Looking for a USB 3.0 splitter?
Looking for a USB 3.0 splitter?
I received my new case today (Enthoo 719) and encountered a problem. All four front USB ports are 3.0, but the motherboard uses two separate wires for them. My board (Crosshair VI Hero) only has one USB 3.0 port, so I can connect only two of the front ports while leaving the other two unused. The question is whether to buy a splitter that converts the motherboard port into two or to get a PCI-e card with two ports. Which option would be better? Any advice?
It varies. You're essentially dividing your bandwidth into two sections, which means you won't achieve full USB 3.0 speeds but you'll still have some front-side USB ports. On the other hand, using a PCIE slot on your motherboard would let you maintain USB 3.0 speeds across all your ports without splitting bandwidth. Personally, I'd prefer a PCIe card with two ports so all my USB 3.0 connections stay fast. It depends on what you value more—speed or port availability. This option might be costly, around $20 for a single port card, but a dual-port solution could work too if you connect one to the card and the other directly to your board.
You're wondering if PCIe x1 might not perform well, based on the information you've seen—specifically the mention of "times 1 cards." It seems like you're concerned about its speed.
It has been a persistent issue affecting my substantial resources for a while. Most of the cards I've encountered operate in a single lane (x1) at PCIe 2.0 speed, even though the connectors seem to support multiple lanes. This results in all ports sharing the same 5.0Gbps capacity. It's clearly misleading.
I'm looking for information about a PCIe card, but I can't locate what you're referring to. All the options I see are X1 models. My main board isn't an option since I don't have the budget. I only have one 3.1 port, which is already occupied by my 3.1 cable. My 3.0 connector is 20 pins, while the 3.1 isn't. That doesn't help at all.