External graphics card for a old laptop?

[tanner30577]

So my just got my friends laptop running again and he wants it to play games at 60 fps and his computer now runs minecraft at a choppy 27 to 32 fps useing the built in intel graphics. I was thinking of him getting a external graphics card for his laptop. i was wondering with this set up would he get the fps needed thanks!
set up: GeForce GTX 670 
           Mini Pci-e V8.0 Exp GDC beast video card dock
           FSP Group AURUM 92+ Series PT-650M 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS PLATINUM Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply with Intel Haswell Ready              

[Jurrunio]

overkill PSU for sure, and it's not guaranteed to work.

[Motifator]

This "dock", from Googling, seems to be just a stand to erect a GPU nakedly on... you'll also need mini PCI-E on the notebook for it to work. The 670 is like the minimum to go with as far as a GPU goes, and then you have that very meh and slightly overkill PSU on top of it... not to mention the CPU of the notebook, the interface limitations and all that mess. Just a horrible idea.

[tanner30577]

3 minutes ago, Motifator said:

This "dock", from Googling, seems to be just a stand to erect a GPU nakedly on... you'll also need mini PCI-E on the notebook for it to work. The 670 is like the minimum to go with as far as a GPU goes, and then you have that very meh and slightly overkill PSU on top of it... not to mention the CPU of the notebook, the interface limitations and all that mess. Just a horrible idea.

Thanks man do you have any ideas for a set up mine was pretty ghetto.

[Motifator]

I'd say a cheapo desktop would be you guys` best bet.

[orbitalbuzzsaw]

5 minutes ago, tanner30577 said:

Thanks man do you have any ideas for a set up mine was pretty ghetto.

Probably something like

 

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/4kqPvn
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/4kqPvn/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1400 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($143.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock - AB350M Pro4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($59.99 @ Newegg Business)
Memory: G.Skill - NT Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($70.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: ADATA - Ultimate SU650 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($43.90 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire - Radeon RX 580 8GB NITRO+ Video Card  ($249.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterBox Q300L MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($39.49 @ Newegg Business)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($59.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $708.12
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-09-07 12:11 EDT-0400

 

which should last a good few years with a RAM upgrade down the line

 

or if you want something cheap and cheerful now

 

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/MLpzpG
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/MLpzpG/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 3 2200G 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($98.89 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock - AB350M Pro4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($59.99 @ Newegg Business)
Memory: G.Skill - NT Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($69.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: ADATA - Ultimate SU650 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: *MSI - GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB Video Card  ($164.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake - Versa H17 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($29.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Cooler Master - MasterWatt 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($49.67 @ Amazon)
Total: $513.48
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-09-07 12:13 EDT-0400

[Mira Yurizaki]

Using an eGPU for gaming is not recommended unless you have a Thunderbolt 3 interface. Even if the laptop has a mini PCIe slot, it's at best a PCIe 2.0 x1 slot. The bandwidth alone will cripple its performance.

[tanner30577]

2 hours ago, M.Yurizaki said:

Using an eGPU for gaming is not recommended unless you have a Thunderbolt 3 interface. Even if the laptop has a mini PCIe slot, it's at best a PCIe 2.0 x1 slot. The bandwidth alone will cripple its performance.

thanks for the info

 

[KarathKasun]

Put simply, it is not worth the hassle.  A newer laptop that can play MC better can be had for ~$200 if you dig around through used/refurb laptops on newegg and amazon.

[Ross Siggers]

This is most definitely worth trying if your budget is limited, I added an egpu setup to my thinkpad and now it plays games respectably. Obviously check expectations it's not a bleeding edge setup, But my Unigine Superposition score was multiplied by five(!!) because my machine only had onboard Intel graphics. And that score was with a far less powerful card than yours. Not the one in my signature. If you already have the gpu laying around the cost is super low, literally just the adapter and power. 

 

My suggestion is to use a Dell DA-2 power brick, its very common with the exp gdc and has a quoted output of up to 220W, it's used for their office desktops. Look it up, that'll be enough for your 670, and they sell for pennies on ebay and the like. As for connectivity, it very much varies between laptop models. For example, my thinkpad is of the era of express cards, so I use that adapter, and external monitors to maximise bandwidth and... Well, they're nice and big  ?

 

 This kind of setup is a little ghetto, but gets results, fast and cheap. @M.Yurizaki everything is relative, if there was Thunderbolt compatibility you'd be using a machine new and or powerful enough to not consider this sort of solution in the first place I suspect. I've not found exact figures but in my experience the bandwidth issue is hardly 'crippling'. 

