I have a 2010 mac pro dual 3.46 running oclp. I currently have a rx580 gpu. I use this for davinci heavily and want to upgrade the gpu. Now I was going to go with a second rx 580 but was told to just use 1 radeon vii. So my question is should I get a radeon vii or a 6800 instead? Looks ;like the 6800 would be way faster but I have no way of flashing it. I also don't know any real world test using a 6800 with davinci on a mac pro.
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MP 1,1-5,1 2010 Mac pro GPU question
- Thread starter Gnx231
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Avoid any 6000 series card at this moment if you can't flash it. No matter how fast it is, you just can't use it on the cMP. You have either flash the card, or flash the Mac (early beta stage).
I have both RX580 and Radeon VII. The Radeon VII is about 100% faster than RX580 in video work (non professional, just home video editing), including hardware encoding.
I am not a OCLP user, but AFAIK, you may need to re-apply root patching after graphic card changes in order to let the new card function properly.
Yeah, as ^mentioned -- if you can't flash, then go for the VII or an RX-5700XT (but you will need Pixlas)
The AMD 5700XT Reference cards come with a 2 slot design, there are however some versions with 2,5 slot with a three fan design. As a video professional I would go with a 2 slot design because you don't want to loose the precious slot #2 reserved for your fast NVME start up drive.
In terms of flash or not, (GPU &/or iOS) you need to ask yourself if you want to use Windows or other / multiple Systems on your MP. If that is a big YES, I would recommend to go the flash route. Since you need Open Core for Monterey and newer, I don't see any other option on the long run. The AMD 6800 makes the Open Core mandatory anyways, so the only way to not flash would be Vega VII and 5700XT if you stay with Catalina and DosDude1 patcher.
(Been there done that) I had every card you mentioned above, except the 5700XT.
Since I have my MP 5.1 for more then 7 years now, heavily use Windows 10, I really wish to keep it as long as possible, I did choose to run OpenCore and use a flashed mutant Alienware 6800XT 2-slot version to have the standard bootscreen selector as usually. I wouldn't have it any other way. Since Samsung will release the new Pro Monitor any day now, a new updated GPU was a small cost to enable the new 5K monitor (seen below) without Apple`s BITCH Thunderbolt 3 connector that prevents you from full 5K Bliss with the MP 5.1
In other words, I'd go with the flash route..
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ok. So right now I'm running the MP with oclp on monterey, 48 gb ram 4 500 gb ssd's and 1 500gb nvme in a pcie board, a titon ridge thunderbolt card running two apple cinema displays and an rx 580. I'm using this heavily for davinci resolve. It works great except I have started getting into fusion and audio work and that's where it starts to stutter. I even have to adjust my workflow so all the heavy work is done at the end just before rendering. I looked into a mac studio but way out of budget. that's why I'm looking at these cards. My original idea was the vii but then came across the 6800. If the 6800 is that much more powerful I will figure out a way to flash it. So you are saying 6800 all the way??
I think both cards (6800 & Vega VII) are about on paar. I had three Vega's in the past (56,64 and VII). The Vega VII made a huge difference compared to the 56 and 64. If you can get the VII at a reasonable price and maybe one in great condition, you can go for the VII any time. It has full aluminium shroud and faster HB2 memory.
My current 6800XT however is also very fast. I think it feels a tad faster in Windows when it comes to games.
Since the 6800 / 6800XT was the default card on the 7.1, I think the Apple drivers are better and higher quality because the VII was never an official Apple card. The Apple Vega II from the 7.1 might be however similar to that VII. I think with either card you will be very happy. It really depends on GPU availability in your region and where to get that card at what price tag. With MacVidCards.EU in Poland, I always used their flash service and sent them my own card for that flash service. (Don't know about the MVC USA guys though, its a different entity(!).
The 6800 is just the more common card at the moment and the MacVid.EU guys put the Apple boot screen EFI on there. That is not available on the VII, so it comes down to price, convenience and Apple bootscreen or "just" Syncretics mod.
There is a difference, because with Syncretic you just use the OpenCore Boot loader. With the EFI mod from MacVid cards you get the original Apple boot loader back on the 6800 and OpenCore Boot loader is not visible. I also see this longterm. In just about 6 month the new shiny MacPro 8.1 with Apple Silicon will be released. This is the time when MacPro 7.1 price tags will fall down into the Abyss. If you want to put all precious cards from the 5.1 in the 7.1 later on, you better go with cards that the 7.1 will like. As far as I remember, the VII has that sleep issue in the 7.1. the 6800 may does not. Sooo ... it depends.
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To clarify on a little of what @AlexMaximus said above -- with a Radeon VII or 5700XT no flashing is required. But you will need to run Catalina or newer with Open Core, and you will need the Pixlas mod.
If you want to go 6800XT or 6900XT route (recommended)-- flashing is required, and you will need to be on Big Sur or newer with Pixlas mod also done, and of course Open Core.
However -- stay away from macvidcards!!! They are known to do hardware flashing, and also greatly markup GPU prices, so you will be paying more than you really need to, plus no warranty/returns. Why give scalpers money when you don't have to?
