Docking bay/hub for Nova 15" with Nvidia RTX 2070: usb-c issues

[KingJasper]

Hi, just received my new laptop and so far so good on the whole

I have a work laptop and was hoping to use the same dock (with usb-c connection) and get access to my 2 monitors as well as ethernet/usb etc. Ethernet/usb work fine but can't get the monitors to work via the dock. The dock is a dell wd19tb! It's a thunderbolt dock but I understand it's backwards compatible with usb-c

I'm not exactly sure what the usb-c is in the new nova laptop. Is it connected via the graphics card (i.e virtual link) or just a standard usb-c via the motherboard?! Whilst I'm curious it doesn't really solve my docking issue although it may shed some light.

I'm prepared to get my hand in my pocket if I can get a new dock with connects to both machines. Alternatively I may have to resort to swapping cables from dock (when using work pc) to direct to nova laptop when using that.

Thanks in advance

 

[SpyderTracks]

USB-C is simply a data transport. Are you sure you’re not getting confised with thunderbolt which is carried over usb c? What’s the make and model of the dock?

 

[ubuysa]

And what are the full specs of your build?

 

[KingJasper]

USB-C is simply a data transport. Are you sure you’re not getting confised with thunderbolt which is carried over usb c? What’s the make and model of the dock?

Hi, dock is a Dell Thunderbolt Dock – WD19TB https://www.dell.com/en-uk/work/sho...10-arjd/pc-accessories?docking&gclsrc=aw.ds&&

Apologies if my terminology is wrong but the usb-c port on my new laptop must be thunderbolt compatible for the added benefit but the dock should still function without it (I.e falls back to standard usb-c speed) so in that sense it should work.

So the graphics card I have (RTX 2070) has it's own usb-c port in the full blown desktop version and is 'virtuallink' compatible for VR. I suspect I have the mobile version which is obviously 'portless'. That begs the question is the usb-c port available in the nova chassis hooked up to the GPU or the motherboard? Now this is going off on a tangent and may be a complete red herring but I was theorising that the port/data transmission is geared up for VR and doesn't necessarily support the more typical stuff i.e what I want to use it for. This link explains it better than I can.

All GeForce RTX Laptops Are VR Capable, But Optional VirtualLink Branding Could Breed Confusion

Earlier this month NVIDIA announced that slew of hardware partners will be launching GeForce RTX gaming laptops which will include the company’s newest Turing-based RTX graphics. While the company has confirmed that all models with RTX 2060, 2070, and 2080 GPUs will technically have the GPU...

www.roadtovr.com

I will add that I think my usb-c is connected to my GPU as the device manager has a 'Nvidia USB' listed.

Anyway assuming the above isn't related to the dock incompatibility I'm now wondering (after some late night reading) if the issue is related to 'display port over alt mode'. If my new laptop doesn't support this then that could be the issue. Some of the docks I've looked at specifically mention that this is required but I suspect it's a requirement for all usb-c docks so the problem I'm seeing with my dell dock would be the same with any dock I try. This link explains it better than I can

Tech Talk: Using USB-C and DisplayPort over Alt Mode

<p>Continuing our discussion on display technologies, let’s turn our attention to USB-C and DisplayPort. The DisplayPort protocol, which used to have a unique connector,...</p>

blog.startech.com

It all comes back to what the usb-c port is in my laptop and what it supports. I've asked the question to PC Specialist (awaiting reply) but unless that question gets asked to the right person I won't get the answer I need.

If need be I can look at other options but plan A is to have a dock that supports my new laptop (spec below) and my dell work pc (Precision 7520).

If anyone has a dock which works with a nova laptop then I'd be happy to go out an purchase one but I'm reluctant until I have some confidence of what will work, if any. Ultimately my dell dock may end up back in the office (post covid) so happy to get my own.

P.S thanks for your support

And what are the full specs of your build?

