It’s amazing how much processing power Mac®, Windows®, and Linux® computers with Thunderbolt™ ports offer today's creative professionals. However, these sleek marvels of engineering thinness come at a cost — they lack PCIe expansion slots for adding PCIe cards for connectivity and processing capabilities. Sonnet has a solution – Echo™ Express SE I Thunderbolt Expansion System provides a compact, one-slot system that enables you to connect a single PCIe card to your computer via a single cable.
Professional Desktop PCIe Card Expansion – when connected to one of your computer’s Thunderbolt ports, Echo Express SE I allows you to connect a single professional PCIe card — such as a video capture device, audio interface, SAS or SATA host bus adapter, Fibre Channel, Ethernet, or RAID controller — along with a daughter card. Watch this video to learn more about the performance benefits of the Thunderbolt controller in Sonnet Thunderbolt products.
Use high-performance PCIe cards with any computer with Thunderbolt ports.
Supports one half-length+ (up to 7.75 inches long), full-height, single-width PCIe card (plus one daughter card).
Offers full PCIe bandwidth to the installed card.
Takes up little space on the desktop, but large enough to support nearly every Thunderbolt-compatible PCIe card, at full performance.
One port connects to computer; second port supports daisy-chaining additional Thunderbolt peripheral devices.
Temperature-controlled, variable-speed fan automatically and quietly cools the card.
Powers on/off automatically with the computer.
Provides robust and secure protection.
Daisy chain port provides up to 15W of power to connected peripherals.
Supports M series Macs (with PCIe cards that have compatible drivers).
Supports Intel Macs with Thunderbolt 3 ports and Windows computers with Thunderbolt 5, 4, or 3 ports.
Supports Linux computers with Thunderbolt 5, 4, or 3 ports.
Founded in 1986 in Orange County, Southern California — the vibrant hub of technology and engineering south of Silicon Valley — Sonnet has been at the forefront of innovation. Over the years, we've developed numerous award-winning products that enhance performance and connectivity for Mac, Windows, and other industry-standard computers. Many of our team members have been with us for over two decades, providing us with extensive expertise about our current and past offerings. If you ever need technical support for any of our products, don’t hesitate to reach out; we’re here to assist you.
Designed to accommodate cards up to 7.75 inches long and measuring a compact 5.6 inches wide by 8.6 inches long by 3.5 inches tall, Echo Express SE I has a small footprint, yet it is large enough to support nearly every Thunderbolt compatible PCIe 4.0, 3.0, PCIe 2.0, and PCIe 1.1 card available. Do you have a card in mind but aren’t sure it’s compatible? We’ve put together a compatibility list that identifies cards conforming to Thunderbolt technology requirements, and organized by fit and power compatibility with specific expansion systems.
Echo Express SE I features an x8 PCIe slot, and supports one half-length+, full-height, single- or double-width PCIe card. Double-width? Some pro video and audio interface cards, such as Blackmagic Design’s DeckLink 4K Extreme, and RME’s HDSPe MADI FX card, include a daughter card that mates with and provides additional external connections to the main card. The daughter card occupies the adjacent space without filling a PCIe slot.
1. Space for a daughter card
2. PCIe 3.0 x8 slot
Many Sonnet Thunderbolt products featuring Thunderbolt ports come equipped with threaded mounting holes to securely attach Sonnet ThunderLok retainer clips, preventing Thunderbolt cables from accidentally disconnecting.
Sonnet Thunderbolt products feature a high-speed Thunderbolt interface that delivers PCIe bandwidth needed to support data transfers at full speed.
Compatible with Apple M series Macs
see Tech Specs for details
