(Part 2) Best products from r/eGPU

This manipulation will make your laptop a bit more bumpy chassis-wise and I won't take any responsibility if something goes wrong :P (Don’t forget to think about the warranty)

I am a lurker but I can really understand your feelings since I was in the same situation (same laptop) before however, I was able to fix this, let me explain How to avoid TDP-downs:

After dealing with multiple slim laptops and also thanks Reddit for some data, I have concluded that these are the main types of throttling linked with the thermals:

• CPU throttling (duh), however my laptop goes to 10W whereas the CPU was only around at the early eighties °C at 15W, and the laptop itself has another more powerful fan state at this temperature, so I think it is supposed to handle that CPU heat (these fans suck tbh).
  My laptop was not thermal throttling but power limiting (except at TDP-high but that’s not the issue) so I skipped it.
  
  
• software throttling, setting at High performance plan and removing + disabling the reinstallation of the Intel Dynamic Platform & Thermal Framework Driver should be enough (no, it won’t wreck your PC, but staying at High Performance will make your laptop uncomfortable because of the heat).
  
  
• VRM throttling, now this one is a little bit more implicit, but it is also very important, I am not an electronic expert and feel free to correct me, but I think that when it overheats, the component won’t be able to deliver as much power to the CPU thus the TDP-down. (Did Intel specified a TDP-down for mobile processors because slim laptops have generally a hard time cooling the CPU and VRMs at the same time?)
  
  To begin the fix you will need to buy these thermal pads (personally I bought two):
  https://www.amazon.com/Thermal-Grizzly-Minus-High-Performance/dp/B00ZJS8RWQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526667081&sr=8-1&keywords=TG-MP8-120-20-10-1R
  
  So, I have sacrificed my laptop to check it, and after removing the black foil there are indeed some VRMs that are not under the heat sink. I have a very empirical way to find them (I don’t have a thermal camera unfortunately).
  Launch TS Bench from ThrottleStop and then on the back of the computer, near the CPU, try to find very hot components (the ones that are barely too hot to touch) then place 3-4 thermal pads on them so that it can reach the chassis of the laptop.
  
  Of course this is not enough, and that’s where the cooler joins in, I found two coolers that are really useful:
  
  
• a cross-flow fan:
  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01F3971YK/ref=twister_B01F3971X6?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
  
  https://i.imgur.com/8IpUd4b.jpg
  
  The cross-flow fan is easier and cheaper to use however it is not as efficient as the next one, the laptop will be able to, at long term and at least, use 14W at 24°C ambient temperature. However, I would still buy it for travels etc.
  
  
• a DIY powerful fan stand:
  
  This one is not hard to do but requires some money but I suppose that budget won’t be your issue since the laptop itself is quite expensive already.
  
  For this you will need:
  
  
• a 3-pin 12V fan with good air pressure:
  https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-NF-A14-industrialPPC-2000-140x140x25mm-2000rpm/dp/B00KESSI2A/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1526667148&sr=1-1&keywords=B00KESSI2A
  
  
• fan grills:
  https://www.amazon.com/140mm-Black-Grill-Guard-screws/dp/B01M2YI7BM/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1526667587&sr=1-3&keywords=fan+grill+140mm
  
  
• 5V to 12V USB to 3-pin:
  https://www.amazon.com/FAN2USB-12V-USB-Converting-Adapter/dp/B00MNB40ZU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1526667190&sr=8-1&keywords=FAN2USB
  
  
• a stand with hole:
  https://www.amazon.com/Urbo-Adjustable-Heat-Vent-Elevate-Notebooks/dp/B01I0KN91I/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1526667370&sr=8-2&keywords=urbo+stand
  
  The hole is where we are going to place the fan and the height will help the fan to get more air, so that is very important.
  
  
• a cable tie set to attach the fan on the stand:
  https://www.amazon.com/Uxcell-Nylon-Resistant-Cable-White/dp/B00UJ95URU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526667534&sr=8-1&keywords=Cable+Tie+Set+400
  
  Optionally you can also buy a voltage regulator to turn it off but yeah unplugging the USB do the work too haha:
  https://www.amazon.com/Zalman-Fan-Speed-Controller-FANMATE-2/dp/B000292DO0/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1526667258&sr=1-1&keywords=FANMATE2
  
  After it is done and placed your laptop on it, you should be able to play all night without seeing the laptop throttling.
  
  I tried to exceed the 15W, but this step is probably impossible, with the cooling I was able to stay a few more seconds at almost 30W but even after dealing with max TDP via Throttlestop, it throttles down. I just think that HP has limited its device to 15W for long term state (no matter the thermals or power) which is quite understandable but still it would be nice to unlock it.
  I have for instance set the TDP max at 16W with ThrottleStop (so just a little bit more) and it still throttles after around 30 seconds to 15W with the cooler, I don’t know if I will give up but with -100mV undervolting I am able to reach STABLE 2.8ghz at full load, at 15W, so it is not that bad for a convertible 13-inch laptop.
  
