Asus ThunderboltEX II User manual

ThunderboltEX II
15060-35300200
User Guide

2
E9392
Revised Edition V2
June 2014
Copyright © 2014 ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. All Rights Reserved.
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3
Package contents
Check your package for the following items:
• 1 x ThunderboltEX II card
• 1 x DisplayPort cable
• 1 x mini DisplayPort cable
• 1 x ASUS TB_Header cable
• 1 x ASUS TB_Header converter
• 1 x User guide
• 1 x Support CD
Compatible ASUS motherboard models
The ThunderboltEX II card is compatible with ASUS motherboards with TB_Headers that
passed Intel®validation. The following motherboards are supported:
• MAXIMUS VI EXTREME
• SABERTOOTH Z87
• Z87-PRO / Z87-PRO (V EDITION)
• Z87-PLUS / Z87-PLUS (VivoMouse EDITION)
• Z87-A / Z87-A (NFC EXPRESS EDITION)
• Z97-PRO / Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac)
• Z97-A
• Z97-AR
• SABERTOOTH Z97 MARK 1
• SABERTOOTH Z97 MARK 2
• GRYPHON Z97 / GRYPHON Z97(ARMOR KIT)
• MAXIMUS VII FORMULA
If any of the above items is damaged or missing, contact your retailer.
Welcome!
Congratulations and thank you for buying an ASUS ThunderboltEX II card!
The ASUS ThunderboltEX II card provides Thunderbolt™ connection to other Thunderbolt-
enabled devices. Use this card to quickly transfer native PCIe and DisplayPort protocols
between a PC and Thunderbolt™ devices.
Features
Your ASUS ThunderboltEX II card features a Thunderbolt™ 2 port that supports
Thunderbolt™ 2 technology and a DisplayPort that supports DisplayPort 1.2 specications.
The Thunderbolt™ 2 port provides 20 Gb/s bi-directional bandwidth and incorporates
DisplayPort 1.2 support enabling transfer and display of 4K video les simultaneously. The
Thunderbolt™ 2 port also allows you to connect up to six Thunderbolt-enabled devices in a
daisy-chain conguration using Thunderbolt™ cables.

4
ThunderboltEX II specications summary
Chipset Intel® DSL5320 Thunderbolt™2 controller
External Connectors
1 x Thunderbolt™ 2 port (up to 20 Gb/s bandwidth)
1 x DisplayPort 1.2 IN port
1 x 9-pin TB_Header
VGA
Supports Thunderbolt™2 interface* with maximum resolution of 4096
x 2160 @ 24 Hz / 3840 x 2160 @ 60 Hz
DisplayPort 1.2 Multi-Stream Transport (MST) compliant; supports up
to three displays of DisplayPort 1.2 monitors.**
* Use the Thunderbolt™ cable to link Thunderbolt™ monitors and
Thunderbolt-enabled devices in a daisy chain connection.
** Use the mini DisplayPort cable to link up to three DisplayPort 1.2
monitors in a daisy chain connection.
Data Rate Thunderbolt™ 2 port for 2 channels, 20 Gb/s bidirectional per channel
Accessories
1 x DisplayPort cable*
1 x mini DisplayPort cable*
1 x ASUS TB_Header cable**
1 x ASUS TB_Header converter***
1 x Support CD****
* Provides link from the motherboard’s DisplayPort or mini DisplayPort to
the DisplayPort 1.2 IN port on the ThunderboltEX II card. Use the bundled
DisplayPort or mini DIsplayPort cable depending on the available
DisplayPort connector on your motherboard.
** Provides link from TB_Header of the motherboard to the
ThunderboltEX II card’s TB header.
*** Use the bundled TB_Header converter with the TB_Header cable when
connecting your ThunderboltEX II card to the 5-pin TB_Header port of 9
series motherboards.
**** Contains the Thunderbolt™ 2 driver.
Operating Systems
Supported Windows® 7 / Windows® 8 / Windows® 8.1
Form Factor 3.35 in. x 3.94 in. (8.5 cm x 10 cm)
* Specications are subject to change without notice.
• Use only Thunderbolt™ technology-enabled devices that passed Intel®validation to
ensure optimum performance and compatibility with your ThunderboltEX II card.
• Ensure your monitor complies with DisplayPort 1.2 specications if you want to
connect them in a daisy-chain conguration using the Thunderbolt™ 2 port.

5
ThunderboltEX II card layout
Thunderbolt™ 2 port
DisplayPort IN port
PCIE 2.0 interface
LED indicator
TB_Header
To install the driver, place the Support DVD into the optical drive then follow on-screen
instructions to nish the installation.
Installing the ThunderboltEX II driver
We highly recommend that you install the Thunderbolt™ 2 driver rst before installing the
ThunderboltEX II card.

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• Before installing the ThunderboltEX II card in your motherboard, ensure that you
have an available PCIE 2.0 x16 slot connected to the platform controller hub
(PCH). For more information on the correct PCIE 2.0 slot to use, refer to the section
ThunderboltEX II card recommended configuration of this user guide.
• The following illustrations are for reference only. The motherboard layout may vary
with models, but the installation steps remain the same.
Installing the ThunderboltEX II card
To install the ThunderboltEX II card:
Ensure that no cables or peripherals
are blocking the PCIE 2.0 slot.
When the red LED on the
ThunderboltEX II card is on,
it indicates that a cable is
disconnected. Refer to the section
ThunderboltEX II card layout of
this user guide for the location of
the LED indicator.
1. Shut down your PC.
2. Open the chassis.
3. Align and insert the ThunderboltEX II card
into a PCIE 2.0 slot until it is securely seated
in place.
4. For supported 8 Series motherboards,
connect the ASUS TB_Header cable to
the ThunderboltEX II card (A) and to the
TB_Header port on the motherboard (B).

