DIY eGPU experiences

suggest spend $30 more to get x1.Opt internal LCD mode and better performance:

AU$119 GTS450 from MSY

 

I decided to replace my Asus F8SA with a second hand Lenovo X200, a lightweight 12" travel laptop with better DIY Vidock capabilities. Here is a breakdown of the specs:

Lenovo X200
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo P8700 2.53 GHz
RAM: 2 GB RAM DDR3
HDD: 160 GB HDD
OS: Windows 7 Pro 32 bit
Drivers: Verde 266.58 ( i386 nvam.inf here)

Benchmarks

Laptop	GPU	Score		Average FPS
		3dmark06	3dmark Vantage (GPU only)	DMC4 (scene 4)	RE5 (variable)	WiC		DiRT 2		BF:Bad Company 2
				DX10	DX9	DX9	DX10	DX9	DX11	DX9	DX10	DX11
Asus F8SA/P	HD5750 x1E	10392	5442	43.84	65.5	29	19	41.59	31.59
	GTX 460 x1	5221	7200	70.33	68.2	21	25	58.99	58.56	32.86	33.39	31.59
Lenovo X200	GTX 460 x1	5241	7343.38	68.51	64.4
	GTX 460 x1.Opt	11308	10331.03	90.57	66.6

x2 and x4 links

Besides the reasonably fast CPU, robust build quality and attractive form factor, the characteristics that made me interested in this particular laptop is the number (3) and accessibility of mPCIe slots. Here is the layout of the Southbridge wiring based on the maiboard schematics and a few tests:

• Port #1: mPCIe full size (WWAN)
• Port #2: mPCIe full size (Wifi)
• Port #3: mPCIe half size (UWB/Turbo memory)
• Port #4: Expresscard slot
• Port #5: Not Wired
• Port #6: LAN

Spoiler

It should be possible to hook up this laptop to a Vidock on a x2 1.0 link and perhaps even a x4 link. The UWB slot is a half-size but fully wired judging from the X200 diagram (full schematics here).

Spoiler

Even though the X200 chassis is very compact, the mPCIe slots are fairly accessible just by removing the palm rest and keyboard:

I've highlighted the location of all mPCIe and EC slots.

I reckon I have three possible ways to mod the case to allow access to either ports 1+2 (full size mPCIe slots) or 3+4 (expresscard + UWB). For ports 1+2 there is the monoaural speaker grill (just below the wifi card) or I could unsolder the metal case for the card reader (bottom right) and hook up a cable through the card reader opening. Ports 3+4 would be the better option since I already have easy access to port #4 (expresscard) - I only need to make an opening to pass a mini HDMI cable to the UWB slot. Unfortunately the way the PM3N sits on this slot keeps the mini HDMI socket level with the PCB, which means I can't simply blast open a hole opposite to the socket to put a regular mini-HDMI cable from the battery side (see below).

Spoiler

It's hard to notice but there is a short strip of PCB between the UWB slot and the battery compartment which is level with the miniHDMI socket.

I will need either a) a L shaped mini HDMI adapter that is short enough to turn inside the space of a half-size mPCIe slot (~2 cm) or b) a flexible cable with a short plug that reach inside this narrow space to connect to the PM3N. Do you know where I can find any of these?

Work in progress:

