ithildin Posted March 23, 2015 Author Share Posted March 23, 2015 No, with my 15" MBPr, but I don't see a difference to the MBA because it doesn't have a dGPU.I also didn't expect there to be a problem enabling Optimus on the Macbook Air, except it simply didn't work on Windows 8.1 (EFI) with most of the GPUs I tested (GTX 460, GTX 670, GTX 970 SC). I can get Optimus in OS X just fine but Windows 8.1 disables the iGPU on boot, after briefly flashing the blue Windows logo. Once it loads, the Intel HD 5000 adapter is gone from Device Manager - only the eGPU is listed. I tried all the tricks listed here in the forums (e.g. powering the GPU after the MBA startup chime or at the bootloader screen when you press alt/option key, hotplugging the GPU into the AKiTiO, etc.). The only thing that worked was Evo*'s modded EFI but it also disables the keyboard and touchpad and locks the CPU SpeedStep multiplier to 13x (1300 MHz), which is a dealbreaker. There are substantial differences under the hood between the 13" MBA and the 13" Iris MBPro that affect how they handle eGPUs , which is why I'm ecstatic after finding out how well GTX 970 FTW+ works with the MBA under Windows 8.1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dschijn Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 I tried all the tricks listed here in the forums (e.g. powering the GPU after the MBA startup chime or at the bootloader screen when you press alt/option key, hotplugging the GPU into the AKiTiO, etc.). The only thing that worked was Evo*'s modded EFI but it also disables the keyboard and touchpad and locks the CPU SpeedStep multiplier to 13x (1300 MHz), which is a dealbreaker. There are substantial differences under the hood between the 13" MBA and the 13" Iris MBPro which affect how they handle eGPUs , which is why I'm ecstatic after finding out how well GTX 970 FTW+ works with the MBA under Windows 8.1.Crazy! Thanks for the input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euqlaog Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 @Dschijn, is it so that your listed cards don’t enable Optimus 100%, if you don’t use Evo*’s method? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dschijn Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 @goalque: All 3 cards ran Optimus with Evo*'s method. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
euqlaog Posted March 23, 2015 Share Posted March 23, 2015 @goalque: All 3 cards ran Optimus with Evo*'s method.Ok, thanks! Seems that Evo*’s method isn’t MBA friendly. I have done it as well and it works well with my all GPUs - also AMDs, so that Intel Iris Pro is detected on Win8.1, but no Optimus of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonnytron Posted May 4, 2015 Share Posted May 4, 2015 I have a few questions and I would appreciate your responses.1. Which PCI Express Riser card did you get? (With links if possible)I'm trying to find a riser cable and none of the ones I find look anything like the one you're using. I just want to emulate as much of your build as I can, part for part.2. After switching to the 970 FTW+, were any additional steps required to get the set-up working?Basically, is it plug and play once 8.1 is updated and you just boot in with it detected from the go? Also, does Optimus work within OSX? In fact, how does this set up work in OSX at all? Can you game comfortably on 4GB of ram? My girlfriend is going to trade me her Air + cash for my 13" Pro while I save up for a 15" and I would like to know how well this runs on 4GB of ram. I plan on playing GTA V in Windows 8.1 Pro. 3. Which drivers are you running in OSX and Windows? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tech Inferno Fan Posted May 4, 2015 Share Posted May 4, 2015 I have a few questions and I would appreciate your responses.1. Which PCI Express Riser card did you get? (With links if possible)I'm trying to find a riser cable and none of the ones I find look anything like the one you're using. I just want to emulate as much of your build as I can, part for part.2. After switching to the 970 FTW+, were any additional steps required to get the set-up working?Basically, is it plug and play once 8.1 is updated and you just boot in with it detected from the go? Also, does Optimus work within OSX? In fact, how does this set up work in OSX at all? Can you game comfortably on 4GB of ram? My girlfriend is going to trade me her Air + cash for my 13" Pro while I save up for a 15" and I would like to know how well this runs on 4GB of ram. I plan on playing GTA V in Windows 8.1 Pro. 3. Which drivers are you running in OSX and Windows? Recommend to NOT use a PCIe riser, instead open up the AKiTiO chassis. See details at http://forum.techinferno.com/enclosures-adapters/7205-us%24189-akitio-thunder2-pcie-box-16gbps-tb2-113.html#post128029 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dschijn Posted May 4, 2015 Share Posted May 4, 2015 @sonnytron:1. Riser isn't the best to go, as there might be problems with the riser (signal degeneration). But if you really need a riser, because you want to relocate the card outside/away from the AKiTiO you can search for "molex powered riser". It should be a x16 to x16 riser like this: Powered PCI E Extension Cable 16x to 16x Riser Extender Card with Molex | eBayStill… you can and should consider the other ways to power the AKiTiO! If you really want to relocate the GPU you can power the AKiTiO in the recommended ways and buy a high end (with isolation and EM protection, like 3M) riser.2. I have my 970 FTW+ running just like the other GTX 970s before. 4GB of RAM is not really up to date, but should work. You will have lags as soon as you hit the 4GB and the system will start to swap RAM to your harddrive.3. For Windows just use the latest Nvidia Web driver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ljwebb236 Posted May 12, 2015 Share Posted May 12, 2015 Hey, I'm new here and wanted to ask a couple of questions;I built a working setup with the Akitio Thunder 2 PCIe box and powered riser with my MBR late 2013 15" back in late Dec with:core i7 4850HQ quad core @ 2.30 GHzGT 750M dGPU 512TB SSD with Win 8.1 Pro UEFI boot EVGA GTX570 SC stock cooler edition480 Watt Logisys PSU with paperclip methodI have finally had time to use it again, however, I found that I am having stability problems after I updated to the newest nvidia driver (350.12); Any game or 3D intensive application will crash after around 1 to 2 mins of game play. I reverted back to the last working set of drivers, 347.99, and it seemed to work. I noticed that the GTX670 was not stable in your build, and I wanted to see if anyone else had tested the 570. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ljwebb236 Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 I found the issue. It seemed to the be the PSU was not efficient enough in combination with choice of paperclip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethanx94 Posted June 12, 2015 Share Posted June 12, 2015 I have a Mid-2014 rMBP 13”. I would like to use a MSI N670GTX-PM2D2GD5/OC (GTX670) and I’ve got a 600W power supply.Do you think I'd experience the same stability issues that you've had here?For that matter has anyone with a GTX670 of any variety had success with the AKiTiO Thunder2? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadovv Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 Good job buddy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hpridham Posted March 14, 2016 Share Posted March 14, 2016 Can you share the CAD files you used to laser cut the Akitio Thunder2 and Arduino mount? I think I'm going to build your setup as we seem to be on the same page. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.