Recommended USB 3.1 System Components

Download PDF - USB3-Supported-Configurations

CPU, Motherboard, and Systems

Recommended Configurations

Motherboards using the Intel 7 series (Ivy Bridge), Intel 8 series (Haswell), Intel 9 series (Broadwell), and Intel 100 series (Skylake) chipsets have built-in USB 3.1 support, provided by the Intel USB 3.1 host controller. Examples of the Intel 7, 8, and 9 series systems can be found below. For users using systems without Intel USB 3.1 support, please refer to Host Controller Interface (HCI) Card and Driver.

 

Chipset

Motherboard Example

Driver

Version

Intel 7 series (Ivy Bridge)

ASUS P8Z77-V

PGRxHCI

2.7.3.82

Intel/PGRUSBCam

1.0.10.255/2.7.3.82

Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam

2.7.3.82

Intel 8 series (Haswell)

 

ASUS Z87-Expert

 

Intel/PGRUSBCam

4.0.4.51/2.7.3.828

Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam

2.7.3.82

 

Intel 9 series
(Broadwell)

 

Asus Z98-PRO

 

Intel/PGRUSBCam

 

4.0.4.51/2.7.3.82

Table 1: Recommended USB 3.1 Motherboards

USB 3.1 System Recommendations

Chipset

System Model

Driver

Version

Intel 7 series (Ivy Bridge)

Sony SVT131190S

PGRxHCI

2.7.3.82

Intel/PGRUSBCam 1.0.10.255/2.7.3.82
Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam 2.7.3.82
Intel 8 series (Haswell)

ASUS N56JN-DB71-CA

Dell Precision M3800

Dell Inspiron 15HR-1828T

Gigabyte Brix GB-SM15-MMLP7AP

MacBook Pro (Retina, 15-inch, Mid 2014)

 Intel/PGRUSBCam  4.0.4.51/2.7.3.82
Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam 2.7.3.82

Table 2: Recommended USB 3.1 Systems

Unsupported Configurations

All USB peripheral devices such as mouse and keyboard on an Intel 8 series system are connected to the same USB root hub. Installing the PGRxHCI driver disables devices connected to the root hub. Users with Haswell based systems are recommended to use Intel drivers or Microsoft drivers instead. 

Chipset

Motherboard Example

Driver

Version

AMD

All

PGRxHCI

All

Intel 8, 9, 10 series

All

PGRxHCI

All

 Table 3: Unsupported USB 3.1 Configurations

 

Host Controller Interface (HCI) Card and Driver

We tested different USB 3.1 HCI cards in conjunction with the PGRxHCI driver (pgrxhci.sys) and drivers provided by the manufacturer. In general, this driver resulted in fewer issues than using the manufacturer’s driver. Drivers provided by the manufacturer must be used in conjunction with the PGRUSBCam driver.

 

To determine the driver currently in use by the xHCI card, use the Windows Device Manager. For example, in Windows 7, open the properties window of the adapter, click the Driver tab, then click Driver Details.

Recommended Configurations

xHCI Adapter

Driver

Version (or later)

Fresco FL1100 (ACC-01-1202) NAEU

Fresco/PGRUSBCam

3.6.4.0/2.7.3.18

 

Fresco FL1100 (U3-PCIE2-2P01X)

 

PGRxHCI

2.3.3.40

Fresco/PGRUSBCam

3.5.24.0/2.3.3.38

Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam

2.3.3.38

Fresco FL1100 (IOI U3X4-PCIE4XE111)

Fresco/PGRUSBCam

3.6.4.0/2.7.3.18

Renesas (NEC) µPD720201

PGRxHCI

2.3.3.40

Renesas (NEC)/ PGRUSBCam

3.0.23.0/2.3.3.38

Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam

2.3.3.38

Renesas (NEC) µPD720200A

PGRxHCI

2.3.3.40

Renesas (NEC)/ PGRUSBCam

2.1.39.0/2.3.3.38

Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam

2.3.3.38

Fresco FL1009

PGRxHCI

2.3.3.40

Fresco/PGRUSBCam

3.5.24.0/2.3.3.38

Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam

2.3.3.38

AMD

PGRxHCI

2.3.3.40

AMD/PGRUSBCam

1.0.0.55/2.3.3.38

Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam

2.3.3.38

Intel

Intel/PGRUSBCam

1.0.5.235/2.3.3.38

Microsoft Windows8 USB3 driver/PGRUSBCam

2.3.3.38

Table 4: USB 3.1 Supported xHCI Adapter and Driver Configurations

 

 

We recommend always using the latest version of the driver.