• Further benchmarks vs Asus F8SA
• x2 1.0 tests (ports 1+2)
• Case mod

 

~~~~~~(Deleted)~~~~~~~

 

Still no Sandy Bridge results, I starting to get sad (I wanna order a new laptop now)

 

thank you so much for your effort to help me.
i think i actually read that post about hundred times by now.
wish he was around..haha

well, yeah, as you mentioned. i don't think RAM is an issue here. i just pretty much hit a dead end.
if you can get it to work, and tell me what's up, it would awesome.
I am just still looking at all the Vidock set on the corner of my room as of now.

 

Hi folks, can anyone tell me if a diy vidock will work under Linux? Also, does anybody know if a pci-e 1.0 expresscard slot provides enough bandwidth (2.5GT/s) to drive 2 x 30" monitors? (for development work and light movie watching)

EDIT: Actually, the notebook I had in mind says this in the manual:

PCI Express 1.1 x1 to fully support ASPM L0s/L1 and CLKREQ.
NOTE: Intel 82579 PCIe interface is not PCIe compliant. It operates at half
of PCIe specification V1.1 (2.5GT/S) speed.

Does that mean it operates at 1.25GT/S?

 

From what i heard is yes, but with a bit modification with the boot parameters in GRUB.

PLUS: Mine is ExpressCard 3, and it operates 2.5. And it's speed is 5. (get the ratio and apply it on yours)


_________________________________________________________________
Yay, cheers, Gnome 3 is out since 2 minutes...

 

fulloffeel,
I'm pretty sure 4gb of ram IS your issue. I had the almost exact same system as yours ( M1330, T8100, 8400MGS). I had used a PE4L kit with both a Nvidia 9400GT and an ATI 5670. Initially, I had 4gb RAM installed and the external card just refused to work. Then, I tried it on another vaio laptop with 2gb ram and it worked plug n play. Going back to the M1330, I tried 2gb ram and it worked fine. In order to use 4gb, I had to install the DIY Vidock Setup 1.x to do the memory compaction thing + disabled some of the unused components to make it fully work.

The reason for the desktop video driver not installed is that your system with 4gb ram won't recognize the external card. You gotta do 2gb ram OR 4gb ram with Setup 1.x. No need to install the notebook video driver.

Hope it helps.

 

Here are some result from that I got with a Sony VPC-Z11Z9E (VPC-Z1) and its DIY Vidock.

Specs :
Chipset HM57
CPU Intel Core i7 620M
RAM 8Gb
Intel HD Graphics
nVIDIA 330M GT
DIY Vidock GTX 560 Ti x1.opt + external monitor
(PE4H 2.4 + EC2C)
No PCI-e overclock, I wish I know how to do it with my laptop..

GPU model : MSI N560 GTX Twin frozr II/OC

GPU : 1000 Mhz ( 880 )
Shaders : 2000 Mhz ( 1760 )
RAM : 4580 Mhz ( 4200 )

Not sure it makes any change lol




● Here we start with 3DMark 06 :



fullsize : http://nsa26.casimages.com/img/2011/04/07/110407031925168251.png

● Resident Evil 5 varbench DX9 1280x800 default settings

I couldn't take a screenshot but it got an average of 116 fps.







● 3DMark Vantage
(No PhysX)



Fullsize : http://nsa25.casimages.com/img/2011/04/07/110407032453890811.png


● 3DMark Vantage Xtreme Performance
(No PhyX)



Fullsize

http://3dmark.com/3dmv/3060700

● Devil May Cry 4 1280x800 default settings



Fullsize : http://nsa25.casimages.com/img/2011/04/07/110407032738225707.png

 

i think that would make a lot of sense.
when this weekend comes, i will try 2GB RAM and if it works, i will move on to 4GB memory compaction.
so, are you using memory compaction now?

 

According to this review the new Lenovo Y560p have 1 ExpressCard/34 slot, and access to two mini PCIe slots:

Lenovo IdeaPad Y560p Review - Notebook Reviews by MobileTechReview

So, would the Lenovo Y560p be a good candidate of a DIY ViDock system?

 

New external LCD is ordered. HW Tools are getting the new PM3N v1.2 on April 18th, so will hold out until then.

Will try and pull apart the laptop over the next few weeks, and get some shots of the underside.

I am also interested in the dual boot linux/windows situation (using GRUB bootloader) - although probably only going to use the 460 in windows mode. Will need to read up more on Setup 1.x as I have 4gb of ram

 

That looks REALLY awesome!! I have the Vaio Z12 did you have any trouble setting it up ??

 

Also would really love to hear from Vaio Z people who are playing Starcraft 2, how the difference is with the external gpu ! Thanks

 

MikjoA, congratilations on your setup. Could you try GTA 4 to see if it works fine or lag jist like on GTX 460?

 

I tested GTA4 on my configuration. I've had about 22-35fps (and long loading), depending on settings, but was playable.

 

