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DIY eGPU Macbook experiences


oripash

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I have a theory. Could you borrow an external monitor? If yes, I'd like you to test the following setup:

1) Connect an external monitor to the eGPU and boot with eGPU.

2) Make the external display your primary monitor (within the OS X Monitor settings drag and drop the menu bar to the external display)

3) For me, OS X now says that all displays are driven through my eGPU and the benchmarks confirm this it seems (with a small drop on the internal display due to Optimus, as would be expected).

If this works out, one could conclude that the trick is to make OS X think that there is an external display connected. (I think this has been suggested before.)

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You theory is wrong ... ^^

Made in the graphics card that is displayed corresponds to the card of the primary monitor

The internal display remains on the graphics card intel Iris, same for the thunderbolt display

It should be inspired by the Macbook pro with 750m, so the mac switch on the external graphics card

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Okay so e-GPU's have really caught my eye. Currently I have a Macbook Pro Mid 2015 15" Retina with an i7 and Radeon R9 M370X (really bad video card), and it doesn't run games that great. I know the typical "you should've bought a gaming PC" but I really like the build quality and feel of Macbooks.

Anyways I've been trying to understand e-GPUs but there are still some things that really confuse me. I've read about 10 guides and I understand a lot of it, but some of the major concepts just leave my mind running blank.

Is there a GTX 970 currently in the market, preferably on Amazon, that can fit into Akitio without cutting or modifying the Akitio?

Can someone explain the Power Supply part of e-GPU's? This is the main part that confuses me. I don't understand the whole soldering thing and what the point of this is: Akitio Egpu 8 Pin to 2 x PCI E 6 Pin Super Low Profile No Latch 1 x Barrel | eBay

Can't I just buy a PSU (any affordable recommendations?), plug it into the Graphics Card and the Akitio, power it up using a power supply jumper switch and go from there? Or do I have to do all this Soldering and wire cutting stuff?

And do I have the steps sort of narrowed down? This is what I have gathered so far:

1. Purchase the necessary products (GTX 970 that fits perfectly, a PSU, Akitio and thunderbolt cable)

2. Insert GTX 970 into Akitio

3. Plug in PSU cables into Akitio and Graphics Card

4. Connect via thunderbolt Macbook to Akitio

5. Use jumper to turn on power supply

6. Install drivers/setup on Windows

Thanks for reading and bearing with me here. I feel like such a dumbass and I don't want to waste anyones time but the guides are hard to understand, for me at least.

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@TheGrreatGatsby: Hi & welcome!

Please read my basic hardware guide: http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/10061-basic-egpu-hardware-guide-macs.html

Amazon? Which amazon? US? :D

The cable you linked can power the AKiTiO iteself + the GPU with an external power supply, the Dell DA-2 220W.

Most questions should be answered in my basic guide.

Edit: Currently there is no confirmed eGPU system with the M370X MBPr, yet.

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First off thanks for the respons Dschijn! You seem like the master e-gpu guru around here or something like that. I really appreciate the response.

I did read the basic eGPU guide several times over but some things confuse me, as in whats a riser, do I have to do soldering or something like that if im not buying that dell power supply, etc.

And yeah i totally understand why there is no confirmed eGPU with the M370X MBPr yet since it's very expensive and not that many people have it most likely. It was released about a few weeks ago.

I just wanted to show you what I plan on buying and if that's all i'll need.

EVGA GTX 960- http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00T4BWGBM?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Akitio Thunderbolt 2- http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LTAUTHE?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_2&smid=A2LXBKOLL3J3K6

EVGA 430W PSU- http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00H33SDR4?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_3&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

24 Pin starter Bridge- http://www.amazon.com/24-Pin-STARTER-BRIDGE-WITHOUT-MOTHERBOARD/dp/B00K38IKRY/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1435783325&sr=1-1&keywords=PSU+jumper

One last thing, if these are all the parts I'll need, hardware wise, is it just plug everything in? Like insert GPU into Akitio, connect PCIe power from PSU to GPU, connect power to Akitio etc or am i missing something

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I don't want to give you a go, since I am really not sure if it works on the 2015 MBs....

You list is still missing a barrel plug to power the AKiTiO itself!