Chassis & Display
Nova Series: 15.6" Matte Full HD 144Hz 72% NTSC LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 3900 12 Core CPU (3.1GHz-4.3GHz/70MB CACHE/AM4)
Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair 2666MHz SODIMM DDR4 (2 x 32GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 2070 - 8.0GB GDDR6 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
Wireless Network Card
GIGABIT LAN & KILLER™ Wi-Fi 6 AX1650 M.2 GAMING + BLUETOOTH 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
1 x USB 3.2 PORT (Type C) + 2 x USB 3.2 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit

 

[FerrariVie]

I have a Nova as well and can confirm that it does not support thunderbolt (it is an Intel exclusive I think, but correct me if I'm wrong). The USB-C is indeed connected to the GPU directly and it does support Display Port over USB-C, but since your dock is probably relying on thunderbolt to deliver the video, it might be the reason why it doesn't work.

The manual's description of the Nova's ports are below:

One DisplayPort 1.4 over USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Port
One Mini DisplayPort 1.4
One HDMI-Out Port

You should try using the USB-C to connect to the monitor (without the dock), in case your monitor supports that as well.

 

[SpyderTracks]

I have a Nova as well and can confirm that it does not support thunderbolt (it is an Intel exclusive I think, but correct me if I'm wrong). The USB-C is indeed connected to the GPU directly and it does support Display Port over USB-C, but since your dock is probably relying on thunderbolt to deliver the video, it might be the reason why it doesn't work.

The manual's description of the Nova's ports are below:

One DisplayPort 1.4 over USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Port
One Mini DisplayPort 1.4
One HDMI-Out Port

You should try using the USB-C to connect to the monitor (without the dock), in case your monitor supports that as well.

Yes, just to echo this, that dock won't work as it's thunderbolt which the laptop doesn't have.

 

[KingJasper]

I have a Nova as well and can confirm that it does not support thunderbolt (it is an Intel exclusive I think, but correct me if I'm wrong). The USB-C is indeed connected to the GPU directly and it does support Display Port over USB-C, but since your dock is probably relying on thunderbolt to deliver the video, it might be the reason why it doesn't work.

The manual's description of the Nova's ports are below:

One DisplayPort 1.4 over USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Port
One Mini DisplayPort 1.4
One HDMI-Out Port

You should try using the USB-C to connect to the monitor (without the dock), in case your monitor supports that as well.

Hi, thanks for your reply and clarifying that! I skim read the documentation but got the impression it was just standard stuff rather than for my particular build - my bad. Its good to know that it is in fact display port compatible. So does this mean it supports 'virtual link' i.e VR ready like the desktop RTX 2070 does? I guess there isn't a difference so should be (future proofing for this was something that got my attention before I purchased)

Anyway so I've managed to grab another dock from work today (another dell but non thunderbolt) and another of the same type in case it was just mine in particular (unlikely as it works with my work dell laptop). Was keen to test out asap but ended up having a plumbing disaster which took over the whole night!

I'll try the new dock first obviously but yep agree trying direct cable is the next move if that doesn't work. I've been keen to test that but I'll need to buy an adaptor. I only have a usb-c to usb-c cable handy and the monitors are either display port or hdmi. I can get a usb-c to DP adaptor from amazon fairly cheap. Just wanted to get more clarity before I bother as I hate the hassle of returning things and probably won't need the cable if i get a dock working. Saying that probably will come in useful at some point.

Yes, just to echo this, that dock won't work as it's thunderbolt which the laptop doesn't have.

Hmmm yeah I'm not sure as I read somewhere the thunderbolt dock should fall back to just regular usb-c non thunderbolt connection so that means if the port is a display port it "should" work. I'm now wondering if thunderbolt is an intel exclusive then maybe it needs to be intel for it to determine it has to not attempt thunderbolt (just a theory).

Anyway I have some things to try so i'll report back. Thanks both for your help with this!

