eGPU experiences [version 2.0]

[mymacy]

- delete the last post please..

seems like everything is running fine.. when i am sure i will upload a guide and benchmarks

thanks again for the help

[mymacy]

okay im done with the benchmarks.. which seem to be fine

all benchmarks are internal screen!!

3dmark06 : 18534

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-3630QM Processor,FUJITSU FJNBB2F

3dmark11 : 6582

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-3630QM Processor,FUJITSU FJNBB2F

Icestorm : 12285

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-3630QM Processor,FUJITSU FJNBB2F

however the actual game performance is not what i was expecting..i used the gtx760 in my desktop pc with a similar clocked cpu and could run wow (ultra) + swtor (ultra) at the same time.. now i cant even play one of them on ultra without fps drops.. even cs go doesnt run smooth on ultra..

of course i was expecting less fps especially as i am playing on internal screen.. however it seems more like a 50% performance loss then 20-30%..

any ideas what could be the cause ? or is it just like this and my expectations were too high?

[mymacy]

heyhey..

yeah but i was planning to use the internal screen anyway later on.. its either egpu or gaming laptop as i wont be able to carry around a monitor or desktop pc in the next months..

but these results arent good at all :/.. i guess i am better off with a gaming laptop then? i am pretty sure a good mobile gpu can handle WoW / Swtor / CS GO on ultra..

in theory the egpu solution should be much better then a mobile gpu..

[jacobsson]

heyhey..

yeah but i was planning to use the internal screen anyway later on.. its either egpu or gaming laptop as i wont be able to carry around a monitor or desktop pc in the next months..

but these results arent good at all :/.. i guess i am better off with a gaming laptop then? i am pretty sure a good mobile gpu can handle WoW / Swtor / CS GO on ultra..

in theory the egpu solution should be much better then a mobile gpu..

I think you could run most of those games on medium/high settings. Do you have them to test?

Lets do a theoretical performance estimation:

From this database one could think that your eGPU (on internal display) should corresponds to 680M in mobile graphics performance? (By looking at the different 3Dmark scores)

From this database a 680M runs: CS:GO @ultra ~128 average FPS and

shows and Alienware 3720QM and 680M running different games (W.O.W. @9.55 ), looks pretty good?

Let's say my theoretical measurements are correct then you have these choices:

1. Cash up for a gaming laptop with at least 680M and a 3720QM or better CPU.

or

2. Keep your eGPU setup and enjoy even better performance on external display when you're not traveling.

EDIT: would be awesome if you did some measurements when testing these games.

[mymacy]

UPDATE:

ok after some more testing i am 100% sure the problem is the internal display!

all of the games i mentioned (WoW, SwtoR, CS GO) run absolutely smooth on an external display.. i can even run wow and swtor (both ultra) at the same time with minor fps problems..

as soon as i switch to the internal display the fps drop alot.. from 200+fps in cs go while standing around to 50fps max.. not one of the mentioned games run on ultra..

as it stands.. it doesnt seem to be viable to use a egpu solution as a replacment for a gaming laptop if you want to use the internal display 99% of the time.. i wasnt expectating such a drastic loss in fps when i use the internal display

@jacobsson

yeah i think for me its a better solution to get a gaming laptop.. there is just no way for me to carry around a monitor the next few months as i will travel alot...

just ordered this one

XMG P503 PRO Gaming Notebook 39,6cm (15.6")

. 39,6cm (15.6") Full-HD (1920*1080) Non-Glare

. AMD Radeon HD 8970M 4096MB GDDR5

. Intel Core i7-4700MQ - 2,40 - 3,40GHz 6MB 47W

. 8GB (2x4096) SO-DIMM DDR3 RAM 1600MHz Crucial

i guess this one will give me a much much better performance then my current N532 + gtx 760.. even though i would have preffered the egpu solution :/

btw has anybody tried to get a refund for their PE4L ? or does anybody want to buy one ? (cable length is 150cm)

[sskillz]

Good find with the firmtek product. Did a little more research on their website : FirmTek ThunderTek/PX-Q6G Specifications finding (1) it comes with a 36W AC adapter and (2) the DIP switches are for fan control - there is no PCI Reset Delay.

