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2008 Mac Pro 2.8ghz 8-core...how does it stand up today?

F

fs454

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Dec 7, 2007
1,987
1,876
Los Angeles / Boston
I've had my 8-core Mac Pro since the day it was released in January '08. It's been a beast, and still is. I'm just curious since it's literally over three years old now, how does it stack up against comparatively priced Mac Pros?

It seems like they raised the price, the newest Westmere 8-core machines going for $3499 base, whereas I got my original 8-core for $2799. I'm definitely betting the 12-core to be an absolute beast(is that 24 threads?) over my machine, but it's also five grand.

I'm still pretty damn happy with my '08 Mac Pro and feel like it's held its own much, much longer than any computer I've ever bought and still feels like it outperforms much of what's out there today. I bench 10k in Geekbench, 11.5k in Geekbench 64-bit, and realistically I do a lot of video and effects work with 1080p Prores 422 footage, coming off of a Canon 5D Mark II.

Do the new models offer a big noticeable boost in speed over what I have? I'm primarily concerned with FCP X. Should I just keep upgrading this model? I've been passively planning for the past three years to throw a much better GPU in as well as more recently an SSD boot drive to replace my perpetually failing Raptor X drive.

Thanks, sorry for the wall of text.
 
Now I hope you didn't expect to upgrade every year? ;)

Anyway, you should see a performance boost when Final Cut starts to use the foundation that Quicktime X is built upon and Grand Central Dispatch for better threaded performance.

The rewrite from Carbon to Cocoa (64-bit) is also going to make it much more lean.

The only problem I can foresee is your generous amount of RAM.

We will know more about Final Cut Pro X performance when they update their homepage to reflect the changes and specifications.

I'm also still rocking the early 2008 Mac Pro and it seems like an absolute bargain of all the Mac Pro's released so far.
 
One thing that the 2008 mac pro has that the 2006-2007 doesn't is EFI64 - This means in a nutshell any new graphics card that AMD comes out with, especially since AMD wants to make money even with those who have slightly older machines. This is simply done behind Apple's back.. its called EBC Firmware and as you may or may not know Apple may not support the 5870/5770 running on 2006-2008 machines, but AMD will and thats what keeps the 2008 going.

EFI64 is the key here, ladies and gents. Remember, your 2008 mac pro can still chomp away at even the most intensive of pro apps and applications. They are, as one person said: THE BEST BANG FOR THE BUCK. I know. I had a 2008 Harpertown 3.0 ghz Mac Pro - but sold it and went with the 2009, then built the 2010 from buying for 300 bucks the backplane board and processor board.

The 2008 mac pro still has for the foreseeable future(at least now and a few years from now) a viable use. Price wise, its the most affordable mac out there.

2.8, 3.0 or 3.2 - personally, I'd go with 3.0. but the processors can be had so you can go from 2.8 to 3.2 instantly.
 
I think you're asking two different questions:

1) How does a 2008 mac pro compare to the 2010 mac pro.
Geekbench can settle that fairly easily (although perhaps controversially), so i'm not going to look into it.

2) How does $2800 for a MP in 2008 compare to $2800 for a MP in 2010.
Just from playing around on the website, a 2.8ghz 4 core starts at $2500.
Just upgrading to a 3.2ghz 4 core puts you at $2900 (100 over what you paid, but I can be a little flexible).
The base 8-core starts at $3500. $700 over budget, and I'm not that bendy.

A quick look at geekbench...
A 2010 2.8ghz 4 core has a score of 8629 in 32 bit mode. You said you score 10K, so you're machine is slightly better and was $300 more expensive. You win, but you paid for it.
A 2010 3.2ghz 4 core has a score of 9829 in 32 bit mode. You're machine is slightly better and was $100 cheaper. You win and save money.


Based on that, I would say a 2008 Mac Pro 2.8ghz 8-core still stands strong.
 
minifridge1138 said:
I think you're asking two different questions:

1) How does a 2008 mac pro compare to the 2010 mac pro.
Geekbench can settle that fairly easily (although perhaps controversially), so i'm not going to look into it.

