JoshS0515

Hey All,

I still have issues with loading at times but I figured out a few of my issues.

For the Wifi issue I booted in and installed the Windows 8.1 bootcamp broadcom controller driver and all worked fine. If it will reset when I shut off the computer I am unsure. I still have to reset the clock every time it comes out of hibernation though so thats why I suspect I may have to do the driver every time.

For the issues I was having with the fan spinning I feel really dumb. I assigned all the programs I wanted to run off the eGPU and none of them did. The reason being the external monitor was plugged into the laptop and not the eGPU. When I plug it into the eGPU the screen turns off and only the laptop LCD works. All I had to do was disable the integrated graphics card and all was well but it does some times just drop to less than 25% use and dropping frame rate dramatically for about 3 seconds.

As for the black screen I set the mac to boot directly into Windows instead of mac so I don't have to use the alt key upon reboot. I still have some issues but the windows error I get on the repair screen is the computer didn't restart correctly so I figured booting directly to it may help. It does. I went from getting the black screen and repair 66% of the time to less than 10%.

By no means am I an expert at any of this but I thought I would share the things that have helped me so far.

Hey guys I am running into issues with my bootcamped windows 10.

When I turn on the laptop with the eGPU plugged in one of two things happen:

1. I hold alt and select windows the screen goes black and nothing happens

2. I hold alt go into windows and have no wifi connection (seriously thats the issue). It either says Wifi 2 disabled or it says the network driver is not working (the question mark next to it). The computer recognizes that the GeForce gtx 970 is plugged in.

Those two scenarios happen 66% and 33% of the time.

When I start the laptop with the eGPU taken out it loads normally and has wifi connection. When I plug in the eGPU after I am in windows the eGPU powers on and does this ticking thing where the fan does like half a spin then locks and the nVidia controller says it doesn't have any drivers and there is no eGPU.

I upgraded to Windows 10 because I thought the ISO was bad on windows 8... lo and behold I have the same issues occuring on Windows 10 just with no wifi when I can get it to boot into windows.

If the fans don't spin... there must be sth wrong.

I think it had to do with the thunder. I just turned it on now. It spinned all the way until I logged in and then it cut off.... I can see the fan since there is no case so I can say for certainty thats whats happening.

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If the fans don't spin... there must be sth wrong. AMD? You have the 2015 15"?

more interesting news...

It does the same on OSX starts spinning and I log in and it stops. There also is no EVGA GeForce 900 driver for OS I am starting to feel like I just wasted a ton of money.

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I wonder if I have the cabeling wrong...

The fans start spinning like normal and then they stop. Its actually not even when I log in I waited in the log in screen and nothing happened on either operating system.

I am going to try switching which 6 hole power source it is connected too since I am only using one and the other is dangling off the side.

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Found this: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/365770-gtx-960-fan-isnt-spinning/

I think I am okay on the fans but it not installing and being recongnized is still a big issue... I have an install disk but no drive for it. But OSX doesnt have an EVGA GeForce Driver and Windows says there is no graphics card to be found when I load the driver... What a mess I got myself into.

I don't know what your problem could be...

Best guess is that you maybe damaged your Windows installation somehow so you have all the problems now.

Please try to remove any Nvidia driver in Windows, reinstall the latest Bootcamp driver (all without the eGPU).

Shut down your system.

Boot it up with the sequence I explained and look in Windows is sth is in the device manager.

Well the fans don't spin when its on OSX either but I haven't attempted to download the driver for OSX so im not sure.

I will try all of what you say.

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I don't know what your problem could be...

Best guess is that you maybe damaged your Windows installation somehow so you have all the problems now.

Please try to remove any Nvidia driver in Windows, reinstall the latest Bootcamp driver (all without the eGPU).

Shut down your system.

Boot it up with the sequence I explained and look in Windows is sth is in the device manager.

There is an AMD Catalyst Install Manager so do you think there might be a compatability issue with another graphics driver and the card itself?

Ok, so it is working. Could you take a picture of your setup?

Here are three pictures

Imgur

http://imgur.com/bAdYerN

http://imgur.com/MEuhVLg

No, please take a look at the Thudnerbolt devices. This is not about the GPU or displays, this is to see if the AKiTiO itself is found.

