Quest Ng

Quote

Are you sure GPU-Z isn't showing x1 2.0 when you put the eGPU under load (eg: run a game)? It will show the eGPU running as pci-e x1 1.1 while it is idle as a power saving technique. I recall my E6230's bios did set the expresscard slot to run at x1 2.0 speed. If for some reason it's not doing that on your system then Setup 1.x can be used to set the expresscard slot to x1 2.0 (Gen2) speed.

right now, i can run my e6230 + gtx660 via PE4L 2.1b running at x1 2.0 using (SW1=1) PERST 0 delay and the other option(SW2) being 2-3. 3dmark06 score is 10200 (OC-ed)

then, i tried Tech Inferno Fan's recommendation of modding the windows 8 to enable F8 button to access advanced startup menu. F8 works now.

i switched the SW2=3 PERST 6.9sec delay.

i off everything => on egpu (now has a bright red light that previously doesnt exist) => on laptop => spam F8 (note: advanced startup is on internal LCD) => wait for red light to go off => start windows normally => external monitor no reaction => windows start up with internal LCD and HD4000 igpu (egpu not being detected at all).

whats wrong with my set up?

my set up is still not working on 2.0opt. are there anything else that i should do to fix it?

right now, i can run my e6230 + gtx660 via PE4L 2.1b running at x1 2.0 using (SW1=1) PERST 0 delay and the other option(SW2) being 2-3. 3dmark06 score is 10200 (OC-ed)

then, i tried Tech Inferno Fan's recommendation of modding the windows 8 to enable F8 button to access advanced startup menu. F8 works now.

i switched the SW2=3 PERST 6.9sec delay.

i off everything => on egpu (now has a bright red light that previously doesnt exist) => on laptop => spam F8 (note: advanced startup is on internal LCD) => wait for red light to go off => start windows normally => external monitor no reaction => windows start up with internal LCD and HD4000 igpu (egpu not being detected at all).

whats wrong with my set up?

You can actually get the old f8 ->safe mode to work in win8, what you have to do is the following:

Run Command prompt as Admin and type (copy/paste the following line in command prompt):

bcdedit /set {default} bootmenupolicy legacy

ensure operation completed successfully. restart system and you'll find F8 works

i ran cmd as admin, operation successful, restart, but f8 is still not working. but when i press f12, it shows boot setting as legacy, instead of standard. it is the page where i can choose which device to boot from, bios configuration, uefi boot option...

also, i know where the PERST delay locates in the PE4L, but when i try to put some force in it, it wouldnt move at all. i didnt apply more force, scared that i might break it. how do you actually change the switch from 0 sec delay to 6.9? manual switch? or code? it looks like a dumb question i cant find any solution online

alright, i will change the switch later. but im sure f8 doesnt bring to advance boot menu for windows 8. do the f12 button work? (it will let me choose which method to boot from, ie internal hdd, usb, wifi...) or , google brings me this page Advanced "Startup Settings" - Boot to in Windows 8 do you mean this one instead?

Sure. It should affect your egpu at all, just your rig becomes better.

I have an E6420 and I use the setup1.x program. Its good for this notebook because it stops the boot process right after the bios loaded, so I know when to plug it on, and it will work on gen2 speed surely. I was thinking about making it automated, but It is not a big deal and makes me sure about the system.

my 3dmark06 (dx9) score now is 8.9k. can you explain how you start up your laptop? is it not like my above mentioned sequence?

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Sure. It should affect your egpu at all, just your rig becomes better.

I have an E6420 and I use the setup1.x program. Its good for this notebook because it stops the boot process right after the bios loaded, so I know when to plug it on, and it will work on gen2 speed surely. I was thinking about making it automated, but It is not a big deal and makes me sure about the system.

my 3dmark06 (dx9) score now is 8.9k. can you explain how you start up your laptop? is it not like my above mentioned sequence?

there is this bios update, should i update it? i scared that it will be back to 0 again

just ran 3dmarkdx11, got 5200 but its running on x1 v1.1

i tried off egpu => on laptop => f12 to freeze boot => on egpu => cont start up. ended up the laptop didnt recognize the egpu at all. so i dont understand how to upgrade it?