So for eGPU use the AC adapter would need to be replaced with a 75W model to power the slot. Would also need a PCI extender cable to get a x16 slot from the x4 one. The same cable allowing to mod in a PCI Reset Delay if using it with a Macbook as described at http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/4570-%5Bguide%5D-2012-13-rmbp-gtx660-sonnet-echo-express-se-%40-10gbps.html .

When I'm using a 1x 16x extender that also uses a IDE cable like this one, sometimes my card HD6950 was stuck on gen 1 pci-e, total length of PEAL and riser is about 90cm. It works fine (1x 2.0) on my desktop with only the riser, and right now on my laptop with a shorter riser (~15cm difference riser).

[blowntaha]

Couldn't find this question being asked during my brief search sooo... When you add an external GPU, does this disable the dedicated GPU in the laptop or will you be able to have one of the GPU dedicated to CUDA/physx?

I have a y580 and I'm trying to see if I can add another 660m so I could set up an sli setup. And if you're wondering, I do realise I'll need different parts to accommodate the different connections since 660m is a mobile GPU and not desktop.

Thanks in advance for any responses.

[blowntaha]

Hey guys,

Ok so after weeks of waiting, all of my parts for eGPU have arrived which is PE4L+PM060A , Radeon R9 280X and a Gigabyte Hercules 580w.

After setting up all of the parts, everything seems to be working fine and I did not need the setup 1.x because lucky me, I could disable my iGPU from the UMA switchable graphic option in my Bios. The system detects the eGPU and I can proceed to the driver installation as usual. I used external monitor as main and only one display because having the dual display with the internal display messed up the graphic card's driver.

Later I will upload the pictures and maybe a setup video if I'm not too busy working.

My Rig,

Lenovo Y580

i7 3630QM 2.8Ghz

GTX 660M

8GB RAM

eGPU

PE4L+PM060A

AMD R9 280X

Gigabyte Hercules 580W PSU

Hey, I also have a y580 and was looking into egpu. Were there any extra steps you had to do to get it working or were the instructions you followed from the OP sufficient? And, which slot did you use?

Also, when you say you were able to disable iGPU AFTER adding egpu, were you able to do this BEFORE the addition of your egpu as well?

[coyote]

Hey guys. Randomly I have screen freezes in games and have to manually restart laptop. I hope the GPU is not faulty...

[kingkiv97]

Hi, I was directed to this thread through some searching. I have a Lenovo SL500 with with an Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 2.4ghz, an intel Mobile 4 Series Express Chipset GM45, 4gb of ram, and it runs on windows 7 ultimate 32 bit. I have been struggling just to play minecraft, and from what i have researched my gpu is the issue. Would an egpu be a the solution to this problem? Is my laptop compatible for an egpu? I do have access to a graphics card and a psu. Graphics card: Nvidia GeForce 9800 GTX+. PSU: Diablotek DA series 600 watt ATX Power Supply. By the way, I have some knowledge of pc components, i have built my own desktop pc, and I know that the power supply i have is A LOT more powerful than what i need in order to build this egpu, but not all terms are known to me. Thanks.

[moogleassassin]

evening chaps,

Has anyone tried either Express Card or Thunderbolt eGPU connectivity with the new Lenovo W540 laptop yet? I might pick one up and wondering if any issues.

Regards

[pasport]

Hello!

Hp Probook 4530s

4gb

i5-2430m

Win7 64bit

Pe4l 2.1b + GTX560

old 300w atx psu

I use my egpu setup since 2 or 3 moths, everything is worked fine. But nowadays, i get blue screen death after 10-15 minutes playing.

I run a crash dump analysis with "whocrahsed", and it says:

crash dump file: C:\Windows\memory.dmp

This was probably caused by the following module: Unknown (0x00000000)

Bugcheck code: 0x113 (0x6, 0xFFFFFA80087C6000, 0x0, 0x0)

Error: VIDEO_DXGKRNL_FATAL_ERROR

Bug check description: This indicates that the dxg kernel has detected a violation.

A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error.

Google query: VIDEO_DXGKRNL_FATAL_ERROR

Other Test

crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010614-11528-01.dmp

This was probably caused by the following module: nvlddmkm.sys (0xFFFFF8800ABDEDA8)

Bugcheck code: 0x117 (0xFFFFFA80069C04E0, 0xFFFFF8800ABDEDA8, 0x0, 0x0)

Error: VIDEO_TDR_TIMEOUT_DETECTED

file path: C:\Windows\system32\drivers\nvlddmkm.sys

product: NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21

company: NVIDIA Corporation

description: NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21

Bug check description: This indicates that the display driver failed to respond in a timely fashion.

