XPS 8950, what PCIe x4 USB cards work?

What do you mean "don't work",  eg, PC won't boot when the card is installed or something else?

If PC won't boot, you probably have to disable Secure Boot in BIOS to use those cards.  Unless the card's driver is officially "signed" by Microsoft, it won't load when Secure Boot is enabled, and that can prevent the PC from booting.

PCIe to USB 3.2 Gen 2 Card with 20 Gbps Bandwidth 7 USB Ports (4 USB Type-A and 3 USB Type-C Ports), PCI Express (PCIe) Expansion Card USB Card for Desktop PC Support Windows and Linux Mac OS

Brand: FANBLACK

Brand: FANBAK

5.0 out of 5 stars Works on new Dell XPS 8950 12th Gen Intel i7 12700, DDR5, Windows 11

Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2022

Verified Purchase

UPDATE 6/27/2022: Card works great on Windows 11 with the same type of USB Gen 2 and Type C Gen 2 that is on the new computer. New Dell XPS 8950 Desktop 12th Gen Intel i7 12700, DDR5, Windows 11. Install was easy in the motherboard PCIe x4, checked Windows Update, Device Manager had no flags, BIOS updated prior. However, the 3.0 USB Sandisk and 3.0 4TB WD Elements devices "did not show" in File Explorer. I found the ASMedia USB 3.1 eXtensible Host Controller – 1.10(Microsoft) under Universal Serial Bus Controllers in Device Manager and the light was on for the WD 4TB Elements - so it connected. Come to find out Windows 11 did not recognize the attached devices until I went back to Device Manager and on the “second” line under File Action View Help are six icons – the “blue screen icon” on the far right is – “Scan For Hardware Changes” -- I clicked on that icon and all three plugged in devices started coming up in File Explorer and worked fine. Now for the rest of the story --- I had ordered this card and returned it via UPS for not working -- even had my refund back. Louis at Fanback Support sent me an email the next day -- see it below. This person was beyond great -- he had a plan and stuck to it. First the engineer ran some tests -- Louis then Air Expressed a tested new card from Hong Kong to Los Angles and USPS to Seattle. Louis kept in touch via Amazon Email every step of the way. I have to say the first card probably would have worked if I had know about the Device Manager -- Scan For Hardware Changes icon. I have added cards on all my computer over the years and this is the first time they were not recognized at once in File Explorer – maybe it’s a Windows 11 thing or my bad luck. I will say Louis at Fanback is one great guy at support. This really was customer service above and beyond. Thank You Very Much Louis.

4.0 out of 5 stars Install Directions for WIN 11 HERE

Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2022

Verified Purchase

Search - Device Manager - Scroll to Universal Serial Bus Controllers (make sure to use the scan for hardware changes) and select any of the eXtensible Host controllers - select update device driver - you may need to go to Windows update and then check the optional updates... It's an extensive hassle to have to figure out, so good luck.

Sounds good. I may try one more time. You said “update to 1.10 driver”, well device manager won’t recognize it at all. Not even as generic. My Sandisk card reader’s power light lit up that shows it had power but never shown up in My Computer or Device Manager. As for not booting response, computer boots but never gets off of throttled CPU (even when I screenshot Dell it was 20C all day) so it boots but goes directly to 0.38ghz (on one core, literally Pentium 2 days) and never leaves off of it on an i9 12900k with the x4 card in…that the computer just never recognizes. I tried in all the slots, same with the last computer. Definitely a Dell 8950 x4 PCIE issue. Unresolved. My x1 usb 3.0 card works fine and dandy. Even has the separate power SATA which is the same wire/adapter I used to hook up the x4 card. So it’s not an issue for wiring. Dell support is totally clueless with the throttled CPU, I had to find the fix FOR them! Jeez. You downgrade the Bios and then upgrade it to the newest one and I get all of the i9 kicking butt on everything! No more 0.38ghz. All because Dell can’t except a name brand (not generic amazon junk) x4 card which it’s designed too. My 2006 QAM tv tuner works fine on the 8950 too! Dell, you need to fix this. All I get from them is blank stairs and “too busy/lazy, just send it in to get diagnosed.” Still waiting on the x4 fix.

@hardtymz  There recently was another thread on this forum about a similar throttling CPU issue. So search for it.

IIRC correctly, the solution was to do a clean install of Win 11...

EDIT: You probably should image the boot drive first if you decide to do a clean install of Win 11 and a bare minimum of essential apps. That way, if the problem isn't resolved, you can re-image the drive with your saved image so you don't have to reinstall everything again.

I been having the same issue with my brand-new Dell XPS 8950. I had my Inateck card inside my old computer working just fine. I installed it in my new computer before the first startup. My computer with Windows 11 Pro wouldn't recognize it. I went to Inateck's website and downloaded the driver and installed it. I tried a different slot each time trying to scanning for changes in Device Manager. nothing seemed to work. Can anyone help me with this issue?

@OldStamper  Have you tried disabling Secure Boot in BIOS Setup?

