802.11ac Airport card update for classic/old Mac Pros (cMP)?

[ZombiePhysicist]

Are there any upgrades for 2006-2012 Mac Pro's to get new 802.11ac? Specifically a replacement card for the built in Airport 802.11n card?

I know some have used that card for some wild upgrades, like a USB 3.0 card (see here https://forums.macrumors.com/posts/19039972/).

I was hoping an ac capable Airport card might be available? Has anyone found and/or tried such a thing?

I know you can get usb3.0 802.11ac cards/thumbdrive/antennas, but I was hoping for and upgrade to the existing 802.11n card built into the cMP.

Thanks for any pointers!

 

[ZombiePhysicist]

I've read that you can find BCM94322MC mPCIe cards from broadcom and they will work in the the mPCIe slot (if you don't already have an 802.11n card in your cMP).

Like these: http://www.ebay.com/bhp/apple-bcm94322mc

However, I still don't see any mPCIe 802.11ac cards that people have tried/tested or know to work. Does anyone know what chipset apple uses for 802.11ac on the nMP? Perhaps we can try to find an mPCIe card with that new chipset and it might work without drivers?

There is a little info here:
http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/feedback/802.11ac_Mac_adapters.html

"Subject: (Mac compatible) 802.11ac cards
You can use the Asus PCE-AC66 [product page] in a Mac Pro, and the card is recognized as a third party 11ac Card.
It also works on a Mac using a Thunderbolt to PCIe enclosure (with a little driver modification) [English translated])
I have tested the Asus PCIe 802.11ac card in a Mac Pro. [English translated]
You can find Mini-PCIe card with BCM4360 (3x3) or BCM4352 (2x2, 867 mb/s like MacBook Air) on eBay, but they are very expensive (almost $100 for (2x2) BCM4352 at ebay) http://www.ebay.com/sch/sis.html?_n...s 2 4 5GHZ Bluetooth 4 0&_itemId=200922140181

I think that Mac OS X (10.8.x or later) can use all cards with BCM4360 and BCM4352.
The biggest problem [w/mini-PCIe] is that you must have a Mac compatible with Mountain Lion/Mavericks and a mini PCIe slot: many recent Mac use a proprietary slot for the Wi-Fi card.
Best regards, Pierre"

It seems like we might want a BCM4360 (faster) or BCM4352 (slower) based mPCIe card. I found this and wonder if it would be compatible with a MacPro5,1:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Apple-Broad...US_Internal_Network_Cards&hash=item3cde3180bb

The Broadcom BCM94360CD PCI-E mini custom combo WLAN+Bluetooth card supports IEEE 802.11ac, the next standard in wireless computer networking.
Interestingly, it also looks like it may fit in current iMacs/MacBooks which could mean aftermarket updates could be possible.
Model: BCM94360CD
With Bluetooth 4.0
Compatible with: 2013 21.5"/27" iMac

And there are certainly a lot of BCM4352 mPCIe cards available:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trk...0.H0.XBCM4352&_nkw=BCM4352&_sacat=0&_from=R40

Question is has anyone tried/succeeded at getting any 802.11ac mPCIe cards working on a Mac Pro?

 

[jenzjen]

do you do a lot of LAN transfers, as I don't think it will make a meaningful difference for real world use

we have both cMP and nMP still both pulling the full +100 connection from my ISP sitting about 50 feet from the router

 

[ActionableMango]

Yes there is a working AC solution for the mPCIe slot in the MP. This was discussed in an earlier thread:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1703392/

 

[ZombiePhysicist]

Yes there is a working AC solution for the mPCIe slot in the MP. This was discussed in an earlier thread:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1703392/

Thanks AM, but it seems like someone tried the Azurewave card but it doesn't wake after sleep (as of 10.8.5) and modifying current apple cards seems to involve soldering surgery.

I'm hoping there is a buy, plug and forget option, but doesn't seem to be one at the moment...

 

[ZombiePhysicist]

do you do a lot of LAN transfers, as I don't think it will make a meaningful difference for real world use

we have both cMP and nMP still both pulling the full +100 connection from my ISP sitting about 50 feet from the router

Yea, I do. It might make more sense to hard wire the MP, or just use an Airport express to bridge the mac pro...