DIY eGPU experiences

So after all this, hearing that crossfire won't work well with my computer, I've decided to try and make a x2 link on my XPS M1330 with either a radeon 5850 or 5870.

However, I'm still not sure how to check if my laptop can do a x2 link... Any step by step instructions?

 

XPS M1330 port layout

Based on a previous M1330 ICH8M Everest screenshot, the wifi is using port2. If you have additional mPCie slots, swap the wifi into it and see what ports it appears as in Everest. Keep in mind that some WWAN ports are USB only with no pci-e pins electrically attached. If another port shows up port1, then can link port1+port2 to do a x2 1.0 link To find out what port the expresscard slot is requires placing an e-sata or usb expresscard into it and seeing what port it presents itself as in Everest.

2GB VRAM gives more benefit than faster GPU at x1 1.0 link speed

If you're limited to a x1 1.0 link, suggest the just-released 2GB Sapphire Toxic HD5850, reviewed here, as you'd see more gains from the VRAM than the faster HD5870 gpu. Peformance results on the first post show a 1GB HD58xx is questionable value over a 1GB HD57xx card at x1 1.0 speed, but I haven't seen a HD57xx 2GB card to recommend it instead. There is also a 2GB HD4870.

 

I'm not too sure where the slots are... I know one is where the remote is, no idea where the rest/the wifi are.

 

See Step 2: Remove Communication Cards in How To Disassemble Laptop (Dell XPS M1330). You'd firstly want to swap the wifi card into the WWAN slot as shown below and see if Everest shows something in port1, see here. If not, would need to test a e-sata or usb card (or DIY VIDock) in the the expresscard slot to see if comes up as port1. If neither is port1, so as to work as a port1+port2 setup with your wifi port2, then you'd be limited to a x1 1.0 link.

 

That looks pretty complex. Soldering required?





EDIT:

Nando, here are the screenshots.

http://img28.imageshack.us/g/portsuccess.png/

Thanks for all the help! Looking to order the PE4H and either the 5850 or 5870 now.

So since I can x2, does this mean I'll need to get the graphics card, a power supply for it, a PE4H and 2 PM3N's?

 

Dell XPS M1330 can do port1+port2 x2 1.0 link using it's two mPCIe ports based on your port captures.

When you swapped the wifi card into the WWAN slot it shows you have port1=WWAN and port2=wifi. The parts you'd need for x2 1.0 being:

- hwtools: PE4H+PM3N+PM3N+extra mini HDMI cable (US$139 total if buy the US$6 DX mini HDMI cable)

- video card: HD5850 or HD5870 as you've indicated. A 2GB HD5850 likely giving better overall performance than a 1GB HD5870 in our limited bandwidth setup and is cheaper too.

- PSU: matching the video card's pci-e power connectors. If it has 2x6-pin pci-e connectors, then need 225W is OK. If it has 1x6pin and 1x8pin pci-e power connector then need 300W.

This would be the highest performance DIY ViDock setup considered to date so am quite curious to see the results.

 

so what do u have to do in the case of bios exactly and do u know if u can get the parts at a computer part store also there dosent seem to be anything about windows vista.

Toshiba Satellite L355D-S7901 3GB RAM 2.1 Ghz amd turion x2 w/ radeon 3100 780v chipset

 

-Some specific parts need to be ordered from hwtools.net. PSU and video card from your local computer store or online. See Getting Started -> 1. What parts do I need? on first page for a parts listing.

-If you get an ATI card it will likely work with Vista. Examples tend to use XP or Win7 since they both support multiple adapters from different vendors whereas Vista requires primary and additional adapters use the same vendor driver (eg: Intel/AMD/Nvidia).

-Can use a pre-boot PCI Script if your bios doesn't setup parameters correctly for a desktop video card. However you most likely not need to do anything other than plug and play since the bios from example of AMD chipset systems' that have DIY ViDock attached have setup everything correctly.

-Your RS780M chipset has PCI-E 2.0 ports. Means it *might* be x1 2.0 capable giving higher performance. See here.