Not as yet but that is something that I didn’t think of. Will try it and let you know 

This card works for me.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/165241176379

I installed one of the Inateck cards (this was a PCIe x1 model, "RedComets U25") in my Vostro 5890 and it didn't work reliably for me either; I'm not sure why. I switched to a Sonnet Allegro model (x1 again). They're a bit pricier and their market seems to be more Mac-centric, but it works fine for me.

After all the information I have received. I have tried so many ways to make this old card work. I have decided to spend $20 and use a external ups hub. It also gives me two extra ports

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@NJDave wrote:

I installed one of the Inateck cards (this was a PCIe x1 model, "RedComets U25") in my Vostro 5890 and it didn't work reliably for me either; I'm not sure why. I switched to a Sonnet Allegro model (x1 again). They're a bit pricier and their market seems to be more Mac-centric, but it works fine for me.

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Same here with that brand.

I installed an Inateck USB-3.0 PCIe card in my old (but still good) XPS-8300. It blew-up after a few hours so I sent it back to Amazon. I then ordered and installed this USB-3.0 PCIe Addin card

StarTech PEXUSB3S24
Chipset ID Renesas/NEC - µPD720202

Good-old Renesas-chipset, from a more reputable company. It worked the first time and still working. They now sell a 3+1port version.

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@OldStamper wrote:

I have decided to spend $20 and use a external usb hub. It also gives me two extra ports.

 

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Yep, with all the existing USB ports or modern-desktops, I think that is smart. After all, if they actually run-out, most people only need 1-2 more ports. It's not like everything is being communicated with concurrently anyway.

Since desktops are stationary (and have plenty of AC-Power available), I've been liking this little USB-3.0 Power Hub. Made by an established company, and powered to prevent the computer's internal ports from getting over-amped. It even works as a "charger" for your mobile devices.

Another 2x2 x4 lane PCIe card not working. And never seen in Device Manager. It does power drive LEDs though it seems. This one is “Yeeliya” on the Amazons. Up to 1.9 on the BIOS and Dell still can’t make any x4 card work in the x4 slot. Power cable or not. Secure boot or not, updates or not, “magical” “just scan for hardware changes” or not. It’s 2023. X4 slots are not that common in my world. This is the first computer I had that had one. (Exception do the x16 slots). And I’m going to pmp it out to the fullest. X4 or bust! I got the new 20gpbs external case for my old Samsung 870 NVME and doesn’t work with x4 usb cards. Also the recommendations in this discussion so far  are for extremely older and slower USB 3.0 and all shared card or one off $300 cards that still aren’t that fast and really outdated. Also according to mircrocenter and other sites, the very expensive cards don’t seem to last more than a month or two no matter what. They all have not great reviews and the cards just seem to die. I need a card that can do at least 10Gbps a port. Amazon and Microcenter says “yes!” Dell and windows “11” say “no!” Why?? I’m not the only one with this issue. How did Dell f up a x4 slot?? This isn’t new cutting edge technology. It should be standard by now and these cards are new enough to be just plug and play. Why are they not!? No one has yet really answered that here and why this is still an issue. We need the 2x2 20gbps goodness add on card. External hubs are for laptops and aren’t going to work in my situation. They have plenty of cards for sale, which one works that has 2-3 ports?? And why are they so many that only have one port?? That’s a lot of card for not much benefit. But then the rest have like 9 ports and that’s gotta be painfully slow at that point. My x1 card works with and without power cord. No trick install. We need to figure out why x4 doesn’t! Also I said Windows “11” because according to websites and NVIDIA programs, we’re actually running “Windows 10”. I’m starting to think 11 isn’t really a thing and just an update to 10. All the comp specs are right but programs see through windows 11 thin disguise as really just windows 10 and nothing more. (I never changed operating systems on this machine. Try a program yourself and see the ugly truth)

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@hardtymz wrote:

1. Another 2x2 x4 lane PCIe card not working. And never seen in Device Manager. It does power drive LEDs though it seems. This one is “Yeeliya” on the Amazons. Up to 1.9 on the BIOS and Dell still can’t make any x4 card work in the x4 slot. Power cable or not.

2. Also according to mircrocenter and other sites, the very expensive cards don’t seem to last more than a month or two no matter what. They all have not great reviews and the cards just seem to die.

3. I need a card that can do at least 10Gbps a port. Amazon and Microcenter says “yes!” Dell and windows “11” say “no!” Why?? I’m not the only one with this issue. How did Dell f up a x4 slot?? 

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1. Is this an XPS-8950?

What do you need the PCIe (x4 slotted) Addin card to do exactly? How many USB-3.1 ports do you need? You can't get ThunderBolt-3/4 on a consumer-class PC (unless you get a Mac).

2. Right, the no-name Chinese cards are un-reliable. All the Chinese-stuff is e-waste really. A while back, I bought a (recommended by a friend) Inateck USB-3.0 PCIe card and it only lasted a day-or-so. Luckily, Amazon took it back.  

3. Well, Dell was having a little PCIe Addin card compatibility trouble with certain x4 cards in an Aurora-R13, but they fixed the BIOS eventually. Hard to say if your problem is similar or just poor cards. To get any traction with Dell and a 3rd-party device compatibility issue ... it would have to be from a very reputable company and a popular device.