DIY eGPU experiences

He's presumably referring to this thread.

 

Hello all,

I am looking in to adding an external GPU to my 13" laptop to create a portable gaming laptop rather than carting my whole desktop with me backwards and forwards during the week (I move around for work).

I currently own a Dell XPS m1330 13" with a 2.1GHz T8100 Core2Duo, 3GB ram, nVidia 8400M GS + 32 Win7 Pro. I realise I will need to upgrade to 64 bit which is no problem.

I originally found the ViDock all in one enclosure, however to buy from the USA and ship to where I live in the UK, it is fairly expensive! However it does seem the most simple option for me.

Alternatively, could anyone please list for me a simple set of components that I would need to create my own DIY eGPU that would be compatible with my laptop, preferably with an enclosure to make it easier to move around?

I recently upgraded my desktop GPU, so I have a spare ATI HD4870 1GB which I would like to use, however I am aware that most people with the m1330 use an nvidia gtx 460, is there a particular reason for this?

I would really appreciate any advise, as there seems to be a lot of different components to make an eGPU and I am getting a little confused!

Thanks in advance,
Stu.

 

It's the same vendor where i bought my kit. My package is actually blocked at the Italian customs due inspection, cause he declared 20-30$ value of the product and the invoice /that i had to send) reports 70$

I hope to receive the kit soon, but i think that the 2.0 will arrive before my 1.0 :-\

 

I've also bought mine on redtrontechs, in france there's no probleme about customs because the package is too small...

@Stuuz:

for doing it by yourself, you need kits explained in the first post of this thread. and for the case, i'm lookin' for something for a while without any result, so do it by yourself if you can with a 1U server PSU or a Thermaltake SLI only PSU (can't remember the name, but it only deliver +12v at high rates for helping low end PSU to do the job)

 

I dont know if someone can help me with my question, but maybe you can try it please.
I would like to use the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 as an extern Graphiccard.
I use it with a PE4H Adapter. Posted Image
The problem is that the Graphiccard wont be detected.
Can someone tell me why please?
I guess it could be:

1. a problem with the mainboard (Graphiccard isnt compatible with it)
2. a problem with the chipset (chipset isnt compatible with it)
3. PCI-Express x16
4. a problem, because its a Dual-GPU-Card
5. it doesnt work because i have to update my BIOS.

But all the points are only inaccurate guesses.
Maybe someone can tell me something more accurate.

chipset: Intel Sandybridge
mainboard: PEGATRON CORPORATION P017
BIOS: American Megatrends Inc. E16Y1IMS.209

Thanks for your help

 

i know your problem, i've tried with a 9800GX2

first: the bridge used to link all gpus only split the link, so only one gpu got information when you use it at x1

second: pci express is highly recommended to dual GPU card to not bottleneck them

third: your chipset is uncompatible with x2 link, so no way to try on this laptop

hope that can help you, try any mono GPU card, it'll work better than your 590 if you make it work

 

I got to try a 590 once at a LAN party. The first problem I had was the sheer power required for a 590 (365W). What PSU are you using and are both 8 pin connectors connected? You can't just use a 6-pin and say it's good enough.

After I got power sorted out, the 590 would not be detected on hotplug, but it would be detected if I cold booted with it. However, my system at the time would not boot properly with an eGPU detected on startup. What it would do was detect the eGPU, turn off the iGPU, but then not be able to run the eGPU because of what I believe was PCI-E 2.0 incompatibility (note that the iGPU turning off is mainly a Dell only thing. most laptops don't do that), so I would get 2 black screens. This is what happened with the 590.

Note that people have tried dual GPU cards in the past, but could not get them to work properly. Even if I did not have the boot bug, I do not know if my system would have been able to properly run the 590.

I suggest booting with it like I did and seeing if it's detected. If that doesn't work, I suggest returning the card and getting a 580 instead.

 

@SoftReaper and @Khenglish

thank you really much, really helped me.
This has confirmed my worst fears.
Now i have to sell my expensive card.

@Khenglish
Are you sure a 580 will work?
I dont want to make a mistake again...