It was. Thanks for the clarification. The Akitio Thunder is apparening in the Thunderbolt section.

So the card only needs 1x6-Pin right? It is the short (one fan) EVGA GTX 960?

Please test OSX (no need to install that driver) and test if the hardware manager lists the turned on AKiTiO.

In my mac osx System Report it only shows the Intel Iris and then my two displays

Actually in the thunderbolt bus it shows the Akitio thunder

So the card only needs 1x6-Pin right? It is the short (one fan) EVGA GTX 960?

Please test OSX (no need to install that driver) and test if the hardware manager lists the turned on AKiTiO.

Yes to the first question and I will attempt the second part now.

@JoshS0515: How did you connect the DA-2 to that setup? Are you powering the AKiTiO with the DA-2 as well? Did you apply the "trick" to make the DA-2 start?

You can try booting into OSX and look up if the AKiTiO is recognized by OSX.

Firstly first for taking the time to help me.

I bought the ebay extension for the DA-2. I plugged the 8 plug into the Dell and then put the barrell plug in. I only attatched 1 6 hole plug into the graphics card and then plugged the lightning into the computer. The case isn't on it at all the frame is open with all the wires hanging out. I have only attempted to load in Windows 8.1.

Can you boot with the eGPU plugged in?

Which card do you have? Some big cards can turn off the fans in idle for low noise.

I am not sure if this is towards me but I will answer it like it is.

I can boot with it plugged in but the EVGA GTX 960 that is plugged into the Akito Thunder is not spinning or being recognized by my computer. I have attempted to install the driver manually but the NVIDIA Installer fails at the system check. Version 353.30 of the driver if it helps. There is only one unknown USB input in my Device manager and nothing new in the display adapter area. If I scan for changes nothing is new.

Hey everyone,

I am running into issues.

Currently I have a GTX 960 plugged into a Akito Thunder with a Dell A2 powering it. I am attempting to download the Nivida driver mannually from the evga website (900 series). I am doing this because when I turned on my Mac into windows it stalled. I originally thought the machine wouldn't power on so I killed the power took out the lightning connection to the eGPU and booted it again. Slightly dim black screen again and here I am thinking I destroyed the computer somehow when the Windows 8 starts loading. So for some reason the boot process was really long. Anyways I had the machine on now and logged into Windows 8.1 and try to install the driver but it says it can't find any hardware. So naturally I plug the lightning back in and it still can't find it. Now I have the eGPU without the case on it. The fan on it isn't spinning all the way it does like 4 rotation a second and then stops for 3 seconds. What am I missing to make the eGPU compatible?

Also now I am having audio issues... The audio works intermittedly if I jiggle the headphone wires and not at all if the headphones are turned off

Hey everyone,

I am running into issues.

Currently I have a GTX 960 plugged into a Akito Thunder with a Dell A2 powering it. I am attempting to download the Nivida driver mannually from the evga website (900 series). I am doing this because when I turned on my Mac into windows it stalled. I originally thought the machine wouldn't power on so I killed the power took out the lightning connection to the eGPU and booted it again. Slightly dim black screen again and here I am thinking I destroyed the computer somehow when the Windows 8 starts loading. So for some reason the boot process was really long. Anyways I had the machine on now and logged into Windows 8.1 and try to install the driver but it says it can't find any hardware. So naturally I plug the lightning back in and it still can't find it. Now I have the eGPU without the case on it. The fan on it isn't spinning all the way it does like 4 rotation a second and then stops for 3 seconds. What am I missing to make the eGPU compatible?

Sure, 4GB also will fit! The links have been created automatically, sorry for the confusion. As long as the card has the same dimensions, it will fit!

Thank you so much! This is a lot of fun but when you are throwing around a $500 on something to build you can't ask enough questions! Do you know if there is any YouTube videos on using the DA-2 power cable with extensions to power the akitio? I have worked with installing graphic cards before at work and know that if I mess up once I likely have a bad graphics card! It should be very straight forward but might as well spend 5 minutes watchign something.

Best cards to fit are:

- EVGA GTX 960 (the one fan version)

- Galaxy / KFA2 GTX 970 Gamer OC

also short Zotac cards can fit without the fan shroud.

