How powerfull

[Zeebedy]

hey guys,

sorry to be regurgitating here, but if i bought :

ASM1061 SATA3 + mSATA SSD

would that be easy as installing it physically and then would it find it to be bootable as my main drive?



RTJ

 

[Loa]

ASM1061 SATA3 + mSATA SSD

Don't see why it shouldn't work. Only tried it with regular SSD, but it should be the same.

Loa

 

[Zeebedy]

Don't see why it shouldn't work. Only tried it with regular SSD, but it should be the same.

Loa

Thanks Loa, will purchase and report back how I get on.


RTJ

 

[Zeebedy]

Sorry to bump this thread the now guys, as i have not received the stiff for my SSD.

IS this a good price for the processor, (eBay item - 271771068390).

Thinking about buying this and holding onto my GT120 for a while, for my uses I'm thinking this upgrade before the GPU makes more sense?,what do you think?



RTJ

 

[NOTNlCE]

Sorry to bump this thread the now guys, as i have not received the stiff for my SSD.

IS this a good price for the processor, (eBay item - 271771068390).

Thinking about buying this and holding onto my GT120 for a while, for my uses I'm thinking this upgrade before the GPU makes more sense?,what do you think?



RTJ

That's a fair price. Ebay's price conversion puts it at about what they run in USD over here. Like I said before, though, you might be able to find a W3680 for much cheaper.

 

[Zeebedy]

That's a fair price. Ebay's price conversion puts it at about what they run in USD over here. Like I said before, though, you might be able to find a W3680 for much cheaper.

cheers NOTNICE, and the performance difference from the x5690 is minimal I'm guessing?



RTJ

 

[Loa]

and the performance difference from the x5690 is minimal I'm guessing?

At most 2.7%, but only on tasks where the CPU is the bottleneck.

Loa

 

[Zeebedy]

Hey guys,

Im a little (or very ) confused here. I have just checked my system information and it says the MODEL IDENTIFIER is 5,1 system?

What does this mean as its an early 2009 and I'm sure that is a 4,1 system. Have the company I bought it from done a firmware update or such? Can I simply upgrade the processor and such without any modifications or what?

Sorry about all these q's guys, but want to make sure I get the most from my MP!


cheers, RTJ

 

[Macsonic]

Hey guys,

Im a little (or very ) confused here. I have just checked my system information and it says the MODEL IDENTIFIER is 5,1 system?

What does this mean as its an early 2009 and I'm sure that is a 4,1 system. Have the company I bought it from done a firmware update or such? Can I simply upgrade the processor and such without any modifications or what?

Sorry about all these q's guys, but want to make sure I get the most from my MP!


cheers, RTJ

Most likely the company where you got your Mac Pro have upgraded the firmware to 5,1. The SMC version should read "1.39f5" for a 2009 Mac Pro. You can go ahead and upgrade the cpus to X5680 or X5690. No problem on the series of questions.

 

[Zeebedy]

Most likely the company where you got your Mac Pro have upgraded the firmware to 5,1. The SMC version should read "1.39f5" for a 2009 Mac Pro. You can go ahead and upgrade the cpus to X5680 or X5690. No problem on the series of questions.

I bought some ram from eBay, and I'm sure it can run at 1333 but is currently on 1066 with my 2.66 quad xeon. Will this change to 1333 when the new processor (W3690) goes in? Also guys : will a W3680 be a difference in performance over the W3690, and wondering if its worth extra dosh?



RTJ

 

[flowrider]

^^^^The answer to your questions.

Yes - If all your RAM is 1333MHz. Note, some folks have said they required a PRAM reset. When I switched CPUs, they worked at full speed with no reset.

The difference in speed between a W3680 and W3690 is reported by users to be marginal. You may want to look at the X5680 or X5690. They we also work in a single CPU Mac Pro, and will Support more RAM. They may or may not be cheaper. Just throwing out another option.

Lou

 

[Zeebedy]

^^^^The answer to your questions.

Yes - If all your RAM is 1333MHz. Note, some folks have said they required a PRAM reset. When I switched CPUs, they worked at full speed with no reset.

The difference in speed between a W3680 and W3690 is reported by users to be marginal. You may want to look at the X5680 or X5690. They we also work in a single CPU Mac Pro, and will Support more RAM. They may or may not be cheaper. Just throwing out another option.

Lou

Thanks Lou, what is the highest RAM available on the W chips? The X series are a lot more expensive, and the way i see it is, when I can afford to up the ram over 40-50GIGS of RAM I will be able to afford a new X series processor also (if you see where I'm coming from !?)



RTJ

 

[Macsonic]

I bought some ram from eBay, and I'm sure it can run at 1333 but is currently on 1066 with my 2.66 quad xeon. Will this change to 1333 when the new processor (W3690) goes in? Also guys : will a W3680 be a difference in performance over the W3690, and wondering if its worth extra dosh?



RTJ

Hello. Yep, once you install the W3690 processor, your ram will be 1333mhz since your firmware is already 5,1. You might need to perform a PRAM reset after you upgrade your CPU to make the ram run at 1333mhz. Enjoy your upgrade.

 

[Zeebedy]

Hello. Yep, once you install the W3690 processor, your ram will be 1333mhz since your firmware is already 5,1. You might need to perform a PRAM reset after you upgrade your CPU to make the ram run at 1333mhz. Enjoy your upgrade.

