Let's figure out how to make a DIY eGPU (previously DIY ViDock)

i thought the same thing about agp when i saw the agp 4650 the other day. the only thing is though would express card or mini pci express be able to be converted to agp because in my mind the exixting link works because they are all pci based but i could be wrong.

 

Just got my PE4H today. Do you need both the 12-20V Power Jack and the computer power supply adapters plugged in together? Or do you only need 1 source of power?

EDIT: Nevermind, I just plugged a 19V laptop power supply in, and it was recognized.

 

PE4H powers the pci-e slot (max 75W), via either the unregulated molex or the regulated DC input jack. The latter designed to allow connection of existing 16-20V/4.5A notebook AC adapter.

If you have a more powerful video card (eg: HD4850/HD5770) it will have additional 6 or 8 pin pci-e power connectors that require connecting from the PSU. The most powerful card atm that can be powered by only a 75W PSU is a HD5750 Green Edition.

 

Thanks.

Okay, I got as far as installing the drivers and having everything recognized, to the point where it showed up as a removable VGA Adapter or something. Then the power jack fell out, and Windows 7 blue screened, and I can't get 7 to boot anymore (it keeps on blue screening after the "Windows is starting" logo)...Startup repair couldn't fix it, and I know it's not a hardware failure, because Vista still works fine. Any ideas? I'll re-burn a 7 install disk to see if that will help as soon as I get some blank DVD's.

 

How about holding F8 and booting into safe mode?

 

Okay, that problem is sorted out. I just used the disc. Thanks though.

So everything is working, but another problem cropped up. Whenever I start a game, I can play for about 10 minutes before this setup craps out for some odd reason. I reboot and everything's fine, for another 10 minutes. I also hear some odd clicking noise, similar to that of a harddrive being accessed (albeit quieter), coming from either the PE4H or the Graphics Card...Don't know if that has to do with anything.

Thanks again, for all the support.

 

Does the PE4H get hot?

You might have a faulty one. Since this thing is made in china or wherever. I would expect a few to be faulty.

Maybe re-seat the cables and check for any shorts.

 

It does get warm/a bit hot (On the regulator, and on the bottom of the PE4H). I have a 2400XT by the way, it could be just overheating and shutting itself off. I have checked the connections, I don't believe that there are any shorts. I have now plugged a ATX power supply to the PE4H, and I still hear the odd sound when I run anything graphics intensive, so I'm pretty sure it's the GPU that's making the noise. And when the GPU goes down, it brings everything with it, crashing the computer and all. I'll see if my friend is willing to lend me his 9800 GTX+ to see if the GPU is the problem.

 

Good luck with the 9800.

Do you know what your CPU and GPU temps are just before it fails?

 

every 10 minutes? try setting your power options in windows to 'always on' and make sure it's not turning off your expresscard

get gpu-z or rivatuner to see your card's temperature. since you can hear sounds from it is your card fanless?

 

I'm sure that the CPU is fine, as I play these games on my Laptop regularly. The GPU doesn't feel hot at all, only slightly above room temp, so I'm really at a loss here. Power should be fine, as I tried both a 200W ATX power supply, and a 180W Laptop power supply.

 

10 minutes was just a rough estimate, if I run ATI Tool, it crashes within a minute or two, and if I run something like COD, it crashes around 10 minutes.
My card has a fan, but it is pretty silent, so I can hear the noise. Are they supposed to make a scratchy/clicky noise?

EDIT: One important point I left out - I am using 4GB of RAM on 7 x64. Doubt that has anything to do with it. I also can't seem to boot with it plugged in, so I have to plug it in after 7 completely boots.

 

Can you test it with 2gb?

 

Okay, with 2GB of RAM, the machine POSTs, but somehow Windows 7 blue screens right before the login page shows up. Surprisingly, Vista works perfectly with 2GB of RAM, and it seems to have disabled the on-board Intel GMA 4500MHD as well. I will run ATI Tool again and see how that goes.

EDIT: Still the same problem, when put under stress, the whole system crashes. Clicky/Scratchy sound is still there when anything happens on the screen (i.e. dragging a window around, playing a game, or running ATI Tool).