Why the 2GB and not the 4GB for the 960? They both have one fan and seem to be the same dimensions

No, because it is too wide! Take a look. 1st card is the ASUS and the 2nd is the Galaxy/KFA2 card:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]15376[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]15377[/ATTACH]

Oh man! So the GTX 960 Mini is indeed the best graphics card to naturally fit into this casing without modifications?

Also is there a reason why the hardware guide links the 2GB GTX for this casing instead of the 4GB? http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-Superclocked-Dual-Link-Graphics-04G-P4-3962-KR/dp/B00VX1MJQ8/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1435847829&sr=8-3&keywords=gtx+960+4gb

Fury X : No!

ASUS 970 mini : Yes! But keep in mind that the ASUS is using 1x8-Pin PCIe power plug.

What effect does that have? Just that the traditional extension has 2?

Is the Dell DA-2 strong enough to power the new AMD Fury Mini or the Asus GeForce GTX970 Direct CU? http://www.amazon.com/Asus-GTX970-DCMOC-4GD5-ASUS-Graphics-Cards/dp/B00RL2SLAG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1435840099&sr=8-2&keywords=asus+gtx+970+directcu+mini

Has anyone used the Asus GeForce GTX 970 DirectCU Mini in the Akitio Thunder? Amazon.com: ASUS Graphics Cards GTX970-DCMOC-4GD5: Computers & Accessories

Should just be a plug-and-play solution. The 8-pin end just plugs into the Dell DA-2, the DC barrel powers the adapter (Akitio or PE4L) and the 6-pin PCIe power connectors go to the graphics card.

WOW okay awesome. So really all you need with the Akitio model is to install the GPU into the AKitio buy the Dell Da-2 and the plug and play part and your done for a mac? That seems crazy easy.

@JoshS0515: is it the 15" mid 2014 MBPr? The PSU is fine, but a bit big… you can simply use an external Dell DA-2 for that card. Please read my guide: http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/10061-basic-egpu-hardware-guide-macs.html

I am using the 13" model from mid 2014

That became complicated(probably not as complicated as I think though). With the Dell DA-2 I will need to buy that power supply, an extension to the supply and smolder the two together? If I purchase This(Akitio Egpu 8 Pin to 2 x PCI E 6 Pin Super Low Profile No Latch 1 x Barrel | eBay) will I need to buy the DellDA-2 and this or just this Ebay item? Once the Dell DA-2 is in place it can power itself automatically without the paper clip trick correct?

So now I am looking at:

Akitio Thunder2

GTX 960 (the one listed in guide)

Dell DA-2

Pin Config Extension for Dell-DA2

At this point it would become as simple as installing the GPU into the Akitio and connecting the power cable correctly. Booting the machine into windows and installing the necessary drivers? If so that's not complicated at all!

Also will I be able to use my Macbook and an extended monitor for two screens or will I only be limited to one screen?

Hey everyone,

I am looking into building a eGPU but feel vastly overwhelmed by the selection process and then the install. I have attempted to read the guides and other follow throughs but still feel very uncertain I understand what I am doing to invest the amount of money it would take to pull this off. I was hoping I could post what I know so far and see if I could get any feedback on if I need additional parts, set up tips, hardware mods, etc.

Current MacSpecs:

i7 3GHZ processor

16GB RAM

Intel Iris 5100

DualBooted OSX and Windows 8.1

I am thinking that I need to buy:

Akito Thunder2: http://www.amazon.com/Akitio-AK-T2PC-TIA-AKTU-Thunder2-PCIe-Box/dp/B00LTAUTHE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1435766761&sr=8-1&keywords=akito+thunder2

EVGA GeForce GTX 960: Amazon.com: EVGA GeForce GTX 960 4GB Super SC ACX 2.0+ with Back Plate GDDR5 128bit, PCI-E 3.0, DVI-I, 3 x DP, HDMI, SLI, HDCP, G-SYNC Ready Graphics Cards 04G-P4-3966-KR: Computers & Accessories

EVGA 430 Watt Power Supply: Amazon.com: EVGA 430 W1 80+, 430W 3 Year Warranty Power Supply 100-W1-0430-KR: Electronics

Will I need to buy anything else? If I hook all this up together and then download the drivers is that is all that is needed?