Pro 1.1 EFI vs FCP7 vs FCPX and BMD card

[basilt]

Freedos is like 30 MEGAbytes, atiflash.exe and the firmware is about 500 kilobytes, so any USB stick will do. The only thing is that some USB memory sticks boot nicely and some don't. I have no clue why is it like this. I once had like 5 different sticks with exactly the same data layout contents and two of them booted OK, three didn't.

The numbers you've encountered are numbers for Airport (wifi) antennae. While Apple insists they are numbered for a reason, a lot of users (myself included) think the numbers were assigned at random and do not mean a thing. Oddly enough, my Airport card works best when number 2 and BT is connected, BT standing for bluetooth. The BT module, on the other hand, is more than happy with number 1 connected. Short read: if your wifi works, you don't need to care.

oh,... i think i have a good booting chance with 3 8gb usb, inc noname one. will test and see.
Will try to see if i can also boot on my PPC G5 using the freedos as well.

For the Airport numbers, this is interesting ! My macpro, i am sure has no wifi card on it (i bought it used and did not have airport)
Actually i was thinking of buying a used BT module/ chip to put on the motherboard. Does BT need airport card to operate ?

For 150 Euros I think you're looking into ATI 6850 - maybe even 7950 territory.
I believe if you'd find a "reference design" or "Sapphire" 7850, 7950, 7970, there is a lot of firmware you'd be able to find online. I can help you out with some 7950 and 7970 firmware I have for some Sapphire and VTX cards; the http://netkas.org forums are an indispensable source of firmware files for various cards as well.

The good news is: if the card comes from the ATI/AMD 79x0 family and there is no suitable Mac firmware, there is an extremely easy way to create a working firmware file using the dump of the original firmware and a smart script, that patches it with the necessary code for Macs. The only requirement is that the card has a 128 kbytes firmware flash memory, which happens 99.9% anyway.

By the way - flashing the card for Mac does not replace the "PC" code, so the card is good for Mac OS, Windows, or any other operating system you may fancy.

For the card what is a 'reference design' please ? Do you mean other brands that copy the design of ati/amd cards ?
I will check these cards to make a clue. i see they cost cheap when bought used, hoping to see the bootscreens too.
I will have the 79x0 vxt saphire's in my mind to search for and see specs etc. and we talk again
Did not know the cards can be used in all platforms. I thought they were specific pieces of code and compatibilities issues of platforms.
Anyway, at last i see some light in the tunnel concerning my upgrade steps!
Thanks again !

 

[hwojtek]

Will try to see if i can also boot on my PPC G5 using the freedos as well.

Don't bother - FreeDOS expects an Intel CPU (it's a DOS, after all), so it's a no go.

For the Airport numbers, this is interesting ! My macpro, i am sure has no wifi card on it (i bought it used and did not have airport)
Actually i was thinking of buying a used BT module/ chip to put on the motherboard. Does BT need airport card to operate ?

No, they are independent. I upgraded my bone stock Pro as well with a BT module and the Airport card. The antennae wires were always installed in the factory, regardless of BT/Airport modules presence.

For the card what is a 'reference design' please ? Do you mean other brands that copy the design of ati/amd cards ?

A 'reference design' is a card that follows exactly the layout and components of pre-production samples made by AMD/ATI. I am no specialist in this area, but I believe the biggest manufacturers, who introduce their products even before AMD launches their own retail card with respective GPU (like Sapphire or Powercolor) use these designs and only after a couple of months switch to own their custom circuit boards with various tweaks. In most cases, if you read a review of a card, it's gonna state whether the card is of a reference design or not.

I will check these cards to make a clue. i see they cost cheap when bought used, hoping to see the bootscreens too.
I will have the 79x0 vxt saphire's in my mind to search for and see specs etc. and we talk again

Sure.
There is some confusion in regards of the R9/280i cards, which are actually rebranded 7970 cards, without any physical difference. I personally ended up buying a VTX R9/280i v2 and flashing it with a bit older 7970 firmware. I know of working Mac firmware for v2 and v3 series of this very product, so if you're able to locate it, give me a sign. It will be 2nd hand, as it is out pf production and you need to make sure of the version number, it's printed on stickers both on the package and on the card itself.

Thanks again !

You're so welcome.

 

[basilt]

[QUOTE="For 150 Euros I think you're looking into ATI 6850 - maybe even 7950 territory.

I believe if you'd find a "reference design" or "Sapphire" 7850, 7950, 7970, I can help you out with some 7950 and 7970 firmware I have for some Sapphire and VTX cards.
.[/QUOTE]

What would you prefer from these models as better and maybe runs faster or can be overclocked, accept higher osx in future etc. The macvids does not have any 7xxx cards insofar, and i tracked some models insofar.

