MP 1,1-5,1 GPU replacement question

[zibonst1]

Hello. First post so greetings! In light of the recent Apple/Nvidia issue that has crippled many of our MP gpus, I am looking at alternative cards.
I have been running without a single issue until this happened last week for about 5 years and I don’t feel comfortable running the script fix that had been posted on the forum. And to avoid future Apple sabotage of Nvidia gpus I am looking at the Sapphire RX580 8gb to replace my GTX 980 ti. I’ve read good things about it here. Just wanted to see if anyone had anything to add about the card and/or this issue.I’m just trying to get back up and running.
I use logic/fcp/Descript for work on this MP. TIA!

Shawn
MP 5,1 (early 2009)
High Sierra 10.13.6

 

[avro707]

Hello. First post so greetings! In light of the recent Apple/Nvidia issue that has crippled many of our MP gpus, I am looking at alternative cards.
I have been running without a single issue until this happened last week for about 5 years and I don’t feel comfortable running the script fix that had been posted on the forum. And to avoid future Apple sabotage of Nvidia gpus I am looking at the Sapphire RX580 8gb to replace my GTX 980 ti. I’ve read good things about it here. Just wanted to see if anyone had anything to add about the card and/or this issue.I’m just trying to get back up and running.
I use logic/fcp/Descript for work on this MP. TIA!

Shawn
MP 5,1 (early 2009)
High Sierra 10.13.6

I have two RX580s, one is the recommended Sapphire RX580, the other one is the XFX RX580 (the one everyone says won't work - but did) - they both work fine with all the apps I use.

Make sure you get the power adapter cable needed for the Mac Pro as well:

Dual 6 Pin Female to 8 Pin Male,TeamProfitcom GPU Power Adapter Cable Braided Sleeved 9 inches

Cable allows use of older power supply with newer graphics cards,cheaper than buying a new power supply

www.amazon.com.au

If you feel confident, you could also look at upgrading to this kind of card:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/success-rx-6800xt-in-cmp-4-1-5-1.2344094/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/which-6900xt-cards-fit-in-a-mac-pro-2019.2347628/

Will need Pixlas mod as well as flashing the card (in a PC). But this will get you a much newer card. If you go in this direction, be very wary that those cards are large, get one that fits length wise and also beware they take a lot of slots.

 

[QuietSoft]

I just replaced the GTX 980 Ti 6GB in my 2012 Mac Pro 5,1 with a Sapphire Pulse RX 580 8GB this week. Both GPUs have the MacVidCards EFI driver. This was a very easy replacement and so far so good. I also had absolutely no problems with the NVIDIA card, but wanted to move on to more recent versions of Mac OS. Based on research, expectations were this would be a more or less even trade as each card has some advantages.

Adobe apps did take advantage of the NVIDIA card, but Affinity apps did not. Both take advantage of the Sapphire card. Too early to tell the real-world differences if there even are any in my work flow. Sorry I don't use Logic or FCP.

If you do go with an RX 580, the Sapphire Pulse is probably the safest choice. If you go with another card, I second avro707's advice to watch out for the card's physical size (some are slightly more than 2 slots, say 2.2 slots, and can interfere with adjacent cards you may have), and consider power requirements. I thought about doing the Pixlas mod, which is just an electrical mod, not electronic, so it seems not too risky, and getting an RX Vega 64 or Radeon VII, but this is really a short term solution for me so I wanted to keep it simple and less costly. There's an entire thread on GPU Compatibility, well worth a read:
MacRumors Forums GPU Compatibility List for cMP

 

[zibonst1]

I have two RX580s, one is the recommended Sapphire RX580, the other one is the XFX RX580 (the one everyone says won't work - but did) - they both work fine with all the apps I use.

Make sure you get the power adapter cable needed for the Mac Pro as well:

Dual 6 Pin Female to 8 Pin Male,TeamProfitcom GPU Power Adapter Cable Braided Sleeved 9 inches

Cable allows use of older power supply with newer graphics cards,cheaper than buying a new power supply

www.amazon.com.au

If you feel confident, you could also look at upgrading to this kind of card:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/success-rx-6800xt-in-cmp-4-1-5-1.2344094/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/which-6900xt-cards-fit-in-a-mac-pro-2019.2347628/

Will need Pixlas mod as well as flashing the card (in a PC). But this will get you a much newer card. If you go in this direction, be very wary that those cards are large, get one that fits length wise and also beware they take a lot of slots.

Thanks for the reply! I assume this is the same power adapter I already have for my 980ti? Looks like the same one. I also noticed in the comparison post that it recommends additional power for the 580? Some sources also recommended that for the 980ti but I never had an issue. Any power issues with the 580?

And yes, I am looking at the sapphire. Do you have any knowledge about the difference in regards to power or compatibility between the nitro and pulse versions? Pulse is the slightly lesser card and was cheaper when originally released but used they seem to go for more than the nitro.

I’m glad it seems like I would just be able to swap them. I have read some posts about making sure to get rid of the Nvidia drivers so that there weren't Nvidia with AMD also. Was that your experience or were you just able to install the new drivers for the Sapphire and leave the Nvidia installed as well? If you had to uninstall, we’re there any issues to lookout for? Thanks again for the info!

 

[MarkC426]

Some of the Nitro's have 6+8 pin, which need additional power, and they are slightly thicker than a Pulse.
I have used a Pulse for more than 4 years with the dual 6 pin, running 3D animation software (not gpu rendering) with no issues.