Frequently Asked Questions About NVIDIA PC (non-EFI) Graphics Cards

[chaosbunny]

Hey,

So does all un-flashed Nvidia gtx series work in any mac pro series as long as they are running 10.7.5 ?

Looking to possibly get a gtx 760 for my mac pro 1,1 if that's true

Quoting the op:

"If you are stuck with a MacPro1,1 or MacPro2,1 then your options are slightly different, since the Kepler cards don't work in Lion.

If you have an unlimited budget, get a GTX 570.
Otherwise, get a GTX 560 or GTX 560 Ti.

I think it's unlikely that the Kepler cards will ever be supported on Lion, which does limit the options for older Mac Pro systems."

Either option should still be a significant update if you still have the original gpu in your Mac Pro1,1.

 

[orph]

hay installed my GTX 660 FTW ACX, seems fine so far.
a relay nice improvement over my old GT120
noticed LuxMark v2 GPU score improved from 37 to 512 which seems like a lot

this is my first GPU upgrade ever so two small questions,
-is there any way i can check i have correctly plugged in the 6 pin adaptor cable, any way to tell if it's drawing power? (i used bottom of the two plugs in my mac pro 3.1 is that fine?)
- how do i check the PCI speed, im on osx10.8.5 so i assume it's going as fast as it can. is there any way to check (if it even matters)

im so happy to have a new GPU now i just need to find something to point it at to try out the speed
thanks all for the help

 

[QuakeProd]

May be new to some and a replay for others, but in my MP 2.66 Quad, 16gb ram, I have the gtx 570 installed. I bought the MP with Mavericks. The gtx 570 was literally [two] plug(s) and play. Didn't require any drives [so far]. Nope, no boot screen, and I've further relieved my reluctance as I am currently looking at the recovery page, currently transferring my 640gb HD to a 2TB HD. I am 99% certain that the only thing you will never see with a non-EFI card is the apple logo and spinner. Prior to these ventures, I even saw a login page. Eventually I will test Bootcamp from boot, but I feel certain I'll still see the page with OS options.

Just thought I'd share.

 

[cal6n]

May be new to some and a replay for others, but in my MP 2.66 Quad, 16gb ram, I have the gtx 570 installed. I bought the MP with Mavericks. The gtx 570 was literally [two] plug(s) and play. Didn't require any drives [so far]. Nope, no boot screen, and I've further relieved my reluctance as I am currently looking at the recovery page, currently transferring my 640gb HD to a 2TB HD. I am 99% certain that the only thing you will never see with a non-EFI card is the apple logo and spinner. Prior to these ventures, I even saw a login page. Eventually I will test Bootcamp from boot, but I feel certain I'll still see the page with OS options.

Just thought I'd share.

You won't see the OS option screen (booting with the ALT key) without an EFI card. I know, as I used to run a PC BIOS GTX 670. The workaround is to install bootchamp from here. It'll give you a "boot into windows" option on your menubar.

 

[mnlth0]

Anyone using GTX 460 in their Mac Pro. It works but fans are a bit loud (about 1500rpm, temp around 50C). I would love to cool it down!

Cheers.

 

[666sheep]

Anyone using GTX 460 in their Mac Pro. It works but fans are a bit loud (about 1500rpm, temp around 50C). I would love to cool it down!

Accelero Twin Turbo is your friend (but you need to sacrifice one PCIe slot).

 

[mnlth0]

Accelero Twin Turbo is your friend (but you need to sacrifice one PCIe slot).

Sorry, I meant slow down coolers, i'm ok with the temp... Accelero Twin Turbo still is controlled by graphics card / SMC controller, so it would spin the same speed, maybe just a bit quieter. I literary want to slow down fan from 1500 to 800-1000 RPM.

 

[666sheep]

Sorry, I meant slow down coolers, i'm ok with the temp... Accelero Twin Turbo still is controlled by graphics card / SMC controller, so it would spin the same speed, maybe just a bit quieter. I literary want to slow down fan from 1500 to 800-1000 RPM.

