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Mac Pro 2010 Graphics Cards.so confused!

Y

Yurtal

macrumors member
Original poster
May 8, 2009
99
4
Hello, I was hoping to ask a question regarding my 2010 Mac Pro. Its currently got an ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1x DVI and 2 x MDP. I want to connect 3 monitors but it turns out I'll need to buy 2x mini displayport to dual-link dvi adapters which retail at $149.00 Australian dollars each.
So my question is, is it possible to buy a second graphics card instead of the two expensive adapters and attach my third monitor to that? And this leads me to my final question, what graphics cards do I have to choose from? I can't seem to find anything here in Australia that isn't from an international ebay seller and at the same time, I have no idea what I'm looking for.
I hope to spend less than $300 to hook up my third monitor.

My 3 monitors are Apple Cinema Displays 20" 1680 x 1050 (Aluminium)

I really appreciate the help with this. I'm lost!
 
Yurtal said:
Hello, I was hoping to ask a question regarding my 2010 Mac Pro. Its currently got an ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1x DVI and 2 x MDP. I want to connect 3 monitors but it turns out I'll need to buy 2x mini displayport to dual-link dvi adapters which retail at $149.00 Australian dollars each.
So my question is, is it possible to buy a second graphics card instead of the two expensive adapters and attach my third monitor to that? And this leads me to my final question, what graphics cards do I have to choose from? I can't seem to find anything here in Australia that isn't from an international ebay seller and at the same time, I have no idea what I'm looking for.
I hope to spend less than $300 to hook up my third monitor.

My 3 monitors are Apple Cinema Displays 20" 1680 x 1050 (Aluminium)

I really appreciate the help with this. I'm lost!
Click to expand...

You're mistaken about the adapters; 20" ACD only require a single DVI connection (it was the 30" ones that needed dual-link). You can buy DVI to mini-DP adapters for less than US$10 on monoprice; I'm sure there are cheap AUS options available as well. http://www.monoprice.com/Search/Index?keyword=dvi+to+mini+displayport

Getting two of those adapters would allow you to use all three screens using the same graphics card, no additional one required. You could put that money into a better graphics card, but you'd still need the adapters; everything's going mDP or DP these days.
 
Thanks so much for your reply and help.

I have currently two monitors plugged into the two mDP's (DVI to mDP adaptors) and the third one plugged into the DVI. Only two screens work at any one time. Am I missing something. So sorry if I'm over looking it.

Again, thanks for your help!
 
Gotta! Thanks heaps. I'm assuming I'll need two active adapters? Or could I get away with one el cheapo, one active and the third straight DVI?
 
I managed to find a ATI Radeon X1900XT 512MB Mac Pro Video Card for $40. Can I have both the X1900XT and the HD 5770 installed at the same time?
 
Yurtal said:
I managed to find a ATI Radeon X1900XT 512MB Mac Pro Video Card for $40. Can I have both the X1900XT and the HD 5770 installed at the same time?
Click to expand...

Not without supplemental power—the X1900XT requires a 6-pin power connection, if I recall correctly. There are dual DVI cards that don't require additional power.
 
Yurtal said:
I managed to find a ATI Radeon X1900XT 512MB Mac Pro Video Card for $40. Can I have both the X1900XT and the HD 5770 installed at the same time?
Click to expand...

That card was BTO in 2006 1,1 32-bit EFI - not supported in your system or OS X you are running.
 
Ah bugger, good thing I haven't paid for it then. Thanks for the heads up!
 
fuchsdh said:
As would the 2600 XT. I dunno what the prices are for these cards at the moment.
Click to expand...

And weren't those cards plagued with problems? poorly supported in Yosemite, if at all, and of course have mere 256MB VRAM
 
If both 5770 and 1900 use only 1 power plug, it could in theory work.

But 1900 has no drivers after 10.7.5. It will run 1 display after that but poorly due to no driver.

And it sounds like a vacuum cleaner at startup. And they all die from heat.

And they require 2 slots.

You would be better off with the adapter we mentioned earlier, or a GT120 or 2600XT. If you are running newer OS you could even use a GT640 or GTX750Ti for some CUDA power.

Another issue is that X1900 doesn't have a BIOS onboard, just EFI. So it won't work in Bootcamp at all on a 3,1 or later.
 
IowaLynn said:
And weren't those cards plagued with problems? poorly supported in Yosemite, if at all, and of course have mere 256MB VRAM
Click to expand...

The 2600 we've got in our 3,1 at work on 10.10.3 hasn't seen any major issues. I have no experience with the cards in large deployments, however.

If he just needs to drive two 20" displays then the VRAM isn't a real concern. He should be looking at whatever fits the bill and is the cheapest, really.
 
You need one passive adapter and one active adapter. This is less than $80 together at Monoprice.

I think any used video card that costs significantly less than $80 will probably not be as good of a solution.
 
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