DIY eGPU experiences

[fathersgp]

Hi everyone, I am new to this forum and trying to find out whether anyone come across the DIY Vidock works for a mac mini. I saw someone posted a picture of Macmini connected to DIY Vidock but no other comments whether working or not. Specs for my Mac mini- intel duo core with integrated i945 intel graphic chipset. I have recently open up the mac mini to upgrade the harddisk. I saw that there is a mini pcie slot which is taken up by the wireless airport adapter. I intend to buy a PE4H ver 2.0A+ PM3N from HWtools to insert into the mini PCIE slot in my Mac Mini. Do u come across anyone using this DIY Vidock on their mac mini and whether will it works. Currently, my mac mini is runing Snow Leopard Mac OS X + bootcamp - Windows 7. Appreciate your advise on this. Thank you

[ualwayslose]

Is anyone else with GTX 460 experience random lag spikes?

At first I thought it was my power supply, so I upgraded to a 400W 80+ certified, yet I still have the same problems.

Then I came across this
ASUSTeK Computer Inc.-Forum- How to fix sound pop/click/stutter due to DPC latency

Which helped fix lag a little bit, I was experience massive lag during downclocking, and now GTX 460 stays at standard clocks. However on some games I still experience major lag spikes. Any tips?

[m2003]

Thanks Faruk. This cleared a lot for me. I went for the Antec EA 500 it has 2 6 pin adapters that give 22 Volts, it was not recommended by amd's offcial site but my guess is that if you have other stuff feeding from the power source 500 Watts are not enough, for vidock though...
Anyway this was the cheapest I found for this particular card.
I'll put the pieces together in a few days and come back for advices on how to fix the setup.

[User Retired 2]

..plan to connect it to my latitudes' e6500 express card. I also bought an ASus ati radeon hd4870 1gb.

Does the E6500 have the same expresscard slot port4 as the E6400 shown here? If so, I'd advise against an ATI solution, since you can't do x1E. If did still want an ATI solution, then consider a HD56xx or better series will perform better than a HD48xx on x1, example here. A HD5670 would probably be cheaper too. Finally, if you have a 4500MHD equipped E6500 then could do x1.Opt, so a GTS450 or GTX460 would be the best choice for highest performance on your platform.

Is anyone else with GTX 460 experience random lag spikes? .. However on some games I still experience major lag spikes. Any tips?

Can also ensure the card doesn't downclock by setting NVidia Control Panel -> Power Management Mode changing Adaptive to Prefer Maximum Performance. Lag may be due to memory<->vram data being shuffled across the x1 link which only the Optimus driver's tweak or more bandwidth will correct.

Do u come across anyone using this DIY Vidock on their mac mini and whether will it works. Currently, my mac mini is runing Snow Leopard Mac OS X + bootcamp - Windows 7. Appreciate your advise on this. Thank you

No implementations on a mac mini as yet. There are two attempts on a MBP shown in the Macbook Compatibility Matrix section on the first post.

The system you have uses a ICH7M controller which will physically allow you to connect a PE4H+PM3N to it. Then it's up to the OS to actually use it correctly. This is where you are likely to encounter difficulties. Suggest review the following to guide you:

- Villagetronic's Is ViDock compatible with MacBook Pro?

- DIY ViDock Setup 1.x to see if can get chainloading and PCI compaction working.

- search macforums for "vidock". There's specific video firmware and video cards that work on Mac OS.

mac mini + DIY ViDock could be a tidy HTPC setup. I'd be curious to see your results.

[fathersgp]

Thanks nando, I have already ordered the PE4H+PM3N yesterday.Shipped out from Taipei yesterday and reach Singapore today. I will receive the package today. Will work on the DIY Vidock over the weekend and post results next week. I do intend to use it as a HTPC with a HDMI plug to my 42'' LCD TV. I want to try playing Starcraft2 on my big TV using macmini rather than my duocore laptop.wish me luck.

[m2003]

Nando, thank you very much for your reply. My e6500 express card slot should probably be the same technology as an e6400. It has an Intel(R) ICH9 family pci express root ports 1 to 4. I don't know however if the video card will be connected to port 4 though, however I assume it would do the same it did for e6400. ( IN case this is not a fuss how could I see what device is connected to which port?)

However I have already purchaced the 4870 because it was a a special offer and it was cheaper than a 5670. Would that be a great handicap? Anyway I assume still the card will be faster than my unreliable quadro Nvs 160 M

Also I should note that my laptop's integrated video card is a Nvidia Nvs 160M.

[m2003]

Ok sorry for the double post, but I saw that nothing is connected to port1. my wi fi card is in port 2. ports 3 and 4 are empty. I hope these information help.

[kizwan]

@m2003,

You can post a screenshot from Everest - Chipset section (south bridge) like this.

[m2003]

Thanx here it is:

[link747]

Will nvidia 3d vision work with the DIY ViDock? I currently have a 3d desktop setup with sli GTX 470's, but I am considering parting it out and just keeping one of the GTX 470's and use it in the vidock. I am hoping 3d vision would still work for 3d blu rays. I know 3d gaming would take a decent hit due to the 1x limitation of the vidock.