System specs
-MacBook Pro 15 inch 2018, i9-8950HK 6-core, 32GB Ram, 1TB SSD
-iGpu Intel UHD Graphics 630
-dGpu AMD Radeon Pro Vega 20
-External Monitor AOC 1080P 27 Inch
-AMD XConnect working for internal monitor acceleration
-Mac OSX 10.14.2
-Windows 10 Build 1809 Bootcamp
eGPU hardware
PowerColor Gaming Station
Asus Strix Vega 64
Hardware pictures
Installation steps
MacOSX:
Plug and Play
Windows (Recommended Windows 10 Build 1809)
- Install BootCamp through Mojave
- Boot into BootCamp (without eGPU plugged in) and install BootCamp drivers, restart
- Install all Windows 10 updates, restarting each time
- After everything is installed and up to date, plug in eGPU and restart until you get display on the external monitor
- Internal monitor will be black at first, then will turn on
Benchmark
- I'm having some issues getting AIDA64 to finish the benchmark, so I will post some benchmarks later
Comments
- I can't get AMD Radeon Settings to install updated drivers for the Vega 64 (it says no AMD card detected), so I will try installing the drivers manually.
Comments (eg: how has the eGPU improved your workflow or gaming)
Thank you for sharing this nice build! Are you using the Apple provided Boot Camp drivers or the modified Radeon drivers from Bootcampdrivers.com?
I am using the provided Boot Camp drivers, as installing modified Radeon drivers broke my bluetooth connection.
So I figured out how to install updated drivers for the Vega 64:
- Download newest drivers from AMD Website
- Extract the exe with 7zip
- Go into Device Manager, select the Vega, and click updated driver
- Select "Have Disk" and direct it into the folder that contains the setup for Video Driver
- It will restart a few times, screen will screw up, etc but it will update
Game performance improved MASSIVELY. Without updated drivers, I was getting random fps drops in GTA V, now it is locked at 60 max settings with VSync on.
Does that same Radeon driver work for the Vega 20 dGPU? How long do you wait until the internal come back on?
Since I just installed the 19.1.1 Drivers for Vega 64 only (through device manager), the Vega 20 GPU drivers don't seem to have been updated. The internal display comes on immediately if I boot without eGPU plugged in, and to get Vega 64 working again I have to hotplug and start the restart sequence again.
Thank you for the additional details. Does the Vega 20 dGPU actually work for internal display eGPU acceleration through Windows Graphics option?
Only when the eGPU is not plugged in. When the eGPU is plugged in the Vega 20 is completely disabled (device manager shows that the device could not be started) and AMD xConnect is being used to power the internal display. This can be seen through both Device Manager, and the Task Manager (only GPU that shows is Vega 64). I have not tried eGPU and only internal display yet, with no external connected.
Only when the eGPU is not plugged in. When the eGPU is plugged in the Vega 20 is completely disabled (device manager shows that the device could not be started) and AMD xConnect is being used to power the internal display. This can be seen through both Device Manager, and the Task Manager (only GPU that shows is Vega 64). I have not tried eGPU and only internal display yet, with no external connected.
This is (unfortunately) a standard issue all MacBooks with AMD dGPU share: The AMD dGPU can't be used with an AMD eGPU in Bootcamp. It's almost a completely showstopper for Windows users. Acceleration on the internal display on this particular MacBook model (15-inch 2018) is not possible at all.
This is (unfortunately) a standard issue all MacBooks with AMD dGPU share: The AMD dGPU can't be used with an AMD eGPU in Bootcamp. It's almost a completely showstopper for Windows users. Acceleration on the internal display on this particular MacBook model (15-inch 2018) is not possible at all.
@oliverb we have found a way: https://egpu.io/forums/builds/mid-2018-15-macbook-pro-touchbar-radeon-vii32gbps-tb3-razer-core-macos-10-14-4-win10-1809-itsage/#post-55076
This is (unfortunately) a standard issue all MacBooks with AMD dGPU share: The AMD dGPU can't be used with an AMD eGPU in Bootcamp. It's almost a completely showstopper for Windows users. Acceleration on the internal display on this particular MacBook model (15-inch 2018) is not possible at all.
@oliverb we have found a way: https://egpu.io/forums/builds/mid-2018-15-macbook-pro-touchbar-radeon-vii32gbps-tb3-razer-core-macos-10-14-4-win10-1809-itsage/#post-55076
Oh, fantastic!... my last information was that the procedure was not practicable. I will test it with my dGPU Radeon Pro 560x and eGPU Radeon RX 580.
What works for two, should work for three, too.
Only I had to uninstall both AMD eGPUs before rebooting, if not, the internal screen goes black. Is there any way that this step is not necessary?
Credit goes to @chris_moran and his build guide that details the effort he went through to produce fully functional internal display with AMD eGPU. I read it carefully and realized Windows has a slight delay when initializing a "new" graphics card connection during the booting process. This 1-2 second timeframe allows the internal display of 2018 15" MacBook Pro to come on. That's why we need to manually uninstall the AMD eGPU/s prior to next boot so that Windows will again produce this slight delay.
A program that automatically uninstalls the AMD eGPUs when shutting down, could be very helpful.
Is there any hint/idea why the interal screen goes black in the first hand?
@oliverb am already working on that program. Will take time since I'm completely unfamiliar with Batch.
@oliverb am already working on that program. Will take time since I'm completely unfamiliar with Batch.
This is not easy, I am coming from the Unix/Linux world, too...":" replace ";" and vice versa.. hmmm.
Given @chris_moran's work on that build guide, I presume using PowerShell he could do this in an hour or two :p