DIY eGPU experiences

Yes! After so much troubleshooting I've finally got my egpu setup to work. I'm running HP Probook 4530s with an i7 2630qm @ 2.0 ghz with 1GB GTX 460 eGPU.

Super big thanks to Nando, Kizwan and Nautis for the drivers and everyone else contributing in this thread. Now I finally get to dig into most of the newer games.

I ran the 3dmark06 benchmark and my score was 16405.

 

Hi dualbios,

eGPU might work on your laptop. However performance will not be great when compare with other laptop with 965PM/GM chipset, first & second Intel Core processor. You might need to use the mPCIe port for eGPU. Please install AIDA64 & take screenshot of Chipset \ South Bridge section. Post it here. I'm guessing TOLUD is 3GB but just to be sure, please install Setup 1.x. Boot into Setup 1.x & take a screenshot of the main screen.

I'm guessing your notebook have ICH7M chipset (945PM/GM). You can see several ICH7M eGPU result in the first post.

 

Congratulation! We're interested to include your result in first post. So far we have benchmark result from HP Probook 4530s with i3-2310M. If you like, please run RE5, 3dMark Vantage, DMCV4, 3dMark11 & Heaven benchmark (download link available in the first post, at the Directx 9, 10 & 11 table header). Please post the score here. For 3dMark benchmark, preferably include the link to the detail result.

 

9800GT power requirement is 105W. Make sure to connect two 6-pin PCIe power connector to 9800GT. Also make sure to connect the floppy power connector to PE4H/PE4L board.

What is the PSU specification? There should be a label on the PSU, e.g. +12V, etc.

 

I have 350W ATX power for pe4h and 9800GT(only one 6pin power).
I try to do this :
Initial setup:
1. Plug in the Express card, connect all the wires while the computer is turned off
2. Turn on the computer
3. Boot DIY eGPU Setup 1.x
4. Turn on the eGPU
5. Select "menu-based".
6. Do PCI compaction->32A on all devices
7. 'Chainload mbr' to chainload to Win7.


but in step 6, it stop on "press enter to return to menu"
can you tell me what is the correct steps for install the eGPU?

 

350W is the PSU total power. What is the +12V power? Can you post here the specification? There should be a sticker at the side of the PSU explaining the +12V max current. <strike>Your 9800GT only have one 6-pin PCIe port? If I'm not mistaken there are two 6-pin PCIe ports on 9800GT.</strike> (EDIT: sorry, 9800GT does only have one 6-pin PCIe port) Base on the symptom, GPU didn't get enough power.

 

yes, you are right. I have tried with my friend's 450W power, then it works. Thank you. By the way, how many watt is needed by 9800GT? 450W? or 400W is enough? And how many current of +12V? Im newbird...
And thank you very much for find out my problem!

 

GPU use only PSU +12V power. 9800GT power requirement is 105W. So, the PSU must have at least +12V with max current 10A (12V * 10A = 120W). PSU 300W or 400W or 500W are not important. What important is the PSU +12V max current. There should be a sticker on the PSU telling you the +12V max current. I have asking you this question two times but doesn't get any answer at all.

 

My PSU +12V1 is 8A +12V2 is 13A

 

That means your PSU have dual-rail. On dual-rail PSU, GPU will only use +12V1. So, 12V * 8A = 96W. 96W is not enough because 9800GT power requirement is 105W.

 

now I got it. Thank you very much!

 

About the fuse bypass, I don't get exactly how it's supposed to work. If I want to use a lower end gpu do I need to take off the 2 jumpers or leave them in place? Thanks.

 

Can eGPU be portable at all? My friend told me that it isn't but I wanted to know if it is possible to build something that I can lug to school

 

Well kinda? If you have a very light power supply like me (Dell RM112 pulled from SFF Dells) and something to protect the video card.

 

I didn't find the modded inf for the current verde beta driver ( Verde 285.38 Download), so I copy-pasted the changes from nando's 275.33 inf to 285.38. It did work for my GTX 460 on a X220 maybe for others too.


PS: Thank you guys for those excellent instructions to setup an eGPU.

 

I think a 75W graphic card plus pe4l-ec2c would be compact enough. But you still need external power supply. It seems there is no way for notebooks to provide 12V output for the pe4l and the graphic card.

 

Hi community, I want to use a GTX 460 as egpu for my dell xps 1530M and/or my FSC Lifebook 751 E (Opt, jear).
I plan to use a 12V/10A AC/DC power adapater instead of a power supply.

I see nando is using a 120W power adapter in his exmaple.

As i saw on the german nvidia website ("Technische Daten" -> bottom right -> "Max. Leistungsaufnahme der Grafikkarte (W)") the GTX 460 needs up to 160 W.

So a 120W power adapter wouldn't have enough power to unleash the full GTX 460 eGPU-Power, right? Or can i use the 120 W power adapter without performance losses?

