MP 7,1 Nvidia’s RTX 3090/ 4090/ A6000/ 6000 Ada in a Mac Pro (2019)

[avro707]

That is one hefty looking card!

It almost looks the size of MPX module.

 

[Romanesco]

How does one understand bottleneck? Is the 16-core CPU inside the Mac Pro (2019) using the A6000 to its full potential or not?

 

[mattspace]

How does one understand bottleneck? Is the 16-core CPU inside the Mac Pro (2019) using the A6000 to its full potential or not?

Xeon be like:

double, in fact.

 

[Logix1]

Dear all,
I'm updating my 2019 Mac Pro status.
I purchased RX7900XT and returned it since I wasn't satisfied with the performance.
I purchased RTX 4090 FE instead and I'm 100% satisfied with it.

I'm sharing my rig for those who want to install RTX 4090 in Mac Pro 7.1
Please see attached photo.
1) it's GPU bracket purchased from Amazon. Due to the heavy weight, I wanted to put something underneath the GPU.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09FNY1RLM?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

2) it's 4x8pin PCI-e To 16Pin PCI-e 5.0 12VHPWR Connector 90-Degree.
I purchased it from Aliexpress.
https://a.aliexpress.com/_mK5NJmI
I can't close the cover of the Mac Pro if I use original power connector.

3) I also purchased 12VHPWR 90 Degree Angled Adapter from Cabled.
But, it'll be shipped starting 3/18 so I ordered the one above from Aliexpress
https://store.cablemod.com/product/cablemod-12vhpwr-90-degree-angled-adapter-variant-b/

4) As for power cable, I'm using the one from Belkin.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod...bWCuY3w2J04w0kGv5wO1AX5qAZMcwG-0aAphWEALw_wcB


Lastly, I had my Radeon Pro Vega 2 disabled on my windows 10.
But, I don't know how to disable RTX4090 from OSX.
If anyone knows how to disable Nvidia card on OSX, please advise.

As for crash after sleep, it crashes on OSX.
But, there's no issue on window side.

What bothers me most is I need to unplug hdmi cable from RTX4090 whenever I need to boot OSX.
Otherwise, it freezes during booting.

Whenever I switch windows and OSX, I need to constantly keep changing hdmi cables.

Nice work, I also wanted to get RTX 4080/90 for my Mac Pro but decided to go with AMD RX 7900 XTX.
Edit: RX 7900 XTX has a sleep crashing issue just like the RTX so I'm staying with W5700X MPX

 

[yjchoi17]

Hey guys, I'm new to this scene.

With the ASi Mac Pro being so lackluster and disappointing, I am planning to leave the Mac platform soon. Problem is, I spent some **** money on my 7,1 Mac Pro, so I'd like to continue using it as a pure Windows machine. While I'm at it, I am planning to get a 4090 in there.

So, the question is, is it possible to boot Windows with just the 4090 installed? I mean, no AMD GPU whatsoever installed. I know I won't be getting a boot screen, but does that mean the computer freezes? Or does it mean I have to wait until Windows loads which then I get display?

My plan of attack is,
1) With an AMD installed, boot from a thumb drive Windows installer (Using AMD here to be able to choose the thumb drive as boot disk)
2) Wipe out the Mac Pro internal SSD and install Windows
3) Remove the AMD and install NVIDIA
4) Keep the AMD just in case...

Would this plan work?

It looks like most of you guys are using both OSes, and therefore must have an AMD installed. But I'd like to go pure Windows...(and please let's not get started with the "buy a new PC" thing...)

 

[impulse462]

Hey guys, I'm new to this scene.

With the ASi Mac Pro being so lackluster and disappointing, I am planning to leave the Mac platform soon. Problem is, I spent some **** money on my 7,1 Mac Pro, so I'd like to continue using it as a pure Windows machine. While I'm at it, I am planning to get a 4090 in there.

So, the question is, is it possible to boot Windows with just the 4090 installed? I mean, no AMD GPU whatsoever installed. I know I won't be getting a boot screen, but does that mean the computer freezes? Or does it mean I have to wait until Windows loads which then I get display?

My plan of attack is,
1) With an AMD installed, boot from a thumb drive Windows installer (Using AMD here to be able to choose the thumb drive as boot disk)
2) Wipe out the Mac Pro internal SSD and install Windows
3) Remove the AMD and install NVIDIA
4) Keep the AMD just in case...

Would this plan work?

It looks like most of you guys are using both OSes, and therefore must have an AMD installed. But I'd like to go pure Windows...(and please let's not get started with the "buy a new PC" thing...)

I would get a separate NVMe drive, install it via a PCIe slot and boot windows off that. I try not to touch the internal SSD. Everything else should work.

I have to keep my 580x inside if I want the thunderbolt ports to work in ubuntu, which AMD card do you have?

 

[avro707]

With the ASi Mac Pro being so lackluster and disappointing, I am planning to leave the Mac platform soon. Problem is, I spent some **** money on my 7,1 Mac Pro, so I'd like to continue using it as a pure Windows machine. While I'm at it, I am planning to get a 4090 in there.