 

Several people have gotten 580s to work as an eGPU. Since the 580 is a single GPU design, internal SLI and 512MB of configuration space are not needed, only the standard 256MB is needed. Have you checked your laptop's TOLUD and checked if you have a 256MB window yet? If you don't have a 256MB window by default, but have a TOLUD of 3.25GB or lower, you can create the window using compaction in nando's setup program.

 

How can i check my laptops TOLUD and if i have a 256 MB window?
Sorry for that dump question

 

@azzzes, i've tried with a GTX570 and it fully works (on a 3Gb laptop)

 

ok thanks SoftReaper for that information but my question was for the GTX 580

 

it's the same card, with the same GPU, just some units disabled and not soldered components on the 570 than 580.

 

ok thanks

 

Okay, so I'm looking to get a new laptop, and do an eGPU along with it. I need something very small and thin, but with good battery life and a full voltage CPU. So, I'm going to go with the Vostro V131.

No one has done an eGPU with one yet, I believe. Now, it does not have an ExpressCard slot, nor an open mPCIe slot. However, it does have a WLAN and WWAN card. I do not need the WWAN. This means I can remove it and in theory have an eGPU setup. Heres my dilema. I can't find from any source whether or not the WWAN slot is on a USB lane or PCI.

So these are my questions. One, are WLAN cards generally on a PCI lane? I thought they were usually, and that would mean I could do the eGPU there. Second, can a WLAN card be used in an mPCIe slot connected to USB lanes and not PCI?

Thanks in advance!

Edit: If there is another, cheap, uder 1 inch thich machine that can house an eGPU, point me in that direction, but I scoured the SB eGPU notebook page and other places but couldn't find anything that checkjed my boxes like the Vostro.

 

A Dell Vostro V131 isn't so light. From the specifications:

Dimensions & Weight:
Width: 12.96"/329.3mm
Height: (front/back) 0.63-0.83inches/16.05-21.0mm
Depth: 9.36"/237.65mm
Starting weight: 4.03lbs/1.83kg (with 6-cell battery and HDD)

Regardless, Dell tends to wire the pci-e lanes to their WWAN slots but would need to check by swapping the wifi into the WWAN slot to be absolutely sure. I'd personally rather have a lighter 2/13" notebooks with an expresscard slot such as 12.5" Lenovo X220, 12.5" Dell E6220 or a 13" Toshiba R830.

The Toshiba is not cheap and a X220 is not thin plus has had a steady price hike. Leaving then a Dell E6220. Here's one on ebay that ships worldwide: NEW DELL Latitude E6220 Intel i5 2520M 8GB DDR3 1333MHZ 320GB 7.2K DVDRW BT3.0 | eBay. There might be others at the Dell Outlet.

If you can compromise on thinness then consider too a thicker 12.5" HP 2560P or 13" Probook 4330s either of which can be user upgraded to a i7-quad CPU giving you a portable powerhouse.

If you are still OK with a mPCIe-based eGPU implementation, then also consider a 11.6" Asus U24E. http://forum.notebookreview.com/asu...es/624121-asus-u24e-review-owners-lounge.html . They can be had for ~$750 for a i7-2620M.

 

Thanks for the suggestion on the E6220. I had considered it, but thought it was too expensive. I was planning on getting a V131 w/2410m for about $410 after coupons, but I would have to upgrade the RAM. I'll be checking out the U24E, but it looks a bit expensive.

I've looked at both HP's extensively, and liked them, but was really looking for something thinner. Also, 4 pounds isn't bad to me considering I lug around either the DV7t or M11x to classes.

 

Before you sell your 590 & buy 580, you need to try get your 590 detected first. GTX590 power requirement is 365W (with power limiter ON??) & GTX580 is 330W (ASUS ROG GTX580 is 370W) on peak 3D & OC. For GTX590, PSU must have at least max current of 34A on +12V (12V * 34A = 408W, calculated with 10% margin). For GTX580 (330W), PSU must have at least max current of 30A o +12V (12V * 30A = 360W, calculated with 10% margin).