I'll try it and many other games, when I'm okay with my exams and when I receive my dell U2311H.

I so hope it will just be good for TES V 11/11/11 to play at max settings ^^
3DMark Vantage GPU scored better than the GTX 485M (GPU score is about 12500) so I feel confident with this setup.

 

I haddn't any particular trouble, there's some issues but you can easily get around and everything is just fine.
The only bothering issue to me is that the power supply takes too much place on my desk

I think the GTX 560 Ti is a very good card even though GTX 460 might be the best value performance/bucks.
But it features interesting things :
- Hotplug is working.
- I turn it on and plug it just after BIOS loading, windows 7 boots normally and card is directly working.
- but if you had disabled the GT 330M, either with nando4's setup or through advanced bios option, then when hotplugging it recognize the card but does not work, usb ports and bluetooth do not function any more and windows 7 won't shutdown...
- Either you do not turn the GT 330M off or before windows 7 is loading you hotplug the GTX 560 Ti. Then it will work perfectly and you can even unpplug and plug again it without any issue. (Only if W7 loaded with the DIY Vidock ON !)
- Driver version 266.58 + nando4's nvam.nif

I guess it just run fine with my set up. When I have time to I try SCII

Edit : If you want to make the same DIY Vidock here is what you need :

- simple PSU power supply (I took the Cooler Master 400W elite power for 30 bucks but I wouldn't recommend it, under loading it's buzzying.....)
- PE4H-EC2C ver2.4 Package Contents
- MSI N560 Ti Twin Frozr II/OC same prize than vanilla 560 Ti but much better, and so good looking.
- I do recommend a longger mini HDMI like this one but it took ages to come, in europe.
- External monitor.

 

3DMark Vantage Extreme Preset :

Sony VAIO VPC-Z11
DIY Vidock GTX 560 Ti x1.opt
GPU 1000Mhz
Shaders 2000Mhz
Mem : 4580 Mhz

● 3DMark Vantage Xtreme Performance
(No PhyX) MSAA 4X & AF 16X



Fullsize

http://3dmark.com/3dmv/3060700

 

This is in the HP 8460p manual?

I looked at it and what I see is that is for the Intel Ethernet Interface, so it is not for the expresscard slot.

How can we see if it is 2.0 compliant?

 

Hi,

I posted my experience at:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...w-sandy-bridge-l1502x-l1702x.html#post7344938

I also want to post here, not sure where is the best place to post but didn't want to upset anyone by cross posting.

Thanks.

 

well, taking your advice i have tried taking out one of my RAM.
as i tried before, most of my devices were disabled as well.

i'd say i got further than where i was before, but couldn't get it to work.
my videocard starts working (fan spinning fast) at window logon screen.
when it says "welcome" it freezes.
my external monitor blinks at the moment as well. but no luck.

i've tried setup 1.x as well.

as a result, i think i have at least restarted my computer 50 times today.

may i as what is your connecting method?
boot with vidock powered up and connected? or connect after boot?

 

boot with vidock powered up and connected

 

So good news!!

Here is a state from a HP 8460p user :


'' So I went into the BIOS and it allows me to switch expresscard from 1.0 to 2.0. It warns me that G2 is faster but may not be supported by my device. So it appears that generation 2 is supported.''

We will be able to do 5 GT/s vidock with this damn nice business notebook!!

 

Try another power supply. My gtx 460 used to crash at the loading screen when i tried one that was too weak.

 

Cool! Now all I need is for them to start supplying quadcore in Europe. Thanks atticus. (came to reply to your earlier question with a "not sure")

 

HP 6820s with a Asus HD5450 in the "diy vidock", the card is recognized in windows 7 and I can install the ATI drivers without any problems but as soon as I reboot it bluescreens with "The bios in this system is not fully acpi compliant", disconnecting the express card lets it boot again.

I tried the DIY ViDock Setup v1.x and ran the compact and all I could think of but it seems this blue screen is about something else.

I also found a bios update on HP's website but that didn't fix anything.

So, does anyone know why it might give the "The bios in this system is not fully acpi compliant" when the card is connected and how to fix that ?

 

hi there

thanks for this incredible piece of hardware. i'm looking at doing a x2 setup with a 3+4 configuration (expresscard+free mpci-e) on an hm55 chipset but i'm curious about this comment on the first post:

