kmitza

hi guys!

I need help with my egpu. My gtx 970 with the akitio 2 works fine on my mac mini on os x 10.10.1. mow I tried it on my Macbook pro mid 2012 15" with the same os and it doesn't work. The gpu isn' recognized, System information I get NVIDIA Chip Model instead gtx 970. The drivers are the same as on my mac mini. 

Yes I have last drivers. Kernel panic happened before the burn smell. I tested the card on a PC and it works fine.

Thank you. Why do you think I got the kernel panics when rendering?

I'll order a new PCIe riser and try that paperclip trick. About the paperclip trick, I just need to bridge the two pins shown on the picture whith a paperclip and that's it, right? What do you need the ATX PSU adapter for?

Yes the Akitio is still recognized by the computer.

The GPU does get power but the Akitio doesn't.

I just tested the GPU on my friend's PC and it works. What's with that paperclip trick, should I try that?

So, should I remove the akotio PSU? If I do so the akitio won't get any power.

I have the akitio thunder 2 and the gtx 970. It worked partly with my mac mini 2011 on os x 10.10.1. I used a powered pci riser and the power supply of the akitio (it wasn't working without the akitio psu). My psu for the gpu is a fortron 650 w.

I use this setup for video editing but not without problems. I kept geting kernel panic when rendering video causing my computer to reboot. And now it seems that the gpu has died. My computer rebooted and i smelled somthing burned in the eGPU. After that the gpu couldn't start.

What did i do wrong?

hy guys,

my eGPU is the akitio thunder 2 with a pci raiser and the gtx 970. my power supply is the FSP raider 550W which is connected to the GPU and to the PCI raiser. the akitio is powered by ist own power supply. my computer is a mac mini mid 2011, i5, 16GB ram running os x 10.10.1

the eGPU works, but it crashes when i start rendering in premiere pro cs6 and restarts the computer. i have the latest web driver and cuda driver installed.

please help!

[NOTE] This an UPDATED GUIDE currently only works with OS X 10.9.4 version.

HARDWARE CONFIGURATION

• Apple Mac Mini 2012 16GB with Intel HD 4000
  
• AKiTiO Thunder2 PCIe Box
  

• Corsair CX750 M
  
• EVGA GeForce GTX 770 4GB
  
• 2x Thunderbolt Cable
  
• HDMI
  
• SWEX
  
• Monitor (ASUS VG248QE / Apple Thunderbolt Display)
  

PREPARATION

Step 1 (Note: eGPU setup should be all disconnected)

• Download and Install CUDA driver http://tinyurl.com/dxzoaww
  

Step 2

• Download and install a modded NVIDIA Web driver
  
• Usually, NVIDIA's official Web driver will do a system check. Official web driver can only be installed on MacPro 2008, 2009, 2010. If you are using a iMac or Mac Mini or MacBook Pro, you can't even install. But Modified Web driver avoids the system check. Modded Web driver file name is ModdedWebDriver-334.01.02f02.pkg.
  
• File mirror: https://app.box.com/s/wa2tblhb4y5dtd3fgh1z
  

Step 3

• Modify the following KEXT files from your Terminal and look for sections beginning with <key>CFBundleIdentifier</key> and add just before , the two following lines
  

• <key>[ATTACH=CONFIG]12461[/ATTACH]
  [ATTACH=CONFIG]12460[/ATTACH]
  </key>
  
• <key></key>KEXT Files
  
• /System/Library/Extensions/NVDAStartup.kext
  
• /System/Library/Extensions/IONDRVSupport.kext
  
• /System/Library/Extensions/AppleHDA.kext/Contents/PlugIns/AppleHDAController.kext
  
  

• Every time you upgrade your OS you need to modify these KEXT files
  
• Finally, clear the cache by issuing the following commandsudo kextcache -system-caches and shutdown your OS.
  
• Warning: The following procedure at your own risk. Please be sure to take a backup in case of emergency.
  
  

Step 4 (Setup and connect your eGPU. I am using EVGA GeForce GTX 770 4GB Classified)

• In my case, I have the following setup;
  
• GPU card is connected to AkiTio PCI-e slot without the PCIe riser. AkiTio is powered by its supplied power adaptor
  
• GPU card is powered with PSU thru its two 8 pins
  
• Connect your AkiTio and Mini using Thunderbolt Cable
  
• Connect your GPU and Monitor using DVI, Display Port or HDMI cable
  
• BONUS: I have an existing Apple ThunderBolt Display, I was able to mirror my display. I connected my TB display to the extra TB port on AkiTio
  

A BIG Thank you to the following

maxserve blog: (MacOSX 10.9.4 edition) How to recognize GPGPU via Thunderbolt external PCIe Box at MacOSX

A Thunderbolt GPU on a Mac : How-to | Le journal du lapin

goalque

Tech Inferno Fan

Results

• I no longer experience the kernel panic in my previous setup. I am not sure if its with the GPU card that I previously used (760). It appears that this time this is stable compared from my previous setup using PCI-e riser.
  
• I can play better games on Steam
  

PHOTOS and Video

[ATTACH=CONFIG]12454[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]12455[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]12456[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=CONFIG]12457[/ATTACH]

BENCHMARK

[ATTACH=CONFIG]12458[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]12459[/ATTACH]

What is that PCIe riser you write about? Do I need one to connect the gtx970 to the akitio thunder 2 and mac mini?

RE: http://forum.techinferno.com/implementation-guides/8059-%5Bguide%5D-2013-15-macbook-pro-gt750m-gtx780ti%4016gbps-tb2-sonnet-ee-iii-d-osx10-10-a.html

hi,

i have a mac mini mid 2011 os x 10.10., akitio thunder 2 and the gigabyte gtx 970. i tried everything to make it work but it just doesn't. after following all the steps (installing drivers, modifying kexts,....), when i plug the egpu in via thunderbolt the only thing i get is the fans spining on the gpu. my computer regiters the akitio, i can see it under thunderbolt in "about this mac" but no graphis card. the graphics card is stil Intel HD Graphics 3000 512 MB. what did i do wrong?