The idea to get your GTX590 detected is to make sure your notebook don't have problem detecting eGPU. Notebook most probably will detect GTX590 with exclamation mark in Device Manager but this doesn't matter as long as it's detected. When GTX590 is detected, GTX580 also will be detected later.

You can check TOLUD in Device Manager. Set View to " Resources by connection" & expand the Memory tree. Look for first PCI bus with 8 digits memory address. Compare it with table below.
[/TR][/TR] [/TR][/TR] [/TR]

First PCI bus with 8 digits memory address	TOLUD
E0000000	3.5GB	D0000000	3.25GB	C0000000	3GB

As long as TOLUD is equal or lower than 0xD0000000 (3.25GB) your notebook will have enough PCI space for eGPU with 4GB++ of RAM.

 

now this might have been answered i want the smallest poisible laptop like a ultrabook, that i can hook up a egpu and turn it from a nice portable pc to a gaming machine would love to not have to use a external display if possible money issnt a issue what do u guys think?

 

Now I have tried it with a Asus GTX 560 Direct CU but this card also wont be detected. Seems to me I have a generally problem
So its obviously not a problem with the dual-GPU-Card.

 

Moreover I have to say that I am using a Express Card USB Adapter becaue i have no Express Card slot on my laptop. I hope its not a prolem.
I also have a minidisplay port on my GPU. Its not connected is that a problem?
Slowly I run out of ideas

 

Then you're using the USB bus instead of the PCIe one, that's why, to me, you don't get any signal. You should try a mPCIe adapter rather than a USB one.

 

But then i have to buy a new adapter instead o the PE4H, right?

 

You have to get PM3N after checked the TOLUD like kizwan wrote.

PE4L or PE4H depends on your needs stability of the mechanical connector, delay circuit etc...

 

Thanks i will try it...
Then i tell you if it fits...
But it will take some time if it is delivered

 

Back to try it again briefly, not quite sure what's missing.
1. PSU insufficient power? - I've checked both PCIE connectors are connected
Antec High Current Gamer 620W, any idea why this can't power the GFX? Is the 460 that power demanding?

Faulty cable? Maybe but doesn't seem like it. Everything is detected perfectly fine. I just never get the software part working.

Don't know how to do the baedit part.

I've tried using a new grub as you suggested, no difference. (missing operating system)
There are lots more options open with setup 1.x but I can't seem to chainload at all. Doesn't work with a fresh install of Windows 7 x64 followed straight with setup 1.x

Still facing the problem of alternate boots the device shows up as Code 12. I haven't found another person with this issue.

Stuck on different fronts. Any suggestions? Preferably with minimal additional costs.

 

The PSU you have should be more than powerful enough as on 12v it provides 48A. Which should equal to about 576 Watts. The TDP of the GTX 460 (768mb) = 150 watts, or GTX 460 (1024mb) = 160watts.

As I haven't got my setup yet I don't know much else. The only thing I can help is with PSU which I'm sure should be good enough for the eGPU.

 

so guys if u had ur pick of a small laptop to do egpu with what would it be in the market for a new one and i want the best of both worlds portable yet powerfull when home plugged in

 

Go on Dell Outlet and look up the E6420. Use this coupon. One with an i5 is $483 + tax right now.

4?XTN5D4788NSK

 

12.5" Lenovo X220, Dell E6220 or HP 2560P*

13" Toshiba R830 (a bit pricey though), Dell E6320 or HP 4330s*

14" Toshiba R840 (900P - but pricey), Lenovo T420* (900P/NVS4200M options), HP 8460P* (900P option) or Dell E6420* (900P/NVS4200M option). Budget option would be a Dell Vostro 3450* (HD6630M option) or Lenovo E420* (HD6630M option) like this i5-2410M E420 for $500.

15" Lenovo W520* (FX2000M/1080P), HP 8560P (1080P), Dell E6520 (NVS4200M/1080P options), Dell M4600 (FX2000M/1080P)

17" Dell M6600 (M8900 ~ HD6970M / 1080P)

* = systems that can be user upgraded to a i7-quad via a socketted CPU. Others have soldered CPUs.

