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Mac Pro 5,1

D

dtechlogic

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 15, 2011
203
3
Hi Guys,
So far i have my Mac Pro 5,1 2.4GHz 32GB of 1066 RAMS. Now i feel like i need a new mac pro or Imac. But i feel like i can still get more out of my Mac Pro. Anyone here in Los Angeles knows how to replace the CPU. I am thinking of upgrading my cpu to the fastest version. Also i have a Nvidia GTX 970 4GB in my Mac Pro. Will it be wise to switch to ATI video card since my adobe creative cloud will expire soon. I will be using Final Cut pro X more than ever. Also i do still have my copy of Adobe CS 5.5 Production. Any Advice is welcome on what should i do with this mac on upgrading the rams, cpu or just buy a whole new mac and how much will i still get for this machine that i have.
 
if you have a true 5,1 mac then upgrading cpu is easy. You don't need anyone to guide you. Just watch a few youtube vidoes. You really don't have to worry about crushing the cpu.
 
Yes, This is a True 5,1. I don't think apple would have sold me a flashed Mac 5,1 when i bought a while back. First owner of this mac. Anyways more advice is welcome.
 
dtechlogic said:
Yes, This is a True 5,1. I don't think apple would have sold me a flashed Mac 5,1 when i bought a while back. First owner of this mac. Anyways more advice is welcome.
Click to expand...

It is very easy in a 5,1. You will need:
  • A 3mm hex/allen wrench that's at least 5" (13cm) long. I use this one.
  • Some kind of thermal paste like Arctic Silver 5 or G751. Really almost anything is fine though if you prefer something else or your local store has something else. Just make sure that it is thermal paste and not thermal adhesive.
  • Some rubbing alcohol and a little bit of clean cotton rag or cotton balls to clean off the old paste. I don't use paper towels because it usually leaves paper residue behind.
 
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Shifting to AMD CPU will probably help FCPX performance, but you might lose some of the overall graphic performance depending on which solution you go with. The RX-460s seem well supported in Sierra due to a similar part being in the new MacBook Pros and they do offer a significant price to performance opportunity. With a $100ish RX-460 you get very near the performance of the R9-280x at a much lower cost and significantly lower power requirement. I wouldn't bother changing your RAM unless you need the 5%ish performance boost or you are finding yourself under RAM pressure with your current workflow. As far as CPUs go, a single x5690 is probably not that bad, but a pair could be a bit pricey. A x5680 is probably near enough to the top for what you want at about 1/3 less in cost. All of this is predicated on whether or not you have issues with sinking additional cash into a 5+ year old machine. For me the trade-offs made sense, but for others the value proposition might not be there.
 
Upgrading the CPUs in your 5,1 to X5680 or 90 is a no-brainer. The 5690s cost considerably more for a very nominal speed boost from the 5680s, so unless money is no object, you might find the 80s the best choice. There are a ton of either available used on eBay.
 
I'd recommend the following:

Intel Xeon X5680 3.33GHz Six Core CPU (Cost effective upgrade. 3.46GHz CPUs are overpriced IMO)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/593927-001-...101625?hash=item3d34753539:g:-TgAAOSwB-1YuLZg

Noctua CPU Thermal paste
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002CQU14A/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

HyperX Predator PCIe 480GB AHCI SSD (The only compatible PCIe SSD for the Mac Pro that's still readily available)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00V01C6M8/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Apple AC/BT 4.0 WiFi and Bluetooth upgrade
http://www.osxwifi.com/apple-broadc...-with-adapter-for-macpro-2009-and-macpro-2010

Sonnet Allegro Pro USB 3.0 PCIe card (somewhat expensive for a USB 3.0 card but by far the best IMO)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00XPUHO10/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

As for RAM, I wouldn't go for the link below given the ridiculous high cost but it will give you an idea of what you might need if you wish to max out the RAM:

Transcend 64GB (16GB x 4 Kit) JetMemory DDR3-1600 ECC Registered DIMM 2Rx4 For Mac Pro Mid 2010 /Mid 2012 (TS64GJMA534Z)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JIJU9V4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

All the upgrades listed above work perfectly using native macOS Sierra drivers. Just plug and play! There are no glitches, problems or incompatibilities that I have found and you will end up with a very fast and stable Mac Pro ;)
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usna92 said:
Shifting to AMD CPU will probably help FCPX performance, but you might lose some of the overall graphic performance depending on which solution you go with. The RX-460s seem well supported in Sierra due to a similar part being in the new MacBook Pros and they do offer a significant price to performance opportunity. With a $100ish RX-460 you get very near the performance of the R9-280x at a much lower cost and significantly lower power requirement. I wouldn't bother changing your RAM unless you need the 5%ish performance boost or you are finding yourself under RAM pressure with your current workflow. As far as CPUs go, a single x5690 is probably not that bad, but a pair could be a bit pricey. A x5680 is probably near enough to the top for what you want at about 1/3 less in cost. All of this is predicated on whether or not you have issues with sinking additional cash into a 5+ year old machine. For me the trade-offs made sense, but for others the value proposition might not be there.
Click to expand...
Good advice. A WX5100 is also a great option albeit a bit more expensive. But it's single slot which is nice.
 