Simply purchase an RX-6800XT or 6900XT from Amazon, insert it into a PCIe slot in any PC running Windows (where you have admin access) and you can have it flashed in less than 5 minutes.
I am speaking from experience -- in fact I was the first person to get an RX-6800XT running in a cMP once Syncretic put out his patch. If curious, my thread on that can be found HERE
If you want to go 6800XT or 6900XT route (recommended)-- flashing is required, and you will need to be on Big Sur or newer with Pixlas mod also done, and of course Open Core.
However -- stay away from macvidcards!!! They are known to do hardware flashing, and also greatly markup GPU prices, so you will be paying more than you really need to, plus no warranty/returns. Why give scalpers money when you don't have to?
Simply purchase an RX-6800XT or 6900XT from Amazon, insert it into a PCIe slot in any PC running Windows (where you have admin access) and you can have it flashed in less than 5 minutes.
I am speaking from experience -- in fact I was the first person to get an RX-6800XT running in a cMP once Syncretic put out his patch. If curious, my thread on that can be found HERE
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This I cannot offer any advice on -- But you'd for sure need to figure some way to power both cards, perhaps a modded external PSU?
Have you done the Pixlas mod yet? You will need this for any of the cards you are looking at.
Honestly, if flashing is the issue, then just get an RX-5700XT off Amazon. As long as you have Pixlas, it's plug-n-play.
From an electric point of view this is no problem and has been done in the past. You would need to have Pixels Mod for card #1 and an additional, external power supply with two 8 pin cables, powering your second VII. Google for it and look up / search for pictures on Dual Vega VII in MP5.1. People who did that or similar (3x AMD RX 480) eliminated the upper HD bays and used the 4th slot as well. An alternative to that would be to use a Titan Ridge card. Then use an older BlackMagic GPU Pro Vega 56 between MP and your monitor in daisy chain. This way you force the MP to use the BlackMagic to use it full time. So you would have the VEGA VII for "Compute only mode" for DaVinci.
Here are the pics for the dual mod:
(Scroll down to #180)
For info, Radeon VII is supported natively in Mojave 10.14.6. Therefore, no need to go Catalina or higher (if OP prefer that).
It also means OP can boot with Radeon VII natively without any boot loader / patched macOS (same as the RX580).
The Pro Vega II for the 7,1 is the "full version" of the Radeon VII indeed (64 cores vs 60 cores). So, driver support should not be a problem.
In fact, accrording to Apple's official page. Radeon VII is one of the supported aftermarket graphic card.
Graphics card compatibility for Final Cut Pro, Motion, and Compressor - Apple Support
Learn which built-in and aftermarket graphics cards work with Final Cut Pro, Motion, and Compressor on Mac.
For boot screen, there is no need to buy flashed card anymore. We flash the 6000 series card because they can't boot on the cMP by default due to incompatible UEFI firmware, but not due to boot screen.
OpenCore team already gave us the EnableGOP drive to inject in the cMP's bootROM, so that we can enjoy native boot screen (including hold option key to boot, or use firmware password) for almost any moden graphic card (inlcuding Radeon VII, 5700, and 6800). Even though that boot screen may shows artefacts with Radeon VII (so far, only Radeon VII has this issue), but it's totally usable (I am the internal tester on this matter). And use EnableGopDirect with OpenCore boot picker can show flawless boot screen even with Radeon VII.
In fact, Syncretic also created another bootROM patch for cMP, which also allow modern graphic cards to show native boot screen. But that's internal beta at this moment. With this cMP bootROM patch, there will be no need to patch the 6800 anymore, just plug and play on the cMP.
Dual Radeon VII can work, DV should able to fully utilise both cards quite well. But I highly recommend you downvolt the cards. Radeon VII by default can draw up to ~300W. On cMP, run 2x Radeon VII + 2x X5690 can stress the PSU to the limit (assume Pixlas mod already done, otherwise, no way to power 2x Radeon VII internally).
By considering we can downvolt a Radeon VII to save ~70W with virtually no performance penalty. 2x Radeon VII can save ~150W in total, which gives a 980W PSU an extra 15% buffer. Also, both GPU will run at a much lower temperature. I believe this can highly increase stability for long run.
How to - downvolt a Radeon VII
Just upgraded from RX580 to Radeon VII (it's just $350 from a local seller, like new condition, with 2 years+ warranty. I really can't skip it :D) Anyway, as usual, all AMD GPU are seriously overvolted from factory (Default setting in Wattman shows 1801MHz @1093mV). Properly downvolt the card...
forums.macrumors.com
Anyway, I am NOT saying the Radoen VII is the best option for you. I leave it for you to decide. I just give you the extra info about Radeon VII.
Is it even possible to find New, Unused, Radeon VII nowadays?
I remember looking for one back in like 2021 and couldn't, for the life of me, find a single one, just a bunch of used ones that were extremely overpriced and abused.
I remember looking for one back in like 2021 and couldn't, for the life of me, find a single one, just a bunch of used ones that were extremely overpriced and abused.
