Need to upgrade my Mac's video card

[shmerls]

Hi all.

I have a mid 2012 Mac Pro with the original vid card which will only let me upgrade to 10.13.6

In order to upgrade to Mojave, I need to get a new graphics card. I'm not a gamer and don't design or edit video. Pretty casual user these days tech wise. Apple recommends the following cards and wonder if any of you have experience with any and can recommend which to get so I can upgrade to Mojave more after that:

• MSI Gaming Radeon RX 560 128-bit 4GB GDRR5
• SAPPHIRE Radeon PULSE RX 580 8GB GDDR5
• SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 7950 Mac Edition
• NVIDIA Quadro K5000 for Mac
• NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 Mac Edition

Thanks,
Steven

 

[bookemdano]

Go with the RX 560 so long as you don't need boot screens (which at this point are basically only useful for the startup manager/boot picker to boot to Windows or other OSes). The RX 580 gets all the love here, but it's expensive, is massive so it encroaches on the slot above it, requires a very specific Y-power cable you pretty much have to source from China, and generates more heat.

For your purposes the 560 would fit the bill. $100 less than the 580, gets all its power from the slot, and is probably an easier fit in slot 1 (though I don't know this--maybe someone who is using it now can chime in).

If you do require boot screens, then pick the 7950 or 680. Keep in mind those cards were long ago discontinued so you'll have to source them on ebay, etc.

 

[bsbeamer]

Good luck finding an authentic NVIDIA/EVGA GeForce GTX 680 Mac Edition these days. There's a lot of (bad) flashed cards out there. Directions for flashing are on this forum if you search.

I have a Sapphire PULSE RX 580 8GB on standby for Mojave that I picked up on sale. If you can be patient, they tend to drop in price on Amazon every so often. I'm still on 10.13.6 with GTX 1080 FE 8GB and waiting to see if/when NVIDIA Web Drivers for Mojave are released. I use CUDA often, so NVIDIA would be a much better option for my needs.

If you want this to likely be the last card you'll ever buy for this Mac Pro, I'd personally recommend the RX580. There are places with the 8GB version on sale for less than $60 more than RX560 4GB currently. At that price difference, it would be an easy decision for my needs.

You MAY need a dual mini 6-pin to standard 8-pin power cable for the GPU if you do not already have one. This is the cable I'm using, but others sell for cheaper. Just make sure you pick up the correct one:
https://www.moddiy.com/products/App...tandard-PCI%2dE-8%2dPin-Video-Card-Cable.html

 

[h9826790]

If you do require boot screens, then pick the 7950 or 680. Keep in mind those cards were long ago discontinued so you'll have to source them on ebay, etc.

New Sapphire HD7950 Mac Edition card still available on OWC.

I do NOT recommend it at all due to it's price. But it is available indeed.

Anyway, I agree RX560 is the way to go for OP.

 

[DPUser]

I've been running an RX460 for well over a year now (under Sierra... maybe I'll move to Mojave someday) with zero issues. As noted, it gets all the power it needs from the PCIe slot. Mine (Gigabyte 4GB version) is very quiet, and has delivered everything I need when working with audio and productivity applications running a 4k (via Display Port > HDMI Active Adaptor to allow 60Hz operation) and 1080 display (via DV) simultaneously. Based on my experience, I'd heartily recommend the current version, the RX560.

Time will tell if the price will ever drop near the $89 (after $30 rebate) I paid for my 460 in December, 2016.

 

[MisterAndrew]

The Sapphire Pulse RX 560 is a good option too. Requires just one 6-pin power connection.

 

[troy14]

I bought a gtx 680 and flashed it myself. was super easy, and it is awesome. obviously not going to run the latest games but it brought some more life into my 2010 Mac Pro. I was previously using a GTX 980 but the no-fuss solution of a Mac capable card is great.

 

[w1z]

The GTX 780, 3GB or 6GB MVC flashed versions, is currently the only card that provides out of the box compatibility on the 5,1 under 10.14 ie. Metal, OS, boot screen, filevault support and is more powerful than Apple's recommended Nvidia options. Apple's filevault restrictions can be bypassed by carrying out a fresh install using @dosdude1's Mojave USB patcher (only used for OS install and not patching of any files) - search my posts for the guide.

I have an extra 6GB version of the card on hand and will be listing it in the forum's marketplace, including other marketplaces, within a week or two.

Corrected typo