[Mac Users] Help on an eGPU

[blueskull]

Mac users on this forum, please suggest me a suitable eGPU solution.

My system is a 2018 Mac Mini i5 (8GB/256GB, upgraded with 32GB).

So far, all apps I run are smooth, including Altium (2D PCB) in Parallels.

The only thing that I'm not satisfied is gaming performance.

I don't play triple A titles. CS:GO, HL2 franchise and classic Warcraft III are all I need.

War3, being a 2003 game, runs smoothly, as expected. HL2 franchise runs reasonably well, and I have no complaints.

The real PITA is CS:GO. It can sustain 60fps, but the stutter is utterly unbearable, especially when competing with other players online.

Therefore, I need an eGPU for this game.

So far, I have a Lenovo GTX1050 dock, but unfortunately Apple basically said FU to Nvidia and its users, so it's not gonna work.

I then bought a Gigabyte RX580 eGPU. Considering its $399 price, it's a bargain.

However, as I start to use it, its flaws show up. One particularly unbearable being its power cycle bug.

It doesn't go quiet under 0% load. The GPU fan is okay, but the PSU fan is noisy.

It fails to enumerate if computer is power cycled and the eGPU is not. Therefore, I have to power cycle the eGPU every time I power off my computer.

I didn't have to power off my Mac every night if the fan wasn't so loud, so it sucks, doubly.

Not to mention that its RGB controlling software supports Mac, but the app doesn't work, so all settings must be done on another Windows PC.

No Thunderbolt FW update tool for Mac, no MCU FW update tool for Mac, and not even RGB controller for Mac.

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TL;DR:

I need an eGPU that is:

1. Small. I'm moving back to China in a few months, and I need to pack things. Apple's official Black Magic is way too big, so does Razor Core X and Sonnet Breakaway.
2. Designed for Mac, and actually works flawlessly with a Mac.
3. Future proof. I prefer officially upgradeable, or at least upgradeable with a risk. If the GPU is soldered or connected with a non-MXM, non-PCIe connector, I'm not in.
4. While I prefer it to be cheap, I don't really have a budget limit. Any price I can justify is okay.

Any suggestions?

[netdudeuk]

I'd say have a look at this long thread specifically related to the new Mac Mini.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/external-gpu-egpu-resources.2154653/