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Catalina & eGPU...
- Thread starter SpitUK
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I updated to Catalina 10.15.3 beta 1 (public) today. The Boot Rom version changed again (1037.80.21.0.0 (iBridge: 17.16.13025.5.1,0)), but the behavior (50% black screens during boot/reboot) for my setup (Mac Mini 2018 / Blackmagic eGPU (RX580) / LG 5k) did not change/improve (in my case).
Experiencing the same issue here.
Razer Core X with Vega 56. If I have both monitors connected via DisplayPort cables from the eGPU, I get the black screen of death. If I have one DP cable to 2nd monitor (from the eGPU) and a HDMI to the 1st monitor (directly from the Mac mini) and no cable at all to the eGPU, then it will boot.
Have people been reporting this too Apple?!? I filled in a feedback form. Just wondered if there was a better way to report this back to them.
Also, do I loose any processing power by just keeping/using the main monitor on HDMI? I can swap back over to DP cable on the main monitor after booting but it's a bit of a pain pulling/plugging cables all the time.
Razer Core X with Vega 56. If I have both monitors connected via DisplayPort cables from the eGPU, I get the black screen of death. If I have one DP cable to 2nd monitor (from the eGPU) and a HDMI to the 1st monitor (directly from the Mac mini) and no cable at all to the eGPU, then it will boot.
Have people been reporting this too Apple?!? I filled in a feedback form. Just wondered if there was a better way to report this back to them.
Also, do I loose any processing power by just keeping/using the main monitor on HDMI? I can swap back over to DP cable on the main monitor after booting but it's a bit of a pain pulling/plugging cables all the time.
I asked OWC about this configuration, and they stated that you don't lose anything by doing this. It's similar to the way an eGPU would be used with a MacBook Pro.
Great... in that case I'll leave it like that for now... PITA remembering to pull out/plug in cables and in what order etc.
Instead of pulling cables, just change your monitor input to HDMI before turning on your computer and switch the input on the monitor to DP when you get the login graphic.
The gotcha being that you need to mirror the two displays (maybe not what you want if you have multiple displays) to avoid issues with some monitors that keep one DisplayPort and one HDMI connection active at the same time. I've seen LG do this on their monitors.
I'm confused about the situation you're describing. If you have the eGPU connected via DP to one monitor, and the internal HDMI connected to another, you still aren't able to boot?
Yes I can. I currently have my 2nd monitor (27Cintiq) attached by DP to the eGPU and my main monitor is attached directly to the Mac mini via an HDMI cable. With this setup I have no problems booting up.
I installed the Blackmagic eGPU Firmware Upgrade (v1.2) which became available earlier today. Afterwards I had a glimpse of hope after two consecutive successful boots. But that hope was quickly destroyed by boot #3 which displayed the black screen after booting again. So the firmware upgrade unfortunately doesn't improve anything...
(I know, the firmware upgrade is mainly for the XDR display support, but one can hope... ;-)
Did you get a confirmation that the update had been done? Rebooted twice as asked but no confirmation? My firmware shows version 50.3 in System Report now for the eGPU
After the upgrade my setup shows 50.3 too. Unfortunately I didn’t check that value before the upgrade, so I can’t tell for sure. There was no explicit confirmation of the upgrade process, but the progress bar of the upgrade (reboot, black Apple logo and upgrade progress bar below) looked like it completed successfully.
Maybe someone who did not upgrade yet can post the value of the pre-upgrade firmware version here?
I had this problem last night with a Razor Core X and an AMG Radeon Vega 56 GPU and a Mac Mini 2018. After the upgrade to 10.15.2 the system would not boot with the eGPU connected. Booting with HDMI connected and then switching over worked. Jumped on the phone with Apple to do some troubleshooting but nothing worked (they recommended reset of SMC and booting in safe mode), so they gathered logs and sent it to the engineers.
I wanted to add that I found a workaround. Resetting the NVRAM during a boot will allow the system to boot with the eGPU attached, but only once. You have to reset the NVRAM each time you boot if you want to be able to log in. Rather than downgrade to 10.15.1, I'm going to use this trick until Apple patches the problem, and just put the machine to sleep most of the time (which is what I do anyway).
To wit: Something in the boot process (not sure if this is EFI related or not) will not recognize the eGPU as a head. The boot process when you reset the NVRAM seems to circumvent this problem, but only when you are actually resetting it (does not stick).