2) How does $2800 for a MP in 2008 compare to $2800 for a MP in 2010.
Just from playing around on the website, a 2.8ghz 4 core starts at $2500.
Just upgrading to a 3.2ghz 4 core puts you at $2900 (100 over what you paid, but I can be a little flexible).
The base 8-core starts at $3500. $700 over budget, and I'm not that bendy.

A quick look at geekbench...
A 2010 2.8ghz 4 core has a score of 8629 in 32 bit mode. You said you score 10K, so you're machine is slightly better and was $300 more expensive. You win, but you paid for it.
A 2010 3.2ghz 4 core has a score of 9829 in 32 bit mode. You're machine is slightly better and was $100 cheaper. You win and save money.


Based on that, I would say a 2008 Mac Pro 2.8ghz 8-core still stands strong.
Click to expand...

Did you not see what I wrote in terms of EFI64?
 
minifridge1138 said:
I think you're asking two different questions:

1) How does a 2008 mac pro compare to the 2010 mac pro.
Geekbench can settle that fairly easily (although perhaps controversially), so i'm not going to look into it.

2) How does $2800 for a MP in 2008 compare to $2800 for a MP in 2010.
Just from playing around on the website, a 2.8ghz 4 core starts at $2500.
Just upgrading to a 3.2ghz 4 core puts you at $2900 (100 over what you paid, but I can be a little flexible).
The base 8-core starts at $3500. $700 over budget, and I'm not that bendy.

A quick look at geekbench...
A 2010 2.8ghz 4 core has a score of 8629 in 32 bit mode. You said you score 10K, so you're machine is slightly better and was $300 more expensive. You win, but you paid for it.
A 2010 3.2ghz 4 core has a score of 9829 in 32 bit mode. You're machine is slightly better and was $100 cheaper. You win and save money.


Based on that, I would say a 2008 Mac Pro 2.8ghz 8-core still stands strong.
Click to expand...

jessica. said:
Going strong here with no intentions to replace it anytime soon.
Click to expand...

Yeah, the 2008's are still a strong contender, given the 2010's dominance. But what keeps the 2008's going is EFI64 and any AMD graphics cards w/EBC. Also, add an SSD and you've got a nice system. Newer technology such as USB3, thunderbolt don't mean the 2008 is an obsolete machine.. even for basics, and I mean basics my Power Mac G5 Quad still almost wipes the floor with even some of the mac minis and close to performance of the stock 2.0ghz 2006 mac pro.. but both my 2010 mac pro and G5 are very useful machines.. one being a hosted file server, while the other is my everyday desktop computer.

Couple that with two power books.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it"
 
Joshuarocks said:
Yeah, the 2008's are still a strong contender, given the 2010's dominance. But what keeps the 2008's going is EFI64 and any AMD graphics cards w/EBC. Also, add an SSD and you've got a nice system. Newer technology such as USB3, thunderbolt don't mean the 2008 is an obsolete machine.. even for basics, and I mean basics my Power Mac G5 Quad still almost wipes the floor with even some of the mac minis and close to performance of the stock 2.0ghz 2006 mac pro.. but both my 2010 mac pro and G5 are very useful machines.. one being a hosted file server, while the other is my everyday desktop computer.

Couple that with two power books.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it"
Click to expand...


Regarding USB 3.0 and maybe even thunderbolt, isn't it as simple as adding a PCI-E card with USB 3.0 ports or no?
 
Pressure said:
Anyway, you should see a performance boost when Final Cut starts to use the foundation that Quicktime X is built upon and Grand Central Dispatch for better threaded performance.
Click to expand...

FCPX does not really use Quicktime X. There is a new API.

As far as I know, Quicktime X for developers is likely dead.
 
My Harpertown 2.8 Mac Pro still runs very well. Geekbench scores are in the 10100 range, about as fast as the 2011 17" MBP 2.3ghz Sandy Bridge.

I've upgraded the RAM to 10 gigs (16 soon) and the hard drives to WD Black labels

I've also upgraded the video card multiple times. First I added a 3870, then a flashed 4890, and recently switched to an OEM 5870.

At this point I have no real motivation to consider replacing the system.
 
Fast Shadow said:
My Harpertown 2.8 Mac Pro still runs very well. Geekbench scores are in the 10100 range, about as fast as the 2011 17" MBP 2.3ghz Sandy Bridge.

