USB Type-C

At the computer, the USB-C interface takes video, audio, keyboard and mouse data together. No separate USB connection is required; if one is plugged in anyway, it takes priority.

At the workplace the same applies in reverse: the USB-C port outputs video and audio while simultaneously accepting keyboard and mouse data. If your peripherals are connected to the monitor's USB hub, a single connection to the workplace is enough. To connect keyboard and mouse directly, use the module's separate USB ports.

Every variant transmits keyboard and mouse. For further USB devices there are three routes:

• GenericUSB is available on every variant — for HID devices, smart cards and mass storage, making input devices, authentication and data transfer available directly at the workplace. The UG variants additionally allow several GenericUSB devices to be used at the same time; the module with the lower number always governs.
• U variants (dedicated) additionally transmit transparent USB 2.0 over the KVM link — all USB classes, at full speed and 16 Mbit/s. This also covers devices that GenericUSB does not.
• U2 variants (dedicated) use a transmission line of their own for USB 2.0 and reach high speed at 480 Mbit/s — the right choice where data rate matters, for mass storage or cameras. The trade-off: these variants operate strictly as a point-to-point link, are not matrix-compatible, and rule out a redundant transmission line.

Besides the power pack, the modules can be powered through the USB-C port via Power Delivery. They act as a power sink only: a PD-capable source or a PD-capable monitor can supply the module — but a connected notebook is not charged through the extender.

The video side is identical across all USB-C variants, which leaves exactly one decision.

• Dedicated transmission connects the computer and console modules over a line of their own — independent of your IT and entirely predictable in its behaviour.
• KVM over IP uses your existing standard network and is the basis for installations that grow flexibly. It requires at least one layer-2 managed switch with Gigabit Ethernet, QoS and VLAN.

All USB-C extenders transmit via bluedec™, G&D's multi-stage video compression: pixel-perfect and with no perceptible latency, at efficient bandwidth. Uncompressed variants are not part of the USB-C range.

Both variants can be integrated into a matrix system later, each into its own world: KVM-over-IP end devices such as VisionXS-IP work with IP matrix switches (ControlCenter-IP, ControlCenter-IP-XS), while dedicated end devices such as VisionXS work with dedicated matrix switches (ControlCenter-Digital, ControlCenter-Compact). Within each world, mix & match applies: USB-C modules operate alongside modules for other signal types, so you are not tied to USB-C.

Your choice between dedicated and IP therefore also determines which matrix the installation can grow into later. One exception are the U2 variants: they remain point-to-point links.

• My computer only has USB-C. Do I need an adapter?
  No. The computer module takes the signal directly from the USB-C port, provided that port supports DisplayPort Alternate Mode.
• Will my notebook be charged through the extender?
  No. The modules use Power Delivery only to power themselves, not to pass power on.
• Can I use a USB stick or a smart card at the workplace?
  Yes. Via GenericUSB with both transmission routes, and with transparent USB 2.0 on the dedicated U and U2 variants. Where data rate matters, the U2 variants deliver 480 Mbit/s — at the cost of matrix operation.
• Can I run two monitors at one workplace?
  A USB-C module transmits one video channel. A multi-monitor workplace is built from several console modules — each monitor can then be switched to a different source independently. Daisy-chaining via Multi-Stream Transport (MST) is not supported.
• Can USB-C be combined with other signal types?
  Yes, within the same transmission route. In an IP matrix system, KVM-over-IP modules for different signal types work together; in a dedicated matrix system, the dedicated modules do. IP and dedicated end devices cannot be mixed.