*=switches port1+2 into x2 mode.

does it mean that i loose the 2 devices connected on port 1 and 2 ? one is hard soldered on the board (lan on port1) and the other one is removable (wlan)..can i disable lan to save wlan through software or windows device manager as i have no other pci-e slot available to put my wlan ?

also i was wondering about the setup software...does it have to be run at each boot to enable x2 on 3+4 or once for all? can i switch from x1 to x2 config or vice versa on the fly without rebooting under win7-64?

thx in advance!

 

Hello,

I'm confused when i looked at the PCIE scaling...

ExpressCard 2.0 is the same as 2 min-pcie, right?

So does this apply only on PE4H? meaning EC 2.0 a 2 link? or full performance 1x?


Thank you all, hope my question support other users.

 

Ensure DIY ViDock is not powered on when you boot your system. You may even need to do the sleep, power on DIY ViDock, resume method to get it working. Not sure.. i haven't seen that ACPI error before but appears related to the bios PCI allocation.

The wifi needs to be physically removed and then the LAN will work in x2 mode using only 1 lane. If wifi is left connected then the system will freeze as the LAN will be trying to run a x2 link with the wifi as the second lane.. no go.

The only way that the wifi might be able to work is if you located the LAN chip and cut the power pin to it to completely disconnect it from the PCI bus. The x2 link would then see the wifi only, figure out that the lanes were reversed and run it as lane1. If that's unacceptable then consider a USB wifi solution like the high-powered devices offered by Alfa.

You'd need to run the Setup 1.x software on each boot to setup a x2 link. Now *some* systems maintain the x2 link during a sleep/standby, others do not. You'd have to test to see. That's how you could save yourself doing a reboot.

Saying that, it is possible to establish the x2 link in Windows but automated software to do it hasn't been made as yet. It would involve using r-w everything and devcon to automate it, duplicating the functionality of Setup 1.x's iport.

 

Really hope we soon hear if T420/T520 also have pcie 2.0 and even though I would love a quadcore I dont see any elitebooks with quad coming in this pricerange https://www.lapstars.de/product_info.php?cPath=392_866&products_id=7033 so think this is going to be my next pc, else its prolly going to be a W520 and then stopping using vidock.

I want FHD display (If lenovo as their 1600x900 is not good)

Or I want a 8460P with quadcore if they ever come to europe :S

So its either W520 FHD without vidock, T520 FHD with Vidock or 8460P quad with vidock

 

how much wattage did your power supply put up?
im using 350W, i thought that would be plenty.

 

Thanks! do you HAVE to use an external monitor? you cant run the external gpu on the laptop screen?

 

How many amps have you got on the 12V rail?

The 460 needs about 15A and while your PSU should theoretically deliver 29A at 100% efficiency (=350/12), good PSUs are about 80% efficient and bad ones deliver only about 50% or worse.

Also, if you have an overclocked card, then you would likely need more, check manufacturer specs.

Please post the model of the PSU. Easiest way out would be to try using another PSU.

 

Well, I got another one under my belt. fulloffell, I was able to get a M1330 running with the DIY ViDock. Here is what I did:

Laptop -
Model: Dell XPS M1330
OS: Windows 7 Professional 32bit
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T7300 (2.0GHz/800MhzFSB, 4M L2 Cache)
RAM: 4GB Ram
Chipset: ICH8M
GPU: 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS

DIY ViDock -
Adapter: PE4H v2.4 + EC
GPU: Asus ENGTX460 DirectCU
Power Supply: Corsair CX500

First I fully connected the DIY Vidock and connected it to external monitor vga monitor with dvi adapter. Then I plugged in the EC and turned on the power supply. Next I booted the laptop up. It went straight into Windows and started detecting the GTX460. Windows automatically started downloading the drivers for the graphic adapter and HD audio (120MB driver for the GTX). I let it complete the download and then rebooted when prompted. Upon reboot, machine came back up. Right clicking on the desktop did not show me the Nvidia control panel, so I just went into the Windows desktop settings and was able to push video to the external monitor only. I went to plug in a usb hard drive and the system blue screen. Upon reboot, everything came back up and I turned on the external monitor again. Tried USB in another port but the system would not read it. Sound was working however.

