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martinm0

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Everything posted by martinm0

  1. Been a while since I've been on the forums. Recently picked up a Samsung 40" 4k curved TV to possibly use as a monitor. The issue I'm running into is that OS X only seems to run the TV at 30Hz, while Windows 8.1n runs it at 60Hz (same machine, hardware, cables, input, etc). Is there something that has to be modified or changed to allow OS X to drive the monitor full 60Hz? I know my iMac doesn't support 4k from the dGPU, but would that prevent it from being able to produce 60Hz 4k through the eGPU? Even SwitchresX only shows 30Hz in all the settings. Here's my setup: Samsung UN40JU7500 2012 iMac 27" (680MX GPU) Zotac GTX-970 Akitio Thunder2 Dell DA-2 PSU
  2. I would try a fresh install with Windows 10. I've been successful with Win 7, 8.1n and 10. I did nothing special with Windows 10 for my install - did a fresh install, installed bootcamp drivers, made sure the eGPU showed up in device manager and downloaded and ran Nvidia drivers. After that, I rebooted (think when it restarted both the internal screen and eGPU were displaying mirrored info, odd), extended my display to the eGPU (which broke the internal monitor) but the eGPU worked. For me, I leave the eGPU powered on before I boot up. It does fight me at times where I have to reboot a half dozen times to get it to recognize, but when it works, it works overtime (until I do something like connect it to another machine or run Windows updates). PS - I like Windows 10 over 8.1 due to not requiring your serial number during install (so you don't have to put it in over and over if you need to rip out the install and try again). Was a big disappointment moving from Windows 7 to Windo 8.1 due to that alone.
  3. I use a Western Digital My Passport Pro to hold dual SSDs (256GB OS, and 1TB SSD Steam Games). I sometimes connect this to the second port on the Akitio box, and haven't seen any issues running things this way. Most of the time the external is connected directly to my iMac, but if I use it with my MBA, I have to daisy chain the drives to the eGPU (also have done this on the iMac as well). This is all under TB1 as well as neither of my machines have TB2.
  4. Is it possible that the HDMI out on the card only does 1080p? Have you tested another port from the GPU to see if DVI or DP provide the full resolution? Which card do you have?
  5. Yes. I use the eGPU with my 2012 iMac 27" (i7, 680MX) and 2014 MBA.
  6. Just for a sanity check, does the new version absolutely need a fresh install of OS X? I downloaded the latest version and took the gamble of running it over my existing OS X install and it seems to have worked fine. My only issue is I had to use the old terminal commands to install rather than the new 2 step process.
  7. I've had my Akitio+Zotac 970+Dell DA-2 crash a handful of times while gaming as well. Same situation where the sound starts stuttering and screen goes black. I forget if I have to do something, but usually I'll have a Windows pop-up stating the game has crashed. Note, I've mostly only being playing Batman Arkham Knight, which is not ported well as we all know, so not sure if its the game or the setup. Usually only happens after an hour or two of gaming. Others have mentioned that the board inside the Akitio can get super hot. Could be the board is overheating while the GPU might be only around 65c.
  8. That might be our bad. I notice folks like to just add new posts as a reply, I may have done that... Do you have any ability to install Windows internally and cut out the external for testing? I'm only running Windows 10 from my internal SSD on my 2014 MBA and it works great, just as Win7 and Win8.1n ran. I was planning on moving Windows to an external but just haven't done it yet. And very odd about you having to run USB 2.0 drivers on Win7. Not an issue I had on either my iMac or MBA.
  9. Is this happening with 2012 MBP from your build guide? Do you have another Thunderbolt cable to try> I run my Windows partition from an external SSD as well, but I'm connecting it through TB1 on my late 2012 iMac 27. I've had pretty good luck getting it to work most of the time, but there are situations that seem to prevent it from working properly. One area I noticed is with Windows Updates. I'll need to not have the eGPU connected when those run (or at least after the forced reboot) or I find my iMac gets stuck in an endless reboot cycle (and when this happens, I notice the OS X chime sounds like it coming from a backup speaker and not the main speaker of the iMac as the sound is very thin and no bass). In these instances I unplug the eGPU and boot into Windows to let it do the rest of the updates, reboot again to make sure they are all completed, then I shut down and connect the eGPU and boot back up. I also think that when I swap back and forth between Windows and OS X with the eGPU, it can break the reliability of the setup working in Windows (I never have any issues with the eGPU not working in OS X). The other day it took me almost an hour trying to get Windows to properly recognize the eGPU after using it with my MBA. It would boot up and only show the iMac's dGPU and screen and have the eGPU listed in Device Manager (maybe Error 12). In either case, I just went back and forth moving cables, fully powering down the eGPU by unplugging the power cord from the Dell DA2. And once it starts working again, I find it works every time unless I use it with another machine or do some significant changes. And note, I power on the eGPU before booting up my Mac and that works for me pretty well with no additional device manager errors. Lastly, unless something changed, I know that unplugging a Thunderbolt connection, or powering down a TB device while connected to the Mac, will cause a kernel panic and the system will freeze and crash. I'm wondering if you are having a flakey connection that is causing a disconnect and freezing up the system. I also noticed that my Lacie 2big external (USB 3.0) blips after the boot menu like the bus gets disconnected and then rediscovered a few seconds later. However, I was running Windows from a USB 3.0 SSD on my MBA and had no issues, so really unsure what your problem(s) are. I'm hoping just a faulty TB cable.