I've upgraded the RAM to 10 gigs (16 soon) and the hard drives to WD Black labels

I've also upgraded the video card multiple times. First I added a 3870, then a flashed 4890, and recently switched to an OEM 5870.

At this point I have no real motivation to consider replacing the system.
Click to expand...

How'd the video upgrades improve performance? What do you do with the machine? I've been on the fence about upgrading for literally years now, hah.
 
08 MP here and its kicking BUTT!! its sooo quiet!!! and takes anything i throw at it. :D
:D
The upgrade from my MP 1,1 was massive. Ill keep her as long as she keeps doing what she gets told :p
 
Transporteur said:
Intel never said that! That was a misinterpretation of CNET.
Click to expand...

VanneDC said:
08 MP here and its kicking BUTT!! its sooo quiet!!! and takes anything i throw at it. :D
:D
The upgrade from my MP 1,1 was massive. Ill keep her as long as she keeps doing what she gets told :p
Click to expand...

In terms of reliability, the 2008 mac pro is by far the most reliable.. with less than 2 percent logic board failures and no other failures, its no wonder it is still a contender even today. The 2006-2007 also are good, but the 2008 is the better choice given its EFI64 support for even today's most demanding graphics cards. AMD ensures that older mac pros will be able to use their newest cards, though Apple would try to stop it.

Now, you are saying that a 5870 or 5770 won't work in my 2008 mac pro, Apple? I tend to differ.. hence, I "Think Differently"
 
I have two 5770s in my 2008 and 32 gb of ram. It is not bad, but I am definitely starting to feel it is getting time to upgrade, as I am finding myself waiting for the computer more often than I would like. I might look into some power adapters and try to get both a 5870 and 5770 installed.

I hope to hold out on upgrading the whole box until the next Mac Pro iteration.
 
Bwa said:
I have two 5770s in my 2008 and 32 gb of ram. It is not bad, but I am definitely starting to feel it is getting time to upgrade, as I am finding myself waiting for the computer more often than I would like. I might look into some power adapters and try to get both a 5870 and 5770 installed.

I hope to hold out on upgrading the whole box until the next Mac Pro iteration.
Click to expand...

When you say its starting to feel like its wearing down or slowing, are you repairing your disk permissions and or running other processes in the background which could slow up your machine? When was the last time you reset the PRAM on your machine? Have you had any recent kernel panics?

Where is it slow? You have 32GB of memory - this is a plus, if you require that much memory. You might wanna invest in some SSD drives as they will breathe new life into your 2008 making it just as fast as the 2009-2010 mac pros. I have a feeling the 2012 refresh won't be so much faster that someone with a 12-core or 6-core like me would be interested at all.

Sandy bridge is better suited for the laptops since they run much cooler and give better energy savings.
 
I also want to join the circle jerk!

Love my 2008 octo. When it was released the dollar was really weak so it was a bargain here, the "same" Dell was twice the price. It has been a beast and with a SSD and a 6850 it is an even beastier beast.

That being said I would love if Apple could release another MP with the same value again. I have been waiting for something to upgrade to but everything since the 2008 MP just feels MEH.

Only thing which sucks is the 27" cinema mini DP, I dont own one so I dont care but my friend who bought an identical MP as me had a lot of troubles getting it to work.
 
Detrius said:
Thunderbolt won't be available as an add-on card, according to Intel.
Click to expand...
Until they see that there could be lots of $$ in the idea.....

About the '08 towers: I too feel that they are still excellent bang-for-the-buck systems. Really, the towers these days pack so much punch, that I would expect them to have lengthy lifespans.
 
the 2008 no doubt was a bargain.

the base 2010 quad 2.8 will be considered a bargain. 2500 is full price put in a w3670 for 600 you are at 3100 with a quad 2.8 cpu on the shelf as a spare. It geekbenches at 15100. Has an airport extreme in it as stock along with wi-fi and bluetooth. I am pretty sure that with the cpu upgrade it is a better machine then the 2008.

with careful shopping you can get one for 2000 and the upgrade is 400 as a net price if you sell the 2.8 quad cpu off. so it means you could build a 2010 hex 3.2 for under 2500 with a bit of luck.
 
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