EDIT:

- Yes, desktop ATX power source can be used to run your video card. Just ensure the correct pci-e connectors to match your video card and the PSU is rated correctly for your video card. ie: 75W if no pci-e connector. Then add 75W for a each additional 6pin, 150W for additional 8pin pci-e power connector.

- x16 card works in the PE4L's x1 open ended connector at x1 speed, or in PEH's x16 connector at x1 (or x2 if do a x2 setup).

 

thx for the info im gonna order the parts and make one ill post all info i get that differs from others
also can u get a 16x pcie into a 1x i keep seeing stuff on the web but with no solid answer or can u buy an adapter for that
can you use a desktop power source?

 

Heh, I'm now just debating on whether to wait until the Fermi drops the price of the 5850, or to just get it now.

Trying to find other places that sell the Toxic 2GB 5850, not much luck so far other than the one you linked.

To add a cooler or not...

Is this the highest performance possible out of any laptop?

Also, which is better, a 1x 2.0 link or a 2x 1.0 link?

EDIT:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817154026&cm_re=psu-_-17-154-026-_-Product

How about this PSU?

 

2GB ATI/NVidia Cards - for performance in limited pci-e bandwith setups

2GB VRAM ATI and some Nvidia cards with > 1GB cards *might* have a sparing effect on pci-e bandwidth. This means they are likely to give more consistent and faster overall performance. There are no HD57xx cards with 2GB as yet.

** Avoid HD48xx cards ** in favor of the more pci-e bandwidth efficent HD5xxx series shown here.

US$380 1.2GB GTX470 PNY
US$390 2.0GB HD5850 Sapphire Toxic SAP1002822GTXSR and on ebay
US$410 2.0GB GTX285 BFG
US$460 2.0GB HD5870 Diamond/Sapphire ebay
US$490 1.5GB GTX480 Zotac
US$500 1.8GB GTX295 PNY

NOTE: there are internally crossfired cards like the HD5970 (HD5870x2) that are 2GB. They allocate a 1GB buffer to each gpu so never allow one GPU full access to the 2GB of VRAM. Not useful for our purposes.

x2 1.0 is the most you'll get out of your M1330 and offers 5Gbps, exactly the same as x1 2.0. Only way to increase bandwidth would be to purchase a MXM equipped notebook and get a MXM to pci-e adapter (there's a project to do it, but no product as yet) or replace your system with Expresscard 2.0 equipped notebooks released later this year with same port1+port2 setup so can do x2 2.0 (10Gbps).

How do hypermemory transfers affect gameplay?

On a T6600-2.2 + 1GB HD5750, NFS Shift crawls [ie: < 10 FPS] when there are many cars rendered on screen at the same time on HIGH detail. This can be corrected by car detail to medium or low to then gain smooth gameplay.

This article shows how to check total VRAM/System RAM usage under DX9. Good for XP, but haven't found equivalent programs for Win7/DX10.

My understanding is that DX10 sets up a 4GB virtual space for textures, combining system and VRAM and swapping b/w them as needed. The swapping steals the pci-e bandwidth such that the gpu is sitting around waiting for stuff to do. The way to correct this would would be purchase a card with more VRAM so can then up the game detail to match the VRAM.

 

How will the PSU I linked fare to the 5850?

 

>.> its overkill the 5850 only needs around 170 watts.

 

I have no idea where to get a 170 watt power supply.

 

Based on the 2GB Sapphire HD5850's1x6pin 1x8pin pci-e connector shown here, it needs a 300W PSU to power it. Supplied with this HD5850 is a 6pin-to-molex and 8pin-to-two-molex adapter in case you have a PSU without pci-e connectors.

The $63-delivered 500W PSU you've linked will do the job, but is pricey. This 460W Coolermaster for $35-delivered being cheaper yet sufficient for the task. Both with a single large top fans claiming to offering quiet operation and have enough connectors to do the job.