A X220 would be a good choice for portable dual-core power, a 2560P for less portability but is the smallest quad-core upgradability unit with an optical drive on the market. Can see more X220 vs 2560P user comparisons at http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-.../586353-hp-elitebook-2560p-owners-lounge.html .

See the thin-and-light link in my sig for these systems and more.

 

should i wait for the sandy bridge e with thunderbolt?

 

Better take a 17 inches laptop to play comfortably on the internal screen with the PE4L 2.0 incoming

That way no need for an external screen.

Nvidia, I want a decent 28 nm gpu < 120W to power it only with mister Jack !!!!!!

 

Hey guys,
I´ve orderes a GTS 450 GS for doin an x1.opt implementation on my 1810tz and the x4500mhd.
recently tested with that CULV with an 4890 working quite well.
But now I encounter a few issues with that Fermi Card. I´ve installed the latest driver with the 285.62 with the nvam.inf of kizwan. Card is detected and also monitoring correct with GPU-Z.
The Problem is that i cant use the card if i hotplug in hibernate mode. And btw thats the only way I can get the Card detected in Windows. If i try portsaving/restoring in setup 1.x I get a blackscreen or freezes in 95% of the cases. Also I read in the Troubleshooting Faq with the heading "I can't get internal LCD mode to work." that hotplugging in hibernate mode also causes some issues in some times. With 4890 i never had that kind of detection errors in 1.x, instead hibernate-hotplugging wasnt working at all.

Does someone know about this problem?

 

I have a couple more questions:

1. Is it necessary to use the modified nvam.inf to get the most out of the eGPU?
2. If I install an mSATA SSD, will it have any negative effect on the performance of the eGPU?

 

With hibernate/resume method, ensure the PE4L/PE4H's PCI Reset Delay slider is set to 0secs for it to work.

As for detecting a NVidia card in Setup 1.x connected via mPCIe, I had a similar problem with the 2510P. The solution was to (1) boot Setup 1.x and apply anti-whitelisting (which was a port restore), then (2) poweron the NVidia card and then (3) *hotplug the PM3N* and hit F5 which would detect the card 100% of the time. The problem lies in that the NVidia card must be connected and live prior to the PM3N starting the CLKRUN signal.

As such live connecting is dangerous, I resorted to modding my PM3N 1.1's whitelisting jumper (which didn't work anyway) to control CLKRUN as shown. There I'd manually set the jumper as step (3). My HD5770 had no such issues.

If you have a PM3N 1.2 then can try setting the CLKRUN slider to 7s or 15s to see if that helps the problem, or else devise something similar to the modded PM3N 1.1 but use the CLKRUN slider instead.

Worth also booting up with the wifi card to Setup 1.x, then swapping the PM3N in. This skips the anti-whitelisting step in case that is introducing problems.

 

I managed to get the Card getting detected in Device manager as "working properly" (needed to cold boot past the bios with 6 or 15 secs CLKRUN Delay)
At first I get an error 43, disabling card, hibernate and resume with 0s delay succeeded in "working properly", gpu-z is showing idle clocks (50mhz). With Afterburner i can change the clocks aswell as the fan speed.
The problem is, that i cant get the card working in games. always the integrated card is used. but optimus is working, i can chose between the chipset graphics and the "NVidia high performance processor" in the NV Control panel. but even if i force the card globally or in applications, it still isnt used! I also tried installing the Verde 270.61, which doesnt even recognizes the card :/. rly dunno what i can try more..

 

Guys i did some undervolting experiments cause i have a GTX 560 (non-ti) in my hands right now.

So under 3dmark06 the card tops at 145W at stock voltage which is 1,02V on this particular model Gainward.

I lowered the voltage at 0,95V (minimum voltage on this gpu) and then divided clocks and shaders by two (from stock core 810mhz to 405mhz). After that, the GTX 560 tops at 119W under 3dmark. So 26W less.

Interesting thing is that with these clocks I score exactly the same on my internal screen. 12500 pts. No noticeable performance loss during 3dmark while the clocks are divided by two.