I think you had a corrupted driver installation, or at some point your eGPU hardware went bad.

What does the device manager say about the eGPU? If the driver attempts to install, then the card is detected. Check the device manager for an error code. If the device manager does not list an error, then uninstall the eGPU's driver with the device manager. Make sure you check "remove files from system", or else win8 will immediately reinstall the driver without asking.

Below is just some general info:

The system should be able to boot with no driver with the iGPU disabled. If no driver was installed, windows will use the generic video driver.

Hibernate/resume is the same as a full power cycle as far as the BIOS is concerned. Do sleep/resume, not hibernate.

i reformat and slowly system restore step by step, didnt work out that well in the journey but finally made it. it is now working on my external, gpu Z detecting gtx660 but still running on 1.1. trying to make it unlock faster connection speed.

i've also tried nando's separate guide on e6230. i think the problem lies at, i couldnt install the nvidia driver. it will just stuck at about 10% and do nothing for ages........ T_T

How are you trying to hotplug? For a true hotplug, the card and laptop both need to be on, then the card plugged in (expresscard pushed in, not the card into the adapter).

I expect the e6230 to disable the internal HD4000 and monitor if you power on the laptop with the card on and plugged in. The card will then output to the lower DVI port. Does this happen?

i had been trying a whole night. symptoms:

1) laptop cannot start up if egpu is plugged in. problem: windows cant start up (possibly without nvidea driver)

2) if i plugged egpu in w power off, then hibernate it, and restart, my external lcd's light will lit, but then nothing happens. all screens are black and im doomed to force shut down whole system.

3) i plug in egpu turned on after i on my computer (ie hotplug). nothing happens, i try to install nvidea driver (tried old version 306.97 and latest 310.90, both will run through installation but just hangs at about 10% into installing). it will just not progress (left it for hours going out for dinner).

4) cannot install nvidia driver w/o detecting a nvidia card.

5) i swear it worked the first time. i had nvidia control panel, everything was working like a charm, suddenly i off computer and on again, the driver is missing and now im in hell.

p/s my egpu configuration worked marvelously with my old vaio laptop with nvidia dGPU. just changed new laptop. might be because of windows 8 driver compatibility?

hi guys, i need some help! i just bought my e6230 i7 3520 model, everything seems perfectly fine but i cant boot up once i plug in my PE4L 2.1b + gtx660. it will lag the entire laptop on start up, then brings me to start up repair page and then it says it couldnt fix my problem. then once i unplug the pe4l adapter, the laptop flies again. T___T if i hot plug it in, it wont detect it. how do i work around? it worked once, when i hot plug it, my external monitor went on, but i dont know for what reason.

im using windows 8 64 bit btw.

hi Tech Inferno Fan, is the dell XT3 basically just the tablet convertible version of E6330/E6230? are there any other significant difference? because im now shopping on their outlet store and if the only difference is the twisting screen, i can put it as one of my choice in the limited UK outlet store. or there are actually some other pro/cons that i need to take into account to. thank you.

also, the recent introduction of win8 should be an incentive for me to get the tablet convertibles like 230t, 2670 right?

just noticed that xt3 uses hd3000, which is probably a turn off in long run right?

hi nando,

you recommended me E6230, i would like to ask is E6330 the same? as in, they have the same expresscard spec and cpu performance? can i go wrong w this? can you compare it with x230, hp 2670, 6230, r930 that you recommended last time?

