Hello folks, it's about time I make a post about my setup.
- Original equipment
- Toshiba Satellite (L850)
- Core i7-3630QM
- 8GB RAM
- dGPU Radeon 7670m
- Win 10 Pro 64-bit
- Add-ons
- MSI Gtx 960 Gaming G2 (100€)
- EXP GDC 8.4d (35$ on Aliexpress)
- Dell DA-2 (8€ on ebay + 4€ shipping)
I had this setup since a few weeks and it's been woring quite well. The setup was basically plug and play. The card got recognized immediately and all I had to do was to install the latest Nvidia drivers.
I had also flashed a modified Bios prior to that, but I think It would work even without it.
The only pain in the ass was the access to the mPcie port which is on de underside of the laptop and there is no way to access it without opening the case. I had to make a cutout on the case bottom and make a small door to close it while not in use.
To make up for the lost wifi card, I internally soldered a small usb hub and an Alfa network adapter with an external antenna plug between the DC in and a usb port. That way I have 2 aditional internal USB 3.0 ports and all external ports working.
So...for the card. I tried the 960, 970 an 980. All from MSI and settled for the 960 as overclocked gives me almost close results to the 970. The 970 was crashing under heavy load on the DA-2 so I had to underclock it. On a serious PSU, the 970 and 980 outperformed the 960 by light years, but I opted for a more simple setup with the DA-2.
AMD cards don't work well with the AMD dGpu --> driver conflicts.
Back to the 960...It runs stable on 1x 2.0 speeds. No hiccups at all. I also had a PE4C 3.0, but opted for the unsoldered BEAST, since it gave me the same performance.
Benchmark:
The mpcie cutout:
Very nice setup. I love the cut-out for the cable. Very clean!
Want to output 4K@60Hz out of an old system on the cheap? Read here.
Give your Node Pro a second Thunderbolt3 controller for reliable peripherals by re-using a TB3 dock (~50$).
"Always listen to experts. They'll tell you what can't be done, and why. Then do it."- Robert A. Heinlein, "Time Enough for Love."
2020 14" Lenovo ThinkBook Yoga 14s [11th,4C,G] + GTX 1080 Ti @ 32Gbps-TB4 (AKiTiO Node Pro) + Win10 20H2 [build link]
It was too lazy to open the case and make a clean cut, but I knew where approximately the slot is and just went on with a fine point soldering iron. It was done in a few minutes. And the cover was made from a dvd case .
When I'll have some time, I'll tidy it up and do some other mods. One of them is a dvi input. But fitting the new control board is a mess and there is still a lot of testing to be done.
Hey,
Thinking about doing a similar setup.
Could someone explain me the difference between the Bandwidth (which in your case is 112.2 Gb/s) and the EXP GDC 8.4d connection (which can only handle 4Gb/s). Would it mean it is not worth, or it is not related at all?
Thank you in advance.
To do: Create my signature with system and expected eGPU configuration information to give context to my posts. I have no builds.
.
@mneto, bandwidth comparison of mPCIe2 versus higher bandwidth eGPU solutions and even a desktop x16 2.0 interface is at https://egpu.io/external-gpu-implementations-table/#perf .
Narrow mPCIe/EC links aer best used with an external LCD to maximise bandwidth for GPU traffic. Quite a few users pleased with the performance but just be aware that any heavily bandwidth dependent game will choke on these narrow links.
If you are looking for near-desktop performance on a budget then the closest solution is a x4 3.0 M.2 interface. As was used on a budget Dell Inspiron:
https://egpu.io/forums/builds/2017-15-dell-inspiron-7567-gtx980ti32gbps-m2-adt-r43sl-win10-hunew/
eGPU Setup 1.35 • eGPU Port Bandwidth Reference Table
2015 15" Dell Precision 7510 (Q M1000M) [6th,4C,H] + GTX 1080 Ti @32Gbps-M.2 (ADT-Link R43SG) + Win10 1803 // compares M.2 vs TB3 performance inc unoptimized H-CPU BIOS [build link]
Have you had whitelist issues? Im thinking about making a similar setup with a p55w but im not sure if its going to work
Thats lucky
I tried with different wifi cards and some weren't recognized, so I flashed a modded bios just to avoid any problems. After that the thing was plug and play. No issues whatsoever.
When this setup was put together the 960 still held its ground at 1080 and the 970/80 didn't offer the expected boost to justify the price difference. But now, with the latest titles the 960 just isn't enough anymore.
I have upgraded to a MSI 980 4gb now. The link speed is still a limiting factor, but with the titles I play now it works better than expected.
Hey Erikp-9, really like your post have a similar module of laptop so I'm following your work.
You changed the GPU to a MSI 980 4gb, but did you keep on using the DA-2?
To do: Create my signature with system and expected eGPU configuration information to give context to my posts. I have no builds.
.Yes the power supply is still the Dell one. Had to underclock the card just a little, because it crashed at full load with some games.
Unfortunately it didnt work with me... looks like my bios doesnt boot when I connect the GPU...
I have a toshiba satellite C855D, I guess the problem is I didnt flash a modiffied/unlocked bios
How did you unlock your bios?
To do: Create my signature with system and expected eGPU configuration information to give context to my posts. I have no builds.
.