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EGPU enclosure for 2018 Mac Mini?

You won't notice the strain on the 630 gpu until you run a test program like Heaven from Unigine and look at the scores from that while pushing the max. It is best to put the program on a different drive and not the same system drive, that way you get a true result. Also use Macs fan control app to watch your fans speeds. If it goes crazy then you know your are taxing the system.

benchmark.unigine.com

UNIGINE Benchmarks

Performance benchmarks by Unigine
benchmark.unigine.com benchmark.unigine.com
 
Valley with the 630:

Unigine Valley Benchmark 1.0​

FPS:4.7
Score:195
Min FPS:2.8
Max FPS:8.5

System​

Platform:Darwin 24.2.0 x86_64
CPU model:Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-8500B CPU @ 3.00GHz (2999MHz) x6
GPU model:Intel UHD Graphics 630 (256MB) x1

Settings​

Render:OpenGL
Mode:1920x1080 8xAA fullscreen
PresetExtreme HD

Valley with the AMD Radeon RX 580, which I just hooked up:

Unigine Valley Benchmark 1.0​

FPS:38.6
Score:1617
Min FPS:23.3
Max FPS:69.1

System​

Platform:Darwin 24.2.0 x86_64
CPU model:Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-8500B CPU @ 3.00GHz (2999MHz) x6
GPU model:Intel UHD Graphics 630/AMD Radeon RX 580 (8192MB) x1

Settings​

Render:OpenGL
Mode:1920x1080 8xAA fullscreen
PresetExtreme HD

It's soo much smoother. I feel like a 2018 Mac Mini ain't **** without an eGPU. Now, let's see how that affects the I/O of my NVMe in the Thunderbolt enclosure. I'm hoping to run MacOS off of the TBolt enclosure.
 
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Reactions: carylee2002 and padams35
So, it's now like a I have a Mac Pro just without the case . . . which is interesting.
 
The key to this setup is to go to each program that uses heavy cpu/gpu..to highlight it and go to the get info tab and check the box that you prefer external gpu.
 
Programs also usually default to using the GPU that the monitor that they were launched on is attached to.

If all your monitors are connected to the egpu then most applications will use the egpu by default.
 
Is there any reason I would not connect all three monitors to the eGPU? Awwww . . . it's fan just turned on!

EDIT: "its fan." It is more than a fan! It has two fans!
 
On my rig..I have one monitor per mac mini and when I use divinci or obs...unless I designate it to use my external gpu, it defaults to the built in 630 gpu on the mac mini. This is using monterey os. Dont know any other os afterwards but i'm not letting apple decide for me. Some programs like obs uses both gpu's for different functions in the program. There is a program called GPU Monitor Pro for macs, that you can see it easily vs using activity monitor that only shows the 630.
 
Engender said:
Is there any reason I would not connect all three monitors to the eGPU? Awwww . . . it's fan just turned on!
Click to expand...
Some people like to leave one monitor connected to the mini. Sometimes the egpu doesn’t recognize after a restart and needs to be power cycled, and having one monitor directly connected can be reassuring that the mini hasn’t died.

However you get better more consistent performance leaving everything connected to the eGPU.
 
Found out the one monitor to the 630 think when I had to go into Recovery to allow the Mac to boot with an external GPU. I plugged the AOC gaming monitor directly in to the HDMI output. Out of curiosity, I ran Valley:

Unigine Valley Benchmark 1.0​

FPS:38.1
Score:1594
Min FPS:23.1
Max FPS:70.3

System​

Platform:Darwin 24.2.0 x86_64
CPU model:Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-8500B CPU @ 3.00GHz (3000MHz) x6
GPU model:Intel UHD Graphics 630/AMD Radeon RX 580 (8192MB) x1

Settings​

Render:OpenGL
Mode:1920x1080 8xAA fullscreen
PresetExtreme HD

For your reference, my numbers from earlier with all three, including the AOC via HDMI, through the eGPU:

Unigine Valley Benchmark 1.0​

FPS:38.6
Score:1617
Min FPS:23.3
Max FPS:69.1

System​

Platform:Darwin 24.2.0 x86_64
CPU model:Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-8500B CPU @ 3.00GHz (2999MHz) x6
GPU model:Intel UHD Graphics 630/AMD Radeon RX 580 (8192MB) x1

Settings​

Render:OpenGL
Mode:1920x1080 8xAA fullscreen
PresetExtreme HD

Maybe I'll leave the AOC in the HDMI?

EDIT: And maybe I'll get a marginal data throughput boost?
 
Is there any way for me to aplha/beta test the throughput of the Tbolt controllers? Or get a number to see if there is some throughput for a bit of data on the eGPU controller?
 
One must remember that the purpose of having a egpu is to relieve the pressure off the internal built in gpu for doing the heavy lifting, so the cpu can get the maximum effect for a particular program. IE Divinci Resolve, Adobe products etc. Granted your existing 580 card may come out with similar results, it is not a gamers card and most likely equally compared to the 630 internal card. I just ran Valley on my streaming pc using Monterey OS and RX 570 4gb card vs my gaming PC using window 10 and my 6700 card.. Both 2018 Intel minis at I7-8700 with 32 gb. Here are my results to give you an idea how a modest gamers card will do. The RX 6700 is around the same as a Nvidia 2070 type card. I only have one monitor attached on each mini. Here is a read I find interesting if your using multiple monitor setups.

www.avaccess.com

DisplayPort 1.4 vs. HDMI 2.1: Which is Better for Gaming?

