Omen Accelerator compatibility

[Ken_TX-44]

I wish to purchase the Omen Accelerator but the HP website says this is compatible with...

OMEN by HP 17 Laptop (supported on NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 or GeForce GTX 1070 configurations of models 17-an0xx)

My 17-an012dx has  RX 580 graphics. Can anyone confirm my RX 580 model will not support the Omen Accelerator or is it just not recommended by HP?

[EddyK]

Hello @Ken_TX-44,

I'm afraid the OMEN by HP - 17-an012dx doesn't even have a Thunderbolt 3 port which is required for setting up an eGPU. Instead, it has a USB 3.1 Type-C™ (Data Transfer up to 5 Gb/s, DP1.2, HP Sleep and Charge).

Hope that helps.

Please Accept as Solution if this answered your question.

[Ken_TX-44]

Thank you for your input.

Are you sure? I have read that early models didn't and later ones do. I have the thunderbolt logo next to the port but does that mean thunderbolt 3 or just thunderbolt?

[EddyK]

This was on your notebook's specifications page.

You probably have the symbol on the left - correct? 

That's the symbol for HP Sleep and Charge. I really dislike how HP marketed it because it looks identical to the Thunderbolt 3 logo. 

Hope that helps.

[Ken_TX-44]

No, I have the symbol on the right, with the little arrow head.

Is that thunderbolt 3 or just thunderbolt?

[EddyK]

Ok, could you please install this on your system:

Intel Thunderbolt Controller Driver (Windows 10 v1709/v1803)

Description:

This package provides the Intel Thunderbolt Controller Driver for the supported notebook models running a supported operating system. The driver enables Thunderbolt devices connected to the system.

https://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp87001-87500/sp87165.exe

Once that's installed, right-click the blue & white Thunderbolt icon on the bottom right of your taskbar and select About. You'll see the number of ports and details about whether external GPUs are supported.

The icon I posted on the right is supposed to indicate Thunderbolt 3 but I have doubts considering that both the specifications page and HP marketing database indicate that you only have an HP Sleep and Charge USB-C port on your device.

Let me know how it goes.

[Ken_TX-44]

Sorry for the delay. I installed the package but forgot I had installed a similar package yesterday and there was some kind of conflict.

The thunderbolt software seems to show no ports at all.

I agree with you about the posted spec  but I do wonder if it could be out of date. I can't believe that there wold be a thunderbolt symbol but no thunderbolt service. I even read somewhere that there's a $20 upgrade option.

Is it possible that a device needs to be connected before it shows the ports in the software?

[EddyK · Accepted solution]

What does it exactly say in the About page for the Thunderbolt software?

I'm going to be honest but I have very little reason to believe that your device has a Thunderbolt 3 port. These specifications aren't outdated or anything - they could include discrepancies but it's unlikely and all evidence points to the fact that your system only has a USB-C port with HP Sleep and Charge.

Here's more documentation on your laptop. 

I've checked HP's internal marketing database and what I was able to conclude was that the OMEN by HP 17-an000 Laptop PC series all have an HP Sleep and Charge USB-C port whereas the OMEN by HP 17-an100 Laptop PC series have a Thunderbolt 3 port.

I'm sorry but your device just doesn't have a Thunderbolt 3 port which is required for compatibility with the OMEN Accelerator.

Kind regards,

Eddy

Please Accept as Solution if this answered your question.

[Ken_TX-44]

Thank you Eddy.

Although I'm a little disappointed, you have probably saved me an awful lot of stress and money. I am confident now that despite the Thunderbolt logo there is no thunderbolt 3 on this machine.

Thanks again

[Ken_TX-44]

Sorry to bother you again Eddy.

What do you make of this post? scroll down to message 7 please...

https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Gaming-Notebooks/Why-no-HP-Omen-Accelerator-compatibility-with-RX580-O...

If the Omen Accelerator needs thunderbolt 3...