BlackMagic Shuttle not detected

[Darren Jarvis]

@ Alan Scott
Ok, thanks for the info,
a couple of questions:
1: Is there a tool (software) of some sort that measures hardware performance, for PCIe slots etc… kinda like the Hdd R/W speed test that comes on the BM CD,

2: Earlier in this thread I noted on how I struggled to find the any FW v3025 for the ASUS pci-e card, the ONLY thing i could find anywhere was for https://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/document.do?lndocid=MIGR-75165

this got me to v3025, as i was stuck on v3021 before that, with Shuttle not even recognised AT ALL until getting the latest FW.
then I piut the lastest driver version on after that, drvr.v2.0.4.0…. I assume this is ok as its the same NEC chipset in the thinkpads as in the the ASUS PCIe card ?

3: Ok, i will un-install the AHCI(sata) drivers for the Asus card, and re-install just the USB 3.0 driver ONLY…. you said to disable sata from device manager(not sure how)..only installing one of the drivers will do the same thing right ?

when I boot up my PC now there is a new Marvel controller that shows a Bios V 0.0.0.012 (i think)…can i enter that Bios the same as i can my normal MAIN Bios ?, would there be anything in there to disable the Sata or not ?

Thanks.

[Martin Kay]

could it be that they`ve made the drivers `test` the connection stas/type before even lanching any control panel etc, and simply refuse to launch the device on anything OTHER-THAN –`MAX-POTENTIAL` ??

I think this may well be what they do, more or less. When I first put an ASUS U3S6 into a P7P55D-Evo M/B the BM Shuttle drivers installed but the device wasn’t accessible in the BM Control Panel. Once I updated the main M/B BIOS the Shuttle became accessible, but I still wasn’t very happy with the overall performance.

Since then I’ve spent some time on the phone to BM in the UK and the impression I got was that if the Shuttle connects and is accessible, then the USB3 card is in the right sort of slot and has sufficient available bandwidth, or else the Shuttle won’t show as available in the BM Control Panel. They also said they’d used the Asus U3S6 (in an X58 motherboard).

Just in case it was anything to do with the U3S6, I’ve now tried an Asus P7P55D-E Pro which has v2 5Gb/s 1x PCIe slots (as opposed to the 2.5Gb/s 1x slots on the P7P55D Evo) with a 1x NEC USB3 card. I also tried the NEC chip that’s built onto the P55 motherboard (which BM’s web notes say you shouldn’t use). In my tests they all seemed to work much the same, and the issues with the Shuttle & Adobe CS5 seemed pretty much the same whichever USB3 connection I used out of those three options (in various permutations of single/multiple active USB3 ports).

Martin Kay – ZEN Computer Services, UK

[Alan Scott]

Well.. it appears they are checking the motherboard chipset vs. pcie link speed or device capabilities.

Looking at the block diagrams of the P55 and P45 and finding other people that have confirmed the same, indeed the x1 slots ultimately go through a limited 2GB/s link.

While both chipsets indicate PCIe 2.0 capable speed on these slots/onboard devices, they are still throttled back by design so it can’t saturate the 2GB/s link going upstream.

Alright, no problem. So for P55 you have to use a PCIe USB 3.0 card on a second PCIe x16 slot (used as x8 when both are in use) to get your PCIe x1 5GB/s link speed.

For grins testing this on a P45 board I can verify I have a 5GB/s link speed via SiSoftware Sandra with a PCIe x1 USB 3.0 card in the second x16 slot. The blackmagic software still claims it isn’t usb 3.0 on boot though.

In the end we have a P55 running a USB 3.0 card at 2.5Gb/s PCIe link speed and the blackmagic software didn’t complain, but claims a USB 3.0 5GB/s configuration on an P45 isn’t USB 3.0. :/

Regardless, it is Blackmagic’s prerogative to pick the configuration they want to support and they state it up front. Albeit In case of the P55 there wasn’t mention that it must only be with USB 3.0 card in an available second x16 slot.

