DIY eGPU experiences

When eGPU stop working, does display return to internal monitor OR notebook just freeze? The problem you're experiencing is similar to Common_FAQ#3. If the power adapter is loosen, the LED on PE4H board should off momentarily. Please monitor it. The mini-HDMI cable might be faulty.

 

Hey guys today my new PSU arrived and I successfully soldered the appropriate wires to it...except ground wire connecting to my PE3A broke off

Terribly sorry for all the delays. Hopefully I'll have it fixed by tomorrow.

 

I have tried and sadly I have to say that when I connent eGPU, system BSODs and reboots.

My setup:
hp 6510b (X3100 igp)
GTX460
Win7 64bit

 

Don't boot your computer with the eGPU connected (if that's what you're doing). If you've already successfully installed the modded drivers, then put your laptop to sleep and connect/hotplug your eGPU (on). Then wake your computer.

 

That is standard procedure for me even without modded driver.

 

Sleep mode still doesn't work; should it work if I only need to run the Setup in order to disable the discrete video card? Is there any chance of me retaining my sleep mode?

 

Not possible unless modified the BIOS OR (if possible) ask nando4 to modified the Setup 1.x to work when resume from sleep/hibernate.

 

@Mjolner,

Does the BIOS have an option to disabled ATI HD5650? If yes, you might be able to use sleep/hibernate mode with eGPU by disabling ATI HD5650 in BIOS.

EDIT: "Graphic Device" only have option "Discrete Graphic" or "Switchable Graphics". So can't disable dGPU in BIOS. If you have access to "Always Enable PEG:" option, you might be able to disabled dGPU in BIOS.

 

If sleep won't engage, or is greyed out, then it could be a driver issue. Obtain the latest ones and try again. Worst case would be removing ALL drivers and just install the Intel HD ones.

If sleep is engaging but won't resume then ensure the PCI Reset Delay slider is set to 0seconds on your PE4L/PE4H. Do a 32bit iGPU+eGPU PCI compaction and chainload. Test again. It should work OK. If not then the bios is altering some critical PCI registers on resume that might require ACPI DSDT mods.

There's also been Y460/Y560 modded bios. Maybe kizwan can unlock settings? You'd want one to be able to disable the dGPU.

Can you run the DX9 benchmarks as well? 3dmark06 and RE5var.

 

Where can I find these y460 modded bios?

The sleep mode will engage, it just will not resume. In the BIOS there is only an option to disable the integrated graphics, not the discrete. I did have the delay slider on 6.9 seconds (to get past the bios). I will run some more benchmarks later today.

Also, when I play some youtube videos in full screen there is some stuttering going on regardless of the resolution I am watching them at (from 360P up to 1080P). This stuttering doesn't happen when I am not watching in full screen, even in 720P.

 

The modified BIOS for Y460 is not available yet. I found Y460 BIOS here (BIOS ver62 - 27CN62WW) & I did quick look. I didn't found any option for disabling dGPU but I found "Always Enable PEG:" menu with two options; Enabled or Disabled. (PEG stands for PCI Express Graphics.) The description is "To enable PEG slot.". So, might be able to use this menu to disabled dGPU in BIOS. (Standard Term & Conditions applied when using modified BIOS - Use at your own risk!)

 

Hey guys,

i got some probs with my DIY eGPU :-(

Same Laptop like here:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/6618666-post1449.html

My Setup:

x201, PE4L version 1.5, GTX 560 TI OC from Gigabyte, 420W PowerSupply

graphic card is connected with two 6-pol connectors from power supply and the PE4L with the floppy molex from power supply.

2x TFT are connected by dvi...

driver:

Verde 275.33 + nando's nvam.inf (64-bit).
Updated 6-28 with more Fermis like GTX550Ti


Plug and Play seems to work only this in device manager:


and 2D-Mode works well...but when i want to start 3DMark 2006 the fan's of the graphiccard spinning up like the expresscard was pulled out of the laptop and the mashine freezes :-(

The same when i want to play FIFA 2012 demo....seems that 3D-Mode won't work...but why?

Anybody any ideas?

 

Switching the delay to zero seems to have fixed my sleep mode problem.

 

@Mjolner

i was meant?

 

the display on the notebook does not revert to the lcd on the laptop nor does it freeze, the laptop continues to function as usual and then restarts.

As for the led light it is only half illuminated when the power is plugged in and when i take the tape off. Usually when i get this restarting problem the graphics card stops and 1 of the lights goes away and then it comes back after it has restarted the gpu. I am using a hdmi cable not mini hdmi

Originally i had the problem #12 (not enough space allocated) i fixed this by disabling the internal intel gpu and downloading the amd dna drivers.

 

Sounds like the card isn't quite getting enough power.

 

sounds bad...

here the specs of the power supply

 

Yup only 15 amps. I'm surprised the card runs at all.

 

works now with other power supply!

3DMark 2006 results:

nothing optimized, out of box

But what about this?

