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2006 mac pro CPU upgrade: where can i get...

I just got my E5345's from one of the sellers on eBay. The problem is they had different steppings. Will they work ?
 
Hello good people of MacRumors... i saw this thread and i decided to do an upgrade my mac pro 2006, but i would like to know where i can find compatible processors for this model, are Intel Xeon 5355 the only ones that i can use?

I cant find them, everywhere i look they ran out of them and are out of stock. Can you recommend me some other processor?

thank you for the very useful post... specially for upgrading newbies like myself
 
you're going to want "clovertown" processors. you can read about them here. You should read most of that entry, in fact. It will get you a well-rounded understanding of what you're getting into. The clovertowns are quad core, and their model number begins with "53". For instance, 5355, 5365, 5345, etc. the last two numbers designate specific clock speeds in GHz. the 5365 is 3.0GHz, the 5355 is 2.66GHz, etc. you will have a lot of difficulty finding them new anywhere. They're too old for that. Your very best bet is ebay, looking for used processors. Most sellers will guarantee that they work, and to be honest, the Xeons are the Mack Trucks of processors, and are very very durable, so don't worry about buying a used set. Last piece of advice is to check ebay very often. Be diligent and be patient, and it will pay off.
 
I do not yet have a Mac Pro, but looking to get one in the near future. I have found a great deal on a 2x2.0ghz dual core machine. I just want to clarify that I can upgrade this machine. I am hoping to go with the 2.66 8 core or maybe just the 2.66 4 core. Will any Woodcrest or Clovertown processor work with the 2.0ghz machines?

Thanks
 
You need to know what version you have. MacPro1,1 are 4 core machines made in 2006/7, MacPro2,1 is 8 core made in 2007, MacPro3,1 was both 4 and 8 cores made in 2008, and the 2009's are MacPro4,1 both 4 and 8 core. Let the collective know then someone can help you out.
 
hyram said:
You need to know what version you have. MacPro1,1 are 4 core machines made in 2006/7, MacPro2,1 is 8 core made in 2007, MacPro3,1 was both 4 and 8 cores made in 2008, and the 2009's are MacPro4,1 both 4 and 8 core. Let the collective know then someone can help you out.
Click to expand...

It will be a 1,1. 2 x Dual Core 2.0ghz
 
Upgrading a 2.66 dual core to 8 core.

bozz2006 said:
that should be a huge improvement. I thought long and hard before opting for the 2.66's over the 2.33's. hope you win. My aim right now is to figure out if it's possible for "about this mac" to correctly report the processors. I have windows xp running under bootcamp, and windows reports them correctly....
Click to expand...

bozz2006 said:
and don't worry about melting the motherboard. The general belief is that all the internals of every mac pro of that generation is the same, from the 2.0GHz quad core to the 3.0 GHz 8-core.
Click to expand...

Hi this is my first post. I am looking for answers to some simple questions. Apple support tends to say it is impossible and that they do not sell motherboards seperately. I just want to confirm.

1. Is it possible to upgrade my 2.66 dual core motherboard or just processors to 6 or even 8 core processors? Which makes more sense economically?

2. If so, which processors and speeds would make the most sense for Photoshop CS5 and FCP 7? I would like to get the greatest performance boost for my buck.

3. Where can I purchase them?

4. Is there an instructional video anyone has posted as to how to install them myself?
 
i am looking to do the same thing with my 2006 1st gen 1,1.

post back if you find anything, i'll do the same.

i was also considering buying one of those mac pro boxes

they sell on ebay and building a new one from scratch.

maybe the sandy bridge 17 stuff.
 
Thank you

Thank you for posting this thread and everyone contributing.
 
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Do You KEEP the Same CPU Heatsinks

Just checking ahead of time. I decided NOT to go for a $5K Mac Pro UNTIL Apple decides to support SATAIII/ USB 3.0. Until then it is a Monitor / Graphic Card / CPU upgrade.

QUESTION - Can I simply use the Mac Pro's original CPU Heatsinks?
 
CPU swap video

Hello all,

just posted part 1 of a 2 part video tutorial on how to swap the CPU in the 1st gen Mac Pro here:

http://youtu.be/wmz7gPw31L0

I should have part 2 up this week-end, but this will give you a good idea on the basics of what's involved and what to purchase before getting started.

Enjoy!
 
Midphase said:
Both parts are up:


Part 1:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmz7gPw31L0

Part 2:

http://youtu.be/phzn8MPaDtQ

Enjoy!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the videos.



I'm a little late to this whole thing of upgrading my 2.0 MP, but I just wanted to ask some questions before going a head and buying my processors.


1. Has anyone upgraded to the X5365 Xeons running at 3 GHz? I just recently found these pretty cheap, and am considering buying a matched pair for around $500.

2. Has anyone ran into issues besides running hotter?


Hopefully this will revive an old thread, and maybe some people could share the performance they have had since doing the upgrade.
 