OK, then you need to dump BIOS from the card, edit fan settings with Fermi BIOS Editor (Windows) and flash modded one back to the card.

 

[mnlth0]

OK, then you need to dump BIOS from the card, edit fan settings with Fermi BIOS Editor (Windows) and flash modded one back to the card.

Nice idea!!! Thank you : )

 

[Mhaddy]

After a couple of weeks of downtime (while I waited for the ruddy mini PCI-E to PCI cable to ship from eBay), the cable is finally in place and I'm live in 10.9 with a 2008 Mac Pro 3,1 and an EVGA 650 Ti 1GB SSC .

Image

Such a painless operation I'm shocked I didn't do this sooner. Yes, there is no boot screen but with the SSD, I don't even notice (and I don't run Windows in Bootcamp). I didn't have to install any drivers - just installed, turned on and my 5 yr old Mac is back in business! So pleased with this thing.

Wanted to provide an update for anyone tracking -- almost a month in and zero issues. Thanks again to everyone in this thread (especially @OP) for the guidance.

 

[ZZ Bottom]

What is the current status of CUDA and CS6 & CC under Mavericks 10.9.1? I find numerous threads but most are from the fall.

Has this issue been resolved? Can I install a PC GTX 670 4GB, CUDA and run the CS6 card mod to get fully working CUDA acceleration?

Thanks!

 

[NOTNlCE]

What is the current status of CUDA and CS6 & CC under Mavericks 10.9.1? I find numerous threads but most are from the fall.

Has this issue been resolved? Can I install a PC GTX 670 4GB, CUDA and run the CS6 card mod to get fully working CUDA acceleration?

Thanks!

Should work. I have the latest NVIDIA CUDA driver (5.5.28) and a GTX 660 with the card mod in CS6 and I have CUDA acceleration.

 

[jjjoseph]

Geforce 760 MacPro 5,1

I am looking at getting a standard non-EFI Nvidia Geforce 760 for my MacPro 5,1 8 Core, I have heard rumblings about FAN NOISE.

1. Any threads devoted to which cards work best in MacPro's? EVGA, PNY, Zotac?
2. Any ways to make fans to stop going crazy in a MacPro?
3. Do the proper NVIDIA drivers regulate fan noise through temp monitoring?

Thank YOu.

 

[OCDMacGeek]

Hello. I am interested in an Nvidia GTX 780 for my Mac Pro 3,1.

Could anyone confirm that when running in Boot Camp, this card supports the Nvidia Shield? That is a main reason I want it. By the basic specs, it should, but there could be a technical limitation through Boot Camp I'm not aware of.

 

[Fxn]

Well surprise...

4) What about SnowLeopard?

SnowLeopard will never, ever work with PC cards. Period. If you've been holding off updating, perhaps the fact that Mountain Lion works with PC cards will be enough to convince you to update.

This is what I thought so far ! but right now I am seeing my MacPro Nehalem Early 2009 booted on Snow Leopard 10.6.8 with two unflashed XFX Radeon 5770. And everything seems to be ok...

how is this possible ? did I miss something ? (I booted with "Snow" by mistake, I never thought it would work

 

[ActionableMango]

This is what I thought so far ! but right now I am seeing my MacPro Nehalem Early 2009 booted on Snow Leopard 10.6.8 with two unflashed XFX Radeon 5770. And everything seems to be ok...

how is this possible ? did I miss something ? (I booted with "Snow" by mistake, I never thought it would work

You missed that the scope of this thread is about Nvidia and the XFX Radeon 5770 is not an Nvidia card.

 

[ytoyoda]

Finally

I posted to the wrong thread. I'm sorry.

 

[toke lahti]

Is it still so that if you run 10.9 on mp1,1, Keplers don't work?

 

[toke lahti]

Quoting the op:

"If you are stuck with a MacPro1,1 or MacPro2,1 then your options are slightly different, since the Kepler cards don't work in Lion.

If you have an unlimited budget, get a GTX 570.
Otherwise, get a GTX 560 or GTX 560 Ti.