It was my business partners laptop and he was ready to go for the day, so I did not get much further. I did not get a chance to confirm what version driver was installed for the card or what bios his laptop was up to. And I did not get a chance to run any benchmarks. Aside from the USB ports not working, it was running fine.

It does look like RAM is a non-issue, at least for a 32-bit OS. I think your running 64bit so not sure if that would matter. So try it both with 2GB and 4GB. I would also agree with the other recommendation, try a larger power supply.

 

Solved... My expresscard is either damaged or the driver is not working right.

Alright so I hooked up the wires as shown in the picture... now the PE4H has a green led lit but the video card does not turn on and the XBOX power supply has a yellow light aka stand by. While messing around with the XBOX supply I found that if I connect the red wire and blue wire the led turns green aka the supply is on. If I attempt to connect the blue wire to the red wire while the power is attached to the PE4H I get a green and a red LED, the video card fan turns on, but there is no update on my computer.

Can anyone help with this?

Thank you.

*EDIT* Is the laptop supposed to recognize the EC2C card when plugged in the pc with no hdmi cable attached?

 

mine doenst work. gpu-z says 0mb of vram
why?

 

i guess i have to go up on power supply then.
what wattage or brand of power supply do you recommend?
i would like to save on money as much as i can. if i happen to return all the stuff at Compusa, i have to put everything on the store card since they charge restocking fee

thank you so much for trying.
i think 4GB becomes an issue on my 64bit machine.
because i was able to get closer to working with 2GB RAM.
i will up the power supply and call it if it doesn't work at that point.

i just can't possibly think of any other reason.
thank you so much again for your help

 

Is anyone getting BSOD in Dragon Age 2? I'm running a GTX460 with Optimus driver.

 

Hey, look what i just found CompUSA.com | 60XGH6HS3HML | Galaxy GeForce GTX 460 GC Ed. 1GB GDDR5 - 3696 MHz

 

well, here it is.
i got it to work

1. I had to use better power supply. (with 2GB RAM)
2. Use Vidock 1.x for Memory fix (with 4GB RAM)

however, upon restart, sometiems it shows error 43. (about 50% chance)
i haven't been able to figure out why.

i will update once i figure it out.

 

Hello,
First of all: Thank you all so very much for all the work and effort you put into your DIY external graphics solutions!
It was a great pleasure to read all the exciting information over the last year and a bit And then it was an even greater pleasure to realize such a setup myself recently.
First I'm going to show you some scores and some pictures and describe my current setup.
Then I'd like to ask a few questions, as I am not 100% satisfied with the solution right now and would ask for some help.
Here go the numbers:
My rig is a Dell Inspiron 1520, with 3 Gb of RAM and Windows 7 32 Bit and a Core 2 Duo P8300 with 2.4 GHz and 6 MB L2 Cache, a GeForce 8600mGT is built in.
This Dell has 1 PCI-E 1x Expresscard Slot and 3 fully connected mini PCI-E 1x card connectors. I am running a 2x setup with the PE4H, 1 EC2C and 1 PM3N and a passively (so very, very silent ) cooled GeForce GTS 450.
More on that after the scores.

[UPDATE] see here

for updated benchmark figures after deactivating HDMI audio [/UPDATE]

3D Mark 06
PCI E 1x = 4687
PCI E 2x = 7205 (+54%)
http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/tpm8uk55.png

3D Mark Vantage Gpu Score
PCI E 1x = 4544
PCI E 2x = 5630 (+24%)

3D Mark Vantage CPU Score
PCI E 1x = 4159
PCI E 2x = 4269 (+2,6%)

3D Mark Vantage Overall Score
PCI E 1x = 4441
PCI E 2x = 5214 (+17%)
http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/gcjvzlxx.png

RE 5 DX9
PCI E 1x = 37.4 http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/6v23w7kl.jpg
PCI E 2x = 45.5 (+22%) http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/fndqxo96.jpg

DMC DX10
PCI E 1x = 58.2 http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/vx6p2ad6.jpg
PCI E 2x = 69.1 (+19%) Directupload.net - Dvyp7lnyn.jpg

Everest 1x http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/pou5ozkb.png
Everest 2x http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/swzs8l8j.png


Okay now more info on the setup as promised.
