German RME With Thunderbolt Connectivity for Pro Audio Solutions

Sonnet Technologies Inc. announced that RME (Audio AG), developer of digital audio solutions for broadcasting and A/V applications, has joined the list of manufacturers whose products will gain Thunderbolt connectivity via Sonnet’s Echo Express Thunderbolt Expansion Chassis for PCIe Cards.

The expansion chassis enables users of computers equipped with a Thunderbolt port to connect one or two compatible PCIe adapter cards such as RME’s new HDSPe MADI FX professional audio interface card. The solution allows manufacturers to deliver desktop computer features and performance to users of the latest Apple iMac, Mac mini, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro models with Thunderbolt technology. RME’s card marks a milestone in the history of multichannel audio interface cards, delivering performance never available before.

"The new, high-performance RME HDSPe MADI FX card has been tested and shown to be fully compatible with the Echo Express, and is a great example of how combining our compact and portable Thunderbolt expansion chassis with a leading high-performance audio card can provide audio professionals with unparalleled flexibility and mobility," said Greg LaPorte, VP of sales and marketing at Sonnet. "The ability to handle 390 audio channels with a MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, or iMac is unprecedented."

"Using Sonnet’s single-slot PCIe chassis, we have been able to record 194 tracks and play back 196 tracks of audio on the iMac with our new HDSPe MADI FX card. With two additional Apple Thunderbolt displays daisy-chained to the setup, all of the channels can be displayed. These are real numbers that could not have been achieved in the past using other external transfer methods," said RME’s founder Matthias Carstens. "The Echo Express now allows all Mac computers with a Thunderbolt port to add a PCIe card into the equation, and with it, more features and superior performance that couldn’t be attained with previous methods. This not only marks a breakthrough for stationary studio use, but also for mobile recording using small, ultra-lightweight computers."