 

So, I've been wondering if it's possible to make an portable graphic card. This and and the other thread(s) have already covered the most things discussed here, and so I wonder - what about a practical enclosure? I mean, if/when you're going to LAN with your 13"-15" laptop with the card you'd need a decent box. Not too big or too small, one that could possibly fit a disassembled(?) Shuttle 300W and the card itself, alternative using a cheap laptop re-charger - this would drastically shrink the size of the box.

I suppose a custom-made aluminium box is one way to go but not everyone are capable making one, or a company got the time (or take too much money for it), you maybe don't have the correct dimensions and so on. So, at least something that everyone can buy and use as enclosure - maybe preferrably online.

 

been wondering hows the progress of the pe4m. Is it schedule for release anytime soon. just considering because i am planning to get the pe4h but i am putting it on hold to see if there is any progress on the pe4m

 

I'm awaiting a response to my email query about PE4M sent before Xmas. I noticed too they are now selling PM3N (mPCIe card) version 1.1, which has the jumpered 6.9s delay to bypass one type of bios whitelisting/halting.

Also PE4H now includes a little board to provide switched on/off power of a ATX PSU.

 

Have anyone used this option in DXVAChecker, “Video Acceleration Settings…”, then "DXVA for HD h.264 under PCI-E x1 mode"

 

Hello guys,
As you can see I'm a little bit extraneous but I would like moral hazard or nando 4 or whoever is an expert on this DIY Vidock thing to answer me some questions (if possible). I've read that laptops with more than one mini pcie or express card is possible to have 2x performance using both of them. As I m also a fan of ultra-portable 12.1'' laptops I own a fujitsu U9200 Fujitsu laptop.
specs
gm965 ich-8
First of all my laptop has inside (under keyboard) 2 mini pci-e slots. One of them is for 3 Dual band WLAN and it is empty and the other one is for my wireless (switched to Dell 1390 Broadcom 4311 chipset). There is also an express card 34 slot. I was ready to buy a PE4H adapter when I saw this 2x thing. If I buy now this only with the EC2C adapter and later the mini pcie one I would have to pay 12$ more for shipping so I decided someone with more experience. Now I'm thinking to try the 2x mode, but is it possible to use the empty 3Dual band WLAN slot and my express card or I have to sacrifise my wireless? (As it is under the keyboard it is a bit difficult to switch between wireless graphics) And, how do I know which pci is 1 or 2 so I connect them on my PE4H and have 2x performance?
Right now I'm running OS X and my DPCI manage shows me something like this:
8086:2a00 Intel Corporation Mobile Memory Controller Hub
8086:2a02 Intel Corporation Mobile Intergrated Graphics Controller
8086:284b Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) HD Audio Controller
8086:283f Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 1
8086:2841 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 2
11ab:4363 Marvell Techno... 88E8055 PCI-E Gigabit Ehternet Controller
8086:2843 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 3
14e4:4311 Broadcom Corp... BCM94311MCG wlan mini-PCI
8086:2830 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2831 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2832 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2834 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2835 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2836 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:283a Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2448 Intel Corporation 82801 Mobile PCI Bridge
8086:2815 Intel Corporation Mobile LPC Interface controller
8086:2850 Intel Corporation Mobile IDE Controller
8086:2829 Intel Corporation Mobile SATA AHCI Controller
8086:283e Intel Corporation Mobile Intergrated Graphics controller

the bold ones are those which show me the pci ports but how can I know which is which?

Last Question. Can this thing work with os X (the Macintosh OS)? Is there someone who tried it, even on a Macbook pro?
Thanks for your patience, I 'm waiting your answer to make my order.

I played around with another mini-pcie Atheros card after posting and I saw that when I have both cards I had this:

8086:2a00 Intel Corporation Mobile Memory Controller Hub
8086:2a02 Intel Corporation Mobile Intergrated Graphics Controller
8086:284b Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) HD Audio Controller
8086:283f Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 1
8086:2841 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 2
11ab:4363 Marvell Techno... 88E8055 PCI-E Gigabit Ehternet Controller
8086:2843 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 3
14e4:4311 Broadcom Corp... BCM94311MCG wlan mini-PCI
8086:2845 Intel corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 4
167c:001c Atheros Comm... AR5006EG 802.11 b/g Wireless PCI Express Adapter
8086:2830 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2831 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2832 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2834 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2835 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2836 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:283a Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2448 Intel Corporation 82801 Mobile PCI Bridge
8086:2815 Intel Corporation Mobile LPC Interface controller
8086:2850 Intel Corporation Mobile IDE Controller
8086:2829 Intel Corporation Mobile SATA AHCI Controller
8086:283e Intel Corporation Mobile Intergrated Graphics controller