Newegg's PSUs start at 250W with a dual fan setup for ~$24. The linked single-fan 460W single-fan is worth $11 more imho. Either PSU will draw only as much current as the load attached to it, but the 460W PSU has been engineered with components to be capable of delivering a higher peak power delivery.

 

Alright, I think I'm set. I just have to wipe my computer, as there is way too many problems with it.

Oh yeah, two more questions.
Will my laptop still be mobile? Is it easy to attach and remove the card when neccessary?
Also, when the 2x 2.0 capable laptops come out, will a 2GB 5850 still yield more performance than a faster card like the 5870/5970? Just wondering if I would need another card to get the highest possible performance if I were to get a new laptop.

 

I would suggest designating the wifi slot to permanent DIY ViDock duties. That would mean screwing in the PM3Ns. So when you want to run external graphics would need to lift whatever plastic covers are over the mini PCIe slot and just slip on the mini HDMI cable. Easy. Could be easier if you mod the plastic cover to have cutouts above the PM3N so don't need to lift the cover to access it. If need wifi I would propose you purchase a USB wifi stick.

Texture rich games: Crysis, Battleforge, COD4 at x1 2.0 sees noticable performance degradation compared to x4 2.0. That would indicate to me that it's textures are being swapped to/from system memory and VRAM, leading to overall performance degradation. A 2GB HD5850 would have a sparing effect on pci-e bandwidth, so believe would give better FPS in such games than a 1GB HD5870. If you want top performance at any cost, a 2GB/4GB HD5970 would be the way to go. Though I'd suggest upgrading your T5750-2.0 CPU before going there.

Would be great if someone compared similar performing cards, eg: 2GB HD4850 to a 1GB HD5750 to see how much VRAM does effect gaming performance. Even better if the 2GB card could have a 1GB bios flashed onto it to provide direct peformance comparison.

EDIT: 2GB Sapphire Toxic HD5870 may be the card for you. Notice the difference in FPS b/w a 1GB card at x16 2.0. That would be more pronounced at x2 2.0, x2 1.0, x1 1.0

 

Interesting. I'm now trying to find a place that sells the Toxic 5870, and compare the price to the Toxic 5850.

Do you know anywhere that sells the Toxic 5870?

 

Hello Guys,
I'm new here, and I follow your posts for some time.
Consider buying the PE4H with EC2C and already tested it, which ran perfectly with an old card that I have here, a nvidia 7900gs.

I have not decided which card will buy, 5770, 5830, 5850 or 5870 by reason of pcie port. I have not tried to transform it in x2 1.0 for the following reasons, the slot in which I plug the card EC2C according to Everest is port 2.


PCI Express Controller
PCI-E 1.0 x1 port # 1 Empty
PCI-E 1.0 x1 port # 2 In Use @ x1 (Vga/Nvidia7900gs)
PCI-E 1.0 x1 port # 4 In Use @ x1 (Intel WiFi Link 5100 AGN)
PCI-E 1.0 x1 port # 5 In Use @ x1 (Marvell Yukon 88E8055 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet Controller)


Personally I would like to know if you can disable the port 1 transforming port 2 in x2 1.0?

My notebook is a Vaio VGN FW140AE
P8400 2.26
4GB RAM
ATI MOBILITY RADEON 3470

I thank staff,

 

You have port2=expresscard, port4=wifi card. Do you have any additional mini pci-e slots? If so, swap over the wifi card and see if it appears as port1 OR port3. If it does, then could do a port1+port2 or port3+port4 x2 1.0 setup. If not, then you are stuck with x1 1.0.

A 2GB VRAM video card shown here will give best performance in x1 1.0 or x2 1.0 limited bandwidth setup.

 

Ok I've basically tore my laptop open to check my options looking for those elusive two other mPCIe slots. The bad news is that there aren't any obvious mPCIe connectors on the mainboard that I could find. I couldn't also find pads for more connectors either.


Taken with my phone's camera, a bit shaky.

On the bottom side, there is a small white slot just over the wifi card that may look like a place to add an extension board or riser card.