A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error. It is suggested you look for an update for the following driver: nvlddmkm.sys (NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21 , NVIDIA Corporation).

Google query: NVIDIA Corporation VIDEO_TDR_TIMEOUT_DETECTED

I reinstalled the driver, but the problem is still there... Please help!

[Chupis]

Hello dear's colleagues.

I'm from latin america, sorry for my Inglés.

I'm new to this site and I want to try to build my eGPU, but before I want to help me know if my notebook is capable of storing a eGPU. The truth is unknown the Tolud of my notebook, but I will show you the features and screenshots of my notebook That so please tell me if my notebook can or can not store a eGPU.

features of my notebook:

Laptop: Lenovo® ideapad V570

Processor: intel® core i5 2430m 2.4ghz TB 3.0ghz

Ram: 6gb DDR3 1333mhz

graphics core: Intel® HD 3000 650-1200mhz

HDD: 750gb WD 5400rpm

* (The notebook has the iGPU "HD 3000 graphic core" has no dGPU)

What's my Tolud?

These are my slots miniPCIe!

Thank you very much, if more information is needed will be provided as soon as possible.

[Relentless]

A response from ThunderTek about whether they will make a Thunderbolt 2.0 PCIe connector:

The current ThunderTek/PX-Q6G maximizes the speed of the Q6G with up to 700MB/s performance. When using 3.5" hard disks it is hard to exceed that performance level.

Thunderbolt 2 in theory can reach 1100-1300MB/s but to get that high you would need to use costly SSD with limited storage capability in comparison to large 3.5" HDDs.

The extra performance may not actually be used by those with video editing needs because of the requirement for larger volumes than SSD can support - especially at a reasonable cost.

FirmTek will have a Thunderbolt2 product at some point in the future but it will not exist until we can find a good real world storage usage match.

Best regards,

FirmTek, LLC

- - - Updated - - -

evening chaps,

Has anyone tried either Express Card or Thunderbolt eGPU connectivity with the new Lenovo W540 laptop yet? I might pick one up and wondering if any issues.

Regards

I have been considering the Lenovo W540 but it is a disappointment they have only done Thunderbolt 1.0 and that it has such a limited set of ports (particularly display). Amazing given how much it costs...

[Tech Inferno Fan]

Hi, I was directed to this thread through some searching. I have a Lenovo SL500 with with an Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 2.4ghz, an intel Mobile 4 Series Express Chipset GM45, 4gb of ram, and it runs on windows 7 ultimate 32 bit. I have been struggling just to play minecraft, and from what i have researched my gpu is the issue. Would an egpu be a the solution to this problem? Is my laptop compatible for an egpu? I do have access to a graphics card and a psu. Graphics card: Nvidia GeForce 9800 GTX+. PSU: Diablotek DA series 600 watt ATX Power Supply. By the way, I have some knowledge of pc components, i have built my own desktop pc, and I know that the power supply i have is A LOT more powerful than what i need in order to build this egpu, but not all terms are known to me. Thanks.

SL500 has a 4500MHD iGPU and an expresscard slot. 9800GTX is an older NVidia card which unfortunately does not have driver support for NVidia Optimus or x1 pcie compression. For those higher performance features you'd require a Fermi - a GT430 or better. Recommended is a GTX560Ti/GTX660+ card along with a PE4L-ECxxxA 2.1b or PE4H 3.2 eGPU adapter. Those adapters providing Gen2 capability, handy if you wanted to upgrade to a higher performance Sandy/Ivy Bridge or Haswell notebook such as a HP 4530s.

Hello dear's colleagues.

I'm from latin america, sorry for my Inglés.

I'm new to this site and I want to try to build my eGPU, but before I want to help me know if my notebook is capable of storing a eGPU. The truth is unknown the Tolud of my notebook, but I will show you the features and screenshots of my notebook That so please tell me if my notebook can or can not store a eGPU.

