If it seems like you might have just read something about a new Thunderbolt PCI Express expansion chassis coming from Magma, that’s probably because we just mentioned it earlier this week. Now Magma has slipped out the official word, with a three-slot ExpressBox 3T soon available for preorder.
Magma has announced they will soon be accepting preorders for the ExpressBox 3T, a three-shot Thunderbolt expansion chassis which will finally fulfill one of the many promises of Intel’s new I/O technology by allowing PCI Express cards to be used on computers without internal slots -- in other words, the entire current Mac line with the exception of the Mac Pro.
“Magma's ExpressBox 3T provides an 'outside-the-box' solution for using PCIe® cards with Thunderbolt-equipped computers,” the company reveals in their announcement emailed to customers. “High-performance work flows are possible by connecting a Thunderbolt-equipped computer to a Magma ExpressBox 3T containing PCIe cards such as video capture, media transcoding, audio processing, and fast data storage. Because Thunderbolt is also based on DisplayPort technology, you can daisy-chain a high-resolution display with your Magma ExpressBox 3T.”
This is an exciting development for audio/video professionals who have long been chained to the higher-end Mac Pro for their creative work. Now, video capture cards that were previously exclusive to computers with internal PCI Express cards can be used with the iMac or even a notebook -- as well as legacy SCSI cards and most anything else using PCIe.
Magma will start accepting preorders for the ExpressBox 3T in the fourth quarter (anytime between October 1 and the end of the year), with a suggested retail price promised at “under $1,000.” Interested parties can sign up on the company’s website to be among the first to hear the news.
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abenassini5
September 14, 2011 at 7:14pm
the more I read into this article the more I cant help but think that a device such as this could really be beneficial for the end user and enthusiast looking for a massive performance boost, I mean PCIe Videocards ofcourse.
Correct me if I am wrong but the bandwith of a regular PCIe 2.0 bus isnt greater than that of the new Thunderbolt ports. call me a dreamer but the idea of being able to use one of those sleek 27" macs with those new Sandy Bridge CPU's (i7 2600K) and an external AMD Radeon 6990! ofcourse, such a feat would require a very powerfull onboard PSU packing atleast 750/850watts to power such cards, still even if its big and bulky, you wont need to upgrade for a good long time.