There are two similar (but smaller) ones in the top side, one of them is used by the modem, the other is empty. So there are basically two unused connectors with no obvious labels or functions. I've looked through a service manual for A8J (identical MB) but couldn't find any hints. I've checked the Asus parts lists for the F8S models and the options missing from my laptop are a DVB digital tuner and a Turbo Memory module. The last one caught my eye because TM modules use mPCI-e slots, but as it is there isn't any available... I'll keep looking into this.

EDIT: I've found it! And it is a mPCIe riser card! Ordering now

 

Anyone found a 2GB Sapphire Toxic 5870 yet?

EDIT: With a 2x 2.0 link, does that mean I don't have Wifi anymore?

 

I hope it that riser works as port1, then you could gang it with your port2 wifi card to do a port1+port2 x2 1.0 setup.

The 2GB HD5870 Sapphire Toxic was reviewed on March 24. It's only just been released. They also suggest a price of £375 (US$560). A 1GB HD5870 costs ~$100 more than a HD5850, so I'd say it would be US$480 in your market which is exactly what a 1.5GB Nvidia GTX480 costs.

Yes - by ganging your two mPCIe ports to get a x2 1.0 link, forfeiting the simultanous use of the wifi card. You could effectively swap-on-demand the PM3N and the wifi card as I do with my 2510P OR if need wifi concurrently, consider purchasing a ~US$30 USB wifi unit. Eg: alpha 1000ma unit or Edimax. The alpha unit will provide better reception than your current internal wifi.

 

Hi. I am interested in DIY ViDock.

I am just wondering what graphic card is most suitable for my notebook (Asus F3JC)

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=3393&Review=Asus+F3Jc

Can my notebook support x2 link?

 

ICH7M Asus F3JC can't do x2 1.0 without undertaking onboard LAN chip modding

F3JC lspci output here tells us port1=onboard LAN, port2=mPCIe wifi. Meaning that no, you can't do x2 1.0, unless you started doing some creative modding to hijaak the onboard LAN chip's pci-e pins. You can verify those findings by viewing the Everest->Motherboard->Chipset->Southbridge report on your system.

Recommend a 1.5GB or 2GB VRAM video card from here, for x1 1.0 or even x2 1.0 for best performance. If going for a budget 1GB card setup at x1 1.0 link speed, suggest a HD5750 as first post shows not much improvement gained going a HD5770 or 5870 even.

 

Does gaming performance increase drastically? Wondering if processor speed affect gaming capaibility

 

See How do hypermemory transfers affect gameplay? here. Unfortunately haven't found a DX10 videomem monitoring utility.

 

Hi,

I have toshiba U500 notebook which has HM55 chipset. I wonder if I would be
able to use PE4H, here are some screenshots.

First one is from Everest (looks like there is 1 free PCIe 2.0 @x1 port from the unused ExpressCard slot):



Next one is from Device Manager:



So would I be able to use PE4H and connect it to the free ExpressCard slot?

 

Yes. You have an expresscard slot and *two* free 256MB windows free (at C0000000 and D0000000). SO can use a PE4L/PE4H with a desktop video card attached to your system. Would be great to get a HM55 implementation to see if the PCI-E 2.0 port is still running at x1 1.0, or if it works at x1 2.0 speeds as commented here. Likely your memory stick controller is onboard. If it was mini pci-e or expresscard, then could swap it out it to do a port1+port2 x2 PE4H setup.

 

Thanks Nando
I'll test this weekend

Another issue that I have been searching too, was to use their own notebook LCD screen as input for the video card, I saw that USB 2.0 is limited but luckily my notebbok I have the entry LINK S400, the transfer rate is 400 Mbps!!

I will make a more thorough search on the net for VGA/HDMI converter cables for S400, if there!


Notes on connecting i.LINK devices:
❑ The i.LINK port on your computer does not supply power to external devices. If an external device requires
external power, make sure to connect it to a power source.
❑ The i.LINK port supports transfer rates of up to 400 Mbps. However, the actual rate of transfer depends on the rate
the external device.
❑ The optional i.LINK cables may not be available in some countries or regions.
❑ An i.LINK connection with other compatible devices is not fully guaranteed.
❑ The i.LINK connection may not be available, depending on application software, operating system and devices
compatible i.LINK used. Check the manual that came with the software for more information.
❑ Check the working conditions and operating system compatibility of PC peripherals compatible
i.LINK (eg, hard disk drive or CD-RW) before connecting them to the computer.