  I would like to post more photos however I am on a trip for months, so I can't right now.
  
  Feel free to ask me any questions!
  
  EDIT: formatting because 1st post
  
  EDIT 2:
  
  Here is how I placed my thermal pads:
  https://i.imgur.com/0fHQTIl.jpg
  
  I have also stressed my laptop for almost 15min non-stop with my cross-flow fan, here are the results showing a stable performance:
  
  
• Start:
  https://i.imgur.com/h9Tq2fU.png
  
  
• End:
  https://i.imgur.com/j5P8osg.png

I have the Akitio Node Pro with my 2018 Macbook Pro, using it for realtime visuals which are very graphics heavy. You do lose some benefit due to the limits of thunderbolt3, especially if you are pushing 4K content, but it has been a lifesaver for me.

I’d be careful about using any dock-like features on an eGPU such as USB or ethernet, since these compete for bandwidth with the external card - on most (but not all) eGPUs out there. Some eGPUs like the Mantiz Venus give preferential treatment to the GPU and throttle the USB/ethernet ports.

Also, if you are worried about a particular eGPU not delivering enough power to your laptop (such as with the Node Pro), you can always connect a higher wattage power source on an additional port on your laptop. Macbooks will automatically pick the best power source.

BTW, I chose the Node Pro since it had the best form factor, in my opinion. The carry handle is nice, and I love how the whole thing looks. I did swap out the case fan though, with a Noctua NF-A9, which dramatically reduced noise and took only 5 min to install.

This is the fan: Noctua NF-A9 FLX, Premium Quiet Fan, 3-Pin (92mm, Brown) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NEMG9B0/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_rMM1Cb6VSP42R

If you want a longer cable for the eGPU, I use this one - its pricey but works perfectly and still carries 40 gb/s: OWC Premium Thunderbolt 3 (40Gb/s) USB-C Cable, 1.0 Meter (39 inch, 3.2 feet), Black, (OWCCBLT3A1.0BP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XPFM8RF/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_OOM1Cb40C84ZP

One last thing that might save you a headache: you need to select “prefer external GPU” for every graphics-heavy application you want to run, by right clicking the app file. This only needs to be done once per app, and the option is only visible while an eGPU is connected.

And it goes without saying but the application must be running on a display that is connected to the eGPU, unless the application specifically supports accelerated graphics in the internal retina display (not common).

Yo yo yo homie!!!! Don't fret yet, chet! I think I found a cornputer worthy of such ascended hands as yours: Acer's Aspire R 13, featuring:

• A 13.3" touchscreen screen seated upon the 360º Ezel Aero Hinge™
  
• A Thunderbolt 3 port with maaaaaad^four^potentially lanes, yo!
  
• A 2.0 Ghz i7-4510U processor
  
• Pretty much all of the keys you'll ever need.
  
• Windows 8.1 – at least it's not Vista!
  
  Yeah, the perfect host doesn't exist yet for your needs, but compromise is okay too. This host is a monument to compromise, but at least it does everything you'd like. Here are my recommendations:
  
  
• for a better CPU: buy a more expensive gaming laptop/mobile workstation and pick up a drawing tablet, too
  
  
• for a better screen: buy the ThinkPad Yoga 370, recognize that the HQ & QM CPU's only go into bulky laptops with the means to cool them, and don't worry about specs
  
  
• for a guaranteed-dope TB port Buy a MacBook Pro.
  
  External Graphics isn't cheap yet, and it isn't going to be for a while. Thunderbolt has been license-fee free for less than a year, and manufacturers have no idea how well the tech will drive sales unless we pull the trigger on TB3-enabled hosts, tweet the OEM's twitters about increasing adoption, fangirl over on the eGPU.io forums about our badass builds, and make our demands known. Believe me, this is amazing progress for Thunderbolt. This time last year, I don't think there were even half as many host devices available with this I/O built in. And last generation Thunderbolt 2 was 100% professional use only, with Apple, LaCie, and Intel being the only brands pushing the tech hard.
  
  Hope this all helps!

Soooo ... just throwing it out there ... but a smallish GPU will meet the clearance (height/width) of an ATX case's IO-Shield (the backplate). Most MITX cases have enough depth for everyone's favorite GTX 1060 SC.

And the mobo offsets for all modern PC cases offer the four ITX mount points.

All that to say, you could make a kickass little case out of ANY tiny MITX pc enclosure if you could mount with those mount plates. Here's mine. The 1060 will fit, almost perfectly.

This is the $50 case I crammed that in.


If you want more info, let me know ... but this is mostly for DIY'ers. There is some clearance at the PCIe card interface, which will fit PCIe 1x risers or an EXP GDC Beast. :-)

edit: IO-Shield, and also $50

Yes, there is a rear vent that brings air in and out the side.