I wanted to add that I found a workaround. Resetting the NVRAM during a boot will allow the system to boot with the eGPU attached, but only once. You have to reset the NVRAM each time you boot if you want to be able to log in. Rather than downgrade to 10.15.1, I'm going to use this trick until Apple patches the problem, and just put the machine to sleep most of the time (which is what I do anyway).
To wit: Something in the boot process (not sure if this is EFI related or not) will not recognize the eGPU as a head. The boot process when you reset the NVRAM seems to circumvent this problem, but only when you are actually resetting it (does not stick).
I've been unable to use my Asus XG Station Pro with the Asus Vega 56 on my 2018 Mini since the 10.15.2 update. It was sketchy before, but now I cannot get anything on my screen. It had been USB-C from the mini to the enclosure and then HDMI to the monitor.
After reading through this thread and others, I decided to try the dual connection trick. One new Apple USB-C cable (not the flimsy one from Asus) and a DP 1.4 cable. I'll try DP1.4 from the eGpu and HDMI direct from the mini - connected at the same time and see if that helps. I can switch inputs on the monitor - ViewSonic 32" 4k.
If this doesn't work, well I may have a box of parts to sell....
After reading through this thread and others, I decided to try the dual connection trick. One new Apple USB-C cable (not the flimsy one from Asus) and a DP 1.4 cable. I'll try DP1.4 from the eGpu and HDMI direct from the mini - connected at the same time and see if that helps. I can switch inputs on the monitor - ViewSonic 32" 4k.
If this doesn't work, well I may have a box of parts to sell....
Remember, it can't just be a standard USB-C cable, it has to be one that explicitly supports Thunderbolt-3
I have the same exact issue with eGPU and mini HDMI to HDMI. I try my best not to reboot as a work around.
What Make and Model of the Vega 56 are you using with 10.5.2 ? (Which would be Yosemite) I need to configure a Late 2012 Macmini 2.3GHZ i7 16GB RAM, Yosemite 10.10.5, and a Sonnet 650w Breakaway with a compatible eGPU card. Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated.
I posted this in the Mac mini thread.
So, yesterday the cables I had ordered arrived - 1 DP1.4 and 1 Apple TB3 .8m.
I connected the HDMI cable direct from the Mini to the monitor. I then replaced the Asus cable with the much better fitting Apple one. Then I connected the DP1.4 cable from the eGpu to the monitor.
Booted the Mini up - with both cables active. It did boot all the way with no black screen. However, having two active connections on one monitor can get a bit crazy. So, I disconnected the HDMI after boot up.
As an alternative - I can leave the HDMI and TB3 cables attached and just power off the eGpu. Works fine if I don't need the gpu for basic uses.
Now I have my eGpu back in service.
So, yesterday the cables I had ordered arrived - 1 DP1.4 and 1 Apple TB3 .8m.
I connected the HDMI cable direct from the Mini to the monitor. I then replaced the Asus cable with the much better fitting Apple one. Then I connected the DP1.4 cable from the eGpu to the monitor.
Booted the Mini up - with both cables active. It did boot all the way with no black screen. However, having two active connections on one monitor can get a bit crazy. So, I disconnected the HDMI after boot up.
As an alternative - I can leave the HDMI and TB3 cables attached and just power off the eGpu. Works fine if I don't need the gpu for basic uses.
Now I have my eGpu back in service.
Hmm.. I was afraid of that. The Adobe suite we are using is not compatible with anything newer than 10.10.5. So I guess an upgrade all around is in order. Thanks for the very appreciated help.
I updated to Catalina 10.15.3 beta 2 (public) tonight. The Boot Rom version changed again (1037.80.41.0.0 (iBridge: 17.16.13038.5.3,0)), but the behavior (black screens during boot/reboot) for my setup (Mac Mini 2018 / Blackmagic eGPU (RX580) / LG 5k) did unfortunately again *not* change/improve (in my case). ? ? ?
Did you have to unplug you eGPU to upgrade? My Mini shuts down when the upgrade does it's first reboot, so it can write to the protected volume. I have to unplug my eGPU in order to get it to boot back up.
Before I update the OS I disconnect the eGPU anyway, cause I'm nervous about not being able to see what's on the screen during the update due to potential eGPU issues.
You can run an eGPU, it just wasn't officially supported. I've used eGPU's since 10.11 personally, it wasn't as easy back then.
The wife's 2018 Mac Mini + Sonnet BB + Vega 56/64 is working.
2019 iMac + Razer Core + Radeon 7 working.
My office 2018 Mini + Sonnet BB + Vega64 WC working.
Also I only use Displayport cables on any eGPU monitor. I just don't care for HDMI cables.
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