[edited]

I've been performing some searches and found that it is not possible to turn the HDMI input to Firewire S400, do some searches for the DVI input for S400 and also found nothing, but as I am insistent could find a combo, but they do not know if this will work ... but I'll try anyway ... afraid that the Easycap barre a bit bandwidth.

Look at the dirty patch that I'll try to do:

3-RCA Component RGB to VGA Cable M/M - 3 Feet Price: $3.52 on amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/3-RCA-Compone...?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1269921817&sr=1-18
+
Easycap USB Video Capture Adapter Price:$7.52 on amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Easycap-USB-V...1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1269921249&sr=8-1-fkmr0
+
USB 2.0 to IEEE 1394 Firewire 4 Pin 4 feet Extension Price: $1.99 on amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Firewire-Exte...ie=UTF8&s=miscellaneous&qid=1269922415&sr=8-1


Here is video of a guy playing Xbox360 on the laptop, possibly working in Firewire video quality had been better ... i hope ..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fg7avMpHfz4

Once I make the tests, I'll post for you here guys....

 

Not wishing to sound discouraging, I still think that firewire 400 will have the same limitations as USB2.0 since the available bandwidth is similar for both (400 vs 480 megabits/s). Firewire is only slightly faster than USB since it uses a more autonomous controller so it can save some CPU overhead. Still, with a fireware capture device solution you will be limited to either

1) live SD (720x480) output from your external graphics with further loss of quality due to converting HDMI (digital) to S-Video (analog) to video capture (digital) or

2) semi-live MPEG2 encoding from the HD capture card for higher resolutions with subsequent decoding by the CPU - this will draw resources away from the game you are running and cause input lag (i.e. time between you pressing a key and actually seeing a reaction on-screen).

None of these are ideal for gaming. In the near future this may be possible - USB 3.0 has something like 4800 megabit/s of bandwidth which is close to a PCIe x2 link so it could stream a full HD with less or no compression (some lag will still be present though). eSATA may have enough bandwidth already (~3 gigabits/sec) but I haven't found any video capture solutions that use it. The ideal solution would be to hijack the output link from the MXM slot to the LVDS controller that feeds the LCD as in the MXM external adapter project.

 

interesting
i wonder what would give better performance in a 1.0 setup?
1GB 5770 or 2GB 4780?
any comment or thought?

 

Techpowerup rate a HD4870 to give virtually the same performance as a HD5770 here at x16 2.0, so GPU processing is on par.

I *theorise* the 2GB HD4870 would give the ability to run higher texture detail settings. You'd be able to run recent games at higher detail levels on a x1 1.0 or x2 1.0 link without incurring performance losses associated with system ram<->VRAM copies via the constricted pci-e bandwidth. I say theorise since I haven't found a tool to monitor DX10's video ram utilisation to prove this assertion.

The tradeoff being the HD4870's higher power consumption and no DX11. Here's hoping someone makes a 2GB HD57xx card. If want DX11 and 2GB can get it from the a ~US$400 2GB HD5850 Sapphire Toxic card.

 

Hi I've been following this forum with much glee and thought I finally found a solution for me with the IGP reallocation. I have an MSI 1223 that has the 4500MHD and so I expect this should work for me, but my attempt resulted in my laptop beeping at me right after running my modified version of the igpreloc.bat script. I know that my expressbus card is in port 1 so I change set port=0, and running lspci gives me the following:

00:02.0 0300: 8086:2a42 (rev 07)
Subsystem: 1462:33ff
Flags: bus master, fast devsel, latency 0, IRQ 10
Memory at fd800000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable)
Memory at d0000000 (64-bit, prefetchable)
I/O ports at b080
Capabilities: [90] Message Signalled Interrupts: 64bit- Queue=0/0 Enable-
Capabilities: [d0] Power Management version 3

So I would think I should set mem_win to FD800000 right? What am I missing?