I think it's unlikely that the Kepler cards will ever be supported on Lion, which does limit the options for older Mac Pro systems."

Either option should still be a significant update if you still have the original gpu in your Mac Pro1,1.

I've understood that these suggestions are over 4 months old and were made before Tiamo's bootloader and not for 10.9.

It would be nice to have update on this FAQ.
If you get more bang for the buck with 760 than with 560, I don't see any benefits for choosing the older model.

 

[wesk702]

My God I can't wait any longer. My nMP and my pebble steel comes February. Will be ecstatic when they arrive, but this wait is killing me.

 

[NOTNlCE]

Hello. I am interested in an Nvidia GTX 780 for my Mac Pro 3,1.

Could anyone confirm that when running in Boot Camp, this card supports the Nvidia Shield? That is a main reason I want it. By the basic specs, it should, but there could be a technical limitation through Boot Camp I'm not aware of.

The Shield needs any Keppler GPU GTX 660+ to support gamestream. I have the minimum GPU, a GTX 660, and GeForce Experience says that I can use a Shield with my card. I too have a 3,1 and all the other hardware seems perfectly capable, so I cannot imagine that it WOULDN'T work.

 

[ActionableMango]

My God I can't wait any longer. My nMP and my pebble steel comes February. Will be ecstatic when they arrive, but this wait is killing me.

I'm not sure what this has to do with NVIDIA PC (non-EFI) Graphics Cards, but thanks for sharing.

 

[wesk702]

I'm not sure what this has to do with NVIDIA PC (non-EFI) Graphics Cards, but thanks for sharing.

Lol, wrong thread

 

[saint322]

First, many thanks to all of the posters and hard work put in by individuals to breathe new life into our older mac pros. I sincerely appreciate it.

I'm posting a summary of my situation and then have a couple questions I hope someone more versed than I in all things GPUs can answer. After reading and reading and reading I purchased a EVGA GTX 560 1024MB card off eBay to test my luck after my 8800 GT died. I have a current model MacBook Air so I installed a fresh copy Mavericks to a new SSD drive (great upgraded btw) connected via USB. Once the install was complete, I dropped Tiamo's boot.efi into the to locations it needed to be, put the drive in a bay in my tower and booted up. Upgraded to 10.9.1 without issue.

Now for my questions...


With a MacPro 2,1 running 10.9 it is my understanding the software limitation of Lion only addressing 2 GB of memory disappears. However, there still exists the hardware limitation of the PCIe 1.0 speed on the single x16 slot in my tower. With that in mind comes my 2-part question...

Part 1) What is the fastest card currently available that my mac pro 2,1 can benefit from ("benefit" defined as at which point the speed of the card suffers diminishing returns due to the PCIe 1.0 speed and putting something bigger or faster would be a waste as you will see the same in-rig benefit from a slower/cheaper card)?

2) ...with the stipulation that this card grab its power from the PCIe slot and from the two 6-pin cables coming off the motherboard (which from reading means less than 225W)?

In the end, I want to give this old rig a new coat of paint but don't want to drop a 5-speed transmission in it knowing it will only use 3-gears. I want to avoid spending senseless cash on more on expensive gear when the same net speed improvements can be accomplished for less. There has to be a point of diminishing GPU front. And that, my friends...is where I turn to you.

-Saint

Mac Pro 2,1 / 2x3GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon / 10 GB 667 MHz DDR2 RAM / OS 10.7.5 / 7300 GT (8800 GT just died) & OS 10.9.1 / GTX 560 1024 GDDR5

 

[lelando00]

No crash log, after studying some more, I think it's the card. The screen got pixlelated and then the system freezes. It looked like the card was overheated when stressed. I'm returning it and getting another one. I like the card.

Einz, I had the same problem with a 660 in my 3,1. Make sure you have the card in the SECOND PCI slot... I guess certain cards in that machine in the first slot cause the fans not to fire and the card to fry. I went through two and am on my third and it's working great.