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eGPU experiences [version 2.0]


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My laptop is Hp 8460p + Hd3000 iGPU - GTX 750 eGPU + PE4L!

I tried DSDT override but still unable to overcome the Error Code 12. This is my result:

post-27526-14494997917078_thumb.png

I dont know whether i make DSDT override right ir wrong??

I have try:

Try connect/power ON eGPU at "Starting Windows" screen, exactly when you see the windows logo animation. When you see the "Starting Windows" screen & the four dots emerged to form a windows logo, it is when windows loaded the DSDT override.

In setup 1.x i select 36-bit PCI compaction on eGPU + iPGU. After that i chainload to win 7, but boot animation don't load and screen is black.

What should i do now ? Can i use 8460p with GTX 750?

Please give me some information?

Thanks a lot!

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My laptop is Hp 8460p + Hd300 iGPU - GTX 750 eGPU + PE4L!

I tried DSDT override but still unable to overcome the Error Code 12. This is my result:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]11978[/ATTACH]

I dont know whether i make DSDT override right ir wrong??

I have try:

In setup 1.x i select 36-bit PCI compaction on eGPU + iPGU. After that i chainload to win 7, but boot animation don't load and screen is black.

What should i do now ? Can i use 8460p with GTX 750?

Please give me some information?

Thanks a lot!

The Sandy/Ivy Bridge Elitebooks require a DSDT override and latest version Setup 1.30 to overcome error 12 with GTX650/GTX750 or AMD cards. Other NVidia Fermi/Keplar cards do not require this. If there happens to be any issue with black screen with Setup 1.30 then please correspond with me via email to resolve.

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Greetings everyone!

I'm going to get a Fujitsu/Siemens A512 (the I5 2450m version, will probably upgrade to an I7-3XXX version at a later time), and I just get confused about all those PE4H and PE4L devices there are out there. The laptop does have an express cad slot, but I think it's worth writing because there's going to be a revision (version 2.1) of said device I need to buy.

My questions would then be:

1. Which device would I need to get? I saw one link to aliexpress 2 pages back but I'd still like to have it clarified.

2. Should I wait for that new version to come out?

3. Would that laptop and an ATI 4890 work well together? I currently have a desktop I plan on selling, but if I can try out the system before I get it sold that'd be great.

Thanks for the help!

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Hi Nando4,

Is there any way to find if the bandwidth of 5GBps (using PE4L) is getting bottlenecked apart from low FPS in heavy graphic games? Is it worth to upgrade to 10 GBPs using firmtek adapter ($199)?

I am using eGPU in 2012 MBA with PE4L V2.1b + Sonnet Echo express pro

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Hi Nando4,

Is there any way to find if the bandwidth of 5GBps (using PE4L) is getting bottlenecked apart from low FPS in heavy graphic games? Is it worth to upgrade to 10 GBPs using firmtek adapter ($199)?

I am using eGPU in 2012 MBA with PE4L V2.1b + Sonnet Echo express pro

The Firmtek Thundertek will double bandwidth. This will certainly improve performance as can be seen at http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/3062-%5Bguide%5D-2012-13-mbp-gtx660ti-hd7870%40x2-2-th05.html#post42483 . However, I recommend you consider the Akitio adapter for the same price instead: http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/6858-%5Bguide%5D-14-asus-g46vw-gtx670%4010gbps-tb1-thundertek-3d-enclosure-5.html#post98210 . It has a TB2 chip on it. Meaning, you'd have the option of upgrading from your 2012 MBA to a 2013 13/15" rMBP to increase bandwidth again from 10Gbps to 16Gbps.

Hi guys,

I'm thinking about buying a new Lenovo ThinkPad L540 (i7 4600M, 4+4GB RAM) and I'd like to know whether I understood everything about eGPU setup for it well.

As it is a laptop with ExpressCard and 4th gen. IntelCPU It should be suitable for x1.2opt (NVidia) / x1.2 opt (AMD) solutions.

For that I'll need a power supply (standard one from a PC will work) and a ExpressCard -> PCIExpress adapter. Given only one port (EC) the best option is PE4L 2.1b (PE4H 3.2 would also work but it's just not better in ANY way).

Then, if I'm ok with using the external display only, it should work without any software modifications (other than installing official NVidia / AMD drivers) -> just plug in, boot up, play games. If I want to use internal LCD as well I'll have to use this modified NVIdia drivers. As for AMD, the same can be achieved with Virtu Drivers.