Latitude E6330

Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-3520M (2.90GHz, 4MB cache, Dual Core)

English Windows® 7 Professional

320 GB SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)

8 GB Dual Channel DDR3 1600MHz Memory (2 DIMMs)

Display : 13.3in High Definition (1366x768) LED-backlit LCD Panel with HD Camera and Microphone

Back Up Media Not Included

English Windows 7 Professional SP1 (64 Bit)

Wireless : Dell Wireless 1504 (802.11 b/g/n 1x1) Half Mini Card

Wireless : Dell Wireless 380 Bluetooth Card

8X DVD+/- RW Drive

Battery : Primary 3-cell 32W/HR

On a x1 1.0 link, AMD cards do better in 3dmark06 (DX9) that NVidia cards. You would get 3dmark06 of 12-15k if using a HD7870. I got 3dmark06=18432 using a pci-e 1.x link, i5-3320M and HD7870 here. Just be aware in that testing the AMD card no longer exhibited half-duplex crippled performance as seen with older AMD cards + Intel chipsets. I'm not sure if it was Intel or AMD that fixed that handshaking problem. So it would be best if you can borrow a HD78xx card to test to confirm performance is satisfactory.

Otherwise yes, $180 for a TH05 TB adapter + extra $$ for a TB-equipped notebook that would get you double the bandwidth of a Sandy/Ivy Bridge expresscard solution. Not worth the considerable $$$ outlay for TB over expresscard imho.

but thats 1.1 not 1.0, no? my laptop is a 1.0

Unfortunately no. Per previous replies, your options for better performance with your Series-5 notebook with no iGPU or x2/x4 options are (1) replace notebook with a Sandy/Ivy Bridge one with iGPU for substantial x1.2Opt performance improvement (2) replace your NVidia card with something like a AMD HD7870 for a minor performance improvement.

alright, so i will not be expecting 12-15k benchmark even if i switch to 7870 right? then i think i will just wait for a btr laptop. also if i buy a thunderbolt mpbr/other laptop now, i have to fork out another 200usd for a thunderbolt adapter? my gc and psu can remain right? i guess im stucked to expresscard laptops!

Per my previous post, replace the GTX660 with a HD7870.

PCI compaction is only required if you have an error 12 against your eGPU preventing it's operation. That does not apply to you.

hi, so my laptop cannot upgrade to 1.1 or 1.1opt? because according to that table, only 1.0 is really bad, the others are doing very well.

You're doomed bro... doomed... Jokes!

Actually, the Vaio CW isn't too bad of a machine. You've got a decent processor (5th Series) and an Expresscard slot. If this link is your machine, it's more thank likely you can do an eGPU solution. But you're not going to get the performance of later-stage series chips.

If you're thinking about upgrading, I'd hold off like six months for a Haswell with an Intel iGPU "GT3" series >> preferably with a thunderbolt port. That's my plan seeing how I'm rocking a 4th Series Vaio currently.

i've already build my eGPU. imgur: the simple image sharer

just that the performance isnt as good as i thought it should be. i also want to hold off till Haswell come out but want to know what i can do now to make the GTX660 dont perform like a intel4000

so are there anything i can do for my vaio cw 26 atm? or its doomed to have such low performanceuntil i change lapotp.

hi, thanks for your swift reply. i would like to have ivy bridge w iGPU, expresscard, <= 1.6kg, 13/14 inch, 1080p. any suggestion?

i was all over vaio z3 few months ago other than it doesnt have expresscard slot. then on the verge of buying r930 but then hold back because of 1080p. just waiting for the right one to come.

I followed your guidance few months ago and has recently finished building my egpu. But when I run gpuz, it shows im running on pci-e 1.1 only although I bought the PE4L 2.1b

Im using cx430 psu, vaio cw26, twinfroz MSI gtx 660, PE4L 2.1b. any advice?

also when i run 3dmark06 its super horrible, about 5k points only (i did run gpuz behind to double check if it is running on the right card!)

my laptop is cw26 sony vaio

everest shows that my gt330m is using PCI E 2.0 and 3d accelerator is set to gt330m, iGPU not activated.