 

 

[KevinSturt]

On 9/8/2018 at 2:22 AM, M.Yurizaki said:

Using an eGPU for gaming is not recommended unless you have a Thunderbolt 3 interface. Even if the laptop has a mini PCIe slot, it's at best a PCIe 2.0 x1 slot. The bandwidth alone will cripple its performance.

I thought the m.2 m key connection was the fastest?

Like this one?

https://www.newegg.com/global/au/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAGHB7U50029&cm_re=Laptop_External_Independent_Video_Card_Dock-_-9SIAGHB7U50029-_-Product

[KarathKasun]

8 hours ago, KevinSturt said:

I thought the m.2 m key connection was the fastest?

Like this one?

https://www.newegg.com/global/au/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAGHB7U50029&cm_re=Laptop_External_Independent_Video_Card_Dock-_-9SIAGHB7U50029-_-Product

In laptops that people are usually trying to ghetto upgrade with GPUs there is generally no M.2.

[KevinSturt]

Cool cool.

 

Do you happen to know the difference between the exp gdc V8.0 & v9.5? The 9.5 has two HDMI ports but for what reason I cannot discover?

[KarathKasun]

2 minutes ago, KevinSturt said:

Cool cool.

 

Do you happen to know the difference between the exp gdc V8.0 & v9.5? The 9.5 has two HDMI ports but for what reason I cannot discover?

Probably for supporting PCIe 2-4x operation.  In some laptops you can gang two mini PCIe slots or a mPCI slot and expresscard slot for more bandwidth.  It may also be for a PCIe x4 M.2 adapter if you have that type of slot.

[Ross Siggers]

More bandwith would be correct. Does the second port replace the usb port? Because I always wondered why that was on there...

 

[KevinSturt]

yes it does replace the usb port.

It says that the usb port is capable of data not just charging so keyboard, mouse usb storage etc.

I  just found this as well.

 

http://raspberrypiwiki.com/index.php/EXP_GDC

[Ross Siggers]

Why on earth you'd plug a mouse or keyboard into that port is beyond me, but that could simply be personal preference; my laptop sits in it's appropriate lenovo docking station, with all my perihperals(bar monitors) coming out of it.

 

I use that usb port to power a strip of dOPe Af RgB lighTs   When I finish building my enclosure, it'll hide at the bottom and illuminate the card 

[KevinSturt]

Hahahha sweet as?

Right now I'm using Mech keyboard, g5 external sound, mouse and I use power outlet USB power for cooling pad and Klim extractor. I've got one free so could use another.... For some pimp RGB lights?

[willsanforglend]

eGPU will just work with your notebook if it's Type-C using Thunder Bolt 3 assistance. It'll be well worth purchasing in the event that you will opt for GTX 1070 or greater for outside images bay.

Look at purchasing a new notebook with GTX 1060 or higher than opting for external images setup, as it's going to not be as cluttered.

 

[Ross Siggers]

^How do you know that without knowing OP's specific laptop model? Most have an appropriate connector somewhere, seeing as it's hinted at being older hardware I doubt it'll bave thunderbolt 3.

Also, to reiterate what I said in a previous post further up...we're most likely dealing with fixing old laptops because OP can't just go out and buy a notebook with a GTX1060 or above. If only things were that simple...and cheap  

[Ross Siggers]

Just to mention the comment earlier about eGPU's having 'crippled' performance on anything but Thunderbolt 3; I found the little comparison I did when I first got the eGPU working.

Using Unigine Superposition to benchmark, over ExpressCard, it looks like the card is 15% down on what it would in a desktop. The eGPU test was pushing two monitors when the 'old desktop' test was only outputting one, but this shouldn't have effected scores massively.

The top right machine is not called 'hot rod' for being fast. It's because it was big and bright red  Obviously having a stronger card it's score will be higher, the comparison is really between the two results on the right.

 

Isn't the laptop score hilarious

 

 

[KevinSturt]

wow that side by side laptop score is impressive. That GPU might be a little meek for that CPU as well? whats with the 1 MHz difference in clock? overclock ? hahhahahahahaha

[KarathKasun]

The fact that is so much slower than a Phenom II speaks volumes about how much of a impact the limited PCIe bandwidth has.

[KevinSturt]

On 23/09/2018 at 2:01 PM, KarathKasun said:

The fact that is so much slower than a Phenom II speaks volumes about how much of a impact the limited PCIe bandwidth has.

Unigine is mainly used as GPU benchmark isn’t it?

[KarathKasun]

6 minutes ago, KevinSturt said:

Unigine is mainly used as GPU benchmark isn’t it?

CPU still impacts performance.  I have a few rigs from that era still, they score lower across the board, even in GPU only tests.