late-2016 13" Macbook Po + RX470@32Gbps-TB3 (AKiTiO Thunder2 via TB2 to TB2 adapter) + macOS10.12.2BETA [theitsage]^  

There is someone over at /r/egpu claiming that he has the Razer Core working (I think that is windows only, though, due to the mention of Bootcamp), including internal display rendering. Not sure what to make of that, and I hope he posts the promised update/guide.

Nice work! Does the Akitio Thunder3 works on bootcamp?

Here's the key for internal screen acceleration on Windows 10 (Boot Camp):

https://github.com/0xbb/apple_set_os.efi

@goalque that's awesome! We'd love to see your how-to. Which Thunderbolt enclosure are you using?

Might work by installing rEFInd and uncommenting spoof_osx_version config line, or alternatively as I did in EFI Shell:

1) Download apple_set_os.efi

2) Download EFI Dev Kit:  https://sourceforge.net/projects/efidevkit/files/latest/download

3) Format an USB stick in OS X Disk Utility (Choose Erase, Format: MS-DOS (FAT), Scheme: Master Boot Record)

4) Copy apple_set_os.efi to the root directory

5) Create a folder structure in Finder as follows: EFI/Boot/bootx64.efi

where bootx64.efi is the renamed Shell_Full.efi file from /Edk/Other/Maintained/Application/UefiShell/bin/x64/folder

6) Plug the USB stick into the USB-C to USB adapter, and connect it to your Mac (TB3 port closest to the esc key)

7) Connect the AMD eGPU

8) Turn on your Mac and hold the Option key down

9) Select "EFI Boot" with the enter key

10) Change file system to USB “fs2:”

11) Type “apple_set_os.efi”

12) Change file system to Windows partition “fs0:”

13) cd EFI\Boot

14) bootx64.efi

15) Wait for the “whoosh” sound!

Should work with the Apple TB3-TB2 adapter and Windows 10 built-in AMD drivers. Not sure if Node or Core are workable.

I have a variety of TB enclosures 🙂

I'll give this how-to a try this weekend and report back. Thank you!

I have mid-2012 Retina MBP with Nvidia GT650M 1GB

 goalque  - can i use the internal display with the steps you post here?

I want somehow to run via my internal display, i want to play on my retina display!

my rMBP 15':

• 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor (Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz) with 6MB shared L3 cache
• 16GB 1600MHz DDR3L
• 256GB SSD
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of GDDR5

Its still beast with GTX 1080, but i want to play games on my internal RETINA display somehow?

Is this is posible!

I want to do this on Windows 10 via bootcamp or external SSD with windows....

can i use - gpu-switch by 0xbb (to set Intel HD Graphics 4000 graphic as the display's main driver) i only found that ?

Acceleration with RX 480? Is it already working with 10.12.2?

Posted by: enjoy

 

I have mid-2012 Retina MBP with Nvidia GT650M 1GB

 goalque  - can i use the internal display with the steps you post here?

I want somehow to run via my internal display, i want to play on my retina display!

my rMBP 15':

• 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor (Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz) with 6MB shared L3 cache
• 16GB 1600MHz DDR3L
• 256GB SSD
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of GDDR5

Its still beast with GTX 1080, but i want to play games on my internal RETINA display somehow?

Is this is posible!

I want to do this on Windows 10 via bootcamp or external SSD with windows....

 

Unfortunately no reports of activating the HD4000 to drive the internal LCD of a GT650M MBP. Next closest option is to buy of build a HDMI/DVI/VGA dummy plug to give a fake LCD  https://egpu.io/forums/mac-setup/turn-your-macbook-pro-to-a-gaming-laptop-with-akitio-thunder2/#post-132

Then can use management software to start ** windowed ** games on the fake LCD and drag them to your GT650M-driven internal LCD.

Posted by: goalque

 

Might work by installing rEFInd and uncommenting spoof_osx_version config line, or alternatively as I did in EFI Shell:

1) Download apple_set_os.efi

2) Download EFI Dev Kit:  https://sourceforge.net/projects/efidevkit/files/latest/downloa   

will this guide work with nvidia graphics cards.

Is AKITiO charging Macbook through TB3?

Posted by: GuideOfGalaxy

 

Posted by: goalque

 

Might work by installing rEFInd and uncommenting spoof_osx_version config line, or alternatively as I did in EFI Shell:

1) Download apple_set_os.efi

2) Download EFI Dev Kit:  https://sourceforge.net/projects/efidevkit/files/latest/downloa   

will this guide work with nvidia graphics cards.