 

[FerrariVie]

Hi, thanks for your reply and clarifying that! I skim read the documentation but got the impression it was just standard stuff rather than for my particular build - my bad. Its good to know that it is in fact display port compatible. So does this mean it supports 'virtual link' i.e VR ready like the desktop RTX 2070 does? I guess there isn't a difference so should be (future proofing for this was something that got my attention before I purchased)

No problem! Regarding the virtual link, I actually don't know. Have not seen any mention to it on the manuals and even the new RTX 30 desktop cards don't support that pattern, so I think this pretty much dead:
VirtualLink Is Dead: GeForce RTX 30-Series Skips the VR Connector, Website Gone | Tom's Hardware

 

[KingJasper]

No problem! Regarding the virtual link, I actually don't know. Have not seen any mention to it on the manuals and even the new RTX 30 desktop cards don't support that pattern, so I think this pretty much dead:
VirtualLink Is Dead: GeForce RTX 30-Series Skips the VR Connector, Website Gone | Tom's Hardware

That's a shame - it looks like the 20-series have it but they binned it off. Reading between the lines I wonder if there was some dispute and abandoning it was more political rather than a decision around the technology. The future is probably wireless but some performance issues to workaround first I guess.

In other news I tried the 2 additional docks I got my hands on. The like for like replacement WD19TB has the same issue as expected! The other one however (dell wd15) works!!! Didn't try it with my work dell laptop but I cant imagine it not working and yes i'm throwing away the thunderbolt support in that setup but it's not like I'll notice the difference.

It's an inferior dock so a shame in a sense. It has less video out options (vga/mini DP/hdmi) as apposed to the other dock (2xDP/usb-c/hdmi). It only supports 2 displays@1080p or 1 display@4k as apposed to pretty much anything on the other but as I have 2x1080p displays at the moment it's totally fine (just less future proofed I guess). Plenty of usb support too so all good there.

The fact it work guarantees that the port in my laptop does support display port over usb-c as you suggested so any paranoia that it was somehow underpowered or not capable are gone

I am still puzzled though as the 'Thunderbolt' dock should actually work and currently don't have any theories why it doesn't. This thread has someone asking pretty much the same as me and had it working with a ryzen desktop. See link...

https://www.reddit.com/r/Dell/comments/cirsst

Will probably never get an answer but I'll get over it - least i've learnt a little bit. Next job now i've sorted the docking issue it to try hooking my quest headset up via the oculus link - much more fun

Thanks again

 

[FerrariVie]

Thanks for the update, it's good to know that the dell wd15 works, as they're exactly the same that I had in the office (almost 1 year ago now ) and might buy myself the same one, in case I need a dock in the future.

 

[KingJasper]

Ah nice one, it's good to have an option that you know will work.

And yep, important to update these threads so others can read in the future! 👍

 

[KingJasper]

I have a Nova as well and can confirm that it does not support thunderbolt (it is an Intel exclusive I think, but correct me if I'm wrong). The USB-C is indeed connected to the GPU directly and it does support Display Port over USB-C, but since your dock is probably relying on thunderbolt to deliver the video, it might be the reason why it doesn't work.

The manual's description of the Nova's ports are below:

One DisplayPort 1.4 over USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Port
One Mini DisplayPort 1.4
One HDMI-Out Port

You should try using the USB-C to connect to the monitor (without the dock), in case your monitor supports that as well.

Hi FeVieria,

Finally got a response back from PCSpecialist. They said that the USB-C is hooked up to the motherboard which surprised me. I can see a 'NVIDIA USB-C' in the device manager so was pretty certain on your post above that the USB-C is connected to the GPU but now having doubts. Just curious as to why you believe it is hooked up to the GPU and not the motherboard?

It's not particularly an issue as I have a dock that works and my Oculus Quest works as expected so it's not like I'm not getting what I need from it - it's just good to know what you have as it may be relevant in the future