So... I purchased this (supposed to be) GTX285 "for mac" because it has two dual DVI outputs, something I need. I received a black/red card "Asus Matrix" with the extra power cables, etc.. -- what is this? A flashed PC card, or?... a scam? Seller hasn't replied my email yet, but it is a reputable eBay store, with thousands of positive feedbacks, 100%. I did not install this card, I'm afraid it could ruin my 2010 quad. Any advice? I need two dual DVI outputs.
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Bought a Mac Pro GPU, received an Asus... what the &%$?
- Thread starter MacProFreak
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Advice = Return it immediately as being DOA.
Don't say it's the wrong part or they won't honor their buyer protection. Just DOA and money back!
Ebay is completely corrupt! "1000's of positive feedbacks" means absolutely nothing. In fact all the crooks have that. It's like a red flag to me now! 1000's of feedbacks? Yup, I better ask lots of questions before bidding and I can't expect any of the buyer protection support promised without a dragged out fight (which I might lose).
Here's a perfect example:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...69&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:US:1123#ht_500wt_922
This guy was busted for selling torn up RAM with no heat sinks and using this fake image claiming it was "refurbished" and "like new": http://tesselator.gpmod.com/Images/_ThemesEvents/E-Bay_Crook/
He got a negative review over it. And the same day the negative review was removed and he put up another auction (with different torn up RAM without heat sinks) using the same image and again claiming it was "like New" and "Manufacturer Refurbished":
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300850396133#ht_500wt_948
And the same thing repeated yet again! Another disappearing negative review, and another listing of a different set or RAM using the same fake image and the same false claims:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290848816710
Meanwhile in those three or four weeks the seller's "Positive feedbacks" has gone from 14,000 to 18,200. Besides the obvious I wanna know how a person gets 4,000 feedbacks in 3 weeks.
Nope, ebay is corrupt! You can use them but it's like using a flame thrower! Be very careful, wear the proper flame suit, and don't be surprised if you get burned anyway.
Don't say it's the wrong part or they won't honor their buyer protection. Just DOA and money back!
Ebay is completely corrupt! "1000's of positive feedbacks" means absolutely nothing. In fact all the crooks have that. It's like a red flag to me now! 1000's of feedbacks? Yup, I better ask lots of questions before bidding and I can't expect any of the buyer protection support promised without a dragged out fight (which I might lose).
Here's a perfect example:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...69&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:US:1123#ht_500wt_922
This guy was busted for selling torn up RAM with no heat sinks and using this fake image claiming it was "refurbished" and "like new": http://tesselator.gpmod.com/Images/_ThemesEvents/E-Bay_Crook/
He got a negative review over it. And the same day the negative review was removed and he put up another auction (with different torn up RAM without heat sinks) using the same image and again claiming it was "like New" and "Manufacturer Refurbished":
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300850396133#ht_500wt_948
And the same thing repeated yet again! Another disappearing negative review, and another listing of a different set or RAM using the same fake image and the same false claims:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290848816710
Meanwhile in those three or four weeks the seller's "Positive feedbacks" has gone from 14,000 to 18,200. Besides the obvious I wanna know how a person gets 4,000 feedbacks in 3 weeks.
Nope, ebay is corrupt! You can use them but it's like using a flame thrower! Be very careful, wear the proper flame suit, and don't be surprised if you get burned anyway.
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Hmmm... weird. This is the product link:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Early-2...TX285-1GB-Video-Card-TW387ZM-A-/270884064729?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Early-2...TX285-1GB-Video-Card-TW387ZM-A-/270884064729?
Don't lie about it - just return it as "not as advertised". If it is a different product, the seller needs to know and be told it is not what you bought in the auction.
if you lie and he gets it back and tests it (in his PC) and finds it working, you have lost any credibility what so ever.
Question is, what were you expecting? Apple doesn't make their own cards for use in the Pro line. If you're buying a card, chances are good it's gonna be an Asus, EVGA, or what have you. The card he's showing on the site looks like one of Nvidia's reference GPUs.
The red Asus Matrix card is a proper, real GPU. Likely the seller is taking Geforce cards from various manufacturers and flashing them for use in the Macs.
If you don't feel safe, do what the guy above said. Send it back DOA. Otherwise, pop it in and see what happens. I doubt it'll blow up your computer.
Yeah, it probably works even tho it's misrepresented.
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Ranting and whistle blowing are two distinctly different things. You should change your screen-name to "DefenderOfCrooks" maybe... No?
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DanielCoffey,
One would think so... But that's not how it works out in practice.
.
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Ranting and whistle blowing are two distinctly different things. You should change your screen-name to "DefenderOfCrooks" maybe... No?
---
DanielCoffey,
One would think so... But that's not how it works out in practice.
.
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I dunno if it was misrepresented so much as not fully represented. It looks like the guy is selling a "Mac Pro GTX285" without any mention of a manufacturer. Asus makes some of the best cards around, so as long as he got a GTX285 with 1GB ram onboard, he's probably good.
Agreed, but "not fully represented" is the same as misrepresented. I think in legal circles as well as just normal common sense / common language.
