BMD eGPU daisychaining

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TonyK47

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BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostThu Jul 12, 2018 9:24 pm

Will I be able to daisychain a 2nd eGPU (via Akitio Chassis) to the BMD eGPU?
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Andrew Kolakowski

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostThu Jul 12, 2018 9:30 pm

Don't do it. TB3 is not that fast when we talk about GPU needs. It's on border line for single GPU, so forget about daisychain.
Connect both devices over own ports (+ make also sure they are independent TB3 ports which use own busses to CPU).
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TonyK47

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostThu Jul 12, 2018 10:08 pm

I see. How about daisy chaining an Akitio Chassis with a Decklink Duo?
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Andrew Kolakowski

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostThu Jul 12, 2018 11:27 pm

Should be fine, but tis is only theory. With such a devices better to have them connected directly. They can't "slow down" like eg disk. They require specific amount of bandwidth all the time or they won't function properly.
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Chris Chiasson

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostFri Jul 13, 2018 3:50 am

Yeah, with Thunderbolt 3, just one eGPU is already creating a bottled necked. Adding more down the pipeline that’s already filled isn’t gonna provide good results. Though if you connect an eGPU to a computer that already has a good GPU internally, then you can get the benefits of 2 GPUs super powering your PC. I think someone tested this with an eGPU hooked to an iMac Pro. The only downside was Final Cut doesn’t use it. But Resolve does support using two to three GPUs at once.

Last edited by Chris Chiasson on Fri Jul 13, 2018 11:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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TonyK47

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostFri Jul 13, 2018 12:31 pm

So is it only possible to connect an external USB-C SSD and a mouse and keyboard to the USB3 ports? Would it be possible to connect an audio interface to the USB ports?
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Chris Chiasson

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostFri Jul 13, 2018 2:24 pm

TonyK47 wrote:So is it only possible to connect an external USB-C SSD and a mouse and keyboard to the USB3 ports? Would it be possible to connect an audio interface to the USB ports?



You can connect usb a devices to usb c if you use a usb a to usb c cable, or connect to a dongle. A usb c drive to A though, it might not work if that drive needs more power that usb a can’t provide.
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JoeProcopio

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostFri Jul 13, 2018 5:44 pm

Chris Chiasson wrote:The only downside was Final Cut doesn’t use it.


How is that a downside, lol.
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TonyK47

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostFri Jul 13, 2018 9:04 pm

I mean connecting an audio interface to the USB A on a BMD eGPU. Would that work?
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Chris Chiasson

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostFri Jul 13, 2018 11:01 pm

TonyK47 wrote:I mean connecting an audio interface to the USB A on a BMD eGPU. Would that work?


I don’t see why not. It has USB A ports, so should work.
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Joshua Helling

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Re: BMD eGPU daisychaining

PostWed Jul 18, 2018 10:19 pm

Hey all,

Daisy Chaining is not recommended. It will put a load on the Thunderbolt 3 connection and bog it down. So if you'd like to connect 2, then connect them both directly to the computer.

As for how much additional benefit you'll get by having two connected, it really depends on your software application.

Performance can be greatly improved in DaVinci Resolve Studio by connecting multiple Blackmagic eGPUs, however it’s recommended that you don't daisy chain the Blackmagic eGPUs to each other, but connect each Blackmagic eGPU to the computer directly with its own independent Thunderbolt 3 connection. Typically, games will only use just the one Blackmagic eGPU at a time.

Most of the above is taken from the FAQ for the eGPU.
Joshua Helling

Director of World Wide Support
Blackmagic Design Inc.

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