Get a Sonnet card and put some NVMEs on it, install Windows 11 Pro for Workstations on that drive. It runs nicely on mine that way (I'm using the W6800X MPX module).

 

[TrevorR90]

Hey guys, I'm new to this scene.

With the ASi Mac Pro being so lackluster and disappointing, I am planning to leave the Mac platform soon. Problem is, I spent some **** money on my 7,1 Mac Pro, so I'd like to continue using it as a pure Windows machine. While I'm at it, I am planning to get a 4090 in there.

So, the question is, is it possible to boot Windows with just the 4090 installed? I mean, no AMD GPU whatsoever installed. I know I won't be getting a boot screen, but does that mean the computer freezes? Or does it mean I have to wait until Windows loads which then I get display?

My plan of attack is,
1) With an AMD installed, boot from a thumb drive Windows installer (Using AMD here to be able to choose the thumb drive as boot disk)
2) Wipe out the Mac Pro internal SSD and install Windows
3) Remove the AMD and install NVIDIA
4) Keep the AMD just in case...

Would this plan work?

It looks like most of you guys are using both OSes, and therefore must have an AMD installed. But I'd like to go pure Windows...(and please let's not get started with the "buy a new PC" thing...)

I've tried this with my 3090. It will work without an AMD card installed and you actually do get the boot screen and it will launch windows normally. This is with the 3090 not sure with the 4090.

However, this is with Windows on a seperate NVme drive and Mac os still installed.

 

[DrEGPU]

I've tried this with my 3090. It will work without an AMD card installed and you actually do get the boot screen and it will launch windows normally. This is with the 3090 not sure with the 4090.

However, this is with Windows on a seperate NVme drive and Mac os still installed.

I split the Apple drive and installed windows via Bootcamp on one of the partitions. A 3090-only boots to windows just fine without an amd card.

 

[yjchoi17]

I split the Apple drive and installed windows via Bootcamp on one of the partitions. A 3090-only boots to windows just fine without an amd card.

Thanks to both of you guys. It brings a lot of clarity.

I'd like to use the internal SSD since I believe it is RAIDed (4TB in my machine) and thus faster than one NVMe on a PCIe card. I'll try my method of wiping the entire SSD and report back. (will take a while, since I need stuff to get shipped from China) If that method doesn't work, then at least there is your method of splitting the internal SSD.

 

[yjchoi17]

I have to keep my 580x inside if I want the thunderbolt ports to work in ubuntu, which AMD card do you have?

I have the w5700x MPX. Also a 6600XT (non MPX) lying around. Do I need the MPX module for Thunderbolt ports in Windows? (of course I'll need it for the ports on the MPX module itself, duh...but like, the ports on the IO card or the top of the case?)

 

[yjchoi17]

Get a Sonnet card and put some NVMEs on it, install Windows 11 Pro for Workstations on that drive. It runs nicely on mine that way (I'm using the W6800X MPX module).

Yeah, I have a Sonnet 4x4 card. But I want Windows OS on the internal SSD since I believe it is RAIDed and thus faster. (4TB setup in my machine.)

 

[DrEGPU]

Thanks to both of you guys. It brings a lot of clarity.

I'd like to use the internal SSD since I believe it is RAIDed (4TB in my machine) and thus faster than one NVMe on a PCIe card. I'll try my method of wiping the entire SSD and report back. (will take a while, since I need stuff to get shipped from China) If that method doesn't work, then at least there is your method of splitting the internal SSD.

It actually isn’t RAID’ed. There are two dumb sticks of dram while the T2 chip acts as the controller. This is why the drive(s) were invisible at first when trying to install linux, because no one had reverse engineered a driver for it. No longer an issue though.

 

[DrEGPU]

Yeah, I have a Sonnet 4x4 card. But I want Windows OS on the internal SSD since I believe it is RAIDed and thus faster. (4TB setup in my machine.)

I’m not 100% sure, but you may be able to boot windows off a raid partition using the highpoint 7101a. It has a bootable bios, but unclear if it works for windows in a Mac Pro.

 

[yjchoi17]

It actually isn’t RAID’ed. There are two dumb sticks of dram while the T2 chip acts as the controller. This is why the drive(s) were invisible at first when trying to install linux, because no one had reverse engineered a driver for it. No longer an issue though.

I stand corrected. Apple's spec sheet have the speeds in the 3000MB/s range, which is the speed of just a single drive. I dunno where I got the info that having two SSD sticks meant RAID 0 performance.

 

[LEOMODE]

Can anyone help me how to connect RTX into external psu with a switch and manually turn on/off when booting into boot camp and mac os? I would want to know what to buy (amazon link?) and how i can achieve it. Thanks in advance.

 

[yjchoi17]

I’m not 100% sure, but you may be able to boot windows off a raid partition using the highpoint 7101a. It has a bootable bios, but unclear if it works for windows in a Mac Pro.

Had a brief look at highpoint's products.