1. MSI ATI Radeon HD 7950 =R7950 Twin Frozr 3GD5/OC= 3GB
2. GIGABYTE AMD Radeon HD 7950 3GB GDDR5 =GV-R795WF3-3GD=
3. MSI ATI Radeon HD 7970 3GB PCI Express
4. PowerColor Radeon R9 270X PCS+ 2GB GDDR5 PCI-E #39174
5. PowerColor AMD Radeon R9 280X 3GB TurboDuo OC
6. PowerColor Radeon R9 380 PCS+ 4GB GDDR5 =AXR9 380 4GBD5-PPDHE=
7. AMD R9 290 Referencedesign XFX 4GB GDDR5
8. Radeon HD 7850 2GB
9. Radeon Sapphire HD 7850 2GB
10. Apple Mac Pro Radeon HD 7850 2Gb
11. XFX GHOST CORE EDITION AMD RADEON HD 7850 2GB 4800Mhz GDDR5 860mhz


dont know about bootscreens on those ofcourse, and also which runs faster or OC or better pci xSpeed port, but any help would be appreciate if i can grab any of these. And if i need firmware what is available ofcourse...

 

[hwojtek]

Numbers 5 and 3 come first, as there seems to be the most support for EFI firmware for these cards and they are of excellent performance.
1, 2, 8, 9, 11 are a tiny bit slower, but even better supported.
4, 6, 7 - never had any of these around
10 - this a genuine Apple edition of the card, so no change in firmware needed, just drop-in and ready. This one will be the most expensive.

You will want to read this all along http://forum.netkas.org/index.php?topic=7515.105

 

[basilt]

hwojtek, thanks for all info and netkas link, made an account there but all look so complex to me...
i will see if i can bid on some cards and if lucky.. my upgrade is coming...

 

[basilt]

may i also ask if Radeon Sapphire HD 7950 Dual X 3Gb is the same with no1 ? thNanks again.
When you say cards are a bit slower do you mean for video editing ?
Also i read one model needed external PSU 500w. i know the macpro 2006 1.1. has 960W supply but
is it possible the card might need external psu ?

 

[hwojtek]

Yupp, the 7950 Sapphire is a good bet (also at #1~2).
In video editing you are not actually going to notice the difference (maybe while rendering the full scene, but it's 7, maybe 10%).
You don't need an external PSU for a 7950 et al. If it calls for an external PSU it's not for you.
I believe with the Sapphire mentioned above, the EFI rom from this post: http://forum.netkas.org/index.php/topic,5619.msg19401.html#msg19401 will do.

 

[Ultracyclist]

Yupp, the 7950 Sapphire is a good bet (also at #1~2).
In video editing you are not actually going to notice the difference (maybe while rendering the full scene, but it's 7, maybe 10%).
You don't need an external PSU for a 7950 et al. If it calls for an external PSU it's not for you.
I believe with the Sapphire mentioned above, the EFI rom from this post: http://forum.netkas.org/index.php/topic,5619.msg19401.html#msg19401 will do.

I run that model, flawlessly!

Works great with FCPX and 32GB ram

 

[basilt]

hm... thanks for the replies. i am stil bidding... lol... i also follow one 7850 radeon saphire... good luck to me...
thanks guys for all the info.

i think its time to start selling my BMD decklink hd card to raise some more cash for more accessories

 

[rawweb]

Happy to answer/help!

0) running OSX makes it capable of running 32 and 64 bit software
1) No, you should get final cut pro 7 or higher, your FCPS is PPC Software and won't work on intel based processors
2) Yes, but barely. ( depending on what OS X/FCPX you'll use) Consider upgrading the GPU card to a minimal 1gb radeon
3) Most likely yes

1) non, as far as I know
2) Yes, as far as I know

Good luck!

A bit of misinformation/confusion here...

For the record, Final Cut Pro 6 (Studio 2) was the last official universal release of the app, and actually, for the most part, FCP7 (Studio 3) can work on PPC (though the installer checks for intel). It requires some minor tinkering, but FCP7 can be installed easily on a PPC, as the OP mentions. I've had it running on my old G5 for grins. Worked fine. I'm confused why you told him 'no', as FCP7 was released specifically for intel macs. It was the final release of the classic Final Cut Pro prior to the 2011 release of 'X'.

 

[basilt]

rawweb, on my PPC G5 DC, fcp7 (FCPS3) wit a bit of fiddling still runs great but damn slow as my mac has also slow disks...

the problem is what happens with my used macpro 1.1. (2.1) but i guess i will find out when i find a good deal of video card to buy.

 

[basilt]

Additional question ! I see some cards dont come with 6/8 pin power cable. do i need this cable to run the card ? do i need 1, 2 cables for the cards please ? What is the name of it to search it on web?