Considering NVidia vs AMD dilemma. NVidia cards should be way faster in DX9 (thanks to Optimus compression) but pretty much the same in DX10/11/?12. The difference will be even smaller (almost unnoticeable) when using an external LCD (which I plan on using). On DX10+ and external display the AMD cards should actually be a bit faster (could anyone estimate by how many percent?).

Considering the 'low bandwidth performance loss', with GTX560 / GTX660 and x1.2opt (or corresponding AMD card and x1.2) I should be able to get circa 70 % of performance (therefore FPS) I'd get on PCI-E 16x desktop PC?

BTW: Could you recommend a good compatible GPU around 200USD that would be fast enough for modern games but wouldn't be limited by the CPU and the eGPU setup (external display only (optimus gain for internal LCD is unimportant))?

Thanks :).

BTW: I'll write a how-to tutorial if I succeed :).

L540 will be the same as a L440: http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/7091-%5Bguide%5D-14-lenovo-l440-i7-4702mq%402-2ghz-nvidia-quadro-k2000-%401-2opt-ec-expgdcv6.html#post97566

NVidia vs AMD performance is covered well in http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/7162-%5Bperformance%5D-x16-2-0-desktop-vs-x1-2-0-egpu-gtx770-r9-270x.html#post97915 and http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/3062-%5Bguide%5D-2012-13-mbp-gtx660ti-hd7870%40x2-2-th05.html#post42483

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@Tech Inferno Fan Thanks a lot. I have one more question, though. Could someone explain to me the whole concept of TOLUD? I understand that it is somehow related to how much of PCI-E adress space (which is for ?reason only 32bit) is reserved for something (?RAM) and the smaller it is the better for eGPU (the more address space is left for eGPU memory) but I couldn't find proper explanation anywhere (and believe me, I've tried to google hack even bing!).

I'd also like to know what role does setup 1.30 play in it. From what I've read it somehow frees up some of the reserved space but (yet again) I wasn't able to find any specifics (e.g. possible side effects..., how it works with more RAM, etc.).

//Apart from curiosity and the desire to understand what I'm about to do I'd also like to be sure it will work.

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Intel Skylake-S Platform Specifications Detailed – Z170 “100-Series” Chipset To Replace Z97 in 2H 2015

Intel is also introducing the latest Alpine Ridge thunderbolt controller with Skylake pushing speeds of 40Gb/s, double that of last generation.

It looks like Thunderbolt will be linked to Southbridge, again... :(

post-6299-14494997919263_thumb.png

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Intel Skylake-S Platform Specifications Detailed – Z170 “100-Series” Chipset To Replace Z97 in 2H 2015

It looks like Thunderbolt will be linked to Southbridge, again... :(

[ATTACH=CONFIG]11998[/ATTACH]

If they've got a 40Gbps Thunderbolt pipe, then that x4 link on the Southbridge will need to be uprated from pci-e 2.0 (5GT/s) to pci-e 3.0 (8GT/s). A x4 3.0 link would mean 32GT/s. If uprated then it's good news for mPCIe/EC slots too. They would see a 5GT/s -> 8GT/s performance increase. We'd see x1.3Opt :)

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So i been wanting to get into egpu systems and was wondering if there was any cheaper way of connecting a 780 ti to a notebook than than a Echo Express III-D and Mac book pro retina? Is there any cheaper laptop with thunderbolt 2 and any cheaper way of connecting the 780 ti? I would be ok with building my own enclosure but I would need to know what adapters to buy.

I'm new sorry if I broke any rules.

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So i been wanting to get into egpu systems and was wondering if there was any cheaper way of connecting a 780 ti to a notebook than than a Echo Express III-D and Mac book pro retina? Is there any cheaper laptop with thunderbolt 2 and any cheaper way of connecting the 780 ti? I would be ok with building my own enclosure but I would need to know what adapters to buy.

I'm new sorry if I broke any rules.

The current cheapest way for Thunderbolt 2 is to use Akiti​o Thun​der2P​CIe Box

Just 201$

- - - Updated - - -

Nando4,

I am wondering why does PCIe slot in the card requires power? The graphics card itself is powered by 6/8 pins from the PSU, but I have seen 16x risers with Molex power too!

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So i been wanting to get into egpu systems and was wondering if there was any cheaper way of connecting a 780 ti to a notebook than than a Echo Express III-D and Mac book pro retina? Is there any cheaper laptop with thunderbolt 2 and any cheaper way of connecting the 780 ti? I would be ok with building my own enclosure but I would need to know what adapters to buy.