As I already mentioned I am using the 2x setup. This works very well as the EC2C is connected to port #4 and one of the free WWAN/WPAN slots is at port #3. I just moved the WLAN card from port #2 to port #1 as port #2 "disappears" after initiating the x2 setup. The WLAN card does not have any problems with that.
First I tried around a little bit and found that my Toshiba AC 120W adapter did not work as I thought and so I am using an ATX power supply now. I did not have time to further investigate this so far.
After that my video card was detected. I started up and could install all the drivers without any problems.
To enable PCIE 2x I activated the 2x mode. Then my graphics card was gone. So I rebooted back to the DIY ViDock setup and there it appeared again. But now port #4 was back again. I needed to deactivate it and then I could chainload to Win 7. Please refer to the attached pictures of the process.

Update: I forgot to add some pictures.
DIY setup @ 1x before reboot http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/v83sidi9.jpg
DIY setup @ 1x, enable 2x http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/igx7xuuq.jpg
DIY setup @ 1x, enable 2x, wait for refresh http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/34edzypp.jpg
DIY setup @ 2x before reboot http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/fvuaeob6.jpg
DIY setup @ 2x after reboot http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/z4hlvyvv.jpg
DIY setup @ 2x after reboot: port 4 disable http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/b6lj69ae.jpg
DIY setup @ 2x after reboot and port4 disable http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/m3tgh8ft.jpg
Picture from external setup http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/qqkcwqbs.jpg
Picture from mPCIe cable http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/a3vky54l.jpg


/Update

Okay now to the downsides of my setup:
1st: I could not get PCI compaction to work properly (tried 32 and 36 bit compaction at the GTS 450). I had to turn off at least the internal LAN network controller and RICOH card reader hub to get the card working. Any suggestions what else I could try maybe? Does not really bother me at the moment but surely when the next LAN party will happen ^^.
2nd: I lose the PCIE 2x setup every time I go to Standby or Hibernate. That really bugs me a lot as I have to repeat the aforementioned steps at least once a day if I do not want to waste energy and keep my setup on 24/7.
And also there is about an 80% chance, that I cannot get back from standby, as the whole system freezes. Hibernate works all the time though.
Luckily my system does not really make noise at least as the passively cooled GTS450 really is an amazing thing! My roommates 4570 is a real jet engine in comparison ^^
Is there any way to alter the port setup from Windows 7 ? Or does anyone of you has an idea how I could
a) automate the startup that he does the necessary steps on its own (1. enable 2x, 2. reboot, 3. disable port #4, 4. start win7)?
b) Go into the DIY menu _before_ return from hibernation (I would like to avoid shutdown, even though I have a SSD HDD which makes booting very, very fast luckily.)?

I tried to achieve b) now for the whole day and I am really frustrated at the moment. I simply cannot figure out how to correctly initialize GRUB, or GRUB2 with the DIY-image-file so I could try to hibernate, then load the DIY-Setup, do all the stuff, reboot again, deactivate port 4 and chainload Windows 7.
I did try for example to boot a Ubuntu Live CD and install GRUB2. But I could not convince it to even boot up the menu … I think it could have been a problem that the Windows 7 hidden boot partition uses a "Boot"-directory, while GRUB2 wants to use "boot" but is not case sensitive (!!!!!) at least if I use "find".
Then I used a trick and installed Androidx86 which enabled at least a GRUB environment for me to use. But there I just could not get the DIY-Img to boot. I tried to mount it with "kernel /memdisk.bin" and "initrd /DIY/DIY.img" which did not work at all as well….
Luckily GRUB2, GRUB and GRUB4DOS don't share the same features, options ore commands *sigh*… (((

Thanks again (especially nando4) and I would be glad to answer any questions or try some new things

 

Congratulations on your x2 setup. I am a little surprised by how low your RE5 result is. Consider there's a [email protected]+GTS450 RE5=57.0 result on the first page. Did you disable HDMI audio during your benchmarking? Could you re-test and update your benchmarks if not.