Sweetfeld28 said:
Thanks for the videos.



I'm a little late to this whole thing of upgrading my 2.0 MP, but I just wanted to ask some questions before going a head and buying my processors.


1. Has anyone upgraded to the X5365 Xeons running at 3 GHz? I just recently found these pretty cheap, and am considering buying a matched pair for around $500.

2. Has anyone ran into issues besides running hotter?


Hopefully this will revive an old thread, and maybe some people could share the performance they have had since doing the upgrade.
Click to expand...


Absolutely NO issues, they run beautifully and I wait for my SSD from OWC any day now :)
 
Sweetfeld28 said:
1. Has anyone upgraded to the X5365 Xeons running at 3 GHz? I just recently found these pretty cheap, and am considering buying a matched pair for around $500.
Click to expand...
X5355's @ 2.66GHz are significantly cheaper and the loss in computing power is hard to notice imo.

Sweetfeld28 said:
2. Has anyone ran into issues besides running hotter?
Click to expand...
Not really an issue you would probably notice, but the latest stepping not only needs less power in idle mode (= less heat), but you also don't need to worry too much about microkernel updates to the CPU (most of them already present in the latest stepping), which normally come with Apple's patches and won't happen with earlier steppings in this situation, as the new CPU's are not properly recognized in a MP 1,1. There are hacks to at least display the correct identification in "About this Mac", but i don't know whether those would also (re-)enable automatic microkernel updates for those new CPU's.

Sweetfeld28 said:
Hopefully this will revive an old thread, and maybe some people could share the performance they have had since doing the upgrade.
Click to expand...

According to Geekbench results the performance roughly doubles, however that depends massively on your usage scenario. There are still not that many applications to make real use of the increased core count (except for the usual suspects like handbrake and other video-intensive programs).

When i had to restart my MP last night it would show 100% load on all eight cores during startup with several autostart entries (and i had the feeling this went faster than in the past from the first moment showing the finder until programs being ready for user interaction), so in the future the benefit of more cores may increase over time.
 
Neodym said:
X5355's @ 2.66GHz are significantly cheaper and the loss in computing power is hard to notice imo.

According to Geekbench results the performance roughly doubles, however that depends massively on your usage scenario. There are still not that many applications to make real use of the increased core count (except for the usual suspects like handbrake and other video-intensive programs).
Click to expand...


Thanks for the info. Yeah, I noticed the X5355's were cheaper [X5355 prices], verses the X5365's [X5365 prices].

I bought the X5365's yesterday from that ALLHDD.com place, for $274/each. Which in my mind isn't a bad deal, considering my MP is now 5 years old.

I use my MP as my main computer at home, archiving all my music, movies designs, and other stuff. Since I usually leave my MP on all the time, for network storage and aTV, I figured it might as well be crunching some proteins as well. So, I have also been using folding@home. However, my MP seems to be bottlenecked while it is running folding in the background. Istat pro, shows that while i'm folding, and doing anything else, the processors are maxed at 100%. Yes, I know I can shut this off, but I would like to try and help out.

I do also use my MP for rendering PS files, and videos as well. So, it will be a welcomed speed bump to this apps as well.
 
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nambuccaheadsau said:
Have a look at this link from Apple Discussions. It is quite lengthy and contains some great information.


https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2809634?start=45&tstart=0
Click to expand...


Yes, the discussions were very helpful. However, one thing I noticed toward the end of the article on the last page, people were discussing the X5365 and Kernal Panics. Some even stated they had to use an altered Apple Firmware [Apple Firmware 2,1 from Netkas Forums] to correct the issues with KP's.

Did anyone have to do this, or have Kernal Panics as a result of their upgrade?
 
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Sweetfeld28 said:
[...]people were discussing the X5365 and Kernal Panics. [...]
Did anyone have [...] Kernal Panics as a result of their upgrade?
Click to expand...
I never had Kernel Panics after upgrading to a pair of X5355. However - that might be connected to
a) the mainstream software i'm using (no usage of special, "rare" CPU functions) and
b) the fact that i went for the latest G0 stepping, which has most of the microcode corrections already on board.
 
X5365 Upgrade woes

Sweetfeld28 said:
Yes, the discussions were very helpful. However, one thing I noticed toward the end of the article on the last page, people were discussing the X5365 and Kernal Panics. Some even stated they had to use an altered Apple Firmware [Apple Firmware 2,1 from Netkas Forums] to correct the issues with KP's.

Did anyone have to do this, or have Kernal Panics as a result of their upgrade?
Click to expand...

Yes, I had 3 KP's within a few days after doing the CPU swap. Twice while printing. I also found the Netkas mod, and changed by firmware to 2,1 and haven't had a single KP since then, around 30 days now. And I have been stress testing my CPU's with plenty of Handbrake use.
 
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