MP 7,1 MacpPro 2019 7,1 need advice for PCIe to USB A & C card

[Frixo Cool]

Maybe someone knows what's the catch here!

I bought PCIe USB card that looks exactly like the card in the first post here (YEELIYA PCIE USB 3.0 Expansion Card 7 Ports), maybe 7-8 months ago and it works flawlessly in my Mac Pro 7,1. I use all 7 ports.

Now, I needed another card for my son's Mac Pro. As the original seller (on AliExpress) was not available, I searched for similar card. I found it, and they say it has Fresco Logic FL1100 chipset, so I guess it should be compatibile? They also claim that it's MacOS compatible from MacOS 10.8.2 and above.

LX0B PCI-E USB3.0 Card 7-Port Type C (2) TypeA (5) FL1100 Chip 5Gbps without Additional Power Cables for Desktop Computer PC - AliExpress 7

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

It looks the same but it doesn't work! To be exact, MacOS see it as "USB eXtensible Host Controller" and it powers USB memory sticks (as the LED is flashing) but it won't mount it and also keyboard and mouse don't work. When I boot in Boot Camp everything works! Did they changed the chipset specification?

My older card that looks exactly the same works great both in MacOS and Windows. Both Macs are on 15.7.3.

 

[Frixo Cool]

Ok, I investigated what the problem could be and where the difference is. The difference, as expected, is in the USB controller chip. Although the cards physically look completely identical, the one with the Fresco chip works on a Mac, while the one with the D720201 chip does NOT work on a Mac.



What you need to be careful of is that many AliExpress sellers take copy&paste descriptions without really checking whether something works on a Mac and even copy into the description that the card uses a Fresco chip, when in fact it has this replacement one that is not Mac compatible. Then they write in the description that the card is "MacOS 10.8.2 Above" compatible and they don't check if Fresco has a chip or a replacement.



Be sure to ask the retailer to double-check that the controller is a Fresco and not a replacement.

 

[Frixo Cool]

I can confirm that this version of the card works great:

ULANSEN PCI-E to 7-Port (Type C (2), Type A (5)) USB 3.0 HUB Internal Expansion Card Contronller Adapter PCI Express Card Desktop PC for Windows Mac Linux

Special features: No additional power is required for normal detection and operation. Optimized map architecture. Quick and easy installation. Keeps your Mac Pro case well organized. With a quick and easy installation, this PCI Express card increases the number of ports on your Mac Pro by four h...

www.amazon.de