Firstly, your dissatifaction with initialising the x2 mode as it is now. You can automate your process by using the 'automated startup via startup.bat' Setup 1.x bootitem, creating a 2-pass method. Edit your \config\startup.bat to contain the contents below.

Code:

:: Create a 2-pass startup.bat that checks if do_second.txt exists.
:: if do_second.txt exists then do_second. If not then do_first.

if exist %DRV%:\do_second.txt goto do_second

:do_first
  echo [first-run] Pls re-run Setup 1.x to do second-run after the reboot ...
  echo ===========
  echo.
  :: Create file so next run will "do_second" part
  echo do_second > %DRV%:\do_second.txt

  :: Enable x2 on port3 and then reboot
  :: Setup 1.0e8 or earlier uses 'restart' to do a reboot
  :: Setup 1.0e9+ uses 'reboot' command to do a reboot
  call iport x2 3
  restart
  :: restart means this line of code never gets executed

:do_second
  echo [second-run] Pls select Win7 bootitem upon completion . . .
  echo ============
  echo.
  :: Delete do_second.txt so next run will do_first
  del %DRV%:\do_second.txt

  :: Disable port4 which bios has enabled after reboot
  call iport off 4

  :: Confirm GTX460 is connected
  call waitvid 60 10de:0e22

  :: Load PCI dump if hotplugging the GTX460 and need it 'configured'
  :: call pcicap -d 10de:0e22

  :: Perform last PCI compaction as done via Setup menus
  call pci.bat

  :: Chainload to Win7 bootloader menu
  call grub4dos w7

Now your workaround of requiring the reboot to see your GTS450 after setting x2 mode might be solvable. Try unplugging lane1 mini HDMI on PE4H and only plugging it in with the GTS450 running after setting up your x2 link, even try using setting x1E mode instead. x1E is the same as x2 but doesn't do the PCI Hot reset. If that doesn't fix it then the problem is the CLKRUN signal is being set by the PM3N even when nothing is connected. A PM3N 1.2 scheduled for later this month will have a 0/7/15s delay to setup your ports prior to starting CLKRUN which will hopefully remove the need for the reboot. I have asked hwtools to only set CLKRUN when the mini HDMI cable is connected but they probably won't implement that.

The standby issue with ports being reset back to x1 is something I've seen. Some systems maintain the ports in x2 mode. Dell systems do not. The simple and recommended solution is to restart via DIY ViDock Setup 1.x. It would otherwise require an 'iport' equivalent command in Windows to be made which can be done by using r-w everything to do the mem and PCI writes and devcon to disable/enable windows devices.

Some implementation improvements you could consider:

1. Change to do a x2 setup using p1+2. Port3 and port4 then remain as x1 ports so could use port3 for your wifi and port4 (expresscard) for other things. Advantage with that port setup is you could enable x2E mode (x4 using p1+2+3+4 - only first two lanes) to get another 15-30% performance. You would however need another PM3N to do that.
   
   
2. Do a x4 setup. Yes.. you are one of only two systems identified with a port layout capable of doing it. That would net you another 15-30% performance over x2E. You'd need another 3xPM3Ns and 2 mini HDMI cables.
   
   
3. if doing a x2E or x4 setup then your wifi would be knocked out. Appears the Inspiron 1520 port3 has USB pins connected so could get a US$15 USB mPCIE-based wifi adapter to use in that slot OR just use an external USB dongle.
   
   
4. do a dual-IDA (DI) CPU overclock to get your T8300-2.4 to 2.6-DI . Could go one step further and do a TME-unlock PLL pinmod (see Inspiron 1525) to get your T8300-2.4/2.6-DI to 3.2/3.4-DI or beyond. At that level you'd be seeing i5 equivalent performance. Other than the CPU performance improvement, the TME-unlock will allow you to do a pci-e overclock as well. I found a 25% pci-e overclock gave up to 20% more FPS with my GTX460 setup.
   
   
5. Get a $100/$130 GTX460-1GB with 336 cores. Your x2/x2E/x4 link widths giving a GTX460 some breathing space to show it's +50% performance advantage over a GTS450.

 

Did you try to disable some mpcie devices? (for reallocation)

By the way thanks. i'm using VPCEB12FD. Waiting for your benchmarking with 2 GB ram.

 

Anybody have results with newer laptops with the sandy bridge processors. I really think that a 2720qm laptop would be ideal since the processor won't bottleneck the graphics card.

 

Nevermind. Thank you.

 

Here you go : http://forum.notebookreview.com/gam...1-diy-vidock-experiences-334.html#post7344955