Thanks

 

The 4500MHDs 256MB window is aligned to a 256MB boundary so it's the D0000000 BAR you want to relocate. So suggest try igpreloc.bat with the following:

Code:

set port=0
set mem_win=DFF1D001
set io_win=2020

If successful, please post your relocated Device Manager details like here. If no success, can you also post a Device Manager->Memory screenshot like this. You may well have a 256MB window free already or can make one with PCI Reallocation if your bios hasn't set TOLUD too high.

 

I have a Sony Z11, included is the screen capture of my system, can I use diy vidock? I only want to use my expresscard port.

I have tried several times, but I can't post the picture! Here' the link to my screen shots.

http://public.bay.livefilestore.com...RvNLtUiYnKMYl2dfpQpNcYYUFg1kjADcn9mg/pic1.jpg

http://public.bay.livefilestore.com...SJ1Njcd8TkI5udhsyoTSRLDuSmWmY2W6YDKg/pic2.jpg

 

Hey can I use a 4350 with a PE4L kit? I assume I can but how would the power work? I'd need to get a lower output power supply? That's it?

Main reason I ask is that I need to out put 2560x1600 which my machine does not support. I'm not after performance as it's already got an onboard 5730.

Thanks,

 

Sony Z11 has a Nvidia GT330M+Intel HD (NVidia Optimus) setup already.

Yes. You have a free 256MB window at E0000000 to accomodate a desktop video card. The onboard memory card reader occupies port2, so no port1+port2 x2 1.0 setup for you. Your system could do a x1 1.0 link.

Yes. Just power the PE4L with a US$11-delivered 12V/72W adapter

 

Thank you nando4! You are very helpful! I'll order PE4H right away.

 

No love, attached are the Device Manager screenshot and the dump from PCITool here.

A little background info, in my case I can get the card to work if I let Win 7 boot first and then plug in the ViDock connected 4670. After that point I'm fairly golden, I can suspend/resume the laptop with no problem. But if I restart my laptop with the ViDock connected I bluescreen with a memory problem.

My friend at VillageTronic asked me to look into what you guys are doing here to see if your solution can be applied to the same problems they're having too. And because I'm a bit "under-employed" at the moment and he's a good friend I said I would.

I understand the theory of what you're doing but I'm still a little behind on the practicals. Like I'm still fuzzy as to what exactly "setpci -s 0:2.0 18.l=0C setpci -s 0:2.0 1C.l=3" are doing. I get that 0:2.0 is the 4500MHD but what are we putting in that register and why? And why is the memory window in my case DFF1D001 and not DFF1E001?

Am I fooling myself that a crash course in setpci is feasible in solving this problem?

Thanks for your help and input.

 

ithildin,

I got the message and gave up .. eheheh



Now I'm with another personal problem, the board does not care ...
I'm testing a vapor-x hd 5870 with the source of a friend of 850w ... and the board simply does not care ... nor the cooler ...
I use Windowns 7, I'll try to boot from the pendrive,
if anyone has any tips I thank ...

thanks guys ...

 

The parameters supplied previously attempt to move the 4500MHD into 36-bit space. However, now that you've elaborted more on your issue and provided memory maps, you can discard this previous suggestion.

Your BSOD issue when HD4670 is attached on bootup indicates the bios is configuring some parameters that are not working for Win7. Unfortunately the PM3N's reset delay circuitry for whitelisting is not on the PE4L/PE4H, as that would solve your problem, since the bios wouldn't get a sniff at the HD4670 to begin with. If you really want to understand what is causing the problem, do a pcitool dump in both cases (boot with/without HD4670 attached), then load the dumps in PCIScope for XP and use the compare feature, then work backwards to make the "boot with HD4670" PCI Configuration match the "boot without HD4670 configuration". If too much hassle, just ensure the HD4670 is off during boot and suspend/resume the system.

