Decklink Quad HDMI Recorder cards not detected by new PC

Hello all,

I recently reached out to Blackmagic via phone for assistance with this issue and was redirected here since I'm working with a custom PC build. My company had previously been using two Decklink Quad HDMI cards with a Mac Studio inside a Sonnet Echo III enclosure, connected via Thunderbolt. We have since moved from our M1 Mac Studio setup to a PC build. I am able to connect the cards via USB and update them using the Desktop Video Setup app. However, after the updates are complete, the cards still aren't recognized by the PC or the hardware.

I've also tried various versions of the Desktop Video Setup app, as recommended by Blackmagic, but to no effect. These cards worked flawlessly with our Mac setup, so I suspect there's a small setting or tweak that I'm missing, as the cards should be perfectly functional. It's also worth noting that they don't appear in the PC BIOS either.

I have a limited budget to work with in order to resolve the issue, but I'm hoping there's an easy fix, as the cards and enclosure still work well with the M1 Mac Studio. Below, I have attached a list of our PC specs.
Thank you!

-AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D 4.2 GHz 16-Core Processor
-Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler
-Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX ATX AM5 Motherboard
-G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6400 CL32 Memory
-Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
-Gigabyte WINDFORCE OC GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER 12 GB Video Card
-Corsair RM850e (2023) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply

It doesn't look like that motherboard has thunderbolt connectivity.

It doesn't look like that motherboard has thunderbolt connectivity.

Apologies for the confusion. I should clarify that I am no longer using the Thunderbolt enclosure. The two cards are now connected directly to the motherboard. After some additional troubleshooting, I was able to detect them in slots 1 and 3 with my GPU removed. Ideally, I would like to use them alongside the GPU, but changing BIOS settings isn't my strongest skill. The only place I can fit the GPU is slot 1.

Hi Owen

Checking the motherboard specifications (user manual Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX (rev. 1.0/1.1), the information "says":
the other two slots are X1, but, the DeckLink Quad HDMI Recorder card needs a slot PCI-E X8

Just an idea, just for a test, you're using a Ryzen 9 7950X 3D, which includes an on-chip graphics controller (Radeon), you can remove the RTX 4070 video card, install the Quad HDMI in the same slot (PCI-E X16), most likely the system will detect the card correctly.

Before removing the RTX card, confirm in the BIOS that the Integrated Graphics option is enabled /AUTO. check it out the BIOS manual. page 14.
https://download.gigabyte.com/FileList/ ... 38304d004b

Settings to check:
- Initial Display Output
- Integrated Graphics


NOTE: This is the link to the manual I reviewed,

https://download.gigabyte.com/FileList/ ... 7602748073

I think it is the correct model, check it out Page 4 and Page 9 to confirm what corresponds to each of the 3 PCI-E slots on the motherboard.
It does not seem to have PCI-E bifurcation options because it seems the lower slots are physical size X16, but electrically only X1.

I hope help

My 2 cents.

Hi Owen

Checking the motherboard specifications (user manual Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX (rev. 1.0/1.1), the information "says":
the other two slots are X1, but, the DeckLink Quad HDMI Recorder card needs a slot PCI-E X8

This is it! I'm realizing now that the motherboard we currently have is different from the one I initially researched when planning this build. I followed your instructions and was able to operate both of my DeckLink cards, minus the gpu. Thank you so much for your help! We'll be looking for a replacement board in the coming days. Do you have any recommendations for a suitable replacement? No problem if not. I still have my list of parts I researched.
Thanks again!

Hi Owen

All depends on the scenario. I believe you will use the same CPU, RAM, GPU, etc.

Or maybe some future update to change to a complete NEW configuration...

I would suggest Asus ProArt X670E-CREATOR WIFI, if you want to reuse the components.

this motherboard support , 2 x PCIe 5.0 x16 slots (support x16 or x8/x8 modes) which means your video card will run X8 and the second slot with the DeckLink will also run at X8.

My 2 cents

I would suggest Asus ProArt X670E-CREATOR WIFI, if you want to reuse the components.

Looks like that'll fit our needs! It's much better than the one I had been looking at. I can be pretty clueless when it comes to PC builds, so I really appreciate your advice. I'll post an update once we're able to get it up and running, though that might not be for a few weeks. Thanks again!!