
Mac Pro
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Mac Pro (Mid 2023)
Mid 2023
Model ID: Mac14,8
Apple M2 Ultra
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Mac Pro Rack (Mid 2023)
Mid 2023
Model ID: Mac14,8
Apple M2 Ultra
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Mac Pro Rack (Late 2019)
Late 2019
Model ID: MacPro7,1
3.5GHz 8-Core Xeon
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Mac Pro Rack (Late 2019)
Late 2019
Model ID: MacPro7,1
3.3GHz 12-Core Xeon
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Mac Pro Rack (Late 2019)
Late 2019
Model ID: MacPro7,1
3.2GHz 16-Core Xeon
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Mac Pro Rack (Late 2019)
Late 2019
Model ID: MacPro7,1
2.7GHz 24-Core Xeon
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Mac Pro Rack (Late 2019)
Late 2019
Model ID: MacPro7,1
2.5GHz 28-Core Xeon
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Mac Pro (Mid 2012)
Mid 2012
Model ID: MacPro5,1
3.2GHz 4-Core Xeon & 3.33GHz 6-Core Xeon & 2.4GHz & 2.66GHz & 3.06GHz 12-Core Xeon
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Mac Pro (Mid 2010)
Mid 2010
Model ID: MacPro5,1
2.8GHz & 3.2GHz 4-Core Xeon & 3.33GHz 6-Core Xeon & 2.4GHz 8-Core Xeon & 2.66GHz & 2.93GHz 12-Core Xeon
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Mac Pro (Early 2009)
Early 2009
Model ID: MacPro4,1
2.26GHz & 2.66GHz & 2.93GHz 8-Core Xeon
PC Compatible
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PC Compatible