You have TOLUD=BFA00000 (~3GB) A NVIdia GTX560Ti/GTX660+ can be hosted without any problems. You'll need a PE4L-PMxxxA 2.1b for mPCIe (wifi) connectivity as your notebook has no expresscard slot.

[jacobsson]

Hi guys.

I need a GEN1 adapter and I'm wondering of someone is willing trade this for my GEN2 PE4L 2.1b-EC (150CM)?

My work notebook can only handle GEN1-speed and I can't make changes in BIOS.

[angerthosenear]

Hello!

Hp Probook 4530s

4gb

i5-2430m

Win7 64bit

Pe4l 2.1b + GTX560

old 300w atx psu

I use my egpu setup since 2 or 3 moths, everything is worked fine. But nowadays, i get blue screen death after 10-15 minutes playing.

I run a crash dump analysis with "whocrahsed", and it says:

crash dump file: C:\Windows\memory.dmp

This was probably caused by the following module: Unknown (0x00000000)

Bugcheck code: 0x113 (0x6, 0xFFFFFA80087C6000, 0x0, 0x0)

Error: VIDEO_DXGKRNL_FATAL_ERROR

Bug check description: This indicates that the dxg kernel has detected a violation.

A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error.

Google query: VIDEO_DXGKRNL_FATAL_ERROR

Other Test

crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010614-11528-01.dmp

This was probably caused by the following module: nvlddmkm.sys (0xFFFFF8800ABDEDA8)

Bugcheck code: 0x117 (0xFFFFFA80069C04E0, 0xFFFFF8800ABDEDA8, 0x0, 0x0)

Error: VIDEO_TDR_TIMEOUT_DETECTED

file path: C:\Windows\system32\drivers\nvlddmkm.sys

product: NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21

company: NVIDIA Corporation

description: NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21

Bug check description: This indicates that the display driver failed to respond in a timely fashion.

A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error. It is suggested you look for an update for the following driver: nvlddmkm.sys (NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21 , NVIDIA Corporation).

Google query: NVIDIA Corporation VIDEO_TDR_TIMEOUT_DETECTED

I reinstalled the driver, but the problem is still there... Please help!

I'm running driver 327.02 and rarely get driver crashes (only when messing around with mining LTC). And no DirectX crashes. Perhaps reinstall DirectX and install driver 327.02. I know I have a lot of issues with certain driver versions.

[Chupis]

You have TOLUD=BFA00000 (~3GB) A NVIdia GTX560Ti/GTX660+ can be hosted without any problems. You'll need a PE4L-PMxxxA 2.1b for mPCIe (wifi) connectivity as your notebook has no expresscard slot.

[kingkiv97]

So are you saying my lenovo sl500 is compatible, and my 9800 gtx+ is not? Would there be any possible way to setup an egpu with the 9800 gtx+? I know it supports pcie 2.0. Would it need a pe4l or pe4h? If it's not possible then which graphics card would be the best for the money just to play minecraft and some valve games like gmod and counter strike: go at higher end settings?

[lapytopy]

So are you saying my lenovo sl500 is compatible, and my 9800 gtx+ is not? Would there be any possible way to setup an egpu with the 9800 gtx+? I know it supports pcie 2.0. Would it need a pe4l or pe4h? If it's not possible then which graphics card would be the best for the money just to play minecraft and some valve games like gmod and counter strike: go at higher end settings?

You will want a PE4L (GEN 2). 560ti provides excellent value for money I believe, however if you cannot stretch to that then a GTX 460 would probably serve you well. The 9800 would work but would not provide that much improvement.

[jacobsson]

Hello!

Hp Probook 4530s

4gb

i5-2430m

Win7 64bit

Pe4l 2.1b + GTX560

old 300w atx psu

I use my egpu setup since 2 or 3 moths, everything is worked fine. But nowadays, i get blue screen death after 10-15 minutes playing.

I run a crash dump analysis with "whocrahsed", and it says:

crash dump file: C:\Windows\memory.dmp

This was probably caused by the following module: Unknown (0x00000000)

Bugcheck code: 0x113 (0x6, 0xFFFFFA80087C6000, 0x0, 0x0)

Error: VIDEO_DXGKRNL_FATAL_ERROR

Bug check description: This indicates that the dxg kernel has detected a violation.

A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error.