 

I just had some interesting results with the Unigine benchmark that may be further evidence of the performance benefits of Optimus.

I first ran the unigine benchmark after I had resumed my computer from sleep, and the score i got was a lot lower than I had expected. However, when I went into the nvidia control panel none of the optimus options were there (such as selecting which GPU to have specific programs run on), so I think that for some reason something I did may have disabled optimus.




After rebooting my computer I ran the benchmark again and got the following result:




When I went into the Nvidia control panel, the Optimus options were again available. As you can see, the results are over twice those of the first run, and the minimum FPS is a LOT higher. As you can see, all of hardware and benchmark settings are identical between runs.

 

Yes, I agree. Look like classic insufficient power supply. The GeForce GTX560 Ti required 260W when on peak 3D & OC, 205W alone for 3D. Your PSU only have +12V@15A=180W. No wonder it failed when playing games.

 

When I said mini-HDMI cable I was meant the cable use to connect the PE4H PCIe x1 port with EC2C card. That cable might be faulty. If the mini-HDMI cable is faulty, you will need to replace it.

OR the AC adapter unable to supply stable power to eGPU. HD6670 required 66W power. You can try to downclock the HD6670 & see if the problem goes away. If yes, might be power problem. If not, the mini-HDMI cable is faulty.

 

Pleased to see the [email protected] is significantly outperforming the HD5650M dGPU. Can you please also updated your Lenovo Y460 DIY eGPU experience here with the following info:

1. Benchmark DX11: 1280x800 Heaven run
2. Benchmark DX9: RE5-var 1280x800, 3dmark06
3. put a comment about the resume issue fix by setting the PCI Reset Delay to 0secs.
4. Identify the port layout using AIDA64 -> somebody might want to do a x2 setup. Though only really relevant if using ATiAMD cards as x1.Opt is simpler and cheaper with similar performance.

I've added the DX10 and 3dmark11 ones to the main page. Then we'll have a complete Lenovo Y460 entry.

 

Any possibilities to do this with a Thunderbolt port?

 

Heads up, the egg has a pretty nice eGPU PSU for $40 AR. 38 amp 12V rail.

Newegg.com - Antec EarthWatts EA-650 GREEN 650W ATX12V v2.3 SLI Ready CrossFire Certified 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

 

Does anyone know why full screen youtube videos have some stuttering and out of sync audio? It only happens in full screen and doesn't depend on the video resolution setting. In non full screen mode it is smooth, even if I set it to 720P or 1080P. Is this a limitation of the x1 bandwidth or something else? Other videos on my computer play fine, and it is not my connection.

 

Still waiting for this combined with Lenovo x2XX/HP eb 2XX0 plattform ...

Might be a pricey solution due to the Magma box, however still cheaper than both pc and laptop ...

 

Hey guys, not sure if this is known already, but I would just let you know that I have successfully used a 5m HDMI cable (with 2 hdmi-> miniHDMI adaptors) from my eGPU to my laptop with no issues (have not yet run a benchmark, but will do if requested) Just had a quick play of DeusEX HR to check

I do have one problem though, once I plug the eGPU in, I can not take it out without completely shutting down, is this normal?


If anyone remembers I also found the reason for my power problem, apparently after some time my power supply (TO THE LAPTOP) fails. The light in it just fades and I cant use it for some time. However if I then switch to a different power supply, everything is good until that one dies as well, and by that time I can use the other one....

So I guess the reason is that the crad draws too much power from the laptop? :S

 

Just curious, has anyone managed/attempted to do this with any Asus G73 series laptops? I'd like to give mine a boost, but it looks like the current max eGPU performance shown here is only marginally better than what my internal GPU can do.

 

I am using a 6 meter cable with 1 minihdmi to hdmi adapter (the cable is HDMI one end and mini hdmi on the other) and it is working fine as far as I can tell. It really is fairly hard to find cheap long minihdmi cables, so its good to know that the monoprice minihdmi to hdmi cables will work with an adaptor.

 

I am struggling to get my new egpu setup to work

x220 i5
PE4L w/ expresscard
GT430

error 12: cannot allocate resources
and nvidia control panel doesnt wont open "cannot find compatible hardware"

ive installed the optimus drivers with custom .inf file 270.33

any help would be great, is it impossible to get this to work without the setup 1.x file?

 

That error means that you don't have enough free PCI resources, so you will have to do PCI compaction with setup 1.x to free up some space. As far as I know this is the only way around the error 12.

 

For Lenovo Thinkpad X220, you'll need BIOS 1.11 to get eGPU working successfully. There are many X220+eGPU implementation listed in first post you can use as references.

 

Hi all, i bought diy vidock (PE4H/PE4L) for my HP Probook 4320s with

intel i5 480M
Intel HM57 Express
4gb ddr3
ATI Mobility Radeon HD5470(512 MB)
Win 7 HP x64,

I try to connect Ati hd 5770

Can anybody please help with script to realocate? Or... it is possible to realocate?

i tried a lot in vidock setup, but, nothing works. If i run with connected vga, notebook freezes. Only way is connect after boot or after boot to vidock setup.