I'm new sorry if I broke any rules.

You could possibly find a cheap HP ZBook15 on eBay

I don't know of any implementations using the zbook so I can't say for sure but if I had the cash, I would go for the zbook 15

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You could possibly find a cheap HP ZBook15 on eBay

I don't know of any implementations using the zbook so I can't say for sure but if I had the cash, I would go for the zbook 15

<strike>ZBook15 has a Thunderbolt 1 (10Gbps) controller. Only Thunderbolt2 equipped machines at this point in time are the 13" and 15" 2013/2014 Macbook Pros. This is noted at http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/4109-egpu-candidate-system-list.html#4th .</strike> --> corrected based on info in next post.

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ZBook15 has a Thunderbolt 1 (10Gbps) controller. Only Thunderbolt2 equipped machines at this point in time are the 13" and 15" 2013/2014 Macbook Pros. This is noted at http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/4109-egpu-candidate-system-list.html#4th .

According to https://thunderbolttechnology.net/product/hp-zbook-15-mobile-workstation ZBook 15 (and 17) have a Thunderbolt 2 connection.

I was interested in that myself, because I'm about to order one that has Thunderbolt 1, but I was looking into possibilities to upgrade it myself, because I was under the assumption that by default it came with 2. There is a separate Displayport and Expresscard assembly, but I assume that this will not contain the controller and ordering a new motherboard will most likely not be worth it.

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I set up my eGPU some time ago and had a maintenance question:

I haven't updated my display drivers since setting it up about a year or so ago. Are there any special procedures I should follow to upgraded the Nvidia drivers? Also, I have ignored all Intel drivers for the onboard display, should I update those too?

I have a GTX 650 Ti Boost (2gb model). I can't remember, off the top of my head, which Intel chipset I am at, but will update this when I get home and am at my PC.

Thank you,

Wes

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Hello,

I have a sandy bridge Lenovo E420 from 2011 with expresscard 2.0. Am I correct in assuming I should be able to setup a x1.2opt? Am I also correct in assuming 32 bit compaction and chainloading will be required since apparently there is only 128 mb of pcie space available, regardless of the video card I use? is it possible to get past this without needing setup 1.x? How do I check my PCIe address space? I am asking because I read in older threads that users successfully set up egpus on the E420 in this manner, but that was 3-4 years ago and I don't think much has been discussed since then about my system so I want to be doubly sure as I have a very tight budget, haha.

Thanks,

S

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egpu with nvidia gpus if you already have one in the system or only integrated is easy as long as there are enough pcie lanes in the chipset it is connected to. Ive only encountered resource problems with AMD cards. nvidia ones use a lot less resource. If your expresscard is connected to the southbridge it may be difficult or slower.

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My laptop is Hp elitebook 8460p i7-2460m + HD 3000 and eGPU is GTX 750.

A have do dsdt override.

I have a problem. I boot to setup 1.30, i slect PCI compaction with end-point 25Gb-36bit <0xe10000...> and select eGPU + iGPU, 32 bit is none.

After that i chaninload to Window. But boot animation is disappear with black screen.

But window can load with compaction with end-point 25Gb-36bit <0xe10000...> and only eGPU perform 36bit, 32 bit is none. External monitor is working, but when i play a game or do some thing need more power from eGPU, external monitor is freeze and i must do a hard reset.

What should i do now?

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egpu with nvidia gpus if you already have one in the system or only integrated is easy as long as there are enough pcie lanes in the chipset it is connected to. Ive only encountered resource problems with AMD cards. nvidia ones use a lot less resource. If your expresscard is connected to the southbridge it may be difficult or slower.

Hi,

Thanks for responding. It is the iGP only so no 6630m. It's also 8 gigs + windows 7/8/linux mint (on separate HDDs), and the 1.26 bios. I'm pretty positive the expresscard is connected to the southbridge. I was planning on getting a PE4L (or possibly the EXP GDC?) and either a GTS 450 or GTX 650 and scrounging up an adapter from somewhere or buying one of these. I don't plan to game on it -- I need access to CUDA computing for my undergrad research. The main question I really have is knowing whether I need to bother with all this compaction stuff for the E420, and if I do, whether I can do it myself manually -- a la the DSDT override or such -- without resorting to something else (despite it being a brilliant piece of software, I just can't afford Setup 1.X in my budget). Here's a picture of my memory from device manager. I think I'm below the 3.25 gb limit? I need it to be as plug and play as possible and probably have the gpu running for hours on end. If someone can post a comprehensive answer, I think I can pick up a cup of joe for you via bitcoin, haha.