And I am not the guru, I just like to post here a lot ^^

The real gurus are hiding ;)

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Haha well none the less you are extremely helpful!

I was able to go to an Apple Genius Bar earlier and ask them whether or not an eGPU would be compatible with my Macbook and they said it was definitely possible, so I'm gonna give it a go and maybe be the first ever to do it on a 2015 MBPr :D

And is there a place I can buy a barrel plug or do i have to make one myself?

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Yeah I am definitely moving forward with the project as I have been assured by many users from reddit and an Apple technician that an eGPU is definitely compatible with the MBPr 2015 15' with the Radeon m370x.

I've figured out the exact parts to purchase after about 2 days of research and I hope all works well when they come in.

First I ordered the power supply, GPU, Akitio Thunderbolt 2 and the Barrel plug from eBay.

Power Supply: Amazon.com: Genuine Dell Optiplex GX620/ SX280 Ultra Small Form Factor (USFF) DA-2 220W AC Adapter (Wall Power Cord Included), Compatible Part Numbers: M8811, Y2515, D3860, MK394, Other Model Numbers: D220P-01, ADP-22AB B, ZVC220HD12S1: Electronics

GPU: http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-Superclocked-Dual-Link-Graphics-04G-P4-3962-KR/dp/B00VX1MJQ8/ref=sr_1_9?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1435793434&sr=1-9&keywords=gtx+960

Akitio Thunderbolt2: http://www.amazon.com/Akitio-AK-T2PC-TIA-AKTU-Thunder2-PCIe-Box/dp/B00LTAUTHE/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1435793693&sr=1-1&keywords=akitio

Barrel: Akitio Egpu 8 Pin to 2 x PCI E 6 Pin Super Low Profile No Latch 1 x Barrel | eBay

This what I've gathered on how to build the actual eGPU.

1. Connect GPU into Akitio case

2. Connect Barrel to Power Supply.

3. Connect PCIe plugs from Barrel, to GPU and to Akitio case, in order to power GPU and Akitio case.

4. Set up Drivers and Software (Will research this when my parts come in and I've actually built the eGPU).

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Any thing im missing?

Edit: Did some more researching and found out that it's not possible to use an eGPU with the internal LCD on a Macbook Pro with a dedicated GPU, my case being the Radeon R9 M370x. It will only work with an external display, which is not what I was looking for. Is there a way to get past this @Tech Inferno Fan ? And make Bootcamp use the iGPU

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Alright thanks. I also found this on your Guide: Akitio Egpu 8 Pin to 2 x PCI E 6 Pin Super Low Profile No Latch 1 x Barrel | eBay

Is that a barrel plug I can use?

Yes, thats it. You just might need an additional TB-cable since the AKiTiO cable is just 0.5m "short".

You will only be able to use the eGPU performance on the internal display:

- in Windows 8.1

- if you manage to deactivate the AMD dGPU and use the internal Intel iGPU.

- you use an Nvidia eGPU

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Thanks for the response man! I'm currently trying to find a way to deactivate the AMD GPU in 8.1 that I'm running currently. This eGPU is by far the most intricate project I've ever done. I've also noted that 2 other people have tried to do this on their 2015 MBPr but weren't able too, panicked I contacted Apple and they told me they had done nothing that would effect the use of an eGPU with the new line of Macs.

Edit: I've been trying to use the method mentioned here by user @ah- . The only problem Im having is the instructions that involve a couple of commands using terminal are way over my head. I was hoping someone could explain to me how to do what he mentions in terminal. Hopefully this lets me use my integrated graphics instead of dedicated.

Edit 2: User @juniordiscart was kind enough to walk me through everything command by command! HUGE shoutout to him for helping!

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It works perfect with the 970, from what I've seen most of the people here used a 970. However, since this is my first build I'm gonna just play it safe and go for the 960 with 4GB of VRAM. If everything works perfectly fine, then I'll just return the 960 and upgrade to a 970. I'm about 75% done with this project, now I'm just waiting for my parts to come in so I can plug it in and see if it works. If it does work, Ill post a guide.