Unsupported Configurations

xHCI Adapter

Driver

Version

Reason

Fresco FL1000

PGRxHCI

All

Insufficient testing

ASMedia

PGRxHCI

All

Not yet supported

Etron

Etron or Point Grey

All

Not yet supported

TI

PGRxHCI

All

Not yet supported

Via

PGRxHCI

All

Not yet supported

Intel Series 8

PGRxHCI

All

Incompatible

Intel Series 9

PGRxHCI

All

Incompatible

Intel Series 100

PGRxHCI

All

Incompatible

Table 5: USB 3.1 Unsupported xHCI Adapter and Driver Configurations

 

Cables, Hubs and Operating System

Recommended Cables

The USB 3.1 standard does not specify a maximum cable length.

  • 1-meter USB 3.1 cable (ACC-01-2303) NAEU
  • 3-meter USB 3.1 cable (ACC-01-2300) NA / EU
  • 5-meter USB 3.1 cable (ACC-01-2302) NAEU

When using 5-meter cables or longer, we recommend using a hub (ACC-01-6001) NA / EU.

 

The 1-meter cable (certified) is recommended for laptop and onboard controllers. The 5-meter cable is not recommended for laptops or on board controllers.

Recommended Hubs

We recommend using hubs that have been certified by the USB-IF to have passed the USB-IF Compliance Program for product quality.

Our testing found that USB 3.1 hubs with chipsets manufactured by Texas Instruments and Via 811+ provided the best image streaming results, followed by the Genesys Logic.

Hubs were tested in conjunction with a Renesas (NEC) xHCI adapter and the PGRxHCI driver.

  • 4-port USB 3.1 hub with power supply Texas Instruments chipset (ACC-01-6000) NA / EU.

For more information on setting up multiple USB 3.1 cameras, see USB 3.1 Multiple Camera Setup.

 

Although the effective USB 3.1 bandwidth is approximately 450 MByte/s, peak performance using a hub has been tested to be significantly lower.

Recommended Operating Systems

We recommend using USB 3.1 cameras on Windows 7, Window 8, Linux Ubuntu 12.04.02, or Linux Ubuntu 14.04.
For more information on using Linux with USB 3.1 see Using Linux with USB 3.1.

 

Grasshopper3 USB 3.1 Configuration

To optimally support the Grasshopper3 USB 3.1 camera, recommended system components are:

Component

Description

CPU

Intel Core(TM) i7-4770 or equivalent

RAM

4 GB

Host Adapter/  Host Controller

Intel USB 3.1 eXtensible Host Controller

OR

Fresco Logic FL1100 4 ports (ACC-01-1202) NA / EU

OR

Fresco Logic FL1100 2 ports

(U3-PCIE2-2P01X)

Cabling

3 meter (ACC-01-2300) NA / EU

Operating System

Windows 7 SP1 (x64 or x86)

Driver

Intel/PGRUSBCam 2.7.3.18

Software

FlyCapture 2.7.3.17 or later

Firmware

v1.15.3.0 or later

Table 6: Grasshopper3 USB 3.1 Configuration

 

Testing has shown that some host adapters are not able to achieve maximum frame rate with some Grasshopper3s, including:

  • Fresco Logic FL1009 (Part Number U3-PCIE2-2P01 sold by FLIR)
  • Renesas Electronics µPD720200 (Part Number ACC-01-1200 no longer sold by FLIR)

 

Troubleshooting Issues

The following suggestions may help you troubleshoot issues with your USB 3.1 camera:

  1. Update the driver to the latest version.
  2. Update the firmware to the latest version.
  3. Update the FlyCapture SDK to the latest version.
  4. Perform a soft reboot and, if necessary, a hard reboot of the PC.
  5. Disable and then enable the driver.
  6. Power cycle the camera.
  7. Power the camera through GPIO, if wiring harness is available.
  8. Use a separate host controller instead of an integrated one, if available.
  9. Ensure the card is powered via the 4-pin hard drive connector, if applicable.
  10. Use a different cable.
  11. Use a different host controller or PC.

 

Updated software and firmware is available from the Downloads page. Please read the release notes that accompany the updates.