• SONAR
  • Is Thunderbolt Ever Going to Take Off for Windows Machines?
2013/12/02 01:59:58
Anderton
Granted this isn't a Sonar topic per se, but there are so many smart people on these forums, I figured I'd get an answer. I really haven't seen it bust out yet on the Mac either...I was expecting it would be getting more of a buzz by now. I know cables are expensive, there don't seem to be a lot of peripherals, and some of these are "faux Thunderbolt"...basically FireWire with a Thunderbolt connector. But for a program like Sonar, wouldn't Thunderbolt ultimately be useful due to low latency, the ability to run lots of I/O, and video integration for those of us who use Sonar with video?
 
So, smart forum people...what's up with Thunderbolt?
2013/12/02 02:05:19
Splat
Apple, HP and ASUS(?) so far adopting in, but for how long? I'm noticing the latest HP laptops are not having this feature any more(?), this laptop does however:
http://h20386.www2.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id=ECC_BUNDLE_4183168&opt=&sel=PCNB
 
Intel I think made a massive mistake, as part of the ultrabook standard they could have insisted on thunderbold with manufacturers, but they didn't. Seeing it on more desktops than laptops perhaps?
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/enterprise/379594/intel-defends-omitting-thunderbolt-from-ultrabook-spec
 
2013/12/02 02:25:08
noynekker
My Asus P8Z77-VPro motherboard has Thunderbolt capability . . . but there seem to be no devices capable of using it ?
Perhaps some high end monitors ?
I was also thinking there would at least be some USB3 audio devices by now, but none that I have seen.
2013/12/02 02:28:02
Splat
Saffire Pro 40s can use thunderbolt.
2013/12/02 02:36:44
noynekker
Alex . . . nice news . . . so I Googled it, and it says Saffire Pro 40s are "compatible with Apple Thunderbolt to Firewire Adapter"
 . . . no mention of PC ?
2013/12/02 02:40:22
karhide
RME have released the MADIface XT that is USB 3.0 and can handle 196 Input and 198 Output channels which is the only USB 3.0 interface I've seen. 
 
I'm interested in thunderbolt mainly because it will mean I will be able to still use my Fireface 400 with the converter cable.   
2013/12/02 02:48:58
Living Room Rocker
Hi, Craig.  I'm not that smart, but I thought TB would have been a hit at first strike.  I remember reading about LightPeak and couldn't wait for its implantation years ago.  Now it's like, "thunder what?"  Even though TB2 is out, there has been no real movement at the market level, but for a very few producers like UA, Apogee, Avid and Lynx(I think). 
 
I have an ASUS G55VW with thunderbolt which I connect my Saffire Pro 24 to, but I was really anticipating UA's Apollo for that role.  However, they don't support TB on Windows!! What gives?!  Sad thing is, I would brag about how cool it is I can connect my FW interface to my TB laptop, but who really cares.  No one's impressed by its capacity or possibilities.
 
Seems TB for Windows is a bust... or should I say, "crash and burn?"  I am so disappointed.
 
Kind regards,
 
Living Room Rocker
 
P.S.  Okay guys, you can pile on now.
2013/12/02 04:03:07
mettelus
+1
 
Unless if something is adopted mainstream, its chances drop dramatically, especially if its price point is higher. 8-tracks, Betamax, LaserDisc, etc... without 3rd party support they fly like lead balloons even when "cutting edge."
2013/12/02 05:40:58
Sycraft
No, probably not on account of it getting "Applefied". In its original design spec I could have seen it getting popular since it was basically just an external PCIe bus. Would have been easy to add on with a card, and could have been a candidate for replacing SATA internally. However, Apple threw a bunch of money at Intel to get them to change it and integrate it with DisplayPort. That serves Apple's goals of "cables BAD!" well in that you can now have less cables, but it means that it can't really be an addon for systems. Since it has to be integrated with DP, it has to integrate with both a display adapter and the PCIe bus, which means it has to be provided by the motherboard. There's no real way to add it on.
 
Well most boards aren't interested in spending the money to add it on since it is useless to most people. There aren't many thunderbolt devices and what there is tends to be pro-video stuff, which not many people use. So there is a decided lack of thunderbolt boards. Only Intel's highest end desktop board has it, and few people drop that kind of cash on a motherboard. Even for other things that have it, like HDDs, it makes little difference. USB3 is "just as fast" from a consumer perspective for HDDs. When you analyze system load and so on you see the advantage but a consumer doesn't, they just see that data transfer is fast and that's all that matters.
 
Add to that the fact that Apple's investment bought them a year of exclusivity, which is a sure fire way to lower interest in adoption from other companies, and well, here we are.
 
So I doubt it'll go anywhere, at least in its current incarnation. 
2013/12/02 06:51:14
FCCfirstclass
In the upper mid to lower motherboards, USB3 has at least 2 ports with USB2 completing the mix.  I had to buy a Firewire PCIe card so that I could run my video using a nifty setup that has worked very well in the past.  Yes, the camera will output thru USB, but Vegas Pro likes the Firewire bus. 
 
What does that say to Firewire, let alone TB?
 
My motherboard is only 9 months old.
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