when i had only the Atheros (on the 3G slot):
8086:2a00 Intel Corporation Mobile Memory Controller Hub
8086:2a02 Intel Corporation Mobile Intergrated Graphics Controller
8086:284b Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) HD Audio Controller
8086:283f Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 1
8086:2841 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 2
11ab:4363 Marvell Techno... 88E8055 PCI-E Gigabit Ehternet Controller
8086:2845 Intel corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 4
167c:001c Atheros Comm... AR5006EG 802.11 b/g Wireless PCI Express Adapter
8086:2830 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2831 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2832 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2834 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2835 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2836 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:283a Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2448 Intel Corporation 82801 Mobile PCI Bridge
8086:2815 Intel Corporation Mobile LPC Interface controller
8086:2850 Intel Corporation Mobile IDE Controller
8086:2829 Intel Corporation Mobile SATA AHCI Controller
8086:283e Intel Corporation Mobile Intergrated Graphics controller

and when I had neither:
8086:2a00 Intel Corporation Mobile Memory Controller Hub
8086:2a02 Intel Corporation Mobile Intergrated Graphics Controller
8086:284b Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) HD Audio Controller
8086:283f Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 1
8086:2841 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 2
11ab:4363 Marvell Techno... 88E8055 PCI-E Gigabit Ehternet Controller
8086:2830 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2831 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2832 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2834 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2835 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2836 Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:283a Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller
8086:2448 Intel Corporation 82801 Mobile PCI Bridge
8086:2815 Intel Corporation Mobile LPC Interface controller
8086:2850 Intel Corporation Mobile IDE Controller
8086:2829 Intel Corporation Mobile SATA AHCI Controller
8086:283e Intel Corporation Mobile Intergrated Graphics controller

looked like this
That probably means that my WLAN is pci express port 3 and my 3G slot is pci express port 4.
Maybe my express card is pci express port 1? does that mean that i can not use the x2 function?
Does x2 function works for port 1 and port 4?

 

x2 only works with port 1 and port 2.
x4 works if you have 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Looks like you wont get x2. But you might be able to run 2 GPUs in SLI.

I did remember that I posted a link a while ago about somebody trying it on a mac. Here it is again:
http://maximumoverclock.com/?p=4

The important info on that page is the post that Joseph made:

 

Agree with MH's analysis.

If GPU performance is highest priority, suggest monitor this thread for PM55 chipset results which Cirix may post soon. If it's truly an expresscard 2.0 interface then will get some stellar results. A good reason to sell up and update to new tech. A docked gaming/3d performance system + portability on the road

 

Thanks a lot guys...
I was disappointed a little with the incapability of having x2 but at least there is the bright side. Less Money.
I understand that it's most likely impossible to "unplug" my ethernet (although I barely use it and i could use a usb one).
I may try later this SLi thing because I don't know a lot on the subject. Don't you have to have some motherboard support?
I think for a starter a PE4L EC2C would be enough. Do you agree? I 'm not thinking of changing a laptop yet.
(4870 with 512MB or 1GB? which better? (64-bit OS)
Thanks again for your interest

 

First of all I gotta say awesome work to all those involved. This is such a great little diy project. Kudos to you all

I've gone through the whole thread and I think I've got the whole concept clear in my head, but I just want to double check a couple of things.

I've got an ASUS F3SC with the ICH8.

I originally was looking for a RAID solution (deperately need a setup for Photoshop scratch and I don't really want to buy another computer) and came up with the idea of :

mini pcie to pcie adapter -> pcie raid controller+ psu + enclosure + hdds


But instead of the hwtools version the one I came across first was this :

http://www.adexelec.com/pciexp.htm#PEMINI2X1

But from what I understand, the ICH8 should have enough mpcie slots to do both the raid thing AND a diy vidock?

