Product ID: TB31PCIEX16
This Thunderbolt™3 PCIe expansion chassis lets you add a PCI Express card to your laptop or desktop computer, through an external Thunderbolt 3 connection. The chassis also features a DisplayPort video output, so you can connect an additional monitor to your laptop, and supports Thunderbolt 3 daisy chaining, so you can expand your workstation even further.
The Thunderbolt 3 PCIe chassis makes it easy to expand your system with the capabilities you need to work at peak productivity. You can add many types of PCI Express cards, such as a PCIe USB 3.1/3.0/2.0 and USB-C, SSD, network, eSATA, FireWire or video capture cards. And, with the speed and bandwidth support of Thunderbolt 3 and PCIe 3.0, you can enjoy many of the same port additions you would from the PCI Express expansion slots of a desktop system.
The external PCIe enclosure features a dedicated DisplayPort output that lets you add an additional display to your laptop or desktop computer. The enclosure features a second Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) port, that you can use to connect a secondary display (a USB-C video adapter may be required). With multiple extended displays, you can work more efficiently by multitasking faster, and avoid the hassle of continually repositioning several open windows or programs.
You can also use the second Thunderbolt 3 port to connect additional Thunderbolt, USB and DisplayPort devices to your system. You can daisy chain up to six Thunderbolt 3 devices and expand your workstation to suit your specific requirements.
Thunderbolt 3 is the fastest connection available, which means you don’t have to deal with the performance bottlenecks of a slower connection, and can accomplish more in the same amount of time.
At up to 40Gbps this Thunderbolt 3 expansion chassis gives you the throughput to add displays to your laptop, access files quickly, and work without disruptions. It’s easy to access and edit large uncompressed files such as videos and images on the fly, making it ideal for dynamic on-site production.
The TB31PCIEX16 is backed by a StarTech.com 2-year warranty and free lifetime technical support.
Warranty Information | Warranty | 2 Years |
---|---|---|
Connector(s) | 1 - Internal Ports | PCI Express x16 |
2 - External Ports | Thunderbolt™ 3 USB-C (24-pin) (40Gbps) | |
1 - External Ports | DisplayPort (20 pin) | |
Environmental | Operating Temperature | 5°C to 35°C (41°F to 95°F) |
Storage Temperature | -20°C to 50°C (-4°F to 122°F) | |
Humidity | 20-80%RH | |
Hardware | Fan(s) | Yes |
1 - Fans | 60 mm | |
Ports | 3 | |
Air Flow Rate | 14.06 CFM | |
Noise Level | 24.55 dB | |
Interface | Thunderbolt | |
Bus Type | Thunderbolt 3 | |
Card Type | Standard Profile | |
Industry Standards | Thunderbolt 3 | |
Fan Bearing Type | Sleeve Bearing | |
Chipset ID | Intel - Alpine Ridge DSL6540 | |
Indicators | 1 - LED Indicators | Power(Blue) |
Packaging Information | Shipping (Package) Weight | 6.9 lb [3.1 kg] |
Package Length | 14.2 in [36 cm] | |
Package Width | 11.4 in [29 cm] | |
Package Height | 5.7 in [14.5 cm] | |
Performance | Maximum Data Transfer Rate | 40 Gbps (Thunderbolt 3) |
Bandwidth | 3.94 GB/s (x4 PCIe 3.0 ) | |
Type and Rate | Thunderbolt 3 - 40 Gbit/s | |
Physical Characteristics | Color | Black |
Material | Aluminum and Steel | |
Cable Length | 19.7 in [50 cm] | |
Product Length | 11.0 in [28 cm] | |
Product Width | 5.6 in [14.2 cm] | |
Product Height | 3.2 in [82 mm] | |
Weight of Product | 3.6 lb [1.6 kg] | |
Power | Power Source | AC Adapter Included |
Input Voltage | 100 - 240 AC | |
Input Current | 2A | |
Output Voltage | 12V DC | |
Output Current | 5.417A | |
Center Tip Polarity | Positive | |
Plug Type | N | |
Power Consumption (In Watts) | 65 | |
Software | OS Compatibility | Windows® 7, 8, 8.1, 10 macOS 10.12 - 10.15, 11.0 |
Special Notes / Requirements | Note | The expansion chassis does not support video cards. |
This expansion chassis does not provide full power delivery but will provide 15W of power, resulting in a slow charge to some laptops, such as MacBook Pro. When the dock is connected to your host laptop, a charging icon may appear on your laptop's screen. This is only sufficient enough to charge your laptop in sleep state, and charging will require an extended time period. | ||
5K support can only be achieved using a Thunderbolt 3 5K monitor. DisplayPort 5K monitors will not work with this expansion chassis. | ||
System and Cable Requirements | Thunderbolt 3 equipped computer with a Thunderbolt 3 port. | |