   

No. I know how:

RX 480: http://www.3dmark.com/3dm11/11748177

GTX 980: http://www.3dmark.com/3dm11/11751133

The EFI app can automate this. The development of the script project has been halted due to thread hijack on TI forum.

EDIT:

It appears that Windows 10 updates has an effect. The above procedure might work with Nvidia cards as well.

Posted by: HWfreak

 

Is AKITiO charging Macbook through TB3?

No it doesn't provide enough power to charge the MacBook Pro. It does make that charging sound when I plug the Thunderbolt 3 cable into the laptop. I'm seeing about 15W through the connection which is right about the rate of power consumption. In the several hours I've used the laptop connected to my AKiTiO Thunder3 + RX 470 eGPU, the battery percentage has stayed at mostly the same level of charge.

Tomorrow I will receive my MacBook Pro 13" 2016 and next week Thunder3! I will add my test to this thread.

I plan to build an eGPU with RX480

How did you get rid of the error code 12 in bootcamp?

Dsdt-Override alone doesn't seem to work and setup1.3 does not work with forced gpt of 2016-macbook? 

I have not spent a lot of time in Windows 10 on this 2016 MBP yet. My focus atm is on making it work in macOS. I've read several reports that error 12 was fixed either through DSDT Override or by Goalque's instructions in post 49.

Which eGPU setup and MacBook Pro are you working with?

Using the new macbook pro 13 late 2016 with touchbar and akitio2 (thunderbolt 3 adapter) with RX470. Override hasn't fixed it for me, sadly. I haven't tried goalques steps yet but doing it this weekend!

Sadly hasn't fixed it at all... Windows is not booting with the egpu plugged in, i still have to plug it in right after the Windows-logo. In the end error code 12... Feeling really strange that mac os works like a charm and windows does not, usually it is the other way around with egpu?! 😀

@hblockx, I'm sorry to hear that. Seems to mimic 2015 13" MBP's boot behaviour. I've the non-touch bar version of the 2016 13" MBP.

Is there a fix for this? Otherwise i need to build a desktop :'D

Actually the problem is not the boot (i can plug it in later) but then i face the code 12. Is it better @windows with nvidia? Then i am going to buy a 1070... (but i prefer the RX470 because of mac os drivers)

I have been interested in eGPU's since 2013. Since I got a 2016 15" MacBook Pro, I wanted to build one myself. But I have a few questions I hope you guys can answer. My use case for an eGPU is to connect me triple monitor setup with only one cable. I only plan to use it on macOS, but if it works on Windows, that's a bonus.

Are there any downsides or instabilities I should know about? If I run goalque's script, does everything work? That means just plugging in the eGPU and then booting?

Thanks in advance!

EDIT: I'd also like to say I'm a programmer, so I don't mind fiddling a bit around if that makes the setup more stable.

Hi! Welcome!

You are adventuring in a dark place, even if there is a lot of experienced users you must consider that you could have issues.

My first eGPU based on Thunder2 was super stable and fast, but i had a Mac mini which is the perfect machine for eGPU imho since there is always a display connected.

For example you can't let your machine sleep. you must reboot when you plug eGPU (for now) and few apps use eGPU on internal screen (Metal and OpenCL) if you want always one acceleration you should have an external display.

Also the entire community was waiting for 10.12.2 released few days ago and a new script form goalque (not yet released). follow these pages and very soon you will know if it is a viable option for you.

Posted by: ikir

 

Hi! Welcome!

You are adventuring in a dark place, even if there is a lot of experienced users you must consider that you could have issues.

My first eGPU based on Thunder2 was super stable and fast, but i had a Mac mini which is the perfect machine for eGPU imho since there is always a display connected.

For example you can't let your machine sleep. you must reboot when you plug eGPU (for now) and few apps use eGPU on internal screen (Metal and OpenCL) if you want always one acceleration you should have an external display.

Also the entire community was waiting for 10.12.2 released few days ago and a new script form goalque (not yet released). follow these pages and very soon you will know if it is a viable option for you.

   

Thanks for your answers! I only want to use the eGPU when I'm at my desk, this means it isn't a problem that it only works on external monitors. Is there any other problem I should know about except for rebooting and not being able to sleep the laptop?  I also  read somewhere that the chance of successfully booting without problems is only 50/50. Is that only on Windows or also on macOS? 

On a sidenote, why does sleep not work with an eGPU? Just curious.

