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Buying memory for original 2006-7 Mac Pro

les24preludes

les24preludes

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 6, 2011
119
5
Hi - I've tried to go through the memory threads here, but can't find exactly what I need, so here goes. My son has a 1.1 date 2006-7 quad 2.66 Mac Pro, and he's a design student so looking at heavy memory usage - he reckons 8G minimum if you agree with this calculation. Need to buy some more memory - he has 4 x 512 right now. Memory is ECC

So basically what SHOULD I buy and from whom?
What should I NOT buy?

Cancom and Crucial do new memory, but Apple store no longer offers this. So would I get Apple memory anywhere and does it make a difference? Plus, I hear stories of memory not working and being sent back within a lifetime guarantee - what vendors do and don't offer this guarantee?

So - good ideas about what I should do here!

Andy
 
Another question - do these memory modules need heatsinks? I've seen them offered with and without

Andy
 
FWIW, I upgraded a 2007 MP (2,1) with memory from Crucial. It came with heat sinks and worked fine. They also have a hassle-free lifetime warranty.
 
Thanks for the US links. I'm in London, so any savings might be ruled out by import charges if I was unlucky enough to trigger them.

andy
 
Almost all UK memory suppliers with retail stores offer limited lifetime warranties - good brands of memory are Hynix, Kingston, Crucial and Corsair.

The only key points you need to consider are ECC and temperature sensor (does the 1.1 MP need a temp sensor on ram, folks?). "Server" memory which is usually ECC and registered is an optional extra which you do not need to pay the extra for unless you want to.

I normally buy my RAM in the UK from Scan.co.uk and take their optional accidental damage cover because I know RAM is so sensitive to static until you have it safely fitted to the computer. Scan's insurers will insist you use an anti-static wrist-strap.

I believe Crucial have a RAM Finder which you can use to see what type of RAM your 1.1 needs but you are not tied to any specific brand. As long as you get the correct format, the correct speed and ECC, you should be fine. It doesn't *need* to be Apple Certified memory. You can buy it from anywhere.

NOTE : Crucial recommend DDR2-667 PC2-5300 EEC buffered... http://www.crucial.com/uk/store/lis...4-core) 1st Gen. - 2006-2007&pl=Apple&cat=RAM
 
Last edited:
Hi - I tried Scan but they just have non-ECC, and nothing with a heatsink. Alas!

I could try on Monday to see if they have stuff that's not listed on the website.

andy
 
Could somebody tell me when heatsinks are and are not needed?

I imagine that in theory you could get some and just clip them on.

Andy
 
I would speculate that for ordinary memory operating at the voltages and speeds it has been designed for, heat-sinks or heat-spreaders are not required. If they were, the memory would ship with them.

Where they are useful is in the overclocking community where people regularly raise the clock speeds and core voltages to get more performance out of a system at the expense of stability. Heat-sinks and more powerful cooling are intended to allow the components to be pushed further before they become unstable.
 
DanielCoffey said:
I would speculate that for ordinary memory operating at the voltages and speeds it has been designed for, heat-sinks or heat-spreaders are not required. If they were, the memory would ship with them.
Click to expand...

The original memory for that machine has heat sinks, and so do the replacement modules offered on crucial.com.

Dont settle for the cheapest parts you can find on the web. If that were my machine I would spend the extra money and buy the correct parts from a reputable vendor. If there is a question about whether heat sinks are required or not, just get modules that have them, and not worry about it later.
 
I would not run memory without heat spreaders, get temp monitor running and take a look at what temp the fbdimms are at. If he is running memory intensive tasks saving a couple bucks is a very bad idea imho. I've had a few brands of memory in my machine, Apple branded, OWC and Crucial, it all works fine. I tried some sticks from 1800Memory just for fun since they were cheap, and aside from what appeared to be slightly higher temps (they had the spreaders) had no problems, but since I only wanted 4 slots filled I sold it. Most stuff I do ends up being CPU limited, 8 gigs is plenty for me.
 
The official 3x1Gb Apple ram that shipped in my 2010 Mac Pro was bare and didn't have heat spreaders. The Hynix 3x4Gb pack I bought to replace it did.
 
The newer machines don't use FB-Dimm ram, and have no use for the spreaders. The ram in 1,1s eats more power than new machines processors when all 8 slots are filled. That translates into a LOT of heat to dissapate.
 
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AngryRedTicTac said:
The newer machines don't use FB-Dimm ram, and have no use for the spreaders. The ram in 1,1s eats more power than new machines processors when all 8 slots are filled. That translates into a LOT of heat to dissapate.
Click to expand...

yeah i'd probably get some with heatsinks
 
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