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Mac Pro 2009 2.93 won't display

Y

Yonatin

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 5, 2016
9
0
Hello, I recently got a Mac Pro 2.93 and it needs a couple of things before it is up and running. I bought RAM for it and the day after (today) found twice as much for the same price. I know that it has to be registered ram, but my question is will this ram work? It's 1333mhz and I know it should be 1066mhz but won't it run at 1066mhz because it doesn't have the upgraded firmware?

SAMSUNG M393B5170FH0-CH9 4GB 2Rx4 PC3-10600R 1.5V ECC REGISTERED RAM
 
Yonatin said:
Hello, I recently got a Mac Pro 2.93 and it needs a couple of things before it is up and running. I bought RAM for it and the day after (today) found twice as much for the same price. I know that it has to be registered ram, but my question is will this ram work? It's 1333mhz and I know it should be 1066mhz but won't it run at 1066mhz because it doesn't have the upgraded firmware?

SAMSUNG M393B5170FH0-CH9 4GB 2Rx4 PC3-10600R 1.5V ECC REGISTERED RAM
Click to expand...

If yours is a Quad Core (W3540), then you're stuck in 1066MHz, as this processor doesn't support faster RAM.

If it's an Eight-Core (2 x X5570) you just need to update to Firmware 5.1 to get the extra speed
 
Actually it does not have to be registered RAM, but you cannot mix registered RAM (RDIMMS) and unregistered RAM (UDIMMS) together in the same computer. They all have to be one or the other. I assume you have a Mac Pro 4,1, in which case it comes from Apple with unregistered RAM by default, not registered RAM.

If you are replacing all the RAM in your system, either will work fine. If you are adding RAM to the existing RAM in your system, it will have to match (UDIMMS or RDIMMS) what's already in there.

1333 will work fine in a 1066 system, it will just run at 1066.
 
Ok thanks for the help on that issue. I now have an even bigger problem. I go to start it up and nothing happens. I cant get it to display no beeps no boops. the hard drive I just installed and it doesn't have OS X on it it may be empty. I put a generic graphics card in it and still nothing. So do you think it is the ram? I am at a complete loss for what it could be. I know nothing about Mac Pro's and Mac in general. I really want this thing to work.
 
Ok relax, that is an important thing and then think it over.

What was the last change you made in hardware? The RAM? Then pull all new sticks out and try again. Add one stick at the time and see how the system reacts.

Switching to a generic graphics card is not ideal because you would want to see a bootscreen, so if possible put back a Mac-GPU.

Try resetting SMC:
On Mac Pro, iMac, Mac mini, and Xserve
To reset the SMC on Intel-based Mac Pro, iMac, and Mac mini computers, as well as Xserve:

  1. Shut down the computer.
  2. Unplug the power cord.
  3. Wait fifteen seconds.
  4. Attach the power cord.
  5. Wait five seconds, then press the power button to turn on the computer.
For Intel-based Xserve computers that are not responding, you can shut down locally or by using remote commands. You can also shut down by pressing and holding the power button for five seconds.
Click to expand...

Are there any diagnose LEDs burning in the Mac?
 
when I bought the computer the person who sold it to me took out the original hard drive and the two gt120 graphic cards along with the ram. So I've been buying the parts to at least make it whole to get it running again. I have since replaced the hard drive, RAM, and the video card. What lights would be showing? there are two buttons on the motherboard that if you press the one near the power button there are lights that come on but go off once you release the button.
 
Yonatin said:
the hard drive I just installed and it doesn't have OS X on it it may be empty. I put a generic graphics card in it and still nothing.
Click to expand...

So, there is only one HDD installed and which is empty?

Also, the GPU is a generic one, which is not a Mac graphic card, right?

It's normal that you get nothing if no EFI and no OSX on your Mac.
 
h9826790 said:
So, there is only one HDD installed and which is empty?

Also, the GPU is a generic one, which is not a Mac graphic card, right?

It's normal that you get nothing if no EFI and no OSX on your Mac.
Click to expand...
Correct. there is only one hard drive, there is a ASUS 4550 graphics card that I don't know if it's compatible. I know the RAM is right but it's not the stuff that was taken out.

My question is then what do I need to do to get this thing running? I would really enjoy seeing it work.
 
Hey I'm not 100% sure on this but I've just got a 2009 Mac Pro and been reading up/told a lot of things about it. I think the problems you're having at the moment are:
  1. No OS X on the Hard Drive to boot into
  2. No display as the graphics card isn't supported while booting up (and possibly in OS X)
I think you need to try and get a Mac Pro graphics card (such as the GT120 which is the original card and about £50/$70 on eBay), an iTunes/Apple App store account and an internet connection.

If you replace your current graphics card with a Mac Pro card (not a flashed/unsupported compatible one) you will likely see something a grey screen with a ? folder, similar to this:

question-mark-folder-imac.gif


Once you can see that, turn off your Mac. If you have the recovery disks for the machine the insert them and boot up and hold Command (⌘) when you hear the chime. If you don't have the recovery disks you may be able to recover from the internet. Locate the command (⌘) and R key and boot up while holding these keys.

OSX-utilities.png


If everything goes well you should see a screen asking you to install Mac OS X as well as a few other options. It would be an idea to use disk utility (one of the options on the screen) to format your new hard drive before installing OS X.

After following the steps through and waiting while your computer downloads the Mac OS X software you should have a fresh install of Mac OS X on your Mac Pro.

TLDR:
  • Swap the graphics card for a Mac Pro graphics card
  • Insert recovery disk if available and boot up while holding down the command (⌘) key, or
  • Boot up while holding the command (⌘) + R keys until you see the Apple logo with a loading bar beneath it
  • Format your hard drive using disk utility
  • Select to install Mac OS X (you will need an Apple id/iTunes/App store account to log into)
As I say I'm not 100% on these steps as I can't go through them right now on my machine to check, also I'm not 100% if your machine will be capable of installing Mac OS X from the internet as the last machine I did this with was a 2012 Mac Mini.

Hopefully if there's any errors someone else will correct me, but it should be a point in the right direction.
 
Has anyone seen a list or knows what graphics cards would work with the mac pro? I have a 7600gs that I think may work but want to make sure so I can move on from the graphics card and check other things like the hard drive.
 
AFAIK, there is no full list for that, especially the cMP can keep using some most up to date PC graphic card under specific condition, it's hard to make such list and keep it up to date.
 
I noticed when I hit the diag led button the 5v stby light is orange. what does that mean? I replaced the battery and still nothing.
 
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