EDIT: Does the w/ means with? Sorry for posting if this was wrong.

 

Hi Guys, i got sony vaio vpc-s11v9e and i want buy PE4H-EC2C ver2.4 Package , but with cable 1m. does it matter how long that cable it its?
and what Gpu i should buy? thx.

 

Hi guys/gals,

Is it possible to me to run x2? Screenshot below:


Southbridge Intel 82801GHM (ICH7-M/U)
Vista 32-bit with 4gb ram

I'm wiling to lose my wifi feature.

Thanks for any advice

 

Hello Nando4,
Thank you so much for your inputs.
Are you working in this field or are you "just" an enthusiast? I mean it looks like you spend a looot of time helping us people out and you really know what you are doing

I really did forget to disable the HDMI-sound and did that now. I also updated my graphic cards' drivers to the latest version that may be the cause for the large bum in the 3D Mark Vantage scores.
Additionally I saw that Sander tried doubling the maximum pre-rendered frames, so I did try this as well.
There were really slight improvements in RE9, none for that matter in the 3D Marks.

Here are the results:
3D Mark 06
PCI E 1x = 4687
PCI E 2x = 7205 (+54%)
PCI E 2x HDMI sound off = 7371 (+57%)
http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/loa3uy9b.jpg


3D Mark Vantage Gpu Score
PCI E 1x = 4544
PCI E 2x = 5630 (+24%)
PCI E 2x HDMI sound off = 6748 (+50%)

3D Mark Vantage CPU Score
PCI E 1x = 4159
PCI E 2x = 4269 (+2,6%)
PCI E 2x HDMI sound off = 4251 (+1%)

3D Mark Vantage Overall Score
PCI E 1x = 4441
PCI E 2x = 5214 (+17%)
PCI E 2x HDMI sound off = 5884 (+32%)
http://s1.directupload.net/images/110410/jnb4rur4.jpg


RE 5 DX9 variable
PCI E 1x = 37.4
PCI E 2x = 45.5 (+22%)
PCI E 2x HDMI sound off prerender limit 3 = 56.6 (+51%)
http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/bmdj6frv.jpg
PCI E 2x HDMI sound off prerender limit 6 = 58.4 (+56%)
http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/sulc43rd.jpg

DMC DX10 Scene 4
PCI E 1x = 58.2
PCI E 2x = 69.1 (+19%)
PCI E 2x HDMI sound off prerender limit 3 = 79.4 (+36%)
http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/hqyfco32.jpg
PCI E 2x HDMI sound off prerender limit 6 = 59.4(+2%) (Don't know what happened here. Sometimes DMC just is benching really slowly.)
http://s7.directupload.net/images/110410/2exe2m4b.jpg

Sadly your suggestion is not working. The problem is that the file that should initialize the second pass is deleted during during the reboot. Or rather probably while leaving the image or during the remounting of the image?
I cannot figure out the exact cause for the problem at the moment as I still do not understand how exactly that image of yours is working.
If I use the DOS-editor to create a text file myself it will stay there during reboot.
I am trying some more things, but maybe you already have an idea about it.

This will fix the detection error but then after Windows startup the card will not start and I will get error 43(or so - something along "the device had an error and needed to be stopped"). So sadly this does not work for me at all.

Thank you for your additional input. But I think I am quite happy with the 2x setup I have at the moment. Even the GTS450 is quite ok like it is.
I agree that I could get more performance with the GTX450 but I wouldn't have the money for that and: You shouldn't underestimate having a completely silent graphics card. I mean my laptop does not really make a lot of noises in the first place and then the graphics card is standing around without a case ATM this would be really annoyingly noisy.
But maybe a 4x or 2xE option will be necessary in the future and it is really good to know that I have this option

I did follow those instructions and managed to do the 2.6 GHz. But then my laptop crashed after a few minutes into a benchmark with a bluescreen. At rebooting it told me that there was overheating.
The problem I see here is that I do have an Engineering Sample which obviously is not a regular CPU. For example the temperature sensors on it are not working so I cannot check that. I also suspect that it needs a way higher VID than normal mobile CPUs. I already used it with lower VIDs to save energy in the past. But this almost all the time resulted in some crashes after some random time. So I do not touch this anymore ^^


In the end to ask to my other point again:
Can you help to make GRUB/GRUB2 available to use with your DIY Setup image? Can you give me a hint where to start with that?
I would really like to be able to hibernate Windows. Then before resuming enter the DIY Setup adjust whatever I wanted and then resume Windows.