illconn

So I got my box tested, and confirmed working using the Wife's computer. Unfortunately I cant use it since im not as cool as you guys with Macbooks and only have my TB3 enabled XPS 13. I was hoping to have my adapter by now, but now im feeling like I want to just wait for TB3 board to be released. Initially I posted this on here with bigger case I modified but instead decided to make this cleaner, and more plug and play for easier carrying in bag. Want to make back just a few bucks and put it towards whatever the price is going to be for a Razer Core, or new akitio enclosure with TB3. $325+shipping/insurance priority mail(Akitio TB2/PowerSupply) Plugged it in last night to confirm that it detects the Box, and Video card post automate script and all looks good. There are only 2 connections coming out of the box: Thunderbolt 2 Cable, and 8 Pin connector to the PSU. The 8Pin connector and the 2 wires going to the akitio board are Epoxied in for protection against shorts as well as strength. This is basically plug in play, all you need to do is the software portion, no need to worry about wiring anything GTX 970 is NOT included in the price and was only used for testing.

Hi hramos90, I actually have one of these setups thats completely new but not using bc i am waiting for TB3 to TB2 adapter that has not been release yet. I am going to move on to another project so going to sell my setup. GTX 970(Zotac) which fits perfectly Akito box modified so that Zotac fits in with no mods to the gpu(removing fan shroud) -Modded to fit the 8 pin connector cut out rectangle to fit it and Epoxied the connector on -first 8 pin is a dual 8 pin(1 for power to PSU and Solder to PCB(no bullet)(1 8pin to dual 6 pin to feed the GPU) Clean setup, only thing that is outside the box is the 8pin connector for power, and the Thunderbolt 2 cable. I cant send you any direct messages but let me know if you are interested. If not I can also link all the wiring i bought, and post pics of what i did. I actually ordered one of the Dell DA2 as well but have yet to receive it. Thanks.

That would not work, Thunderbolt uses a chip on the "wire" or "adapter" that translates the signal. So a wire that is meant for Video like HDMI will not transfer data. What you will need is a Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt/2 adapter and a thunderbolt box like Akitio Thunder 2, or Sonnet one and so on. But Supposedly very soon(mid year) the Thunderbolt 3 GPU boxes will be announced/released so no need to buy adapters. You can also look into the Razer Blade Stealth which will soon be accompanied by the Core(GPU Enclosure with USB Ports). I have the Dell XPS 13 9350(16Gig RAM, 512 SSD) and have an Akito TB box, but no adapter from TB2 to TB3 yet as they are set to ship in Feb. I hope that clears things up for you. Rich.

Nicely done, and congrats!

I could not find this information on the thread or through google but can someone confirm that the "unused" Pin does not carry any voltage at all? I was hoping it would carry 5v to power my usb hub.... but now im not seeing this and I believe that my impression that it did was because of the Xbox Brick. Before i cancel my order and go with the XBOX FAT Brick can someone confirm this is true? Thank you.

Sorry if im unable to link it.... basically its the following: Akitio Thunder 2(unused) Silverstone SG05 Case Silverstone 300W SFX power supply Basically all it needs is to be wired as others have done so, I just dont have a MAcbook or TB1/2 laptop for testing so I am just going to wait for TB3 board to be released. Oh yea, I would absolutely go with it, specially being that you dont have to worry a bout import tax. I think you will still have good performance, but if you can get your hands on a TB2 it would be even better.

Here you go, we could take all that into account, if its too much for import tax then you might be better off with the Sonnet 1 which wills till give you good performance, just not as much as the TB2.

You will have less bandwidth with the adapaters as you will be going with slow connection to thunderbolt. Thunder2 box from Akitio is best bang for the buck to performance ratio indeed. I am actually selling my New setup lol, I can ship to you There are pictures in the akitio thread. Still need to finish wiring, but I actually have XPS 13 with Thunderbolt 3 so I might either wait for them to come out with new enclosure, and I really want more slots, so might get the Express II or the III-D. take a look and let me know.

Well im sure the upgrade for it would be more than that. I would go with Akitio as there is a lot of other TI users that have experience with them and can prob help. Just remember that its def not plug and play at this point so there will be tinkering to do.