What do you guys think about this?

Please correct me if I am totaly wrong with my thoughts (propably...).

Currently I am waiting for the PE4L-EC2C package from hwtools.net

Greetings

 

GTX460 need at least 160W to work without any problem. Lower than 160W, GTX460 won't work. So, ATX PSU is most suitable. I found this 220W AC adapter. I don't know whether it is suitable or not but it got 12V@18A (216W). You might need to mod the connector though:-
Amazon.com: Genuine Dell 220W DA-2 AC Power Supply Adapter Plus Cord for OptiPlex Ultra Small Form Factor (USFF) GX620 SX280 745 755 760. Dell Part Numbers M8811 Y2515 D3860 MK394. Models ADP-220AB B D220P-01: Electronics

Your FSC Lifebook E751 notebook is most suitable for eGPU since it have Intel HD Graphics. You can do x1.Opt setup.

 

Build a gaming rig for a friend.. and since he wasn't in a hurry I thought I might as well give the videocard a go on my 1x PE4L.

Updated table:

[/th]

	AMD Radeon 6950 PE4H - expresscard slot only	GT520 eGPU PE4H - expresscard slot only	ATI Mobility Radeon 5870
Resident Evil 5	87.1	24.2fps	95.5fps
3DMark11	P3133 3D Marks - gfx score: 3428	P572 3DMarks - gfx score: 508	P2016 3DMarks - gfx score: 1940
3DMark06	12493 3DMarks	2840 3DMarks	11737 3DMarks
3DMark Vantage	P10851 3DMarks - gfx score: 13264	P1638 3DMarks - gfx score: 1308	P7604 3DMarks - gfx score: 7849
Devil May Cry 4 scene 4	54.12	23.52fps	103.25fps
Heaven	701	139	658

Odd that my laptops own graphics card gets beat at everything but Devil May Cry.

 

54.12 FPS is a typical result for x1 link setup. You'll get >90FPS if running on x2 link. RE5 might got >100FPS.

 

Do you guys still suggest a Lenovo X220 as "the" best light laptop to be used with an eGPU, even with the TOLUD problem ?

I've been asking for alternatives on this topic but there aren't many answers so far.

 

I found one Asus notebook with dynamic TOLUD. However it lack of ExpressCard slot.

 

My 9800GT have another problem now...
I change a 12v 17A power for 9800GT. But when I play game for few minutes, the power will turn off automatically. I have set fuse bypass.

 

@cpkane, is that current on +12V1 or +12V2? PSU might be faulty. 9800GT only required 105W. You can use 120W AC adapter to drive 9800GT.

 

I change another power, +12v1 is 20A, but it always power off....what's the problem?

+12v1 17A can make 9800GT run without high load, but +12v1 20A can not make 9800GT run...

if I use AC adapter should I need to connect with 6pin graphic power? or I should use AC adapter and PSU together?

 

Hi

Which one/s of the following is best/appropriate for a egpu set up on a Sony Z13?:

pe4l | eBay UK

Would appreciate other sources too, of course, but please bear in mind i am based in the UK, i.e., shipping ,etc.

Thank you

 

@cpkane, that is weird. Power shouldn't cut-off because PSU able to supply >200W if needed. 9800GT only need 105W. Do you have Kill-A-Watt device to check the PSU power?

If you want to use AC adpater, you'll need to mod the connector though (add 6-pin PCIe power connector).

 

Hi,

Please list the notebook specification in detail. Do your notebook have ExpressCard slot?

 

Hi

Not a direct answer but I have the same VAIO Z series as Pyr0's. Pyr0's is a Z11, mine is a Z13, so I assume should basically be the same requirements. I was going to basically purchase the same DIY stuff as his but got confused by the ones listed on eBay

 

Is that possible to use AC adpate connect pe4h, furthermore use PSU connect graphic card?

 

@cpkane, you can but what for? You can use a PSU to provide power for both PE4H & GPU. If you use both PSU you have right now; one to provide power to PE4H & another one for the GPU; that make more sense.

 

12v1 20A PSU cut-off 9800GT when connect with expresscard. Is it problem that the power of pe4h is not enough? maybe I need " molex splitter/gender changer, with female ends" ? Therefore the current will be increased for pe4h, so that it will provide more power to eGPU?

 

You only need to connect floppy power connector from PSU to PE4H.

 

Hey guys..
There is this i3 toshiba r840 with express card slot.. Do u guys think the i3 will be a bottleneck when using egpu? It has intel graphics and no dedicated graphics And I want to play battlefield 3 on ultra settings using egpu.

Thanks

 

but my 12v1 20A can not make 9800GT work...
12v1 17A can make it work, but it will power off after play game few mins.

 

Can anyone tell me how to remove the bootloader from startup?