Everest chipset info :

PCI Express Controller:
PCI-E x1 port #1 In Use @ x1 (Attansic L1 Gigabit Ethernet Adapter)
PCI-E x1 port #2 In Use @ x1 (Intel 4965AGN PRO/Wireless Network Adapter)
PCI-E x1 port #3 Empty
PCI-E x1 port #5 Empty
PCI-E x1 port #6 Empty


Now - a) I don't think i have ever used the ethernet adapter since I got this computer so that can come out.

and b) Wireless adapter I can live with replacing with a USB dongle or since this model sometimes comes with a tv tuner installed (mine has the antenna plug but no card) either move wireless to another slot and hope it works, and if it doesn't because it's only wired for usb.. could a wireless usb dongle be disassembled modded and connected to a usb only mini pcie slot? Or wired internally to the usb bus?

I don't have any expresscards to test which mpcie slot it's connected to (guessing 3 maybe?)

Why doesn't any slot #4 show in the list in everest?

Any reason I couldn't set up a x2 vidock + an x1 RAID?

So my "dock" could be a x2 vidock + RAID enclosure

So cost of shared enclosure,psu etc isn't so bad if it's combined RAID/vidock. Especially when a half decent RAID enclosure would probably cost more than this....

Could probably pick up an old server's SCSI RAID controller and a couple of 15k SCSI disks cheap on ebay.


Also don't know if it's of interest, but I came across these :

MP0151 - "Magic Cable"
http://www.mpitta.com/index_files/EMComponents.htm
A expresscard to pcie cable up to FIVE metres!

Don't know how much they cost, waiting to hear back from them.

They also make a vidock kind of thing a bit like the magma one, still expensive, but not quite as crazy expensive as the magma one :
http://www.mpitta.com/index_files/ViExpressBox1.htm

 

PE4L is the budget option that can do what you want. Only critique I've seen posted here was it's USB connector obstructed installation of a HD5xxx card due to the large plastic cover over it. Could always mod the USB connector.

HD4870 and HD5770 benchmark on par. The latter with the 128bit bus (versus 256 for HD4870), but adds DX11 support and has significantly lower power consumption. Either would be great.. though if you have a flexible reseller willing to work with you, would even suggest a GTX260/GTX275 trial implementation. We have little performance data on the higher end nvidia cards other than an RE5 bench which shows a GTX260 to be equivalent to a HD5770 in the experiences thread.

Google tells me you have an expresscard slot + 2 mPCIe slots. Worth swapping the wifi into the other mPCIe port see if it appears to confirm it has pci-e pins connected. Your Ethernet Adapter is likely onboard, so can't readily remove it to allow use of port one for a x2 setup (uses port1+port2).

Certainly could try to put USB wifi internally tapping off another USB's D+/D- signal and 5V/GND, or even the mPCIe ports USB pins if they are connected. Only two issue I see are:

(i) USB wifi sucks power, so unless you put a kill switch or have some way of software disabling it, it would have a negative effect on your battery life.
(ii) would it have decent signal strength when within proximity of working devices on the systemboard??

Certainly am curious if you try the USB wifi mod

Software Raid using the dormant ICH8M sata ports

If you are a hardcore modder, you may be interested to know you have (2) additional sata ports laying dormant on your ICH8M I/O chip which just requires 8 wires to access the TX/RX lines and the ports to be enabled using baredit and/or grub2 bootloader. The VIAs might be there already. See here for some ideas on how to investigate that possibility.

 

Thanks Nando, I'll have a look see if the ethernet is hardwired and try sticking the wifi in the other mpcie port and see what happens.

Re the internal usb wifi... what I was thinking was using a dongle that has an antenna connector, remove casing, wrap in an insulating material and run cable to edge of case.. eg my unused tv antenna connection and use a standard wifi antenna (if necessary). This laptop has an existing switch for turning off wifi... could probably re wire that as a kill switch...

Extra SATA port mod would be nice... but I need this computer for work and can't risk anything too hardcore like that. Would be very nice to have those extra ports though.

Got a response re magic cable.. Offer a dev kit:
* 5 Magic Cable Assemblies
* Magic Cable Schematic
* Power PCB file for receiving PCB
* Gerber file for receiving PCB
* Technical drawings

Didn't give me a price per cable but kit is US$400. Probably works out more expensive than the PE4H doing it this way, but you'd get a longer cable and possibly a nicer looking end result.

 

Who has a kill-a-watt or a multimeter? Measure your videocard's power consumpton (don't stick that multimeter anywhere near your card if you don't know what to with it)... I'm curious

 

I measured my ATI 5770 with a kill-a-watt meter and it averaged ~90 watts when gaming, ~118 watts max, ~26 watts idle.