Your macbook is TB2, and should accept TB1 signal at the lower speed of TB1(10Gbps), and you can probably get an upgrade board from Sonnet if you email them. Not sure how much it cost, but worth a shot as they are pretty responsive to emails. Good luck.

If no one wants the case, then I guess I will continue as planned, and wait for TB3 to release a dock to upgrade my board. Akitio state that they will NOT release an upgrade board, and instead an upgrade will only be avail by purchasing the New Thunder 3 enclosure which of course would not disclose release time frame lol.

Pre ordered the TB3 to TB2 adapter from Colamco: http://www.colamco.com/startech-com-data-transfer-cable-tbt3tbtadap-1185217 Spoke to customer service, and they said the adapters are set to arrive at their warehouse the 19th, and will "Ship" the 20th to me. We shall see, and i will keep everyone posted on whether it works or not. What are you guys using to benchmark the throughput on TB? I would like to see how well the adapter works, or if it will be a big fail for the eGPU community specially for those thinking of using one for the Razer Core style docks. Rich.

This is a new and unused enclosure i have been putting togther while i wait for the TB3 to TB2 adapter to be released. However in the time i have been waiting I have decided i want to go with a Sonnet III D or maybe even just the Echo Express II. I need the PCI interfaces, and although im not sure I am hoping that being that my XPS has a bunch of other Bios settings in regards to Thunderbolt that I wont have many issues with the Riser board in these enclosures. The parts used are all new, and I do have the boxes but would like to ship in the case box which is protected. Parts: Thunderbolt: Akitio Thunder 2 board Case: Silverstone SG05 Lite PSU: Silverstone SFX 300W USB Hub: J5 Create Slim Hub Have done most of the work, and the slot fits my Gigabyte GXT 970, but I know it will fit an Asus 970 itx, and it will fit some slightly longer cards as well. I can get exact max length of card if needed. The max length of SG05 is: 10", and can fit a longer card with some cutting at the front since the cover takes up about 1" so around 11" card max with some more modding. Take into consideration that I have retro the Akitio frame in for strength, and the mount for the card takes up about 1/4" to 3/8 of an inch from the total length. The empty space was meant to be used for the Hard drives which i was going to Raid 1, wifi adapter, and water cooling for the GPU i was going to setup inside. Looking to get : $ 375 + Shipping(insured) Please let me know if this is not the right place to put this ad, as i could not find a classifieds section. Thank you, Rich.

Good afternoon everyone, Wondering who might be using this enclosure, as I would really like to pickup this as a solution. In the process of completing my Akitio inside a Silverstone SG05/SFX 300W enclosure, but really wish i could have that second PCI slot for a USB/SATA card. So Question is, Who is running this enclosure successfully with 2 cards? I did see 1 post of someone using it, but wondering if anyone else is too. I guess being that there are a few using the III-D this one should work for me, and i should be able to do what i want. My concern is the whole will it have problems with detection of gpu and or the usb/sata card bc of the way the 2 slots work as far as communication? Ultimately, the setup would be as follows: Sonnet Echo Express II GPU: If it fits I would go with either the Gigabyte 970 ITX, or the R9 Nano PSU: Dell 220W / Xbox 360 203W SATA Drive: 2 TB 2.5" for storage USB: 4 Ports from the PCI Card for Keyboard, Mouse, Headphones I might sell my current setup, and purchase the Express II if this looks like a workable solution. New and unused: Akitio Thunder 2 Retro'ed into: Silverstone SG05 Lite Silverstone SFX 300W PSU 2TB 2.5" USB Drive(3.0) 4 Port J5create USB 3.0 Hub WiFi Dongle attached via USB Thank you.

Hi ali4110m, Looks like some more recent news was posted by Amazon! Feb 26th is the ship date according to Amazon, and to answer your question it should absolutely work as its also bi-directional, and simply takes the tb3 signal and changes it to tb2 and vise versa. I may pre order one just to know im going to get it, but im betting that TB3 Enclosures will be announced shortly as well since Razer Core is now a thing. I am willing to bet the competition is now feeling pressured and will release info soon too. I have an XPS 13 with TB3, and would like to use my GPU and ditch my giant desktop so im really looking forward to this! http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B019FPJDQ2