  10. I ran Tomb Raider's benchmark test on my late 2012 iMac (i7, 680MX) in OS X with the latest web driver and got the following: iMac+Akitio Zotac GTX970 (1080p, max settings) Min: 36.7 Max: 91.6 Avg: 73.8 iMac+680MX dGPU (1440p, max) Min: 41.9 Max: 64 Avg: 54.8 iMac+680MX dGPU (1080p windowed, max) Min: 59.5 Max: 95.4 Avg: 80.3
  11. I did a clean install of Windows 10 on my 2014 MBA and everything is working great. Played Tomb Raider on max and it played pretty great. I did not do anything special to the Bootcamp drivers. Just let them all install, then downloaded the latest GTX970 driver from Nvidia, shut down and started up with eGPU fully powered on (I always have it on when booting up), installed the drivers and rebooted again. Everything working (including internal speakers). One interesting thing that happened was on first boot with eGPU (after drivers installed) I had both the internal and external monitors working at the same time (they were set to mirror). When I undid mirroring, both worked independently until I rebooted and my internal screen went back to black/inactive.
  12. After testing with my same MBA, I think the eGPU is still worthwhile for gaming on this laptop. I'm sure there will be bottlenecks with some modern games, but overall I was able to play Tomb Raider at max settings at 1080p with perfectly acceptable frame rates for an extended period of time. I tested also batman AK at max settings with decent FPS and HoTS at extreme settings which seemed fine.
  13. I have the same 2014 MBA as you and can do some testing. I've been using the eGPU with my iMac during gaming (and so far mostly only on Batman AK, which is limited already as it is). Will do some testing and report back.
  14. You need the eGPU connected and recognized for the web drivers to load. Have you tried using the eGPU under OS X? I feel like that was a much easier process, even before goalque's script. And it works every time I boot up, no fuss. And the card definitely works?
  15. Wait, are you only using the 1x 6pin for power at the card? I think you need both. That said, I boot with my eGPU powered on from the start. I would recommend that, but you might just have an issue with not enough power. Also, others have mentioned that you should do all your windows updates with the eGPU not connected. I have experienced some similar issues, so make sure all your updates run and then try to boot up with the eGPU.
  16. I'm 100% certain it does not fit fully enclosed. I had the Gigabyte card when I first bought the Akitio and confirm it's too tall to have the outer case closed. However, if you don't plan on modifying the Akitio to allow proper cooling, it doesn't really matter (presuming you are not looking to use the outer case as protection for traveling only). If its just going to sit on your desk as a chassis, then you are good to go.
  17. I've never tired with the internal iMac screen, as I believe that only works with Intel integrated GPUs. My one and only attempt to use Optimus on my MBA left it so the internal keyboard and trackpad didn't work, so I gave up. That said, I did run Tomb Raider in windowed mode. I told the game to use my eGPU, but I moved the window to the iMac and it looks like it was still using the eGPU to drive the game (based on what HW Monitor was showing). Granted it wasn't amazing, but something to keep playing with.
  18. Are you running the setup fully enclosed (no modifications to the Akitio for air flow)? If so, I'd think your issue would be more related to temps and thermal limits. If its technically an open setup (outer case removed), then possibly you need more power. The Dell DA-2 and cables are pretty cheap (maybe $40 total) - I paid like $12 for my Dell PSU. Might not be a bad idea to pick one up and test.
  19. By the numbers, the Galax/KFA2 looks better - higher base clock (1126MHz vs 1076MHz) and higher boost clock (1276MHz vs 1216MHz) than the Zotac. I've got the Zotac and its been running just fine, though I haven't tried to OC it at all mostly because I hit thermal limits already when really stressing the card (80c). I think Dschijn has OC'd his KFA2 a bit, but using the Akitio Thunder2 case doesn't leave a lot of room for cooling the card. I mostly picked the Zotac since I'm in the US, could get from Amazon through Prime, was $310 and came with Witcher 3 and Batman (and should I need to return the card, Amazon is super easy to work with). The Galax/KFA2 sells only from their web store and is $330. I think you won't notice much performance difference between either card. I'd say pick the one that you like best (or go for cheapest).
  20. I've been successful with my late 2012 iMac with 680MX. I don't see any issues as long as you aren't running a newer AMD dGPU (not sure if this is more an issue with the Akitio Thunder2 chassis or overall).
  21. I would think you'll be fine. I'm running a Zotac GTX 970 with the same setup (though mine has 2x 6pin). Gaming has been working fine so far (granted Batman has been locked at 30 FPS so it's not straining the card that hard). But all has been well for me. And yes to the soldering. I think that is fine as well.
  22. Confirming the Zotac fits (I have it). Fan shroud has just 4 screws to take out and the shroud comes off.
  23. I also had this issue as well. I assumed that maybe I needed to do it manually trough preferences (though the later info in the Optimus guide states that it will auto activate Optimus until you manually change it through Boot camp prefs or System Prefs in OS X). IN the end, I don't think my install went correctly as my internal keyboard and trackpad are non-functional.
  24. So, I lied. Its 20mm from fins to outer case, so standard 25mm fans will not work. I must have been drunk or optimistic. Take your pick.
  25. Haha. I also don't fully grasp the UEFI/Bios portion of this all. I mean, I understand what they are, but I just installed Windows through Bootcamp and did the driver update from Nvidia and rebooted. On the iMac I do have Windows running on an external SSD, and when I migrated it the disk stopped being called Windows and just started showing up named EFI in the boot manager. I'm running a Zotac GTX970 in the Akitio with Dell DA-2. There seems to be some shenanigans with the rMBP with the 650M and 750M which I just don't quite understand not having a machine that uses the iGPU and dGPU. I assumed the iMac would be a huge issue since most on the forum are using Macbook Pros, but my two machines really didn't give me too much of a hassle. Though, I mucked up Windows on the MBA trying to enable optimus (broke the keyboard and trackpad drivers), so I might caution you away from that. Did you try things under OS X yet? Goalque created a great script to do all the legwork for you. Seems like folks have been having great luck (though it wasn't hard to modify the files manually as I did).
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