On another note, I am selling my PE4H, EC2C and PM3N with the 100cm mimi hdmi cable. Send me a pm if your interested (preferably in the US) and I will get back to you with a good price, my old desktop motherboard died and I ended up building a new desktop around the 5770 so I no longer need my laptop to game...

 

Whats up guys, I haven't purchased the PE4H as of yet but I will do so very soon, just wanted to re-cap the basic necessities so I have all my ducks in a row:

1) PE4H component (includes mini-hdmi cable)
2) Any PCIe gfx compatible card
3) 350-watt, 12v PSU
4) HDMI cable (or DVI-HDMI) from gfx card to external display

Any sort of special software (besides the basic drivers for the gpu) that I'd be needing for compatibility issues?

I assume once the card is detected you'd just select it in display options in Windows, correct?

thanks guys..happy new year!

btw, specs of laptop are 2.26ghz 4 gb ram, w/ expresscard /34 port, running win7 x64.

 

More than likely you'll need the DIY VIDock USB Bootdisk with PCI Config script to overcome error 12: cannot find resources. See DIY ViDock - My experiences so far.

 

All the connectors are included with the PE4H, so all you need is a PCI-E GPU, and a ATX, or normal Laptop power supply, make sure that the Wattages are in excess of what your GPU is rated at under maximum load. Windows 7 took care of everything for me.

On another note, I sent HWTools a message through their [email protected] E-Mail, haven't received a reply, and it's already been a week...so much for "guaranteed 48-hour response". Should I use another E-Mail or something ([email protected], etc.)?

 

That also happened to me. I sent the email when this thread was first started and I never received a reply.

 

Just got back from testing with my friends 9800 GTX+...No dice. It seems that power is being cut to half or something the moment I connect the adapter to my computer. The 9800's fan speed slows to half, although I do not know if this is normal (If the drivers were installed, then I wouldn't worry, but no drivers were installed at all and the fan speed slows). This is when I plug it in with Windows 7 running. If I try to plug it when I set the computer to sleep, the computer stops responding and reboots by itself after I pull the adapter out. If I plug it in before booting, it seems like it is trying to output video through the card, but nothing shows on the screen.

However, if I use my 2400 XT, I am able to do everything correctly, boot with it, put it in when resuming from sleep, and hot-plugging it, all 3 under both Vista and 7. The only problem being that it my computer crashes after 5 minutes of Gaming (I can't tell if the card goes first or the computer, but the card's fan slows considerably after the crash).

Any ideas? HWTools hasn't been really good about returning E-Mails, and I want to either get a refund or replacement.

 

Hi all,

I'm very curious about this method of gaming.
I don't have ExpressCard slot on my HPQ 8710p so I must use the PM3N method with the PE4H. Will the PCIe 1x rate capable to send enough data to the VGA card? Which is the fastest card that makes sense to run with this setup? Can I go for a 5770 and it will be faster then a 4670?

regards,

papsza

 

Yes, but it will me almost a negligible difference, as there is just not enough bandwith to deal with the extra capabilities of the card.

 

8710P mPCIe slot is whitelisted

Your 8710P has the additional headache of a whitelisted mPCIe slot, which would normally mean tedious insertion of the wifi card, booting then swapping in the PM3N after *every* reboot. This was overcome on a 2510P with the same whitelisting with a custom whitelst.bat (see DIY ViDock USB Bootdisk). Suggest modify whitelst.bat, boot without wifi card installed, insert wifi card, run whitelst.bat, followed by 'lspci' to see if the wifi is shown. If so, you've overcome the whitelisting and can use your whitelst.bat to prevent the swapping in/out of the wifi/PM3N.

HD5770 versus HD4670 versus others

A HD5770 is definitely faster than a HD4670 as shown in the experiences thread, but requires a 150W PSU when a HD4670 can run off a < 75W 12V adapter. A HD5750 (Green Edition) a good high performance option without needing a PSU. A HD4870 benchmarks faster than a HD5770, at lower comparative cost but needs a beefier PSU. Not clear how a GTX260 performs at x1 1.0, though we have a single RE5 benchmark result in the experiences thread showing very fast performance in some scenes and quite slow in scene 3.

 

Thank you for your help!

Currently I can pump out 6650 3DMark score at 1280x800 resolution of my 8710p. The NVS320M was born for tuning.

