Echo 13 Thunderbolt 5 SSD Dock Support Library

Description: This is the English language quick start guide for Sonnet Echo 13 Thunderbolt 5 SSD Dock. This is revision F of this document.

Issue

A Thunderbolt issue may prevent 2.5Gb Ethernet from achieving full bandwidth when connected through certain Thunderbolt configurations.

Observed Performance

In affected systems, 2.5GbE throughput may be limited to approximately 1.2-1.8Gbps.

Expected Performance

Under normal conditions, 2.5GbE should achieve approximately 2.35Gbps of real-world throughput after protocol overhead.

Status

This is known to Intel to be a Thunderbolt limitation rather than a hardware defect in the Sonnet dock or Ethernet Controller.

European Union regulations require that devices of this type shall not exceed 100W power delivery. For this reason, docks no longer provide, and computers no longer request, precisely 100W power delivery from a USB-C charging device. Tolerances in devices, components, voltage regulators, impedences, cable type and length, etc. could push 100W nominal power over 100W, which would exceed the hard limit of the specification. The mean power requested by computers that need ~100W, and the mean power provided by docks is nominally 96W with a range of 92-100W over a range of conditions. 100W is the maximum power provided under the most demanding conditions.

Hello,

I am sorry that your dock is not working as expected. Unfortunately, it is not possible to connect to multiple displays connected to the dock with an M3 Apple computer. Apple has a support article here on this topic . You will see in the last section of the article there is a section titled "If Your Display Won't Connect." Here it states that "If your display is connected to a hub or dock and you can use it only to mirror your built-in display, connect your display to a port directly on your Mac. "

Thanks,

Can I replace the SSD in my Echo 13 Thunderbolt 5 Dock?

We would not recommend purchasing the Echo 13 Thunderbolt 5 dock with the intent of replacing the SSD. We have gone through extensive testing to make sure that the Kingston SSD installed is compatible. If the SSD stops working in the future, it could be replaced by you, but we would recommend replacing with the same brand of SSD. SSD compatibility over Thunderbolt has been limited, so we have done a lot of extra testing to make sure that the drives we use work. Please be aware that if you would still like to replace the SSD, Sonnet will be unable to support or warranty these actions.

Echo 13 Thunderbolt 5 SSD dock – SSD upgrade options

If your Echo 13 Thunderbolt 5 SSD dock has a Serial Number that begins with an A, you can upgrade to the following 2280 sized M.2 SSD:

-
- -Kingston NV3 (only SSDs purchased from Sonnet)
- -Western Digital/SanDisk SN850X
- -SanDisk Optimus GX Pro 850X/WD_BLACK SN850X

If your Echo 13 Thunderbolt SSD dock has a Serial Number that begins with an B, you can upgrade to the following 2280 sized M.2 SSD (no heatsink):

- -Kingston Fury Renegade
- -Kingston Fury Renegade G5
- -Samsung 990 Pro
- -Samsung 9100 Pro
- -SanDisk Optimus GX PRO 850X/WD_BLACK SN850X
- -SanDisk Optimus GX PRO 8100/WD_BLACK SN8100

Should I power down the dock when I am not using it?

The Echo dock can just be left connected to the host-computer, and can always be left 'on'.There are no major issues that can occur if the device is left on, nor will leaving this on significantly shorten the lifespan of the device.Especially if the dock (and subsequently the computer itself) is connected to a UPS system/voltage regulator (or similar) and these are in a temperature controlled studio, then the device should be safeguarded against any power event like a power surge or power sag, as well as any adverse environmental events (not in the sun, outside, rain, etc.)These Echo 13 docks' also have no mechanical components which wear out over time, so these can be 'left on' indefinitely.If you do need to disconnect or power down, then yes, we do recommend safely ejecting any connected peripherals (especially storage items) through macOS, prior to physically disconnecting or powering down the dock. Or, you can leave the dock on, and power down the host-computer. Thunderbolt peripherals (like the dock) will automatically power off/on alongside the host-computer the device is connected to. This is a feature of the Thunderbolt specification, and is present in Sonnet products. Although this is for a different product, this video here has additional details on this power saving feature.When powering the host-computer on again, if you see any problems, you may need to connect the external peripherals to the host-computer directly first (to allow them via macOS), then reconnect them to the dock after 'allowing' them in macOS. macOS will 'remember' these devices in general, but macOS updates can remove this cached data, so you may need to repeat this action after an update occurs.-- Additionally, for optimal use in a setup like this, preventing the Mac from sleeping altogether, and instead, sleeping the monitor by itself (rather than the entire computer) can sometimes help resolve unusual disconnections or issues before they occur.This is because we have seen that Apple recently changed how the power-state of their drivers passthrough information when coming into or out of a 'sleep' state, which can sometimes affect connectivity of attached peripherals.To do this in macOS Sonoma/Sequoia/Tahoe, go to:System Preferences -> Battery -> Options -> Prevent automatic sleeping on power adapter when the display is off. Then System Preferences -> Desktop & Dock -> Hot Corners… and set a corner to Put Display to Sleep.Changing these settings can also help provide stability in an 'always on' setup like you describe.Let us know if any of this makes sense or helps to clarify.Thank you for your time.Regards,Sonnet Team

Will your TB5 product work with my Thunderbolt 3 or Thunderbolt 4 Windows PC?

Whether our Thunderbolt devices work with a Thunderbolt 3/4 Windows PC is dependent on what generation of Thunderbolt chip the computer has and what Firmware version you have. If the computer has Alder Lake, Raptor Lake, or Meteor Lake Thunderbolt 4 chip with an integrated chip, it is fully supported for all Firmware versions. If the Intel Core 7 Processor starts with a 2, then it is second generation and has Thunderbolt integrated.

For computers without an integrated Thunderbolt chip. If the computer has Tiger Lake U, you would need to be on FW version 48.1 and later for full support. If the computer has Tiger Lake H, you would need to be on FW version 31.1 and later for full support. For Alder Lake on Windows 10, you would need to be on FW version 20.1 and later for full support. For Raptor Lake on Windows 10, you would need to be on FW version 20.1 and later for full support. For Alder Lake and Raptor Lake with a Maple Ridge device, you would need to be on FW version 43.3 and later. For Rocket Lake with a Maple Ridge device, and for Thunderbolt 3 Ice Lake, Titan Ridge, Alpine Ridge and Alpine Ridge Low Power, there is no support for a Thunderbolt 5 device.