Note | A 4K-capable display is required to achieve 4K x 2K resolution (4K is also known as 4K x 2K). | |
Certain monitors may be limited to 4K at 30Hz when connecting through DisplayPort. These monitors include the following models: Dell P2715Q, Viewsonic VX2475Smhl-4K, Philips 288P6LJEB, LG 31MU97C-B, Asus PB287Q (these models will need to be set to 4K at 30Hz). | ||
When connecting a display to one of the Thunderbolt 3 USB-C ports, a USB-C video adapter might be required depending on the input of your display. | ||
Secondary Thunderbolt 3 port can also be used to connect USB 3.1 (10Gbps) USB-Type C devices, such as USB 3.1 Hubs. Backwards compatible with USB 3.0 (USB 3.1 Gen 1), and USB 2.0. | ||
What's in the Box | 1 - Included in Package | Thunderbolt 3 PCIe expansion box |
Thunderbolt 3 cable | ||
4 - Included in Package | rubber feet | |
1 - Included in Package | universal power adapter (NA/JP, UK, EU, ANZ) | |
quick-start guide |
Add four USB 3.0 ports – three external ports and one internal port – to your computer
Add an external USB Type-C and two external USB Type-A ports to your computer, plus an IDC header port that can provide two internal USB 3.0 ports
Add four USB Type-A ports with two independent 10Gbps channels to your computer, through a PCI Express slot
Add 2 native FireWire 800 ports to your computer through a PCI Express expansion slot
Add 2 RS-232 serial ports to your full height or low profile computer through a PCI Express slot
Add 2 RS-232 serial ports to your standard or small form factor computer through a PCI Express expansion slot
Add two Next Generation Form Factor M.2 SSDs and two SATA ports to your computer through PCI Express
Add two Next Generation Form Factor (NGFF) M.2 SATA SSDs to your computer through PCI Express
Add two 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports (10Gbps) to a client, server or workstation through one PCI Express slot
Upgrade your server or workstation to 10G networking over copper, by adding a 10GBase-T / NBASE-T RJ45 port
Get high performance connectivity over multi-mode fiber, by upgrading your server or workstation with a 10GBase-SR port
Scale your network performance using the 10Gb SFP+ transceiver of your choice and connect your PCIe-enabled server to a 10 Gigabit fiber network
Add two 10 Gigabit Fiber Ethernet ports (10 Gbps per port) to your server or workstation - using the SFP+ transceiver of your choice
Add four Gigabit Ethernet ports to a client, server or workstation through a single PCI Express slot
Capture an HD audio-video source, through a low-profile or full-profile PCI Express slot
USB Type-C™ to HDMI Converter | Thunderbolt™ 3 Compatible | DP Alt Mode
Connect your MacBook, Chromebook or laptop with USB Type-C to a VGA monitor or projector
Connect your MacBook, Chromebook™ or laptop with USB-C to a DVI monitor or projector
4K 60Hz & 8K 30Hz | DP 1.4 | HBR2 | Thunderbolt 3 Compatible
Dual Monitor Adapter | Windows® | Thunderbolt™ 3 Compatible
Connect a low profile x16 PCI Express Card to an x1 slot
Connect a PCIe M.2 SSD (NVMe or AHCI) to your computer through PCI Express for ultra-fast data access
Mount a 2.5" U.2 NVMe SSD into your desktop computer or server, using an available PCIe expansion slot
We are always ready to assist you with any questions you may have.
Live Chat (opens in new window)We are always ready to assist you with any questions you may have.
Live Chat (opens in new window)If your computer is not detecting your Thunderbolt™ 3 device, try the following:
For more information about how to update the software, firmware, drivers, and BIOS or UEFI, refer to the website of the manufacturer of the Thunderbolt 3 host device. The following website includes links to some of the manufacturers of Thunderbolt 3 host devices: https://thunderbolttechnology.net/updates. If the manufacturer of your host device is not listed, you should contact the manufacturer or refer to their website for more information.
For more information about how to check which version of the Thunderbolt software and firmware you are currently using, see the following FAQ: https://www.startech.com/faq/thunderbolt-3-check-software-firmware.
For more information about Thunderbolt 3 host system and motherboard compatibility, refer to the Thunderbolt 3 Compatibility and Troubleshooting guide.
When you connect a Thunderbolt™ device to any Windows operating system that can support Thunderbolt 3, a pop-up message appears. To use your Thunderbolt 3 device do one of the following:
Caution! If you select Do Not Connect, only video will pass through on your Thunderbolt 3 device.