Thank you alot.

 

Please post detail information per Main FAQ#1 instruction. Also please be clear do you have a ViDock or PE4H/PE4L.

 

i have acer 5745g whit switch nvidia 330m - intel HD graphics I would like to know if you can mount Diy EGPU?

Help me please

 

Your Acer Aspire 5745G can use DIY eGPU. With Intel HD Graphics, you can do x1.Opt (with Optimus) setup. Please install Setup 1.x. Boot into Setup 1.x & take a screenshot of the main screen. There is instruction in the main screen on how to take a screenshot. Post the screenshot here.

 

Please install Setup 1.x. Do PCI compaction & then chainload Windows.

If eGPU still not working, please post the error code if there is error in Device Manager. Also generate diags using Setup 1.x per Main FAQ#1 instruction.

Does your HP Probook 4320s have switchable graphics OR only ATI Mobility Radeon HD5470?

BTW, please post the PSU specification too.

 

Ok, i filled the details to my question, so ... do you think, that is usable for my notebook?

It has probably only 5470, i can't switch gpu.

Edit: Sry i wrote it before you answered to me...
EDIT2 : PSU is Corsair 450W from my ex-desktop

 

Please install Setup 1.x. Please do PCI compaction & then chainload to Windows. Please refer to this screenshot as an example:-



If eGPU still not working, please post the error code if there is error in Device Manager. Also generate diags using Setup 1.x per Main FAQ#1 instruction.

 

Hello everyone!
I'm thinking of doing an eGPU for my notebook.
I'm looking for a PSU, possibly micro-ATX, that supports a 2x6pin graphic card, so I need up to 225W on the 12V rail(s). I was wondering if this PSU would be good: Techsolo TPS-400.
I'm doubtful about the output distribution on the two 12V rails of this PSU; according to the datasheet the output is:
3,3V : 16A | 5V: 10A | 12V(1) : 14A | 12V(2): 10A | -12V: 0,3A

But how do I know which connectors deliver power from which rail? If the 3 molex (I would join 2 of these in a pciexpress, and plug the other one in the PE4H) and the pciexpress are on the same rail, would it exceed the current limit?

Here's the link to the product: http://www.techsolo.net/site/product.php?lang=en&do=show&product_id=231&&class_id=37
And here is the datasheet (in italian, the english one is broken): http://www.techsolo.net/download/ITA-TPS-400.pdf

Thanks in advance!

 

Hi noric,

Only one rail will be use. With dual-rail ATX PSU, +12V2 is for the 4 pin connector (also known as "ATX12V" or "P4" cable) and +12V1 is for everything else. So, you will only use +12V1. According to the Techsolo TPS-400 PSU specification, +12V1@14A = 12V * 14A = 168W. So, it can only drive a GPU with power requirement lower than 168W. Don't choose a graphic card with power requirement too close to 168W. For example, if the GPU of your choice is GeForce GTX 460 (1GB), I doubt this PSU will able to supply stable peak 160W of power required to drive this card.

 

i have this...

 

I see by the last command buffer in the bottom left that you've enabled the iGPU so it appears but it won't work unless it's wired to your LCD. Is the iGPU on by default after you boot? If not then you can't do a x1.Opt installation. Your port layout also doesn't indicate x2 is possible either and you probably don't have an expresscard slot. In which case I'd suggest selling your notebook for one from this list - the can do a x1.1 Optimus (and soon x1.2 Optimus) DIY eGPU installation for superior performance.

 

TOLUD is 2.5GB & available PCI space is 512MB. You only need 256MB PCI space for eGPU. Everything are looking good.

I checked the Aspire 5745G specification & I found out it doesn't have ExpressCard. So, you'll need to use the mPCIe port which currently use by wireless card. You will need a PE4L-PM3N ver1.5 Package. If you live in US, you can get it from HIT.

@nando, I checked in Acer Support: Acer Aspire 5745G Notebook Series Specifications & it does have Intel HD Graphics. This notebook have Nvidia Optimus.

 

Thanks kizwan! That's what I feared... What about buying a 2xMolex to 1xPCIexpress cable, cut the Molexes, and plug the wires into the P4? Is this smart or foolish? (no P4 to pciexpress available on ebay)

Thanks again!

 

Not good idea. It will fried your graphic card OR PSU.

 

hi can someone help me from following pic to see if eGPU is possible on following pc-HP dv6-3016tx.. I requested this off from user of this laptop from another forum.. from the pic the first PCI bus had 9FA00000, which i was not sure was the right PCI bus i was reading?

 

9FA00000 is the right number. This corresponds to a TOLUD of 2.5GB, leaving you plenty of room for an eGPU.

 

Thanks Khenglish...