You could see if this will help when you boot with the HD4670 attached. You have free 256MB window at C0000000, so no need for any IGP/PCI Realloaction. Just need to define the underlying bridge to get it to work.

1223U.bat

Code:

@echo off
set port=0
set io_win=2020
set mem_win=CFF1C001

echo.
echo [bridge.bat] Configuring underlying bridge hosting desktop video card...
@echo on
setpci -s 0:1c.%port% 1c.w=%io_win%
setpci -s 0:1c.%port% 24.l=%mem_win%

:: Chainload into Win7
:: grub
grub --config-file="menu.w7"

Refer to 2. What software setup do I need to make this work?->i. Pre-boot PCI Configuration Script on first page.

 

What't the difference between the PE4L and PE4H? Besides the obvious - full size slot and price.

Is one better than the other? Or easier to setup?

 

with PE4H you could connect at x2 pci-e speed if you have both mpcie and expresscard and if those ports are adjancent like 1,2 or 3,4

also PE4H is bugged - a lot of people have problems with it

 

Ah I see! That's what I really needed to know. I'll wait for the PE4L then and skip my chances with the PE4H...

I just need the setup to run 2560x1600 so I'm not particularly interested in what performs the best - just what works + ease of setup.

Thanks,

 

I have a Sony Fw495J with mobility radeon hd4650 1gb, but i want more
fps in games ... What i need to better gaming ?
PE4H + EC2C + ATI XXXX Card ?
PE4L + EC2C + ATI XXXX card ?
how to know if will work ?
Thanks

 

South bridge intel 82801JM ICH9- M
PCI-E 1.0 x1 port #1 empty
PCI-E 1.0 x1 port #2 empty
PCI-E 1.0 x1 port #4 wireless
PCI-E 1.0 x1 port #5 gigabit ethernet
North Bridge Intel Cantiga PM45
PCI-E 1.0 x16 port #2 mobility hd4650

i want 1080 high settings Battlefield BC2, Just Cause2 ... and recent games ..
The mobility 4650 runs, but with 15~20 fps ... and i need more ! = )
Thanks

 

Just tried Sony Z with DIY ViDock, no love
The integrated Intel HD conflicts the nVidia 7900 GTO, and the discrete 330M no long functions after the driver is installed. The monitor of my notebook switch to low resolution, with Yellow conflict symbols on Wireless, Intel Graphics. No longer able to switch modes(Auto, Stamina, and Speed). And the external monitor is just black. Any solutions?

 

Likely solution being IGP Relocation. But to be certain would require an analysis of your system:

1. Produce a screenshot of your PCI Space like this showing all three graphics devices (HD, 7900GS, 330M).
2. Boot DIY Vidock bootdisk then run

Code:

lspci -tv > tree.txt
pt PCI map > map.txt
lspci -vv -x >  devs.txt
pcitool /db:snapshot

Save tree.txt, map.txt, devs.txt and snapshot.bdf to rar/zip, upload to mediafire.com and link here.

BC2 might or might not be faster with your mobility HD4650 than a desktop HD5xxxx at x1 1.0. Hard to tell without someone doing performance testing. One thing is certain. A DIY ViDock using a 2GB VRAM video card less likely to encouter performance slow downs due to system<->VRAM transfers saturating the limited x1 1.0 2.5GBps pci-e link.

Other certains are: a x2 1.0 (or x1 2.0 expresscard 2.0) DIY Vidock will outperform your current setup, as would a new notebook with a mobility HD5xxx class GPU. Can confirm if your system has accessible port1+port2 to support a x2 1.0 setup by going through steps on first post Mini FAQ->2. Can my system use PE4H's x2 1.0 link for superior performance shown in PCI-E Scaling Analysis?.

 

This thread will be for posting any pics of DIY enclosures that you have made for your DIY ViDock. We have two threads for the Docks already one for Disussion of the Dock And one for Experiences that you have with the docks. Please feel free to use this post for pics. I will be looking at the other two threads and moving Pics to this area for quick viewing. Enjoy