I am somewhat confused that the configuration must be so finite and aggressive that it doesn’t make sense. You have to have full usb 3.0 and PCIe 5GB/s bandwidth when the supported disk controllers we are using are maxed at 3GB/s. I mean I’ve been running a Decklink HD Extreme on the same P45 board for a couple of years and capture 10bit YUV 1080p uncompressed without issue, but again, their prerogative.

A “speed” check between the shuttle and USB card to verify compatibility vs. hard coded assumptions would be a better way to go even on P55/X58 though.

[Martin Kay]

Albeit In case of the P55 there wasn’t mention that it must only be with USB 3.0 card in an available second x16 slot.

I think what they imply is that it must be a “full speed” PCIe v2 slot, which is not the case with many P55 boards which claim to have a v2 1-lane slot, but only run it at v1 speed. Having tried the Asus P7P55D-E Pro, which does have a “full speed” x1 PCIe slot, I can confirm that the Shuttle works with a generic NEC-chipset USB3 card in the top v2 1-lane slot. Also, the Shuttle works off the USB3 port from the NEC chip on that motherboard, which appears to be an built-in version of Asus’s U3S6 card with the same x4 PCIe Bridge chip configuration, so therefore gets sufficient bandwidth.

That said, I have found the BM FAQs and release notes somewhat lacking, as a result of which I’ve bought and swapped over to a new motherboard and USB3 card, which I probably needn’t have done. It’s taken me about two working days to get to the bottom of what works and what doesn’t, and (sometimes) the reason why, given that there’s something of a triangle between the PC hardware (and USB3 drivers), Adobe’s CS5 application (with its GPU acceleration), and the Blackmagic drivers & plug-ins. I suspect there are currently limitations (at best) and bugs (at worst) in all of them, which conspire together to make the current combination sometimes behave in unpredictable ways. Equally, it will probably get better as the software evolves, so there is some hope! 🙂

Martin Kay – ZEN Computer Services, UK

[John Smith]

Hi,

I’m running a Mac Pro x58 chipset with Bootcamp on a Windows 7 64-Bit. I’ve installed an ASUS U3S6 USB 3.0 PCie card in it. I’ve installed the drivers that came with it, including the RENESAS drivers. I’ve installed the USB 3.0 driver from BlackMagic. Upon restarting, it asks for a firmware update and a message stating “The Blackmagic Intensity Shuttle could transfer data faster if it is connected to a SuperSpeed USB 3.0 port.” What can I do to ensure that the USB 3.0 port is at it’s full bandwidth to get the Shuttle to output a signal?

John

[John Smith]

ASUS U3S6 has been tested and works with the Blackmagic Shuttle. What hasn’t been tested by Blackmagic is Bootcamp. When I installed the card, the USB ports on the back of my Mac LED Cinema Display stopped working. Could it be that be to compensate the bandwidth of USB 3.0? However, it seems like USB 3.0 cannot be handled at its full speed because I got that message. Could my PCIe 2.0 be working as a PCIe 1.0? BlackMagic Shuttle was able to be successfully be recognized and installed, so there has to be some way to make it work.

Anyway, Darren, have you had any success with capturing from BlackMagic Shuttle?

[Alan Scott]

You can try the free/lite version of SiSoftware Sandra to verify the PCIe link speed and type. Look in the Hardware->Buses and Devices.

You should be covered for the x4 PCIe 2.0 lanes if it’s a Mac Pro from Early 2008 on. All slots are wired for it.

Mac Pros before early 2008 required the Expansion Slot Utility to verify/assign number of lanes and ran PCIe 1.0.

I just about had a panic attack on a fresh install of Win7 x64 and the 7.7.3 drivers on an X58 board. After installing the drivers and rebooting I got the USB Speed pop-up and all options on the BM Control Panel disabled. Subsequent reboots haven’t produced the error again (thankfully).

[Greg Mccarthy]

Where did you find the FW version 3025

Greg

[Adam Pakula]

Hello Darren.

I know this post is 2 years old, but I am in the same predicament.
I have ultra studio pro and installed correct drivers and firmware, but my windows 7 cant see the device. Did you happen to find a solution???
Regards,
Adam