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You are right a 5680 can be bought for 120 each. So far I am using 1066mhz instead of the 1333mhz. I may upgrade it to 1333mhz
 
W3690s are fairly cheap and give you the highest possible clock speed (3.46GHz) with 6 cores. No point in going for an X chip unless you've got a dual CPU machine or need more than 56GB of RAM. I picked one up last week for £100, which is the same price as a slower X5680.
 
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TBH, still not 100% sure if 56GB is the ultimate limit. That's just the demonstrated limit so far.

e.g. If a single W3690 can boot with the 2x 32GB stick, then 64GB (or above) is actually possible.

So far, I didn't find any reliable post about if the W3690 can or cannot boot with the 32GB stick.
 
h9826790 said:
TBH, still not 100% sure if 56GB is the ultimate limit. That's just the demonstrated limit so far.

e.g. If a single W3690 can boot with the 2x 32GB stick, then 64GB (or above) is actually possible.

So far, I didn't find any reliable post about if the W3690 can or cannot boot with the 32GB stick.
Click to expand...

Ah I see. In fairness I won't need more than 32GB - in fact I'm upgrading to a W3690 and 4x 8GB RAM tonight!
 
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Squuiid said:
As for RAM, I wouldn't go for the link below given the ridiculous high cost but it will give you an idea of what you might need if you wish to max out the RAM:

Transcend 64GB (16GB x 4 Kit) JetMemory DDR3-1600 ECC Registered DIMM 2Rx4 For Mac Pro Mid 2010 /Mid 2012 (TS64GJMA534Z)
Click to expand...

The 5,1 dual processor can take 128 GB of RAM.
 
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Cave Man said:
The 5,1 dual processor can take 128 GB of RAM.
Click to expand...

The demonstrated limit was 160GB so far.

img_2199-jpg.560175
 
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DucatiTerminator said:
I'm in your area fairly regularly. When you find your CPU's, hit me up if you need help with the install. In retrospect, it's very straight forward, but when I did my first one, I was perhaps way more cautious and slower than I needed to be.
Click to expand...
Will do. I am planning to order the cpu possible in the middle of this month. I just need to order the T screw driver torx, and the extra stuff I need.
 
Let me know if you want to sell your GTX 970. I'm in downtown LA. Also also running a 5,1. I'm no expert but might be able to help if you have any questions :)
 
NO I don't think I will sell the GTX 970. I am happy with the result I am getting from it.
 
HI Guys,

So far i been looking around on ebay and so far the price that i have seen are for X5680 12 core is 240.00 and for an X5690 is 330.00.. There is a 90 dollar difference between machine. So looking at it i might end up spending about 6 dollars with a new SSD, and upgrading my memory 32GB 1066 to 1333 or possible leave it as it is for the memory. Now just need to decide if the extra spending of 90 dollar will be worth the speed that i will get. And i see that the seller for X5680 accept offers so i can try to save ten dollars from each cpu and might be less. Advice is welcome as always.
 
dtechlogic said:
HI Guys,

So far i been looking around on ebay and so far the price that i have seen are for X5680 12 core is 240.00 and for an X5690 is 330.00.. There is a 90 dollar difference between machine. So looking at it i might end up spending about 6 dollars with a new SSD, and upgrading my memory 32GB 1066 to 1333 or possible leave it as it is for the memory. Now just need to decide if the extra spending of 90 dollar will be worth the speed that i will get. And i see that the seller for X5680 accept offers so i can try to save ten dollars from each cpu and might be less. Advice is welcome as always.
Click to expand...
Usually I don't advise wasting money on an upgrade, where performance is boosted less than 25%, the real-world benefits just aren't there.

But I do like the 3.46s, I use a 3.33 Hex a lot, and it does seem slower, but it could just be me, perhaps, I'm power-mad,

I got my 3.46s for a couple of hundred a piece, a year or two ago. Considering how much they were new, I was ecstatic, so saving a few bucks was less important than getting the last upgrade available.
 
I see. I was leaning toward the 3.4ghz. More. I am planning to do the CPU first then Hdd and rams. This machine should last me a couple of years. Instead of just throwing my money on a new Mac.
 
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