I don't think so. AMD only sell this GPU for a very short period of time. And no 3rd part options.
By considering this GPU was launched 4 years ago. And stopped manufacturing back in Auf 2019. I highly doubt any new card can be obtained with reasonable price.
Anyway, a quick search shows that avail on eBay (new card), but regardless if that's genuine, the price is ridiculously expansive.
Yeah, considering you can get a brand new RX-6800XT for $550 from Amazon with free shipping and guaranteed returns, I really don't see a reason not to go for it. Especially given the recent developments you mentioned above about EnableGOP, no longer needing to use Syncretic's patch to flash, etc...
No brainer -- OP, I say go for the 6800XT, and look more into what Martin mentioned about EnableGOP, etc...
This way, if you do end up upgrading to a 7,1 like I did -- you can bring your 6800XT with you (as I did), and then unlock its full potential.
There are three indepedent ROM level mods.
1) Syncretic's 6000 series ROM patching. This patch only has one main function and purpose - Let the 6000 series card can boot on cMP. This ROM patch itself won't provide any natively boot screen ability on the cMP.
2) EnableGOP from the OpenCore team. This patch only has one main function and purpose - Let any UEFI GOP graphic card (basically all modern graphic cards) can show native boot screen on cMP. This work around patch the cMP, but not the card (even you can patch the card, but not recommended on cMP). However, this patch itself does NOT enough to make the 6000 series can work on cMP.
3) Syncretic's cMP bootROM mod. This patch contain the functions of both 1 and 2, plus a lot more. However, this mod isn't publish yet.
So, if OP goes for 6800XT (which I agree has very good cost to performance ratio. Plus has warranty etc), he should apply both 1&2. And 1 can only be done on another computer (unless he use hardware flasher).
With dual Pixlas mod, dual SATA power + downvolting the VIIs, and you can have 3x VII in a cMP if you need to. Without downvolting it will work, but it's like dancing on the edge of it regarding the power draw. I tested this a couple of years ago.
Pixlas Mod & Radeon VII Install Mac Pro 5,1
Interesting... If I don't have to flash the card then I will go with the 6800. oclp has this setting EnableGopDirect?For info, Radeon VII is supported natively in Mojave 10.14.6. Therefore, no need to go Catalina or higher (if OP prefer that).
It also means OP can boot with Radeon VII natively without any boot loader / patched macOS (same as the RX580).
The Pro Vega II for the 7,1 is the "full version" of the Radeon VII indeed (64 cores vs 60 cores). So, driver support should not be a problem.
In fact, accrording to Apple's official page. Radeon VII is one of the supported aftermarket graphic card.
Graphics card compatibility for Final Cut Pro, Motion, and Compressor - Apple Support
Learn which built-in and aftermarket graphics cards work with Final Cut Pro, Motion, and Compressor on Mac.support.apple.com
For boot screen, there is no need to buy flashed card anymore. We flash the 6000 series card because they can't boot on the cMP by default due to incompatible UEFI firmware, but not due to boot screen.
OpenCore team already gave us the EnableGOP drive to inject in the cMP's bootROM, so that we can enjoy native boot screen (including hold option key to boot, or use firmware password) for almost any moden graphic card (inlcuding Radeon VII, 5700, and 6800). Even though that boot screen may shows artefacts with Radeon VII (so far, only Radeon VII has this issue), but it's totally usable (I am the internal tester on this matter). And use EnableGopDirect with OpenCore boot picker can show flawless boot screen even with Radeon VII.
In fact, Syncretic also created another bootROM patch for cMP, which also allow modern graphic cards to show native boot screen. But that's internal beta at this moment. With this cMP bootROM patch, there will be no need to patch the 6800 anymore, just plug and play on the cMP.
Dual Radeon VII can work, DV should able to fully utilise both cards quite well. But I highly recommend you downvolt the cards. Radeon VII by default can draw up to ~300W. On cMP, run 2x Radeon VII + 2x X5690 can stress the PSU to the limit (assume Pixlas mod already done, otherwise, no way to power 2x Radeon VII internally).
By considering we can downvolt a Radeon VII to save ~70W with virtually no performance penalty. 2x Radeon VII can save ~150W in total, which gives a 980W PSU an extra 15% buffer. Also, both GPU will run at a much lower temperature. I believe this can highly increase stability for long run.
How to - downvolt a Radeon VII
Just upgraded from RX580 to Radeon VII (it's just $350 from a local seller, like new condition, with 2 years+ warranty. I really can't skip it :D) Anyway, as usual, all AMD GPU are seriously overvolted from factory (Default setting in Wattman shows 1801MHz @1093mV). Properly downvolt the card...
Anyway, I am NOT saying the Radoen VII is the best option for you. I leave it for you to decide. I just give you the extra info about Radeon VII.
Flashing a 6000 series card is a must on the original Mac Pro 5,1 or earlier firmware. Without it the Mac will not boot with the card installed.
Yes it does. OCLP is a project base on official OpenCore. And EnableGopDirect is a function in OpenCore. You can simply turn that on the in the OpenCore config.