DIY eGPU experiences

[gambitlebeau]

Originally Posted by arnold-edward

Has anyone in the UK done one of these? I cant work out where to buy the kit.

You may well have to go international and bite the potential customs bullet

eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace

[kizwan]

Originally Posted by bentomo

I'm having trouble with the devcon file. I'm not sure how to generate it, I've followed the guide to making it but no luck. My adapter is working and I've gotten a 4650 to work with my hp tx2 1025 tablet laptop through the express card slot. But I get the code 12 error so I can't use it. I installed the setup 1.x and I can boot into it and use, but when I compact and chainload into windows 7 it hangs on the flag screen because I don't have a devcon file.


I'm just very new to this eGPU thing so I'm not sure how to generate the devcon file. Yes I read the guide under the spoiler, I just can't get past cd x:\devcon\x64

Please use latest Setup 1.x instead. Just 3 steps to install Setup 1.x. For the last one (v:\devcon\mkdevcon), just need to double-click "MKDEVCON.BAT".

[JediMasterZon]

Originally Posted by serialk11r

Okay guys bad news, my Antec 500W is pretty much completely dead
It pushes only enough power to keep the GTX460 stable at 40% load according to MSI afterburner. When it hits 50% it shuts off and I get BSOD. PSU surgery failed, I connected 12V1 and 12V2, no more buzz, but same problem. I will try to hook all 3 together before I pull the trigger on a new PSU.

I kind of scanned the forum. Are you using strictly molex connectors for power? If you are, I think that there may be a current limit on those molex outputs, but I could be wrong. I do not know much about computer PSUs.

Anyone have any extra info about current limits on computer PSU molex connectors?

Thank You

[apac]

FYI to those of you that like to play Starcraft 2 on an eGPU, you should add the following to your Variables.txt file

frameratecapglue=30
frameratecap=60

The 2D parts of SC2 (menu, pre-rendered cutscenes, Lost Viking) are not FPS capped. With the above lines it caps the menu at 30 FPS, and any game sequences at 60 FPS. Without the fix, a normal GPU will work extra hard to render the unlimited frames. On an eGPU I found that it bottlenecks the x1 link trying to render the same frames over and over, and causes significant frame lag in those 2D parts.

[kizwan]

Originally Posted by JediMasterZon

Anyone have any extra info about current limits on computer PSU molex connectors?

Do you mean the max current on the 4-pin molex?

[grossemesser]

Originally Posted by kizwan

If you want to setup eGPU, better get proper kit. PE4L/PE4H is suitable kit for eGPU. If notebook doesn't have ExpressCard slot, you can use mPCIe port (using PM3N card) available on the notebook.

How good is the mini PCIe solution regarding bandwidth?? (which is exactly the same as PCIe x1 right?)

I have an 850 Watt PSU so I can power any card I want, but is there some advice on that?
Like not buying anything better than a GTX 560 Ti because the x1 will bottleneck and so the GTX 570 and 580 and 590 will perform the same due to the cards reaching the maximum bandwidth??

[UsrName]

Sorry if this has been asked (I didn't read through all 500 pages admittedly), but is there a Thunderbolt version of the PE4L connector? Or a way to combine a thunderbolt cable with the PE4L?

Running a 2011 15" base MacBook Pro.

And as far as compatibility, which card are OSX compatible? Am I stuck using the apple-endowed cards (ie 6870)

[kizwan]

Originally Posted by grossemesser

How good is the mini PCIe solution regarding bandwidth?? (which is exactly the same as PCIe x1 right?)

I have an 850 Watt PSU so I can power any card I want, but is there some advice on that?
Like not buying anything better than a GTX 560 Ti because the x1 will bottleneck and so the GTX 570 and 580 and 590 will perform the same due to the cards reaching the maximum bandwidth??

mPCIe bandwidth is 2.5Gb/s & x1 link width. Sandy Bridge notebook's mPCIe bandwidth is 5Gb/s but no working kit yet - serialk11r is doing experiment using a modded kit (PCIe 2.0 compliant).

850W PSU should be more than enough to drive GTX580. However, just to make sure, please check the max current on the +12V. If running only on x1 link, any GPU will have same problem due to limited bandwidth. You'll experience lagging/sluggishness on almost all games. x2 or x1.Opt setups don't have this problem.

• x2 setup: required PCIe port 1&2 or 3&4 or 5&6. Other combination like port 1&3 doesn't work.
• x1.Opt setup: Opt=Optimus. This setup is possible with Nvidia desktop graphic card. Notebook must have Intel 4500MHD or Intel HD Graphics or Intel HD3000 iGPU for it to work. Can use internal screen with this setup. However, performance on internal screen will be less than external screen.
• x1.Opt is better than x2.

*Avoid* dual-GPU card (e.g. GTX590). dual-GPU card required 256MB+256MB=512MB PCI space which usually notebook doesn't have & even there is enough PCI space, someone already tried it but not successful.

[bentomo]

The link to the download for the latest 1.x is broken?

[Mjolner]

Kizwan and Nando, I have all of the plugs connected correctly, including the power connector for the PE4H itself (the little green light was on). The video card itself has been working flawlessly in my dekstop for the past month, so it is not the problem.
The power supply is a Corsair CX500 which can supply 34 amps on the 12volt rail, so I doubt it is the problem. The desktop that the card was in only had a 700 watt PSU along with 2 hard drives, 6 case fans and an i5 2500K @ 4.3 ghz and never had any power issues at all. Even so the video card is not going to be drawing a couple hundred watts on startup. The PSU fan is spinning as is the GPU fan, so they are both getting power.

I ordered some other cables just in case; tomorrow maybe I will try switching around the included cable.