@ViDtje the best option atm is to build yourself a Thunderbolt 2 enclosure. It has very little difference in performance vs. Thunderbolt 3 enclosures. It's more affordable and proven.

If your plan only involves macOS and external display, I'd recommend getting these parts for your eGPU build: Radeon RX 460 + AKiTiO Thunder2 + Dell DA-2 + custom/pre-made power cable.

Once you hook everything up, goalque's script is all you need to make it work.

@hblockx You'll have a harder time using an AMD eGPU. I've tried both GTX 960 and GTX 980 and they were much easier to get going.

Posted by: hblockx

Is there a fix for this? Otherwise i need to build a desktop :'D

Actually the problem is not the boot (i can plug it in later) but then i face the code 12. Is it better @windows with nvidia? Then i am going to buy a 1070... (but i prefer the RX470 because of mac os drivers)

@ theitsage, you mean a Thunder3? ViDtje had a 2016 MBP with a TB3 port. A Thunder2 would require an additional TB2<->TB3 and give half the bandwidth.

Besides, a AKiTiO Thunder3 is US$249 on Amazon-US and bhphotovideo. Good price.

@Nando4 you're right. Sorry I left out the TB3<-->TB2 adapter. I understand there's loss of bandwidth but to make Thunderbolt 3 eGPU work in macOS is not possible atm.

I got the Node last night at 10:30pm and initial testing is not favorable. I will check into it more this weekend before doing a full review of it.

Intel is really keeping a tight leash on certification and licensing on Thunderbolt 3 eco-system. My Dell XPS 13 9350 works flawlessly (plug and play) with the Thunder3 enclosure. Suddenly it's not supporting external graphic card with the Node. This explains why Apple laptop would only connect to Thunderbolt 3 enclosure with TI TPS65983 USB-C controller.

I actually plan on waiting until after CES, just in case some manufacturer makes an enclosure with macOS certification. I also saw that AMD GPU's have better driver support in macOS. The only downside is, since I'm in Europe, I haven't found any resellers of any eGPU enclosure.

Either way, thanks a lot for answering my questions!

But before there were more problems regarding stability and so on, right? Now it is stable but i cannot get rid of error 12. I think it is somehow my fault but i do not know what i should try next... The macOS support is just amazing on that card 😀

 

Posted by: theitsage

 

@hblockx You'll have a harder time using an AMD eGPU. I've tried both GTX 960 and GTX 980 and they were much easier to get going.   

 

Great job on getting your eGPU to work!

I got mine to work... sort of.

My setup is:

2016 13" MBP with Touchbar

Sonnet III-D with Apple's TB3->TB2 adapter 

GTX Titan X Maxwell

OS X 10.12.2

Everything works well, I know I was getting acceleration sometimes as I noticed performance increases in certain games.

However, while my eGPU is plugged in 4k (and sometimes even 1080p60) video lags horribly on Photos, Quicktime and Final Cut, whilst it doesn't on Youtube or VLC. I've disabled the internal screen using DisableMonitor and even that didn't work.

When the eGPU is unplugged 4k video works fine with no lag.

I was wondering whether it's because I have an NVIDIA card and the driver is not playing ball with Metal apps...

Can you please check whether you can play 4k video with the 470 plugged in? You can probably download a sample through a quick Google search or something

EDIT: I think this issue might be better off being on another thread. Not sure whether others have this issue too.

It appears Asus announced an eGPU case. I wonder if this will work with the 2016 MacBook Pro's. This would be ideal, because it also provides 100w power to the laptop.

Posted by: ViDtje

 

I actually plan on waiting until after CES, just in case some manufacturer makes an enclosure with macOS certification. I also saw that AMD GPU's have better driver support in macOS. The only downside is, since I'm in Europe, I haven't found any resellers of any eGPU enclosure.

Either way, thanks a lot for answering my questions!

   

I can sell Thunder 2-3 and Node, but Italian prices are quite crazy

Instructions to fix error 12 on 2016 13" MBP on Windows10 are here.

Posted by: hblockx

 

How did you get rid of the error code 12 in bootcamp?

Dsdt-Override alone doesn't seem to work and setup1.3 does not work with forced gpt of 2016-macbook? 

   

Awesome!

But i bought a 980ti now and this one is working as a charm 😀

That's great news. Would you like to submit an implementation experience report for other 2016 13" MBP owners to leverage off your pioneering work?

Posted by: hblockx

 

Awesome!

But i bought a 980ti now and this one is working as a charm 😀