Google query: VIDEO_DXGKRNL_FATAL_ERROR

Other Test

crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010614-11528-01.dmp

This was probably caused by the following module: nvlddmkm.sys (0xFFFFF8800ABDEDA8)

Bugcheck code: 0x117 (0xFFFFFA80069C04E0, 0xFFFFF8800ABDEDA8, 0x0, 0x0)

Error: VIDEO_TDR_TIMEOUT_DETECTED

file path: C:\Windows\system32\drivers\nvlddmkm.sys

product: NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21

company: NVIDIA Corporation

description: NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21

Bug check description: This indicates that the display driver failed to respond in a timely fashion.

A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error. It is suggested you look for an update for the following driver: nvlddmkm.sys (NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver, Version 332.21 , NVIDIA Corporation).

Google query: NVIDIA Corporation VIDEO_TDR_TIMEOUT_DETECTED

I reinstalled the driver, but the problem is still there... Please help!

Hi there.

The first thing I'd do is testing with another PSU, do some benchmarking etc.

Tell me how it goes!

[pasport]

Hi there.

The first thing I'd do is testing with another PSU, do some benchmarking etc.

Tell me how it goes!

I ran the heaven benchmark. Everything is worked fine.Next, i maxed out the settings,and i started the benchmark, after 1-2 minute i got the blue screen....

I think the problem maybe the psu. Remember, its a very very old p4 psu. I'll try it with a new psu...

[jacobsson]

I ran the heaven benchmark. Everything is worked fine.Next, i maxed out the settings,and i started the benchmark, after 1-2 minute i got the blue screen....

I think the problem maybe the psu. Remember, its a very very old p4 psu. I'll try it with a new psu...

Yeah most of my problems have been PSU-related. I now run my GTX670 with a Dell D220P 220W AC-adapter, no more bluescreens/display driver resets etc.

Of course using the DELL PSU requires some solder skills, so it's probably preferred to just get a 'new' ATX PSU instead.

Please report back!

EDIT 1: The most sensitive part of eGPU-system is the 5v feeding the PE4L, if your PSU is degraded (of age) this voltage can be dipping/ripple = instability.

EDIT 2: Also, check the PE4L's expresscard-cable by lightly wiggle it during benchmark, bad cables is probably the #2 cause of failure.

EDIT 3: #3 cause of failure: Different display card drivers can cause a lot of instability issues, if you know that you recently upgraded/downgraded them, revert back to your 'stable' drivers again.

[phillofoc]

So are you saying my lenovo sl500 is compatible, and my 9800 gtx+ is not? Would there be any possible way to setup an egpu with the 9800 gtx+? I know it supports pcie 2.0. Would it need a pe4l or pe4h? If it's not possible then which graphics card would be the best for the money just to play minecraft and some valve games like gmod and counter strike: go at higher end settings?

You can try, but you would be disappointed. Expect something like 70-80% of performance in a desktop rig, probably closer to 70% or a little less due to your CPU performance when compared to a newer IVB or Haswell quad-core.

If you're in the US or Canada, Newegg has a sweet MSI GTX660 2GB OC for 160 after rebate today only. Might be worth a look depending on your budget, but that's cheaper than most 650 Ti (non Boost) on Amazon right now.

Newegg.com - Shell Shocker Deal. Exclusive Jaw Dropping Savings on PC Components and Electronics.

[pasport]

Yeah most of my problems have been PSU-related. I now run my GTX670 with a Dell D220P 220W AC-adapter, no more bluescreens/display driver resets etc.

Of course using the DELL PSU requires some solder skills, so it's probably preferred to just get a 'new' ATX PSU instead.

Please report back!

EDIT 1: The most sensitive part of eGPU-system is the 5v feeding the PE4L, if your PSU is degraded (of age) this voltage can be dipping/ripple = instability.

EDIT 2: Also, check the PE4L's expresscard-cable by lightly wiggle it during benchmark, bad cables is probably the #2 cause of failure.

EDIT 3: #3 cause of failure: Different display card drivers can cause a lot of instability issues, if you know that you recently upgraded/downgraded them, revert back to your 'stable' drivers again.

So...

I bought a new 203w xbox psu. I soldered the floppy and the molex conncectors to the psu. Then, i tryed a lot of benchmarks and games, and everything is work fine!!No blue screen..

All in all, The psu caused the problem....

Thank you!