The latest ultra-light notebooks, small form factor, and all-in-one Mac®, Windows®, and Linux® computers with Thunderbolt™ ports are amazingly thin, but there’s nowhere to install PCIe cards. What if you want to add video capture, processing, or connecting capabilities to your computer? Sonnet has the answer – Echo™ Express SEL is a compact, desktop Thunderbolt™ Expansion System that enables you to connect a low-profile PCIe card to your computer via a single Thunderbolt cable.
Small and Mighty – when connected to one of your computer's Thunderbolt ports, Echo Express SEL allows you to connect a low-profile PCIe card, such as Fibre Channel, Ethernet, video capture and processing, SAS and SATA host bus adapter, or a RAID controller. Watch this video to learn more about the performance benefits of the Thunderbolt controller in Sonnet Thunderbolt products.
Use a high-performance PCIe card with any computer with Thunderbolt ports.
Supports one low-profile PCIe card.
Offers full PCIe bandwidth to the installed card.
Smallest Thunderbolt Expansion System; supports the most popular low-profile, Thunderbolt-compatible PCIe cards 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 4 and Thunderbolt 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.
Echo Express SEL accommodates a wide variety of PCIe cards. 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 SEL supports one half-length (up to 6.6 inches long), low-profile, single-width PCIe card; PCIe 4.0, 3.0, 2.0, and 1.1 PCIe 4.0 cards are supported. Many of the most popular Thunderbolt-compatible high-speed networking and storage controller cards are a perfect fit, and even the BlueFish 444 Epoch 4K Neutron video card can be accommodated.
1. 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