So I would need a much faster card, at least 5770, 4870, 5850. I see results of 10k with the 5770 very promissing! I have a PC-Card slot but no ExpressCard slot. There are available converters what would enable me to put the expresscard (EC2C) into PC-Card slot. However all these converters work over USB 2.0 so this would cripple the bandwidth down to the USB standard from the PCIe what what would kill the whole project I'm afraid.

So my only chance is the PM3N to PE4H solution.
Even if the whitelist thing wouldn't work I can plug the wireless card into the PCIe slot of the PE4H for boot and then swap it to the VGA so I wouldn't need to struggle with the PM3N. Do you think this idea is a possible solution to avoid PM3N<-->Wireless swapping?

Edit:
I have an another idea as well. To get a HP docking station with an expresscard slot
Only if those are not USB 2.0 based docking stations...

Reagrding the PSU issue. I have a 180W original HP PSU for my HP 8710p. Will this overcome the need of an additional PSU?

regards,

Tamas

 

10chars (delete)

 

your wifi card is mPCIe. PE4H is PCIe. Completely different.

whitelst.bat should take about 5mins to setup and provide an easy workaround. You'd need to use the DIY ViDock USB Bootdisk anyway to overcome the error 12:not enough resources, so whitelst.bat is just added to start prior to the other batch files. Integrates nicely.

HD5xxx cards will work with a 180W PSU.
HD4870 needs 187W so no go, but HD4850 would work.

See The Truth About Graphics Power Requirements V2, See how many watts you really need

 

Alright, thank you again.

I have just checked the prices. I feel too much risk to buy an expensinve 5850 (200GBP) due to my limited bandwidth so I will go for an 5770 (100GBP).

Shall I install Win7 or stay with XP? Do you think I will encounter issues during ati driver install or my windows will see the PCIe card right away?

I'm a linux guy by the way so the Grub method of the whitelisting should not cause a real issue to me (I hope). My only concern is I will need to buy an PCMCIA wireless card as well due to have to use wireless. Unexpected expenses...

regards,

 

Just wondering about the necessary bandwith thing.
Do we know what are the real bandwidth requirements for the new PCIe cards?

As far as I know the PCIe x1 standard is talking about 2.5Gbps -> around 2500Mbps -> 250MB/sec. For me this sounds like pretty much.

Do the nowadays cards really consume much more bandwidth?

 

yes.

To get the full power out of a card you need it running at around x4 or x8.
Which you can possibly do with the DIY vidock (if your chipset supports PCI2.0).

 

Just to point out, thats Gigabits, not bytes. So divide 250 by 8 to get the speed in megabytes.

And if you are only going with the x1 solution, save some money and get the PE4L instead (Unless if you are using 2 PM3Ns).

 

Usually that's correct, but PCI express encodes each byte of payload data as a 10 bit symbol. In other words, a 2.5 Gbit/s raw data rate = 250 Mbyte/s of payload data. To avoid confusion you may instead call the raw data rate 2.5 GT/s (gigatransfers per second). [ Source]

 

Sorry, my bad.

Any ideas of how to get a RMA or replacement from HWTools?

 

Hi guys, excuse my ignorance if what I'm saying is totally incorrect or what not, but since USB 3.0 will have comparable speeds w/ pci express is it possible to utilize this technology somehow to help in this project?

 

USB 3.0 framegrabbers could be useful to redirect video back to the LCD.
USB 3.0 systems likely having expresscard 2.0. Double the bandwidth, so will deliver x1 2.0 performance. Eg: i7 desktop cpu + HD5870 at x1 2.0 delivered ~22k 3dmark06.

 

USB 3.0 is part of the the Expresscard 2.0 specification.

 

i found this on the subject of GPU scaling. thought i would add it on.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pci-express-scaling-analysis,1572-8.html

 

anyone here selling pe4L or H? I mean no longer needs so selling? the P&H and price at hwtools is quite horrid

 

Hi,

Just got confused again with the external PSU thing. Will the cable from the PN3M to the PE4L transport power as well or not? Do I need to feed the PE4L with power separately or it can have the power from the mPCIe port via the cable?? I have a 180W
PSU for my laptop and it is plugged in into the laptop so I can't feed the PE4L separately.

Shall I install Win7 or stay with XP? Do you think I will encounter issues during ati driver install or my windows will see the PCIe card right away?