Created in close collaboration with Apple, Blackmagic Design's Blackmagic eGPU and Blackmagic eGPU Pro bring accelerated pro app workflows, smoother gameplay, and true-to-life VR content creation to your Mac.

I’m in the process of moving from a gaming PC to mac mini + egpu. I have a 1080ti but will sell that and purchase a Razer Core X and an AMD card, but just wondered what is the best to go for (fan vs blower / vega 64?). The Blackmagic eGPU is an external graphics enclosure that can boost the graphics capabilities of the MacBook Pro. The unit has several benefits, most notably, its extremely quiet operation. Dec 31, 2018 The RTX 2080 makes for a potent Windows Boot Camp eGPU companion for the 2018 Mac mini with 6-core Intel i7 CPU. Featured In this video. 2018 i7 Mac min. In a previous video, I showcased a 2018 Mac mini gaming setup using an AMD RX Vega 64 eGPU running Windows 10 via Boot Camp. Would a similar setup work for an Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 GPU from EVGA?

Technical specifications

Blackmagic eGPU includes a Radeon Pro 580 graphics processor with 8GB DDR5 memory, giving your connected Mac graphics performance that's similar to a high-end 27-inch iMac.

Blackmagic eGPU Pro includes a Radeon RX Vega 56 graphics processor with 8GB HBM2 memory. This gives your connected Mac graphics performance that's similar to iMac Pro.

In addition to boosting graphics performance, both Blackmagic eGPUs provide 85 watts of charging power to MacBook Air and MacBook Pro.

Blackmagic eGPU has these ports to connect displays and VR accessories:

Two Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C)
Four USB 3.0
One HDMI 2.0

Blackmagic eGPU Pro has these ports:

Two Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C)
Four USB 3.0
One HDMI 2.0
One DisplayPort 1.4

System requirements

Egpu For Mac Mini Youtube

Blackmagic eGPU is compatible with any Thunderbolt 3-equipped Mac running macOS High Sierra 10.13.5 or later. Blackmagic eGPU Pro requires a Thunderbolt 3-equipped Mac and macOS Mojave 10.14.1 or later. Learn how to update the software on your Mac.

If you have a Mac mini (2018) with FileVault turned on, make sure to connect your primary display directly to Mac mini during startup. After you log in and see the macOS Desktop, you can unplug the display from Mac mini and connect it to Blackmagic eGPU.

Connect and use Blackmagic eGPU

When you connect Blackmagic eGPU or Blackmagic eGPU Pro to your Mac with a Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) cable, the eGPU menu bar item appears, indicating that the eGPU is ready for use.

Blackmagic eGPU automatically accelerates the graphics from Metal-based apps on external displays and devices that are connected to the eGPU. You can use Activity Monitor to confirm that your eGPU is in use:

Open Activity Monitor, which is in the Utilities folder inside Applications.
Choose Window > GPU History. A graph appears, charting the activity of your computer's internal GPU and Blackmagic eGPU.

To disconnect Blackmagic eGPU, use the menu bar item to safely disconnect the eGPU from your Mac before unplugging the cable.

External Gpu For Imac

Use the 'Prefer external GPU' option

Starting with macOS Mojave 10.14, you can turn on 'Prefer external GPU' in a specific app's Get Info panel in the Finder. This option lets Blackmagic eGPU and Blackmagic eGPU Pro accelerate apps on any display connected to the Mac — including displays built in to the Mac:

Egpu For Mac Pro

Quit the app if it's open.
Select the app in the Finder. Most apps are in your Applications folder. If you open the app from an alias or launcher, Control-click the app's icon and choose Show Original from the pop-up menu. Then select the original app.
Press Command-I to show the app's info window.
Select the checkbox next to Prefer external GPU.
Open the app to use it with the eGPU.

Learn more about using eGPUs with your Mac.

Egpu For Mac Thunderbolt 2

Learn more

macOS currently doesn't support eGPUs in Windows using Boot Camp or when your Mac is in macOS Recovery, at FileVault login, or installing system updates.