Hi Macsonic - If I went for the W3680 will the RAM still be 1333mhz?

Cheers guys!



RTJ

 

[flowrider]

Thanks Lou, what is the highest RAM available on the W chips? The X series are a lot more expensive, and the way i see it is, when I can afford to up the ram over 40-50GIGS of RAM I will be able to afford a new X series processor also (if you see where I'm coming from !?)



RTJ

W3690 RAM capacity is 56GB RAM. X5690 is 64GB RAM.

Hi Macsonic - If I went for the W3680 will the RAM still be 1333mhz?

Cheers guys!



RTJ

Yes.


Lou

 

[Zeebedy]

hey guys,

just ordered my W3680 off the bay, should here midweek can't wait to fit that bad boy!



RTJ

 

[Zeebedy]

Hey guys,

I have just come home to a delivery of my W3680 CPU. Just fitted it and is running sweet (glad I didn't balls up the install ).

Waiting on my new RAM coming tomorrow (hopefully) 32GB just to complete my system for a while. Sending the 16GB back within my 14 day cool off period.

A quick q, can I buy a dual CPU tray (4,1 or 5,1) and will it just "plug and play" on the current system I have?



RTJ

 

[Zeebedy]

Sorry,

forgot to add - I'm getting a bit paranoid about the system:

1. - how long would it take for the CPU to overheat if I didn't apply the thermal paste properly or put the fan in the heatsink back into the power slot when putting it back over the cpu?

2. - In total silence it makes a slightly louder fan noise than before the upgrade, but very minimal.

3. - Since I purchased the MP when I boot by pressing the power button, there is a red light flash for minimal time, everything has been great, just wanted to know if its something I should be worried about?



cheers guys, RTJ

 

[crjackson2134]

Sorry,

forgot to add - I'm getting a bit paranoid about the system:

1. - how long would it take for the CPU to overheat if I didn't apply the thermal paste properly or put the fan in the heatsink back into the power slot when putting it back over the cpu?

If it truly overheats, it will power itself off without user intervention. So you'll definitely know if that happens. Get one of the many utilities available and monitor your reading if you think the temp. has elevated.

2. - In total silence it makes a slightly louder fan noise than before the upgrade, but very minimal.

That's probably something you don't need toward about. Remember, you installed more powerful hardware, and it likely requires a little more cooling than then slower hardware you replaced it with.

3. - Since I purchased the MP when I boot by pressing the power button, there is a red light flash for minimal time, everything has been great, just wanted to know if its something I should be worried about?
cheers guys, RTJ

No, it's nothing to worry about.

 

[Zeebedy]

If it truly overheats, it will power itself off without user intervention. So you'll definitely know if that happens. Get one of the many utilities available and monitor your reading if you think the temp. has elevated.




That's probably something you don't need toward about. Remember, you installed more powerful hardware, and it likely requires a little more cooling than then slower hardware you replaced it with.



No, it's nothing to worry about.

Hey buddy,

thanks for taking the time to reply. Feel better now knowing I haven't messed anything up

As I have applied thermal paste fresh, will that take a little while to "bed-in" or is that a myth?



RTJ

 

[crjackson2134]

Hey buddy,

thanks for taking the time to reply. Feel better now knowing I haven't messed anything up

As I have applied thermal paste fresh, will that take a little while to "bed-in" or is that a myth?



RTJ

Well that depends on the characteristics of the particular compound you used. If it's all working well, don't think about it, just enjoy it. Just get a monitoring app. and see if it's running within expected parameters.

Since you haven't had any problems to report, I suspect that all is well and you are worrying about something that doesn't need to be worried about at this point. I understand though, I do that often but not about my perfectly fine MP. Remember the old adage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

I would however install something like Hardware Monitor just to calm your worries.

 

[Zeebedy]

Well that depends on the characteristics of the particular compound you used. If it's all working well, don't think about it, just enjoy it. Just get a monitoring app. and see if it's running within expected parameters.

Since you haven't had any problems to report, I suspect that all is well and you are worrying about something that doesn't need to be worried about at this point. I understand though, I do that often but not about my perfectly fine MP. Remember the old adage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

I would however install something like Hardware Monitor just to calm your worries.

Hey man,

cheers for the link, signed up to Hardware Monitor and my average temp on the CPU is 30-31c, but thats only with little use (spotify, safari, messages and mail).

what temp would be considered too high for this type of setup?



RTJ

 

[crjackson2134]

Hey man,

cheers for the link, signed up to Hardware Monitor and my average temp on the CPU is 30-31c, but thats only with little use (spotify, safari, messages and mail).

what temp would be considered too high for this type of setup?



RTJ

Those temps look quite good to me, but honestly, there are much more qualified people here who can give you the specifics regarding temps. I'd just drive on and forget about it at this point. You have no signs of a thermal problem that I see.

 

[Zeebedy]

Those temps look quite good to me, but honestly, there are much more qualified people here who can give you the specifics regarding temps. I'd just drive on and forget about it at this point. You have no signs of a thermal problem that I see.

Great to know cheers dude. She is real snappy, she was good before but now, big difference, all i need now is my replacement ram!



RTJ

 

[Pending]

Great to know cheers dude. She is real snappy, she was good before but now, big difference, all i need now is my replacement ram!



RTJ

Hey rip-the-jacker !
So you went with a W3680 in the end....congrats!
Did that German shop on eBay run out of the W3690?