MAC PRO 5.1 2012 - CPU upgrade to 2*X5690

[raphaelgal]

Hi All,

I'm a bit confused from mixed information on the web.
I've recently got a 2nd hand MAC PRO 2012 with 2*2.4GHZ.
Last week, I've found a good deal on 2*X5690 (3.4) and I want to upgrade the CPUs in my MAC Pro.
Do I need to change heatsinks ? or touch any of their setup? due to different voltage consumption of the the X5690 vs E5645 ?

thanks

 

[h9826790]

Hi All,

I'm a bit confused from mixed information on the web.
I've recently got a 2nd hand MAC PRO 2012 with 2*2.4GHZ.
Last week, I've found a good deal on 2*X5690 (3.4) and I want to upgrade the CPUs in my MAC Pro.
Do I need to change heatsinks ? or touch any of their setup? due to different voltage consumption of the the X5690 vs E5645 ?

thanks

No need. Pure CPU swap is good enough in your case. At most just the fan need to spin a bit faster, but the system should automatically do that if required.

 

[Squuiid]

Hi All,

I'm a bit confused from mixed information on the web.
I've recently got a 2nd hand MAC PRO 2012 with 2*2.4GHZ.
Last week, I've found a good deal on 2*X5690 (3.4) and I want to upgrade the CPUs in my MAC Pro.
Do I need to change heatsinks ? or touch any of their setup? due to different voltage consumption of the the X5690 vs E5645 ?

thanks

As H98 said, an easy straight swap. You’ll be amazed at how much better your Mac runs.

 

[raphaelgal]

Thanks guys, Already blown away by this beast.
Compared to my "newer" MBP 2015...

 

[Squuiid]

A few other excellent upgrades:

Sapphire RX 580 Pulse 8GB
https://m.newegg.com/products/N82E16814202278

HyperX Predator 480GB PCIe SSD
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00V01C6M8/ref=ox_sc_saved_image_3?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&psc=1

802.11ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0
http://www.osxwifi.com/apple-broadc...-with-adapter-for-macpro-2009-and-macpro-2010

 

[raphaelgal]

Nice ones ! Thank you so much.
It was already upgraded with 1*1TB OWC SSD on PCIe mount, but indeed thinking about those flash PCIe solutions...

 

[h9826790]

You may also consider more RAM (if you are still in stock config), or install a USB 3.0 PCIe card, etc. These are very useful for day to day work.

Even you have a fast SSD, more RAM can guarantee never require SWAP, and in fact, the system can use the remaining RAM as cache to further speed up some process.

USB 3.0 is almost a must have item today now. Otherwise, copying large files to / from external drive may be a bit painful on the cMP.

 

[raphaelgal]

Thanks !
I did install Allegro Pro USB 3.0 PCIe and 32GB memory.
I'll give it some runs and decide on further updates.

 

[Squuiid]

Thanks !
I did install Allegro Pro USB 3.0 PCIe and 32GB memory.
I'll give it some runs and decide on further updates.

That's the best USB 3.0 card IMO. Good choice.
Try and avoid OWC if you can. Their hardware is pretty poor, as you will see from many comments from experts on this forum.

 

[fatespawn]

No need. Pure CPU swap is good enough in your case. At most just the fan need to spin a bit faster, but the system should automatically do that if required.

What about de-lidding the dual processors? I thought the dual processor Mac Pro's required the CPU's to be de-lidded. My single processor Quad Core was a straight swap.

 

[Squuiid]

What about de-lidding the dual processors? I thought the dual processor Mac Pro's required the CPU's to be de-lidded. My single processor Quad Core was a straight swap.

That applies only to 2009 4,1 models. OP's is 2012 5,1.

 

[William_si]

It is also pretty pointless if you are not entirely stupid with it; i changed my 4,1 from delid original to lid X5675, then lid X5650, then lid E5620 with zero issues at any time.

Just don't screw it on like hell and it'll be fine, it needs a few tries here and there but even the 5,1 boards have that issues rarely.