My point is that by flashing the bios with low clocks and voltage, we can assume that the GTX 560 could run by 120W jack powering with almost no noticeable performance loss on pci-e 1X. So much compact egpu possibility. And i must add that some GTX 560 allow the voltage to be lowered until 0,825V and that my power supply is an old and inefficient compared to the 90% power blocks efficiency. So some GTX 560 would maybe run at 0,9V and 500-600mhz clocks by jack powering while sucking same amount of power than a GTS 450 and performing better (i guess).

I don't know if this is really viable but it's an option

 

I've got a few questions guys. I'm interested in trying this out for my laptop
so. I've got the Msi GT627-216US
Specs are as follows:
Intel P8400
Intel Chipset PM45
9800m GS (Discrete)
4GB RAM (2x2gb DDR2-SDRAM)
Windows 7 64bit
note: I play on an external monitor, 1920x1080.

EDIT: Might I be able to use a thunderbolt connection for even faster results? Like use an adapter with my expresscard54 slot to thunderbolt, to egpu.

One thing I noticed when re-installing windows before is that my laptop has an integrated graphics unit, but I can't seem to find it anywhere now that I have installed my 9800m GS drivers. I was wondering how I could check this iGPU model or "Bring it out" so that I may utilize Optimus technology, seeing as I only have one open PCI-express slot.

I also saw some sort of EC2C PCI-e adapter on the first page. What exactly does this allow me to do? Does this allow me to change my USB port into a pci-express slot? And if so, what speed will it be at? Will I be able to use this for a x2 link and will it be efficient? I was thinking of getting a GTX 460 or GTX 560Ti for the eGPU because I recently upgraded to a 1920x1080 screen and my 9800m GS lags in more recent games.

I noticed that the pci-e slot that my discrete GPU 9800m GS is connected to is actually a 2.0 slot, so is there any way I can remove this GPU and connect the eGPU to that slot to maximize performance?

And lastly, if all else fails, what card could I use that would maximize performance from my 1.0 pci-e slot, that would show an advantage over my 11000 in 3dmark06 with my 9800m GS?

 

Adapters aren't magical. You can't get an adapter from a lower bandwidth connector to a higher bandwidth one.

You can't use the internal x16 slot. No adapter has ever been made.

The EC2C is the expresscard portion of the expresscard to PCI-E adapter.

You may have a BIOS option to use the IGP over the 9800. If not, you can likely enable your IGP using Nando's setup program to enable optimus. An x1 optimus link will provide better performance in most situations than an x2 link. The only exception I have found to this is WoW.

You really should get a faster CPU if you want to see benchmarks improve a lot. I recommend an E8435. It's much cheaper than the equivalent T9900. All you gain with the extra cost of the T9900 costs is IDA.

The most important thing to do is to make sure you have enough configuration space to add in an external card. This requires a TOLUD of 3.25GB or lower. To check TOLUD open your device manger, click "view", "resources by connection", then open the "memory" dropdown. Look for the lowest hex value. 0xC0000000 is 3GB, 0xD0000000 is 3.25GB, and 0xE0000000 is 3.5GB.

 

Don't believe the MSI GT627 has the iGPU wired through. Enabling it in Setup 1.x will otherwise have no effect. For x1.Opt to work the iGPU must be the primary bootup video. So then the only way you'd get better performance than your 9800M GS would be by doiing a x2 or x4 link. See the first page for details on how to check if you have the right port layout for it.

 

Thanks for the responses guys, I'll add a bit more information.

1: My CPU at stock speeds is 2.26ghz yes, but I OC' it to 2.89ghz. Sorry about not mentioning that, do you think that's decent enough for this purpose?

2: I read up a bit on older graphics cards, and apparently a card like the GTX 260 won't even use up all the bandwidth provided by a 1.0 slot. Do you guys think that I should just use a GTX 260 as my eGPU?

