Questions & Answers for Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter

No, that will not work. The Pro Display XDR does not have downstream Thunderbolt ports for connecting devices, it only has a single upstream Thunderbolt port for connecting to a Mac. The 3 downstream ports on it are USB-C only, not Thunderbolt - while the connector is physically the same, you cannot plug a Thunderbolt device like this adapter and/or a Lacie Thunderbolt disk into the ports on the XDR. You can only use USB-C disk drives with the XDR, any Thunderbolt devices must be plugged directly into your Mac.

• Answered by Thomas N from Aurora
• 5/01/2020
• Flag as inappropriate Answer (Can I use this to connect a Thunderbolt 2 drive to the Pro Display XDR (backside ports) which itself is connected to the MBP 16")

The Apple Thunderbolt Display requires a Thunderbolt port.

The Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter also requires a Thunderbolt port.

The MacBook does not have a Thunderbolt port.

Therefore, you need to add a Thunderbolt port. You could try getting a GC-ALPINE RIDGE Thunderbolt 3 add-in card, connect it to a powered PCIe slot (such as a PCIe riser, or a desktop computer with a free PCIe slot), connect a USB-C to Mini DisplayPort cable between your MacBook's USB-C port and one of the Mini DisplayPort inputs of the GC-ALPINE RIDGE. Connect the Thunderbolt display to the Thunderbolt 3 port of the GC-ALPINE RIDGE using an Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter. Since there is no PCIe connection between the GC-ALPINE RIDGE and your MacBook, you won't be able to use any of the non-display functions of the Display (USB, FireWire, Ethernet, camera, audio). I don't know if this configuration is compatible with the Apple Thunderbolt Display (I believe similar configurations work with the LG UltraFine 5K display).

It may be less expensive to get a new display.

• Answered by Joseph V from Fort Langley
• 26/04/2019
• Flag as inappropriate Answer (Macbook Retina 12inch Early 2015 >>>Thunderbolt Adapter>>>>> Apple Thunderbolt Display 27 inc >>> Can I connect ??)

The Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter works with many PC's with Thunderbolt 3 ports to allow connecting a Thunderbolt display.

I don't know if it works with the Lenova P51s. It may depend on the Thunderbolt firmware version so make sure it's up to date.

The Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter is probably the least expensive available. The Apple adapter also has the ability to use Thunderbolt 3 devices with Thunderbolt 2 computers (most or all other adapters only allow using Thunderbolt 2 devices with Thunderbolt 3 computers).

If the Apple adapter doesn't work with your PC, then Intel has a list of other Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapters that will work. Search the Products | Thunderbolt Technology Community page.

• Answered by Joseph V from Fort Langley
• 6/06/2018
• Flag as inappropriate Answer (I have an Apple Thunderbolt monitor but getting a new PC laptop that has a Thunderbolt 3 (UCB C) adapter. Will this adapter allow PC to Mac monitor?)

Yes. Your iMac has a TB3/USB-C port that will support TB2 which is what your TB Display takes as input.

• Answered by Douglas B from East York
• 30/11/2018
• Flag as inappropriate Answer (Can I use this adapter to connect 2017 iMac to Apple Thunderbolt display (for extended desktop)?)

Yes. I have successfully used the thunderbolt 3 to thunderbolt 2 adapter and then connected a thunderbolt 2 to firewire 400 cable to my Presonus Studio Live 16.4.2's firewire 400 port. I have also done the same with a thunderbolt 3 to thunderbolt 2 adapter to a thunderbolt 2 to firewire 800 cable to my Presonus Studio Live 32.4.2's firewire 800 port. You might need to experiment with the order in which you turn the equipment on...

• Answered by Ian S from San Francisco
• 7/11/2019
• Flag as inappropriate Answer (Does the "Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter" work together with the "Apple Thunderbolt to FireWire Adapter"?)

I have a 13-inch 2018 MacBook Pro, the Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter allows me to connect to the thunderbolt display, and the graphics are working fine.

The USB ports also functioned without a problem.

Updated:

To get the ethernet on the display working, I had to disconnect the USB-C adapter, delete (AFAIR) the Thunderbolt Bridge from the network preferences, and then reconnect the adapter.

• Answered by Patrick M from Portland
• 16/08/2018
• Flag as inappropriate Answer (can i connect my new 2018 macbook pro to my 2012 thunderbolt display)

The Sabrent EC-NVME is a USB 3.1 gen 2 device so the max speed you could expect is a little over 900 MB/s which is a good portion of the theoretical limit of USB 3.1 gen 2 (9.7 Gbps considering the encoding overhead of 128b/132b but not the overhead of the USB protocol).

The best (only?) way to add USB 3.1 gen 2 to a Mac that only has Thunderbolt 2 is to connect a Thunderbolt 3 device that has two Thunderbolt 3 ports using an Apple Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter. The second Thunderbolt 3 port of the Thunderbolt 3 device can be used for USB 3.1 gen 2 devices.

Some Thunderbolt 3 docks also have other USB 3.1 gen 2 USB-C ports. If they are based on the ASMedia ASM1142 (8 Gbps PCIe 2.0x2 or 7.9 Gbps PCIe 3.0x1), then you'll get slightly better performance using a Thunderbolt 3 port. I think they all use the ASM1142 because it only requires one PCIe 3.0 lane from the Thunderbolt 3 controller leaving three lanes for other controllers (usually two USB 3.0 controllers and one Ethernet controller but sometimes a FireWire or eSATA controller).

Check the Wire Cutter review "The Best Thunderbolt 3 Docks" for more info.

• Answered by Joseph V from Fort Langley
• 18/02/2019
• Flag as inappropriate Answer (how to connect Sabrent EC-NVME (with USB 3.1 Gen 2 USB Type-C) to Mac Pro (2016) (Model: MacPro6,1 6-Core Intel Xeon E5 3.5 GHz) thru THUNDERBOLT 2?)