Thanks again,

S

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I suggest you try it out and if you get resource errors try disabling some of the devices connected by PCIe. If you look in device manager and sort by resource you can see what device is sharing the lane with another.

whether or not you need the bandwidth really depends on your code. If you have a lot of communication between CPU and GPU than you do need bandwidth and low latency, otherwise if you're just loading code onto the GPU, running it with no CPU communication and than getting the end result <strike>after a few hours than you do not need to do setup 1.x since even 1 lane of PCIe would be enough.</strike>. It also depends on how much data you send when communicating between CPU and GPU.<strike> If you arent using more than 300MB/s worth of data between them than you dont need setup 1.x.</strike>

I have played games before using 1 lane of PCIE and a GTX 580 from my thinkpad and it does work fine for some games that only use the GPU as an output device and preloads things to the GPU but i also had the monitor connected to the GPU as well. I have connected 2 nvidia GPUs to my thinkpad before (1 through dock with Extender and added PSU) giving me a total of 3 nvidia GPUs on my laptop. You can read about my experience on the thinkpad forum.

Also if you have an nvidia GPU already in the laptop you dont need an external monitor to display things since you can set it to display on another GPU while rendering work is done on another. This feature is only available between nvidia GPUs but i dont know if it is only limited to quadro GPUs and openGL but can be coded for in openGL.

Since you have IGP i suggest you get the adapter, PSU and GPU and use nvidia optimus. <strike>You dont need compaction if your program doesnt need the bandwidth. You also dont really need a DSDT override with nvidia GPUs since they work with less memory resources.</strike> expresscard is plug and play even for GPUs but only if you arent running your display through them but you must use the remove device option from windows (appears as vga compatible device) or you will get bluescreen. I have not had any resource problems before connecting nvidia GPUs to other laptops that dont use AMD GPUs.

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The current cheapest way for Thunderbolt 2 is to use Akiti​o Thun​der2P​CIe Box

Just 201$

- - - Updated - - -

Nando4,

I am wondering why does PCIe slot in the card requires power? The graphics card itself is powered by 6/8 pins from the PSU, but I have seen 16x risers with Molex power too!

Also on their website it says that it is incompatible with boot camp (I know I don't need boot camp but after telling my brother about egpus he wants one too) and dose not support graphic cards. Is this just what they say or dose it actually apply?

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Today I tried to apply DSDT on my E4310 with the automated files from post #6 of this thread. Blue screen.

Restarted with F8 (last good known..) and deleted the DSDT key from registry, because the "E4310-unload.bat" didn't work.

Is there anything that I miss?

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Today I tried to apply DSDT on my E4310 with the automated files from post #6 of this thread. Blue screen.

Restarted with F8 (last good known..) and deleted the DSDT key from registry, because the "E4310-unload.bat" didn't work.

Is there anything that I miss?

Yes, missing an extra step. That is use the E4310 ones provided as an example and create a completely new DSDT override at explained at the DSDT override page . The supplied decompiled and compiled E4310 DSDT would only work on a system with the exact same BIOS and same BIOS settings enabled that were used to gather that file. Any deviation such that different memory addresses are being used would result in a BSOD as you are seeing.

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Hello Ha1o2surfer

Congrats on your setup and results.

I have been watching the egpu threads for a while, and was wondering if you need setup 1.x with EFI Windows 8.1 ? I have an Thundertek PCIe TB on the way (with cables, psu and gfx (nvidia 770).

All I want to do (for starters) is running the most optimal framerate, on my Macbook Pros internal display (2880x1800), even knowing I will get better results with external.

What is your advice on how to proceed ? :-)

Thanks in advance!

Unklemac

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Hello Ha1o2surfer

Congrats on your setup and results.

I have been watching the egpu threads for a while, and was wondering if you need setup 1.x with EFI Windows 8.1 ? I have an Thundertek PCIe TB on the way (with cables, psu and gfx (nvidia 770).

All I want to do (for starters) is running the most optimal framerate, on my Macbook Pros internal display (2880x1800), even knowing I will get better results with external.

What is your advice on how to proceed ? :-)

Thanks in advance!

Unklemac

Setup 1.x can't be used with UEFI Win8.1. Good news is that previous Macbook eGPU implementations indicate that UEFI Win8.x is pretty much plug'n'play : http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/6578-implementations-thunderbolt-expresscard-mpcie-egpus.html#Thunderbolt

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