 

Hello,

I just registered to the forums, but I have been reading this thread for quite a while. I have a HP dv7-6195us laptop computer. Specs are:

Intel Core i7 2630qm
8 GB RAM
AMD Radeon HD 6770m
2x 500 GB HDD
Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1000 Wi-Fi card

The computer does not have an expresscard slot, but when I opened up the computer, I saw that I have a MiniPCIe slot where the Wi-Fi card is. An email to HP Tech Support confirmed that the slot is connected to a PCIe 2.0 x1 lane. I have read performance analysis of eGPU solutions, and it appears that a PCIe 1.0 x1 connection with Optimus or a PCIe 2.0 x1 connection is sufficient bandwidth for smooth gameplay and ~80% of the performance the GPU would have in a desktop. So, I was wondering:
1. Can the PE4H be connected to a MiniPCIe 2.0 x1 slot and provide PCIe 2.0 x1 bandwidth?
2. How can I find out if my computer can allocate enough RAM to the GPU? If it can't how can I resolve this?
3. Is it true that a GPU in a PCIe 2.0 x1 connection offers 80% of the performance of a GPU in a PCIe 2.0 x16 connection?
4. Do I have to use an AMD graphics card because my laptop's discrete GPU is also AMD?
5. What are DNA drivers for AMD graphics cards and what do they do?
6. The MiniPCIe slot is right next to the optical drive bay. Do I have to remove the optical drive and cut a slot in the back of its bay to let the Mini-HDMI cable out of the computer?

I am interested in adding an AMD Radeon HD 6950 2GB, perhaps unlocked to a 6970, and an external monitor using this GPU.

Thank you for helping me!

 

That overclock will help tremendously. Is the PCI-E also overclocked, or just the system bus? Even if you overclock the PCI-E, you really need to do x2 or x4 to get acceptable performance.

The 260 isn't really any stronger than your 9800, so I'd go with the 460 or better.

 

Well my laptop GPU has 64 stream processors, and the GTX 260 216 core has...well, 216 cores. That's more than 3x my laptop GPU. I read that PCI-e 1.0 doesn't bog the 260 down, or is something else at play here?

 

Ah my mistake. I was thinking you had 96 shaders like the 9800m gt. I was also thinking the 260 only had 144 shaders, but I was wrong. So yeah the 260 is quite a bit faster than your card. I would still go with the 460 however to get DX11.

What's important now though isn't what card to get, but if you can run any card at all with acceptable performance. You will find x1 to be unacceptable performance, so you need to do x2. You also need to check your TOLUD to see if a graphics card can even be run with 4GB of ram.

 

Will check the TOLUD in a second, but on the front page I saw a little link saying the Msi GT627 may even be able to support up to 4x!....theoretically xD
I'm assuming that I can do 2x at LEAST on my laptop, with some modding of course. I wonder if I can use my current GPU as a dedicated physx GPU?

Man I am so pumped! New keyboard, new mouse, new 1080p LED screen with 2ms response rate. The only thing lacking is my FPS at 1080p, but when I get this set up...
AWSM BDAY PREZ 4 MYSELF.!

I don't seem to find the format you told me to look for :X

 

Your TOLUD is 3GB. You likely won't even need compaction to run an eGPU.

You can definitely do x2, so congrats you can do an eGPU with good performance. As for x4, it has never been verified. You will need to look up your exact port configuration to determine if you can do x4. Note that x4 will provide a significant performance increase over x2.

 

awsm, awsm, AWSM!
Is there any way for me to tweak it just a bit more to get higher performance out of this? >

I'm still unsure about how to wire it up though. I have a Expresscard/54 slot on the right, and no ,mPCIe slots in sight. Will I have to open up the bottom?
Oh and what of using my current GPU as a dedicated PhysX gpu?

 

You have 3 mPCI-E slots. Yes you have to take off the bottom cover. Yes you can use your current gpu for physx. For performance, overclock your PCI-E as much as you can.

 

Hmm.. it says I only have two open, and since they are 2&3 does this mean I have to remove #4? Or is this somehow remappable?

Spoiler

Edit: I just realized I can do expresscard/54 AND mpci-e for a 2x connection. What exactly is x2e?