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USB 3.x PCIe Cards for Classic Mac Pro
- Thread starter ActionableMango
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I have had pretty good luck simply putting ferrite cores on both ends of my USB 3.0 cables. That seems to greatly improve my issues with the bluetooth magic mouse.
I got them at Amazon (the larger 7mm ones fit most of my cables best):
7mm:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GXTPBRY?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage
5mm:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CIQD83K?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage
Here is a complete list:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias=industrial&field-keywords=bluecell+ferrite+core
-howard
Just quick post. One of the ports on my Rocket U 1144C died this morning. RocketU's web site is not easily navigated. I bought mine in September of last year, so it should be covered under warranty, but they want the old card back AND you pay shipping both ways. I've started a case file with them, and I'll post up what happens.
Returning the old card required is okay, but not the postal charges both way! They should ship a new card free of any charges to you.
Good luck Lou!
Cheers
Lou, let me know how the progress goes. If you have any issues other than shipping, I can probably help, just send me a PM.
Did you register the card with HP when you received?
^^^^Thanks Jackson. No, I didn't register the card when I bought it, I registered it this afternoon before I made my trouble report. They have answered my report with questions, that I answered, and requests for screen shots, that I provided.
Lou
Lou
I'm looking into buying a RocketU 1144C but it is RIDICULOUSLY priced in the Netherlands/EU. It would cost €150,- at minimum and some shops even go as far as to ask €190,- while US shops (Newegg, Amazon, BHP PhotoVideo) offer the same product at €63,-. Borderlinx (US to EU shipping service) would charge €40,- to ship, so it would be cheaper in that way, but it still feels stupid to pay so much more.
Does anyone know of a way to obtain this card in the EU at a fair pricepoint?
Does anyone know of a way to obtain this card in the EU at a fair pricepoint?
It's decently priced in the U.S. Considering it's specs. See if you can get the Sonnet Allegro Pro any cheaper, it has similar specs. (mainly being a 4-Controller/4-Port card).
Alternate.de has it @ 105€. Not so bad, if you can take the VAT out of it...
I've been ordering them some things to my small part-time business, they don't have automatic VAT reduction system, but you can order just with e-mails. Wide variety and nice prices...
EDIT: as always compare.eu is your friend and once again alternate.de is the cheapest there...
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Using compare.eu it starts at €150,- :/ and besides, the RocketU model does have my preference when I look at the experiences.
I cannot deduct VAT since I'm not a business-owner and Alternate.de is a daughter-company of the Dutch Alternate.nl, they charge 133,- including shipping, not too bad but still double the US price.. I just really hate paying too much, call me Dutch
. I don't get why all shipping services from the US charge at least 40,- (FedEx, USPS, UPS) while buying something on Ebay from the US is usually a lot cheaper to ship.
So is there any way of stopping drives being disconnected on sleep? It's seriously annoying!
Apologies if it's answered elsewhere, I did have a search but couldn't find anything.
Apologies if it's answered elsewhere, I did have a search but couldn't find anything.
Thanks for the suggestion, I did see this on my travels but it's still a bit of a botch isn't it? But I guess that means no one has solved the issue then. Does anyone know if it still does it in El Cap?
I ordered mine from amazon.com in the US & they shipped to UK. The price including shipping & taxes & customs (all paid up front) was half what the card would have cost from amazon.co.uk. I am sure that they will ship to the netherlands too.
Thanks! I didn't realize this! I thought Amazon would only deliver in countries they're actually operating in. Just placed my order for ±€85,- including shipping and taxes, estimated arrival 12-20 August, not bad!
so question,
Let's say I buy either the RocketU 1144C or the Allegro Pro 4-Port USB 3. They both have dedicated controllers for each USB 3 port. But I want to get a USB 3 Hub. Will the bandwidth be limited to 5Gb/s for my USB 3 hard drives connected to the USB Hub? or will I be able to take advantage of the other controllers using one USB 3 Hub?
Let's say I buy either the RocketU 1144C or the Allegro Pro 4-Port USB 3. They both have dedicated controllers for each USB 3 port. But I want to get a USB 3 Hub. Will the bandwidth be limited to 5Gb/s for my USB 3 hard drives connected to the USB Hub? or will I be able to take advantage of the other controllers using one USB 3 Hub?
In short: Yes. No.
Explanation:
That would be limited to the capabilities of the USB3.0 port the hub is connected to. So a 4 port USB3.0 hub would divide the 5.0Gb/s over the connected devices. Given that one device could use more throughput than the other (mouse/keyboard vs USB SSD/HDD) this would be distributed accordingly.
Here's the issue. If you get a USB 3 hub. It plugs into 1 port of you PCIe card and therefore only has access to the bandwidth of a single port. It then divides that bandwidth amongst the USB ports being used on the HUB.
Consider the ports on the back of the PCIe card as the HUB, instead of using an external HUB. Most USB devices don't really benefit from the additional bandwidth of USB 3.0. Plug your slower devices into your USB 2.0 ports/Hubs, and leave the USB 3.0 for highspeed devices like harddrives/SSDs. If you need more USB 3.0 ports for storage devices, then you have 2 choices. Either use the USB 3.0 Hub and devide the bandwidth of one port (assuming you only use one Hub), or install a second PCIe card. I was running 2 4-Port cards for a while and they worked perfectly for me.
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yeah that makes sense. I have a music studio desk (image attached) and the front panel makes it easy to access the front USB ports of the Mac Pro. I use portable USB 3.0 HDDs that have short cables so it's easier to plug in from the front USB 2.0. Maybe a solution for me would be to get USB 3 extension cables.
CRjackson, I read your review of the Sonnet Allegro Pro and I am thinking about purchasing it. It is nice, but the $129 price tag makes me want to get the RocketU 1144C
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They're both great cards but the Sonnet Pro cost quite a bit more. The RocketU is a little faster but not enough to make a big deal over. I've had one drive (out of more than I care to count) that is flakey on the RocketU. The issue is really with the drive rather than the PCIe card, but the Sonnet Allegro Pro does handle the drive better than the RocketU.
Given that the RocketU is less expensive and a little faster as well, it's hard to justify the additional expence of the Sonnet. The one thing I really like about the Sonnet is that it's using FrescoLogic controllers.
Also, for your use case, I do recommend you get some high quality, shielded cables long enough to reach your drives. Shy away from extension cables and use direct cabling to the drive. An extension cable just presents another connection/splice point for RFI/EMI leakage or other connection issues.
Given that the RocketU is less expensive and a little faster as well, it's hard to justify the additional expence of the Sonnet. The one thing I really like about the Sonnet is that it's using FrescoLogic controllers.
Also, for your use case, I do recommend you get some high quality, shielded cables long enough to reach your drives. Shy away from extension cables and use direct cabling to the drive. An extension cable just presents another connection/splice point for RFI/EMI leakage or other connection issues.
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To be honest, I think I may just go ahead and get the Sonnet Allegro over the RocketU due to stability. Flaky is not going to cut it for me. Plus I like the sound of the ability to charge devices with the Allegro.
I don't think you can go wrong with either card. I didn't mean to say the RocketU was flaky. It's not at all. The drive enclosure was flaky and spazzed out on every USB interface card I owned. It just happened to work better on this particular card. To date I've never had a single issue with the RocketU 1144C.
What's the difference between FrescoLogic controller and the one from the RocketU? which company has better customer support?