MP 1,1-5,1 GPU upgrade card recommendation for cMP5,1

[Riot Nrrrd]

I have a Mid 2010 cMP5,1 (single 6-core 3.33 Ghz) running Mojave 10.14.6 (no OpenCore, pls). I’ve had it for over a decade.

The MB was upgraded and About This Mac thinks it is a Mid 2012.

The system has a USB 3.1 PCI-e card installed. (In case that matters, for space considerations.)

The video card is an AMD RADEON HD 7950 Sapphire Mac Edition 3GB.

The card has been connected via DVI to a 30” Apple Cinema HD Display the whole time. But the ACD recently lost its video output for some reason. Not sure I want to spend the money to try and fix it. So I am looking at my options.

I also have a 34” LG 5K2K display. (Model 34BK95U-W) I would like to try hooking my cMP up to the LG (but not via HDMI).

The way I understand it, if I connect the present card (using one of the 2 mini DisplayPort ports), the Mac will not boot unless the LG is set to DP 1.1.

If left on DP 1.1, it will boot and show the boot screen, but be limited to 4K @30 Hz. This is not desirable.

What I am asking for: is there a GPU card out there that will

- let me leave the LG monitor set to DP 1.2 and not have to manually switch between DP 1.1 and DP 1.2
- give me a boot screen with DP 1.2 or Thunderbolt
- display at least 4K (hopefully 5K) @60Hz on the LG via DisplayPort (using DP 1.2 or 1.4) or Thunderbolt

(I’ve been led to believe that a MacVideoCards flashed RX580 might do the trick, but I don’t know. They aren’t answering my e-mails so far.)

 

[Riot Nrrrd]

Update:

This old thread from 2018 seems to have a lot of answers to my questions, if not a direct recommendation on a GPU card that does what I'm asking. (Since my post above wasn't flooded with answers, haha.)

 

[wickerstick]

1. probably not getting answers because there is a sticky on the first post at the top that goes over GPU compatibility.
2. OpenCore is going to be what you need for more powerful cards. (you said you don't want to use open core)
3. Ebay is your friend. there are available 7950 cards there you can flash or you can by a mac edition card used.
however, Mac Edition cards came with DP 1.1 not 1.2 thats why its not working for you, the ACM wasn't 4k so it would work with DP 1.1 and get 60hz.

something has to give. If i were building or upgrading a cMP with your specs today. I would opt for a 580x GPU and open core legacy patcher. to give boot screens and use option key if i needed to multi boot. or you could simply get a new monitor that isnt 4k. I often find 27" apple cinema displays in good condition for a good price. or find a nice dell ultrasharp 2560x1440 or 1600. but if you want 4k at 60 i would recommend an rx580. with opencore.

 

[Mactech20]

If you do not want to use open core a Vega 56 is the most compatible and powerful card for the Mac Pro IMO. Because you want boot screen though your options will basically be what you can find on eBay. or Macvidcards EUROPE. Macvidcards US does not respond to anyone and I had to force a PayPal refund years ago because it had been 2 months with 0 contact.

IMO, your best bet is to put a Vega 56 that isn't flashed on eBay and put in an NVIDIA GT 120 or something when you need boot screen. These machines are Dinos these days and not really worth investing much money in.

 

[Riot Nrrrd]

Thanks @wickerstick for the reply.

I said no OpenCore because I’m not intending on upgrading the OS past Mojave.

Not sure why you mentioned eBay and the 7950 as I stated I already have one. (Mac Edition 3GB)

The RX580 route seems like the way to go, I agree. But why do I need OpenCore with an RX580? Just for the EnableGOP stuff? (I’m afraid of bricking the machine with that.)

@Mactech20 Interesting, never considered the Vega cards before. I still have my GT120 but at 66 my fingers aren’t as nimble as they once were. Pulling GPU cards out and swapping others in isn’t really my forté.

 

[wickerstick]

yes if you require boot screen you can. otherwise if you don't need boot screens (don't currently Dual Boot) just pickup an rx580 and call it a day. Also if you do dual boot you can do it from the startup disk option in mac and the bootcamp option in windows. open core legacy patcher is easy. you can youtube a how-to. just get a cheap sata SSD as boot drive and pop it in.


Ive used all type of graphics cards in cMP's (ive owned 11 4,1 and 5,1's) I've found the best bang for buck to be the rx 580's, I've also ran vega 64's, vega VII's 5700xt's etc. for mojave i recommend the rx580 like this one i prefer the single six pin or single 8 pin connector types. the 6+8 Pin draws too much power under load and somtimes can somtimes cuase a crash without the pixlas mod. also could try the rx480 470 or 570. I think 580 is the sweet spot based off the specs in your list.

look there are many more cards you can run that are more powerful but it doesn't matter as the CPU is so slow it will bottleneck the GPU for performance. the rx580 is the best cheap upgrade you'll find. investing too much time and money into any cMP even a dual cpu model is unwise as this point. it sounds to me like you just want to have mojave with boot screens like you did before the ACD gave up the ghost. either go with a non 4k display and live with DP1.1 and current GPU or invest in an rx580 and enable GOP. its a pretty cool feeling seeing the black boot screen vs the old white one.

honestly with the m1 mac mini's a thing. its so hard to recommend doing anything with a 5,1 because its a wiser investment to just run one of those.

 

[Mactech20]

Thanks @wickerstick for the reply.

I said no OpenCore because I’m not intending on upgrading the OS past Mojave.

Not sure why you mentioned eBay and the 7950 as I stated I already have one. (Mac Edition 3GB)

The RX580 route seems like the way to go, I agree. But why do I need OpenCore with an RX580? Just for the EnableGOP stuff? (I’m afraid of bricking the machine with that.)

@Mactech20 Interesting, never considered the Vega cards before. I still have my GT120 but at 66 my fingers aren’t as nimble as they once were. Pulling GPU cards out and swapping others in isn’t really my forté.

Assuming you have a free PCIE slot and Mojave already installed, you could just leave the GT120 in the machine. The RX580 is pretty underwhelming compared to the VEGA 56.

I included A couple links to flashed graphics cards on Ebay here. Obviously these links will break soon. I couldn't find a flashed Vega 56 unfortunately. They are rare. I got one off Ebay in 2021 for about 400. Which

Nvidia GTX 780 6GB. - https://www.ebay.com/itm/2861368514...D7EG2Y5IE05BPpJA2btiXxwBI=|tkp:Bk9SR7bRzamjZQ

RX 580 8GB - https://www.ebay.com/itm/1164076962...mUUQPPuKrQfAj/wYegyy0XeA==|tkp:Bk9SR5bW4qmjZQ