If you accidentally set a Thunderbolt™3 device to not connect to your computer when prompted by the system, you can force the software to prompt you again for authentication. To do so, complete the following:
If you receive an error message that your Thunderbolt device is not certified for PC use, try the following to resolve the issue:
To use a Thunderbolt 3 adapter to output to a display at 60Hz, your monitor must support the refresh rate and you need to set the monitor to work at 60Hz. By default, most monitors are set to DP1.1, which will not work with this Thunderbolt 3 device when you use a display at 60Hz. In most cases, you need to set your monitor's DisplayPort settings to DP1.2.
To resolve this issue, use the buttons on your monitor to change the DisplayPort settings to DP1.2. For more information about changing your monitor settings, refer to the website of the manufacturer of your monitor.
To output 4K to a DisplayPort display at 30Hz, your monitor must support the resolution and refresh rate. If your monitor also supports 4K at 60Hz (DP 1.2 or higher), you may also need to set the monitor to work at 30Hz.
To resolve this issue, use the buttons on your monitor to change the DisplayPort settings to DP1.1. For more information about how to change your monitor settings, refer to the website of the manufacturer of your monitor.
To check which version of the Thunderbolt™ software, NVM firmware, and drivers you are running, do the following:
Review the versions of the software package, NVM firmware, PD firmware, and drivers. If you are not running the latest versions, navigate to the manufacturer’s website and download the latest versions.
When you connect a Thunderbolt™ device to any Windows operating system that can support Thunderbolt 3, a pop-up message appears. To use your device, complete the following:
If you accidentally set your Thunderbolt device to Do Not Connect in step three above, refer to the following FAQ: https://www.startech.com/faq/thunderbolt-3-denied-authentication.
If you accidentally set a Thunderbolt™3 device to not connect to your computer when prompted by the system, you can force the software to prompt you again for authentication. To do so, complete the following:
You can use the Thunderbolt™ software to manage your Thunderbolt 3 devices on a computer running a version of Windows. To manage your Thunderbolt 3 devices, complete the following:
Thunderbolt 3 uses the USB-C connector, but not all host connections, cables, and devices with a USB-C connector support Thunderbolt 3. This means that a USB-C device is compatible with a Thunderbolt 3 host connection, but a Thunderbolt 3 device is not compatible with a USB-C host connection. Therefore, it is essential to know whether you have a USB-C or a Thunderbolt 3 host, cable, or device.
To determine if your component is a Thunderbolt 3 device, look for the Thunderbolt 3 symbol. USB-C devices do not include this symbol. For more information about USB-C, see the following FAQ: http://www.startech.com/faq/usb-c-port-capabilites
Thunderbolt™ 3 is the latest version of the Thunderbolt standard for connecting computers and electronic devices. It is capable of the following:
Thunderbolt 3 uses the USB-C connector, but not all host connections, cables, and devices with a USB-C connector support Thunderbolt 3. This means that a USB-C device is compatible with a Thunderbolt 3 host connection, but a Thunderbolt 3 device is not compatible with a USB-C host connection. Therefore, it is important to know whether you have a USB-C or a Thunderbolt 3 host, cable, or device.
To determine if your component is a Thunderbolt 3 device, look for the Thunderbolt 3 symbol (shown below). USB-C devices do not include this symbol. For more information about USB-C, see the following FAQ: https://www.startech.com/faq/usb-c-port-capabilites.
Thunderbolt symbol: https://sgcdn.startech.com/005329/media/products/gallery_large/TBLT3MMXM.B.jpg.
If you use an adapter, Thunderbolt 3 host connections are compatible with Thunderbolt 1 and Thunderbolt 2 devices. You can use the StarTech.com TBT3TBTADAP to make a Thunderbolt 3 host connections backwards compatible.
Thunderbolt 3 devices are not backwards compatible with Thunderbolt 1 and Thunderbolt 2 host connections.
Thunderbolt 3 uses the USB-C connector, but not all host connections, cables, and devices with a USB-C connector support Thunderbolt 3. This means that a USB-C device is compatible with a Thunderbolt 3 host connection, but a Thunderbolt 3 device is not compatible with a USB-C host connection. Therefore, it is important to know whether you have a USB-C or a Thunderbolt 3 host, cable, or device.
To determine if your component is a Thunderbolt 3 device, look for the Thunderbolt 3 symbol (shown below). USB-C devices do not include this symbol. For more information about USB-C, see the following FAQ: http://www.startech.com/faq/usb-c-port-capabilites.
Thunderbolt symbol: https://sgcdn.startech.com/005329/media/products/gallery_large/TBLT3MMXM.B.jpg.
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