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To use the TB_Header converter:
a. Prepare the ASUS TB_Header converter and the TB_Header cable.
b. Connect one end of the TB_Header converter to the TB_Header cable (A) then connect the other
end of the TB_Header converter to the TB_Header port on the motherboard (B) as shown.
The TB_Header converter ts in one orientation only.
TB_Header converter
TB_Header cable
TB_Header converter
TB_Header cable
TB_Header
TB_Header port
For supported 9 Series motherboards, use the bundled TB_Header converter to connect your
ThunderboltEX II card to the TB_Header port on the motherboard.
c. Connect the other end of the TB_Header
cable to the TB_Header on the
ThunderboltEX II card.
TB_Header cable
ThunderboltEX II card
When the red LED on the ThunderboltEX II card is on, it indicates that a cable is
disconnected. Refer to the section ThunderboltEX II card layout of this user guide for the
location of the LED indicator.

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Thunderbolt™ 2 connector
DisplayPort
DisplayPort IN port
5. Connect the DisplayPort cable to the
ThunderboltEX II card’s DisplayPort IN port
(A) and to the DisplayPort or mini DisplayPort
on the motherboard’s I/O port (B).
6. Close the chassis.
7. Turn on the PC.
8. Connect the Thunderbolt™ cable from your Thunderbolt-enabled device to the Thunderbolt™ 2 port
on the ThunderboltEX II card.
• The Thunderbolt™ cable is not bundled with the ThunderboltEX II package. Use
the Thunderbolt™ cable that came with your Thunderbolt-enabled device when
connecting to the Thunderbolt™ 2 port on your ThunderboltEX II card.
• The Thunderbolt™ 2 port of the ThunderboltEX II card is backward compatible with
the previous Thunderbolt™ technology.
• For the recommended daisy-chain congurations or connections, refer to the section
Connecting to external devices of this user guide.

9
ThunderboltEX II card recommended configuration
Compatible ASUS motherboard
models
PCIE 2.0 port on the
motherboard (color)
PCIE 2.0 mode
(D = Default;
M = Maximum;
D/M = Default &
Maximum)
Maximum
bandwidth
MAXIMUS VI EXTREME PCIe 2.0/1.1 x4_1
(Black) D/M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
SABERTOOTH Z87 PCIe 2.0 x16_3
(Black)
D: x1 mode**
M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
Z87-PRO PCIe 2.0 x16_3
(Dark Brown)
D: x1 mode**
M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
Z87-PRO (V EDITION) PCIe 2.0 x16_3
(Dark Brown)
D: x1 mode**
M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
Z87-PLUS PCIe 2.0 x16_3
(Dark Brown) D/M: x2 mode*** 10 Gb/s
Z87-PLUS (VivoMouse EDITION) PCIe 2.0 x16_3
(Dark Brown) D/M: x2 mode*** 10 Gb/s
Z87-A PCIe 2.0 x16_3
(Dark Brown) D/M: x2 mode*** 10 Gb/s
Z87-A (NFC EXPRESS EDITION) PCIe 2.0 x16_3
(Dark Brown) D/M: x2 mode*** 10 Gb/s
Z97-PRO PCIEX16_3
(Black)
D: x1 mode**
M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac) PCIEX16_3
(Black)
D: x1 mode**
M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
Z97-A PCIEX16_3
(Black) D/M: x2 mode*** 10 Gb/s
Z97-AR PCIEX16_3
(Black) D/M: x2 mode*** 10 Gb/s
SABERTOOTH Z97 MARK 1 PCIEX16_3
(Black)
D: x1 mode**
M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
SABERTOOTH Z97 MARK 2 PCIEX16_3
(Black)
D: x2 mode**
M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
GRYPHON Z97 PCIEX16_3
(Black) D/M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
GRYPHON Z97 (ARMOR EDITION) PCIEX16_3
(Black) D/M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
MAXIMUS VII FORMULA PCIEX16_3
(Red)
D: x2 mode**
M: x4 mode 20 Gb/s
* Update the BIOS of your motherboard and the VGA driver to the latest version. Go to
www.asus.com for more information.
** Set the mode of your motherboard’s PCIe 2.0 x16_3 from x1 to x4 to maximize the
performance of your ThunderboltEX II card. Refer to the BIOS setup chapter of your
motherboard’s user guide for more information.
*** The maximum bandwidth of the PCIe 2.0 x16_3 slot on these supported motherboards
is x2 mode with a maximum bandwidth of 10 Gb/s.
If you install an add-on VGA card, ensure to set the BIOS item iGPU Multi Monitor to
[Enable]. Refer to the chapter BIOS setup of your motherboard’s user guide for more
information.

10
You can refer to the following illustrations for the recommended daisy-chain connections:
Connecting to external devices
Before connecting any Thunderbolt-enabled devices in a daisy-chain conguration,
ensure that it is equipped with one Thunderbolt™ IN port and one Thunderbolt™
OUT port.
Six (6) Thunderbolt™ devices
Six (6) Thunderbolt™ devices + three (3) DisplayPort 1.2 displays
Six (6) Thunderbolt™ devices + one (1) native DisplayPort monitor