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User profile for user: RichieJC
RichieJC Author
User level: Level 1
5 points

Using Thunderbolt 3 devices on my late 2013 Mac Pro

Hi,


I've read a large amount about connecting my late 2013 Mac Pro to USB-C/Thunderbolt three only devices and wanted to know if anyone had found another get around to connecting either and EGPU or external storage via any means other than a PCIe expansion chassis and the PCIe card? I've had issues with hardware compatibility here that would seem to need to chang the OSX/OS11 architecture which I'm not massively keen to do.


Adaptors I have used (from the Apple store) only seem to work one way. The wrong way - that is to say that you can use your USB A or thunderbolt 2 device on a USBC/Thunderbolt 3 machine but not the other way around.


As all devices, cards etc... all seem to be standardising to the latest iterations of USB and Thunderbolt, it seems kind of ridiculous that having spent years and a small fortune upgrading parts of my workstation that I now need to by a whole new machine to actually make anything work.


Looking forward to hearing any thoughts!


Rich

Posted on Sep 15, 2020 3:28 AM

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User profile for user: Grant Bennet-Alder
Grant Bennet-Alder
User level: Level 10
133,459 points

Posted on Sep 15, 2020 8:53 AM

Do you really need genuine ThunderBolt-3 device attachment, or do you need USB 3 device attachment?


It is nearly impossible to create a genuine ThunderBolt-3 from anything else. You can come close with the Apple ThunderBolt-3 <--> Thunderbolt-2 adapter WITH a genuine ThunderBolt cable at one end or the other as appropriate, BUT it has serious limitations, and can ONLY drive genuine ThunderBolt displays, not displays-with-adapters

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User profile for user: Grant Bennet-Alder
Grant Bennet-Alder
User level: Level 10
133,459 points

Sep 15, 2020 8:53 AM in response to RichieJC

Do you really need genuine ThunderBolt-3 device attachment, or do you need USB 3 device attachment?


It is nearly impossible to create a genuine ThunderBolt-3 from anything else. You can come close with the Apple ThunderBolt-3 <--> Thunderbolt-2 adapter WITH a genuine ThunderBolt cable at one end or the other as appropriate, BUT it has serious limitations, and can ONLY drive genuine ThunderBolt displays, not displays-with-adapters

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Using Thunderbolt 3 devices on my late 2013 Mac Pro

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