DisplayPort 1.4 and HDMI 2.1 are the latest and greatest display connection standards, offering support for high resolutions, high frame rates, and HDR. But which one is better for gaming?
www.avaccess.com www.avaccess.com

2018 mini with RX 570 with Mac OS Monterey

FBS: 35.2. Min. FBS: 22
Score: 1474. Max. FBS 61.3

2018 mini with RX 6700 12gb with Windows 10

FBS: 119.2 Min. FBS: 31.5
Score: 4986 Max. FBS: 204.7
 
Engender said:
Is there any way for me to aplha/beta test the throughput of the Tbolt controllers? Or get a number to see if there is some throughput for a bit of data on the eGPU controller?
Click to expand...
CL!ng.app has a Performance tab which shows memory bandwidth numbers. See examples at egpu.io website.
If your GPU is starved of data, you can increase the resolution so it idles less without loosing much fps.
 
All right. Can anyone explain what I'm looking at or how I can figure out if the Tbolt controllers are fully loaded?

1736812408876.png
 
If I remember correctly, there may be times during system updates where your Mini won't get along with the eGPU. Just keep that in the back of your mind and bypass it using one monitor to get through the update/s.
 
Engender said:
All right. Can anyone explain what I'm looking at or how I can figure out if the Tbolt controllers are fully loaded?
Click to expand...
Click the Device To Device graph button to hide that line on the graph.
Change GB/s to Gb/s or MB/s to measure Gigabits per second or Megabytes per second.
Change the GPU in the bottom menu to the GPU that is in the eGPU enclosure, choose either Metal or Compute.

A Thunderbolt 3 eGPU should have memory bandwidth of ≈22 Gbps or 2750 MB/s.
https://egpu.io/forums/mac-setup/monitoring-thunderbolt-bandwidth/

Similar benchmarks on PCs can be provided by CUDA-Z or by AIDA64 GPGPU Benchmark.
 
But how can I use Cl!ng to determine if there is more bandwidth on one of the tbolt controllers?

Also, my Valley scores on the HDMI monitor controlled by the 630 GPU have dropped into the single digits. I also had a big slowdown during a zoom meeting on my HDMI monitor. Any thoughts on why the 630 could start performing worse suddenly?
 
Check your HDMI cord and see if they are 4k or 8k compatible? I use only displayport cords and they are both rated at 8k. Also if you have anything running along with your programs at the same time. Check your activity monitor and it will list them.
 
Do you mean that you don't use HDMI connections, you only use displayport connections? Or is displayport a brand of cable?

I'm using this one, which is 8K certified. Should I get a better/newer HDMI cable?

EDIT: I think it may be about using the HDMI monitor as the main screen and running it through the 630 makes . . . . everything slower? Is that possible?
 
Last edited:
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Engender said:
I'm using this one, which is 8K certified. Should I get a better/newer HDMI cable?
Click to expand...
48 Gbps (FRL6) is the best that HDMI 2.1 can do. The Mac mini is limited to HDMI 2.0 though, so a HDMI 2.1 cable isn't get you better 4K60 output than DisplayPort 1.2 can deliver. I don't think any Intel Mac can do HDMI 2.1 FRL modes (except maybe with a 6000 series PCIe card and some hacks though someone tried the hacks without success - needs more investigation).
 
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Engender said:
Do you mean that you don't use HDMI connections, you only use displayport connections? Or is displayport a brand of cable?

I'm using this one, which is 8K certified. Should I get a better/newer HDMI cable?

EDIT: I think it may be about using the HDMI monitor as the main screen and running it through the 630 makes . . . . everything slower? Is that possible?
Click to expand...
Yes both of my egpu to mini's both use displayport. The only time I use HDMI is from the mini to monitor itself. I also only use VESA rated cords that can handle up to 8k but there are some that can handle up to 16K. When buying cords, you have to read the fine print, especially places like Amazon or Ebay. The VESA might be only for displayport cables, but whenever I put HDMI and Displayport cables into the monitor, my monitor defaults to displayport as the primary input. Is your computer sluggish with the HDMI? I could be something else that is effecting it like drivers that need to be updated.
 
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carylee2002 said:
Yes both of my egpu to mini's both use displayport. The only time I use HDMI is from the mini to monitor itself. I also only use VESA rated cords that can handle up to 8k but there are some that can handle up to 16K. When buying cords, you have to read the fine print, especially places like Amazon or Ebay. The VESA might be only for displayport cables, but whenever I put HDMI and Displayport cables into the monitor, my monitor defaults to displayport as the primary input. Is your computer sluggish with the HDMI? I could be something else that is effecting it like drivers that need to be updated.
Click to expand...

It's really just that the Mini was flying with my main monitor connected directly to the Mini via HDMI and then my two Ultrasharps on the eGPU. Then, suddenly, the HDMI was not flying.
 
Engender said:
It's really just that the Mini was flying with my main monitor connected directly to the Mini via HDMI and then my two Ultrasharps on the eGPU. Then, suddenly, the HDMI was not flying.
Click to expand...
Switch your most used monitor to display port and least to hdmi. Then go to system preferences and set main display accordingly in displays tab and moving the white bar on top to your main display. U can google it on how to do it.
 
I know how to change which display is my main display—no worries. I've been using MacOS since they introduced that whole Spaces thing. Did that work for anyone?

EDIT: Also, the problem with that is that I'm then using two Tbolt ports for graphics—that's kind of the point of the eGPU.
 
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