Some cards seems to use dip switches for configuration. I think such cards would work. (pulls out credit card)

 

[Anti12]

Just a heads up, the chineese company Afox is planning to release the shortest (266.5 mm) RTX 4090 yet in a 2 slot blower design:

AFOX RTX 4090 - Geforce RTX 40 Series - AFOX

Might even be possible to fit two of those in the 7.1 when externally powered.

 

[DrEGPU]

Just a heads up, the chineese company Afox is planning to release the shortest (266.5 mm) RTX 4090 yet in a 2 slot blower design:

AFOX RTX 4090 - Geforce RTX 40 Series - AFOX

Might even be possible to fit two of those in the 7.1 when externally powered.

I’m guessing the noise is going to be impressive. Perhaps not a problem for rackmount Mac Pro’s in a closet somewhere though

 

[Bafflefish]

I'm probably going to go with a 6900 XT instead, but out of curiosity, I had some questions about using a Geforce card instead based on the discussions in this thread.

• It appears it's possible to use an MPX or Radeon along with the Geforce, and simply disable the MPX/Radeon in Windows while using the fakenvidia.kext in macOS?
• Is it still required to unplug the display from the Geforce card when booting into macOS? Does using separate inputs on any monitor(s) count as the physical disconnect or does the actual physical cable have to be undone?
• Are there any issues with updating drivers, etc, for the Geforce card in Windows when the MPX or Radeon is installed? When I previously tried having an MPX + Radeon together in Windows, updating drivers or Adrenaline became a bit of a nightmare even if the MPX was disabled. Wasn't sure if updating Geforce Experience/etc. was also difficult.

Thanks!

 

[TrevorR90]

I'm probably going to go with a 6900 XT instead, but out of curiosity, I had some questions about using a Geforce card instead based on the discussions in this thread.

• It appears it's possible to use an MPX or Radeon along with the Geforce, and simply disable the MPX/Radeon in Windows while using the fakenvidia.kext in macOS?
• Is it still required to unplug the display from the Geforce card when booting into macOS? Does using separate inputs on any monitor(s) count as the physical disconnect or does the actual physical cable have to be undone?
• Are there any issues with updating drivers, etc, for the Geforce card in Windows when the MPX or Radeon is installed? When I previously tried having an MPX + Radeon together in Windows, updating drivers or Adrenaline became a bit of a nightmare even if the MPX was disabled. Wasn't sure if updating Geforce Experience/etc. was also difficult.

Thanks!

I have a 4090 along with the stock 580x. 580x is connected to HDMI and 4090 to DP. I simply just change the input on the monitor when I switch OS.

Don't need to disable to AMD 580x in windows. Although I do recommend disconnecting the display in the display settings or else you will have an invisible monitor that your mouse can get lost in.


When I had a 6900xt and 580x, all sorts of problems occurred in the windows side. I don't recall where but on Apple support page, it actually specifically states having an non mpx AMD card along with the AMD mpx will cause compatibility issues. I was never able to successfully install drivers with both AMD cards in the system. With an nvidia card, there are no issues.

 

[Rimmsi]

Hi, has anyone tried booting a Mac Pro with a standalone RTX A5000/A6000 into Windows? What is the noise of these cards in Idle and load? Thank you.

 

[impulse462]

Hi, has anyone tried booting a Mac Pro with a standalone RTX A5000/A6000 into Windows? What is the noise of these cards in Idle and load? Thank you.

I don't have an A6000, but I can tell you with 2 titan rtx's in linux, the GPUs idle at ~35c. at load (training deep learning algorithms) one usually tops out around 77-78c and the other around 82-83c. I would imagine your desired configuration shouldn't be too far off. if you only installed 1 GPU the temps might be slightly lower also

 

[DrEGPU]

Hi, has anyone tried booting a Mac Pro with a standalone RTX A5000/A6000 into Windows? What is the noise of these cards in Idle and load? Thank you.

I did this with dual rtx3090’s. The Mac Pro fans pretty much drowned out the GPU fans for me. Those things got pretty toasty and heated everything up, which is why I abandoned that.

I have a A6000’s in my work computer and they’re surprisingly not too noisy under load

 

[Bafflefish]

I have a 4090 along with the stock 580x. 580x is connected to HDMI and 4090 to DP. I simply just change the input on the monitor when I switch OS.

Don't need to disable to AMD 580x in windows. Although I do recommend disconnecting the display in the display settings or else you will have an invisible monitor that your mouse can get lost in.


When I had a 6900xt and 580x, all sorts of problems occurred in the windows side. I don't recall where but on Apple support page, it actually specifically states having a non mpx AMD card along with the AMD mpx will cause compatibility issues. I was never able to successfully install drivers with both AMD cards in the system. With an nvidia card, there are no issues.

Thank you for the reply! It’s made me lean back towards wanting to go the MPX + GeForce route; I have the W5700X MPX module so I could use that in macOS and an nVidia card for Windows.

Do you have the sleep issues in macOS with system/display, or did you install the fakeNvidia.kext?