I just like the peace of mind that I'm not ruining more hardware by not taking proper care when using it to game, if that makes sense?

I was kind of looking at these to see if anyones had experience with them and docked thinkpad

https://www.amazon.com/TekHome-Compatibility-Junction-Adjustable-Cucumber/dp/B01D3293TK/ref=sr_1_6?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1491585534&sr=1-6&keywords=laptop+cpu+cooler

rather than a cooling pad, I don't think it'd be beneficial for a thinkpad to have a cooling pad anyways lol.

Edit: if you and others think i'd be fine just docked as is, i'll just move on from thoughts of using something like that lol

Just in case anyone else is looking for a solution. This worked perfectly for me:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EQ1XQHS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Instead of extending it from the HDMI end, I extended it from the mini PCIE end. I was absolutely sure it wasn't going to work but to my surprise, it did! I bought this specific one because it came with three cables and I chose the longest one in my setup. Now I can re-position my eGPU to my liking.

Hope it helps.

Starting with the GTX 9xx series, you've needed Nvidia Web Drivers for running an Nvidia card in a Mac. Unfortunately, there are some stumbling blocks to releasing the Web Drivers on Mojave. Nvidia currently has no timetable for a public release of these drivers. At this time, you'll get no graphics acceleration from an GTX 9xx, GTX 10xx, or RTX 20xx card in macOS Mojave.

I'm using a 2018 MacBook Pro 15" with a Core X, but I picked up a Vega 56 to compliment this rig. The RTX 2070 is a beast of a card, but it's current incompatibility with macOS makes it less than ideal for your use-case. I really recommend that you look into the Vega series of Radeon cards.

I picked this card, and I'm getting solid 4K 60FPS gaming performance (in Overwatch, anyway. Further testing required.) using Boot Camp. It's nowhere near equal to the 1440p 144FPS G-Sync I was getting on my GTX 1080 Ti-equipped Hackintosh, but it's still a great performer.

A GTX1080 Founder's Edition consumes under 200W of power. 500-600W refers to the power consumption of a whole system. Pretty much power supply that has an 8-pin (or 6+2-pin) power connector would be more than enough.

You will need to connect the power supply to the adapter and to the card itself, then do the "paper clip trick" to get the power adapter to power on. You can also use this instead to get the power supply to power up.

As for the power supply itself, there are a lot of options. Something like this would do nicely, but there are cheaper options as well. Modular helps to get rid of all the cables you won't be needing, though, so it might be worth a few bucks. This one has 2x6+2-pin connectors, so you can get the 6-pin PCIe version of the mPCIe to PCIe adapter, and connect one connector to it and the other to the card itself.

Now a final word: You already have pretty much everything, so going ahead and trying isn't a bad idea at this point, but I am not sure if you can hit 90fps with a mPCIe based eGPU. GTX1080, or not.

Hi! Personally, we'd recommend getting a TS3 Plus and connecting your Akitio Node to the second Thunderbolt port on the back. We've tested that configuration before, and it works out pretty well. If you're more into buying from Amazon, we've got you covered.

Please let us know if you have any other questions, either here or by emailing us at support@caldigit.com, and have a great rest of your day!

Sorry for formatting, on mobile.

Also, the i5 is not a bad option and is not that far off of the i7. If you want to save the extra cash, it may be a good option for you.

As far as upgrade go, I got the m.2 1tb Intel nvme ssd.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GCL6BR4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_3i7pDb4NJFDQF

Amazing performance for a reasonable price. Then I put the internal 256gb ssd from the xps into an external m.2 enclosure to use as a USB drive. I got this enclosure and love it.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HCPCMKN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_7AJi73n5Ddapg

And as far as upgrading the ram goes, this corsair kit should serve you nicely. Reasonably priced and solid performance from a reliable company.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019MRBKYG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Cl7pDbD4QNBDQ

This is all assuming that it's cheaper to upgrade yourself I haven't researched exact pricing for the xps 13 recently, but the resources are here for you if you need them :)

yeah, plugging the egpu before turning it on helps me too.
im not sure about the cpu tem, but i have a external usb fan on both the laptop and the egpu. i do get around 54-58C on the gpu with the fan on. and about 60-70 with it off. ill link the fan below.

AC Infinity MULTIFAN S4, Quiet 140mm USB Fan for Receiver DVR Playstation Xbox Computer Cabinet Cooling https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MWH4FL4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_90-QDbXKSY5QJ

Also, ive been experimenting on different set ups. currently i have a type c dock (charjen pro) it has a hdmi connector so i plugged it directly to the monitor. so far it seems promising (seems like it eliminated the stutter issue).

CharJenPro USB C Hub, Certified... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MXKJC4M?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share