 

Got my cables today, I've made two DIY mPCIe adapters but I can't get them to work on my X200s. I have tested and verified that all the connections are okay, I haven't connected the 3.3V lines though so do I need the hot-plug detect shorted to GND to enable 3.3V?

 

People have gotten good fps on 1st gen core 2s, so I think an i3 will be OK. Just an FYI, what ultra will end up being isn't known yet, but to run what's labeled as high/ultra (they are the same thing atm) in the beta with no fps drops you'd probably need to overclock a 560 ti, unless you're like me and hate motion blur and turn it off, in which case you could get by with a stock clocked gtx 560 or overclocked 460.

Outside of BF3 though that CPU will be a bottleneck, especially if it's an older i3.

 

hmmm ok thanks..so i guess i will jus buy this core i3-2310m Toshiba R840 ...
Will get 560ti and do the egpu thru express card slot..
The only thing that bothers me is that the screen res on this R840 is standard(1366 x 768).. but i guess i have to sacrifice for the battery life it gives(6.5hrs)..

 

OK i jus ordered the Toshiba R840 with the express card slot... comes with i3-2310m & integrated Intel gpu...
i read the first page of this thread couple of times and im still kinda confused a bit cos there is SO much of info (thanks to Nando and his hard work) ..

ok i need to get PE4H-EC2C right?? and a gpu.. im willing to spend 250$ on the gpu so don know which would be suitable for the best performance...guessing its gtx560ti

i jus need help in ordering what i need for egpu... how much power supply do i need?

I know all this info is on the first page but im kinda lost a bit.. any help would be great.. i will go read the first page again..

Thanks guys.

 

This screenshot is from my Fujitsu Lifebook SH531.



The PCI bus begins at DFA00000, so according to the pic posted here this would be a TOLUD of 3.25GB because it starts with a D.

Would I be able to use an external GPU with this Laptop and 4GB RAM?

 

It's right at the end of D0000000, so it's pretty much starting at E0000000 (TOLUD=3.5GB). Unless this system has a 36-bit root bridge (unlikely), it will need RAM removed, running with 3GB, to be able to host a DIY eGPU.

 

Aw, damn, but thanks. No, sadly I don't have a Large Memory entry.
So Fujitsu does this too.

 

Did you connect the floppy power connector to PE4H? Obviously something is wrong with the PSUs you got. Test them to find out whether they're able to deliver 105W to GPU.

Code:

C:\eGPU\uninstall-disk-image.bat

Yes, you need PE4H-EC2C if your notebook have ExpressCard slot. For successful eGPU implementation, TOLUD must equal or below 3.25GB. Higher than that you can only use eGPU with 2GB of RAM. (TOLUD is acronym for Top of Low Used DRAM Register. TOLUD defined available PCI space & usable system memory.)

GTX560Ti power requirement is 170W. GTX560Ti power consumption can go up to 205W - 260W on peak 3D & OC. Let say you don't want to OC, so you'll need a PSU that can deliver 205W to GTX560Ti. The PSU must have at least max current 18A on the +12V (12V * 18A = 216W). Whatever PSU you get, whether it is 400W or 500W or 600W, make sure the +12V have max current of 18A, at least. If the PSU is dual-rail, look at +12V1.

 

I haven't had the best results with BF3 and eGPU, so if you are getting it specifically for BF3 MP you may want to wait a bit. On operation metro I get 30-40 fps outside, but there is some mouse lag for some reason regardless of what settings I use. Inside the tunnels I get higher framerates but still have mouse lag, and since most of the BF3 maps will be giant outdoor maps this isn't a useful indicator. The last set of MCOMS on Metro results in bad performance even on low settings (this is all at 1080P); I get around 25 fps outside there. I haven't had time to screw around with specific settings and this is a beta though, so there may still be hope.

 

Thank God, I just ordered AH531 with Nvidia GT525M yesterday and not the one above. I was thinking about these two. I hope I will not have a Tolud problem with the Nvidia card, right? It will come with 8GB...

 

Shouldn't be a problem in your case. AH531 have Nvidia Optimus (Intel HD 3000 + Nvidia GT525M). You can disabled Nvidia GT525M using Setup 1.x & eGPU will take over the free PCI space.

 

Oh ok.. i get the part about the power supply..
But im kinda confused with TOLUD... this laptop im getting has 3gb ram....you are saying TOLUD is available PCI space & usable system memory..hmmm a little confused.... i will try looking up TOLUD now but if u can, pls explain again in a simpler way..

Thanks.

and by the way, how come everyone prefers Nvidia gpu cards over AMD in egpu setup?? i was kinda thinking to get either GTX560Ti or AMD Radeon HD 6950..

 

I really hope so! I will find out in a week...

 

Nvidia cards have better performance due to Optimus driver.