False advertising. It can't be "new" if it is a flashed card, and if it was in a sealed box then it isn't for the Mac Pro - which we know because only EVGA made such cards. I'd return it, but you can spend time researching if this works with iut modification and what any issues might be instead. You have paid the price of the official card for a much cheaper PC one though...
edit: Went back and looked at it (now I'm not on a phone), their categorization of new lets them get away with a lot. I'd still just send it back, sellers can't really fight you these days. He's pricing a standard PC card at the official Mac Pro prices, it's done on purpose.
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The seller is reputable and has been around eBay for a long time. He doesn't say the card is flashed in his add, but it is a flashed card with a Mac EFI. IMHO, it's a bit pricy. A better choice, IMHO, would be card from MacVidCards, one of the members of this forum. I have a flashed GTX570 working in a 3,1 Mac Pro that was modified by MacVidCards and it is running in my machine with absolutely no issues. However, if you want a GTX285 that will boot in a Mac Pro and show a boot screen, that is what you got.
Lou
Lou
Thanks for all the replies. I hate sellers like this, that are just not straight forward. Why not state "Flashed Asus Matrix for Mac Pro" or something like that?
Even if this card works, I'd beware of this 'applemacanix' seller on eBay - for sure I'm not buying from them ever again. I don't care how many items someone has listed or needs to list. Canned sell pages can and should be edited to represent the item properly. I looked at the box in which the item came in, return address is a PO BOX, another bad sign.
I hope my (bad) experience serves as a warning for other mac pro potential upgraders out there. How this guy gets 10,700+ positive feedbacks is beyond me.
Even if this card works, I'd beware of this 'applemacanix' seller on eBay - for sure I'm not buying from them ever again. I don't care how many items someone has listed or needs to list. Canned sell pages can and should be edited to represent the item properly. I looked at the box in which the item came in, return address is a PO BOX, another bad sign.
I hope my (bad) experience serves as a warning for other mac pro potential upgraders out there. How this guy gets 10,700+ positive feedbacks is beyond me.
I imagine he expected a new, authorized apple card. Instead he got a generic card that isn't new because someone pulled it out of the box, inserted it into his computer, flashed it, and then apparently lost the box because it's listed as not included.
There is no doubt that this seller is trying to imply what he's selling is an Apple OEM for the unsuspected, and you have every right to return it and ask for a refund due to false advertising. However doing a little research in advance could have avoided this misunderstanding. Here is a picture of the real GTX 285 for Mac and it is very different from the one used by the seller, and the link provided by Macsonic shows a similar picture. So this seller actually knows what he's doing but hopes buyers would fall for the ambiguous advertising and be too lazy to return it when they learn the facts.
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Exactly. Misleading listings like that one, for guys like me that are not 100% geek are a big problem. If I was the seller, I would have explicitly stated "reflashed". It's a matter of Ethics. Either people have ethics, or they don't. There's no gray area for ethics.
What did the listing say? As long as the seller didn't lie then you shouldn't send it back - If you read it wrong or misinterpreted the listing then that is your fault.
Check the card works, if it does then use it and move on.
Check the card works, if it does then use it and move on.
Yeah, I'm starting to see this now. Initially, I thought he knew he was getting a flashed card, and was surprised he got a different brand than what was advertised.
Still, I don't think there's anything too suspicious about it. Likely the seller is just some guy flashing cards to make a quick buck on the side. He's probably not out to rip anyone off, just incredibly sloppy about how he advertises himself.
In fact, he's been pretty sloppy about everything from the sound of it. Even though the card would likely work, I'd suggest the OP send it back just for peace of mind.
The listing is linked earlier in the thread. It very carefully doesn't state that the card is a genuine Apple item, but it doesn't state that it isn't, either. Deliberate misinformation with plausible deniability. The seller should go into politics.
Well I just tested the card and it works, boot screen and all. The only problem is that its fan spins really fast, it's very noisy.
Still, the listing IS MISLEADING because it omits the information that it is an Asus Matrix reflashed card.
Any procedures I need to go through to slow down the GPU fan, besides a self-lobotomy?
Still, the listing IS MISLEADING because it omits the information that it is an Asus Matrix reflashed card.
Any procedures I need to go through to slow down the GPU fan, besides a self-lobotomy?
I think it's the PCI fan instead of the GPU fan, and this seems to be a common problem for 2009 MP as detailed in this thread. You could try either the method suggested in the first post or try installing the GPU in slot 2 as others have suggested before.
IMHO there is intent to deceive
Seller describes an ASUS nVidia GeForce GTX 285 card as Apple Mac Pro nVidia GeForce GTX 285.
Seller also says it's new when it is really an open-box modified card, missing the box. The box of course would inconveniently reveal that the card is an inexpensive generic card. I'm sure the warranty is void too.
This thing is misrepresented on multiple levels. IMHO it's no accident.
Seller describes an ASUS nVidia GeForce GTX 285 card as Apple Mac Pro nVidia GeForce GTX 285.
Seller also says it's new when it is really an open-box modified card, missing the box. The box of course would inconveniently reveal that the card is an inexpensive generic card. I'm sure the warranty is void too.
This thing is misrepresented on multiple levels. IMHO it's no accident.
It's the fan on the actual GPU. I downloaded GLView but when I click on "test" under the "Tests" section, nothing happens.