Thunderbolt support?

[jeffk]

I’m a total Apple fanboy (boo-hiss!) but the Steam Deck has gotten me back into PC gaming recently.

I’m sorely tempted to buy a gaming PC so that I can play more demanding games. However, I’d like to plug this PC into my existing Apple Studio Display that only supports Thunderbolt.

Looking around, Thunderbolt ports aren’t standard on modern graphics cards. Unhelpfully, when I search for “Thunderbolt graphics card” Google returns results for eGPU enclosures - the opposite of what I’m looking for!

Do graphics cards with Thunderbolt ports exist? If so, could someone point me in the direction of one please? I’m only looking for something that can handle 1440p gaming.

I guess the alternative is to buy a gaming laptop (seems wasteful) or use a DisplayPort to Thunderbolt adapter (and lose speaker/USB functionality).

 

[Tetras]

I know nothing about Apple stuff, but I suspect you'd need DP over USB Type-C? I can tell you motherboards that support this feature, like the Asus Creator range, but the only recent GPUs I know of with USB Type-C are the MBA 7900 XT and XTX.

 

[Deleted member 266365]

Can you not just use a Display Port to Thunderbird cable? Lots available online.

 

[jeffk]

I know nothing about Apple stuff, but I suspect you'd need DP over USB Type-C? I can tell you motherboards that support this feature, like the Asus Creator range, but the only recent GPUs I know of with USB Type-C are the MBA 7900 XT and XTX.

That’s right: I need DP over a USB-C connector. So a Thunderbolt port on the motherboard should do the trick? If so, there seems to be some decent options out there. Thanks.

Can you not just use a Display Port to Thunderbird cable? Lots available online.

That would be the simplest solution but means that the speakers, webcam, etc. built into the monitor wouldn’t work.

 

[eeriestgiraffe]

GPU with a Thunderbolt port? None that I'm aware of.

The usual way is to use a motherboard that supports Thunderbolt and takes a DP output from the GPU. DP out from the GPU goes into an input on the motherboard and the Thunderbolt controller then does some magic. Same as a laptop does, just with an external cable. Monitor then connects to the motherboard Thunderbolt port.

The boards aren't particularly common, they're usually aimed at creative pros or workstation users. Not RGB'd up to the nines gamer boards covered in hexagons and tough looking armour.

As to if this works with a Studio Display in Windows, dunno. Try asking in the Apple forum maybe? Apple would need to make drivers for the devices in the monitor.

 

[Tetras]

That’s right: I need DP over a USB-C connector. So a Thunderbolt port on the motherboard should do the trick? If so, there seems to be some decent options out there. Thanks.

Umm, I don't know they would work, because the only apples I know are crunchy, but if you take the B650 Creator, for example, it sounds like it has what you need (from the description).

I've heard that the Zen 4 IGP offers passthrough, but I don't know how to find details on this and without being able to use your GPU, I can't imagine you'd want to buy that board?