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Thanks for the response man! I'm currently trying to find a way to deactivate the AMD GPU in 8.1 that I'm running currently. This eGPU is by far the most intricate project I've ever done. I've also noted that 2 other people have tried to do this on their 2015 MBPr but weren't able too, panicked I contacted Apple and they told me they had done nothing that would effect the use of an eGPU with the new line of Macs.

Edit: I've been trying to use the method mentioned here by user @ah- . The only problem Im having is the instructions that involve a couple of commands using terminal are way over my head. I was hoping someone could explain to me how to do what he mentions in terminal. Hopefully this lets me use my integrated graphics instead of dedicated.

Edit 2: User @juniordiscart was kind enough to walk me through everything command by command! HUGE shoutout to him for helping!

I have been looking for someway to activate my iGPU too.

Would this work for my Macbook Pro 17" 2011 with Windows 8.1 installed with bootcamp?

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@m1sk yes im pretty sure you can. you can go through this thread http://forum.techinferno.com/implementation-guides-apple/8717-%5Bguide%5D-enabling-intel-iris-pro-hd5200-win8-1-15-macbook-pro-gt750m-1.html and read through it. Or you can wait and ill have a guide for macbooks with dedicated amd gpus up in a while. id check out the thread if i were you

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I just wanna say, I did it :D Finally! I got my GTX970 recognised on my macbook in EFI Windows 8. I'll be posting an implementation guide tomorrow or the day after. So happy right now, but it's almost 2am and I really gotta sleep! I'll try some gaming and benchmarks this weekend!

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I just wanna say, I did it :D Finally! I got my GTX970 recognised on my macbook in EFI Windows 8. I'll be posting an implementation guide tomorrow or the day after. So happy right now, but it's almost 2am and I really gotta sleep! I'll try some gaming and benchmarks this weekend!

U did it with the Mid 2015?

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I just wanna say, I did it :D Finally! I got my GTX970 recognised on my macbook in EFI Windows 8. I'll be posting an implementation guide tomorrow or the day after. So happy right now, but it's almost 2am and I really gotta sleep! I'll try some gaming and benchmarks this weekend!

How?? :) I have the system which bootcamp in MBR, the EFI not work for me.

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Hey everyone :)

Just recently started exploring the eGPU universe, and I must say, I'm fascinated :D

My current setup:

2014 MBP 15'' Retina w/Nvidia 750M

using always in clamshell mode w/ 2 external desktop attached, 1x Asus 27'' and 1x Dell 24''

So, for the "basic" stuff (enclosure, GPU, power cables and so on) I'm pretty confident I understood.

My main concern is the display order.

I will be playing exclusively on the bootcamp partition

I read that if I use Win8.1 (ugh... hate that thing, I'm still on Win7) I could use the eGPU on the laptop screen as well, but seeing as I'm in clamshell mode, that's not really necessary

My setup would then be:


[MBP] -- thunderbolt -- [ akitio ] [GPU 1st port ]-- displayport -- [my 27'' monitor]
[ akitio ] [GPU 2nd port] -- hdmi -- [my 24'' monitor]

Question is: will I be able to use both screens?

Do I need to find a way to disable windows nVidia drivers for the external monitor to work?

Anyone has any experience with the clamshell mode?

Thanks! :)

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Hey,

I have an egpu problem. My Egpu is "working" but because I have a gtx650m as a dedicated gpu I need an external screen to make my egpu work. And this is the problem. I plug in hdmi nothing appears, I plug in DVI-I nothings appears.I probably should try display port but I don't want to waste 100Euros on a monitor how has one and will not work, if someone tell me it will work and be 100% sure I will buy.

Also my egpu doesn't appear in geforce experience. I also need to do every a driver update because I get error code 43 Nvidia tell me to restart but I don't this is maybe the problem. ( If you know how to remove definitly this error code 43 will be great) I am also using setup 1.20.

Specs:

Mid 2012 Macbookpro, 16gbram, DGPU GTX650M, Intel core i7.

EGPU: GTX970 4gb, Akitio thunder2, Dell 220w

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Hello all

I just sold my akitio setup. How do I go about removing the optimus efi partiion from my macbook air. Your help wold be much appreciated. Thanks!

Copy back the Backup you created? :D

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