Echo III Rackmount Support Library

Description: This is the English language user's guide for Sonnet's Echo III Rackmount Thunderbolt to PCIe card expansion system. This is revision M of this manual.

The 3-card cable for the Mac Pro that Avid includes with HDX card also works in the Sonnet's Echo III Desktop and Rackmount; the Echo Express III-D and III-R; Echo II DV Desktop, Rackmount, and Module; Echo II DV T5 Desktop, Rackmount, and Module; xMac Pro Server and xMac Studio. Just replace the cable that is inside the chassis with the Avid cable. If you need a replacement cable, Sonnet has made a power cable for a single Avid HDX card that is compatible with these chassis. The part number is TCB-HDXB and is available from Sonnet or Sonnet-authorized resellers. (Note that the Sonnet cable supports only one HDX card.) If you need to power two or three HDX cards, you need the Avid replacement cable: ASY.CBL.POWER.MACPRO XD_CORE.TRIPLE REV.A, Part Number: 9180-60004-00.

The problems can be very different (some ports fail, multiple cards in the same chassis have issue, video distortion, video/audio lag, etc.)

Update the firmware on the BMD card to the current version, and the issue in the Echo Express will be resolved on both Windows and macOS.

The problems can be very different (some ports fail, multiple cards in the same chassis have issue, video distortion, video/audio lag, etc.)

Update the firmware on the BMD card to the current version, and the issue in the Echo will be resolved on both Windows and macOS.

When you boot an M1 or M2 Mac with an Echo III PCIe Expansion Chassis connected —AND— you have a monitor or USB device connected to the downstream port of the PCIe expansion chassis, one of the HDX cards will not enumerate.

Solution: After booting, Plug in PCIe chassis, monitor or USB device. We expect this to be fixed in macOS Ventura.

When you boot an M1 or M2 Mac with a multi-slot PCIe Expansion Chassis connected —AND— you have a monitor or USB device connected to the downstream port of the PCIe expansion chassis, one of the PCIe cards may not enumerate.

Solution: After booting, Plug in PCIe chassis, monitor or USB device.

• Issue: Launching Activity Monitor app on an M1 or M2 Mac while recording in a Pro Tools session will cause a Pro Tools error AAE-9093.

• Solution: Do not run Activity Monitor while recording a Pro Tools session.

• Issue: When recording a 128 track session, setting Playback Engine HW Buffer Size to less than 2048 will cause Pro Tools error AAE-9093.

• Solution: Set Playback Engine HW Buffer Size to 2048.

• Issue: Pro Tools error AAE-9093 error is immediately is displayed after selecting record or play for a .ptx session that has associated clips if the last actions from the prior time Pro Tools run was to stop recording and then immediately quit and select "Don't Save" while quitting Pro Tools.

• Solution: This error condition can be removed by first attempting to record a clip, observing and clicking through the AAE-9093 dialog box, then selecting File-Save to save the .ptx file and then quitting Pro Tools. Now restart Pro Tools, open the session .ptx and confirm that play and record function normally.

Conditions for error: Mac Studio or MacBook Pro2021 with HD Native (does not occur with M1 Mac mini, Intel Macs or HDX). Cold start works fine, but restarting and opening a session results in an immediate Error AAE-9093 (or -9129 if at 2048 buffer).

Solution: Quit Pro Tools, shut down your Mac, unplug the power cable from the Echo chassis, wait a few seconds, replug the power cable and start. Everything should work fine (until the next warm restart).

When using Matrox Cards in a Thunderbolt Expansion chassis, you need to disable Fast Startup under Windows 10.

To disable Fast Startup, first, open your power options by hitting Windows+X or right-clicking your Start menu and selecting Power Options. In the Power Options window, click "Choose what the power buttons do."

If this is the first time you've messed with these settings, you'll need click "Change settings that are currently unavailable" to make the Fast Startup option available for configuration.

Scroll to the bottom of the window and you should see "Turn on fast startup (recommended)", along with other shutdown settings. Just uncheck this box to disable Fast Startup. Save your changes and shut down your system.

What is the BlackMagic Decklink 8K Pro capable of in Thunderbolt PCIe expansion chassis.

These cards are PCIe 3.0x8 cards and may not achieve maximum bandwidth or number of video channels over Thunderbolt 3, which provides PCIe 3.0x4. Thunderbolt 4 does not help with this since it has PCIE 3.0x1. Thunderbolt 5 is PCIE 4.0x4, and because there is more bandwidth available back to the computer, it does improve the performance. There is not a Thunderbolt chassis available that can give you a PCIe 3.0x8 connection. Here is some independent real world testing data.

Thunderbolt 3

4K60-Up to 2 Streams

4K50-Up to 3 Streams

1080p60-Up to 6 Streams

Thunderbolt 5

4K60-Up to 3 Streams

4K50-Up to 4 Streams

1080p60-Up to 6 Streams

My Black Magic Card is not working.

Can you confirm that only your BlackMagic card is not working? Are other cards working without issue?

If so, make sure that the power cable is connected to the 8K Pro card, and the firmware of the card is updated.
See our tech notes here for more information.

Other customers have claimed that BlackMagic cards may require a firmware update to function well in newer operating systems and with newer computers like M-series Mac computers in Thunderbolt chassis.

These firmware updates may need to be installed sequentially:
Uninstall current desktop video software... Install version 10.10, install driver/firmware, then uninstall.
Install version 11.7, install driver/firmware, then uninstall.
Then install version 12.x, install driver/firmware…
We have seen that this may help with unusual issues like this.

See our tech notes above for more information.

BlackMagic may have more details regarding this than we are aware of.

A customer of ours reported the following:
"Sure enough the fix required plugging in the mini USB port on the side of the decklink card into my computer with the pci card removed from the Sonnet frame. BMD Desktop Video immediately recognized the device as needing a firmware update. Update was completed after a minute and the card functioned properly and was recognized by the software after plugging into the Sonnet enclosure again."

Is my setup with my computer, OS, HDX card compatible with your PCIE expansion TB chassis?

kb.avid.com/pkb/articles/compatibility/Pro-Tools-Thunderbolt-Chassis-Compatibility?_gl=1*fr2iqx*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTE1MzY4NDU0NS4xNzYyOTgxOTk2*_ga_PROD*czE3NjI5ODE5OTUkbzEkZzAkdDE3NjI5ODE5OTUkajYwJGwwJGg2NzA0MjUyODM