Mac Pro Logic Board and Processor Question

[jamanspizza]

Hey, I have recently acquired a free Mac Pro 2008 chassis, that came with the power supply, fans, cables, and hard drive cages. So I've decided on somewhat building a low end-ish Mac Pro. I am aware that Mac Pro parts are expensive, so I plan on slowly building it over time and using refurbished parts.

I have two questions, which I hope you guys can answer.

1. What kind of Logic board can I fit in this thing? I know that the 2008 logic board won't fit in a 2006 case, but can I fit a 2009 or even a 2010 logic board in a 2008 case? If no, would a slight case mod fix this problem?

2. What processors work with what? I don't need a high end machine. Can I use a single i7 processor? I've heard mix opinions on that. I am currently using the 2010 15" 2.4 GHz i5 Macbook Pro. So something that would match or maybe slightly beat that would be nice.

I will probably have more questions as I go deeper into this project, but for now thats it. Thank you.

 

[goMac]

1. What kind of Logic board can I fit in this thing? I know that the 2008 logic board won't fit in a 2006 case, but can I fit a 2009 or even a 2010 logic board in a 2008 case? If no, would a slight case mod fix this problem?

No.

I believe the fitting differences are too severe for a slight case mod. You'd be better off buying a new case.

2. What processors work with what? I don't need a high end machine. Can I use a single i7 processor? I've heard mix opinions on that. I am currently using the 2010 15" 2.4 GHz i5 Macbook Pro. So something that would match or maybe slightly beat that would be nice.

With a 2008 Mac Pro, you should use 2008 era Xeon Harpertowns.

You'd need an 09 or '10 board to use an i7, which as mentioned above...

 

[fairbanx]

you may sell your 2008 chassis and get an 2009 one. afaik the 2008 logicboard, riser and ram are more expensive as for the 2009 model.

 

[CaptainChunk]

1. What kind of Logic board can I fit in this thing? I know that the 2008 logic board won't fit in a 2006 case, but can I fit a 2009 or even a 2010 logic board in a 2008 case? If no, would a slight case mod fix this problem?

Without physical modifications, a 2008 MP logic board. There are two different versions (one is for the 2.8/3.0 CPUs and another for the 3.2 CPUs). The inner framework of the 2009/10 machines is significantly different.

2. What processors work with what? I don't need a high end machine. Can I use a single i7 processor? I've heard mix opinions on that. I am currently using the 2010 15" 2.4 GHz i5 Macbook Pro. So something that would match or maybe slightly beat that would be nice.

Three Harpertown Xeon CPUs work: E5462 2.8GHz, E5472 3.0GHz and X5482 3.2GHz. i7s use an entirely different socket and chipset, so that would not be possible on a 2008 logic board.

So...

A logic board would set you back around $600-700, the memory risers are around $80 each (you need two) and a pair of used Harpertown CPUs (eBay is probably your best bet) can run around $600 for the 2.8GHz versions (E5462/SLANT). Then, you would need heatsinks for the CPUs ($200 each new) and of course, RAM. DDR2-800 FB-DIMMs are significantly more expensive than the DDR3 DIMMs the 2009/10 machines use.

It would be easy to spend upwards of $2k just getting that machine running, while you can buy a fully functional 2008 Mac Pro for less than that.