 

[hwojtek]

"PCIE power cable video card" will do the trick in Google, and now for the Cable 101

1. Some cards use a single power input, some use a dual input. In case of a 7850/7950 there will be two inputs (a single input 7x50 is very rare and not a reference design).
2. Some cards use two 6-pin inputs as the dual input, some cards use a 6-pin and 8-pin to form a dual power input.
3. Technically you can power the video card from an unused CD/DVD power connector and associated cables, but this is ghetto. Also...
4. ...the power is easily supplied by two dedicated ports on the motherboard of the Mac Pro (right below the drive cage, between drives 1 and 2 (from left)...
5. ...they didn't made it that easy however, as the sockets on the motherboard are slightly of a different standard as compared to a regular PC.
6. So you're going to need to get two of these: https://www.amazon.com/PCIe-Power-Cable-nVidia-Video/dp/B002UR1654 in order to power up your new card...
7. ...and just in case it was a 6-pin + 8-pin card, this simple converter will finish the job: https://www.amazon.com/StarTech-Express-Power-Adapter-PCIEX68ADAP/dp/B001TK3TJY

 

[basilt]

hwojtek thanks for all the help, very very appreciated !

now i go back to bidding again... i hope holy spirit will give me a card with powercables when i win...

 

[slughead]

I have lot of experience with the 1,1 but it's a little dated. I didn't read every post in this thread so it's likely a lot of this is repeated:

- the 7300 doesn't work with later versions of OS X, which sucks because if it did, you wouldn't need to flash another card
- using the boot.efi change mentioned above, el capitan works flawlessly. Every update is a nailbiter though
- strongly recommend upgrading the video card - and I recommend you flash it (some above pointed it out). fcp x has a TON of offloading to the GPU
- strongly recommend a cheap SSD and adapt it to fit into a SATA2 slot. it will throttle but a SATA3 PCIe Card may not be worth it to you
- strongly recommend at least 16gb RAM and I believe you have quad channel so four x 4gb

Video card recommendations: If you can flash it, the Radeon 280x is great and $160 retail, and it's faster than the D700 at FCPX (but you'll have only one). MacVidCards sells some flashed cards, the 7970 is basically a 280x but it runs very hot, it'll heat up your whole room (which is why I updated to an NVidia gtx 980).


If you put about $300 into this rig (incl hard drive), it'll be a great little FCPX rig- it'll rock the crap out of any of the new Mac laptops and probably the iMac too.

 

[basilt]

slughead, thanks for your tips as well. i will see what price the nvidia stands for used, and see if budget can keep me upgrading.

the problem is right now budget.... i have 10gm ram i think or 8 ? but i must get the card now and move on.
then see i i have enough cash for memory.

For the ssd you suggested, what capacity? Do you use it for scratch disk or for boot ?
i am thinking of it , i have to sell 3 hdds first ofcourse for that price but maybe the programs i want
to install + OSX cause the ssd overload as might reach the capacity limit fast.

Right not i follow
Gigabyte HD7950 3gb Windforce OC OVP R9 280x
Radeon HD 7970 Graphics card MSI boost
and Gigabyte HD 7850OC 2GB PCIE

whichever comes first, because i have no card right now= better than nothing.

For the memory i have 2 riser cards, full of memory, but how can i tel if they are Quad as you say or not

 

[slughead]

slughead, thanks for your tips as well. i will see what price the nvidia stands for used, and see if budget can keep me upgrading.

the problem is right now budget.... i have 10gm ram i think or 8 ? but i must get the card now and move on.
then see i i have enough cash for memory.

at 8gb I'd spend the rest of your money on the vid card/hd

I recommend a SSD to boot off of, big enough for scratch disk if possible. 64gb will make a great boot drive. If you're going to use it for video, the size of the HD you need depends on the length of your videos. If you're doing full length movies, even at 1080P you should have at least 1TB. If you're doing less than 30 mins, 250gb will be fine.

What I've resorted to is working off of SSD and using a 6TB drive to archive projects I'm not working on, with another 6tb backup. If you're really limited on the budget I'd probably just recommend using a 64gb ssd to boot and working off the platter drive you bought--spend the rest of the budget on the video card.

 

[basilt]

yeah.... i think 64gb ssd sounds good idea for boot.
i also have an old gtech 'raid' 500gb firewire on my old G5 which will try to either sell or use.

what brands for the 1.1 (2.1) 64gb would you suggest

i do some movies for mini-doco style right now, but have many insects recorded on nmy dslr and wanted
to join all these to 1 video, large project.

right now i do everything on G5 but does snail-slow speed... renders

 

[slughead]

yeah.... i think 64gb ssd sounds good idea for boot.
i also have an old gtech 'raid' 500gb firewire on my old G5 which will try to either sell or use.

what brands for the 1.1 (2.1) 64gb would you suggest

i do some movies for mini-doco style right now, but have many insects recorded on nmy dslr and wanted
to join all these to 1 video, large project.

right now i do everything on G5 but does snail-slow speed... renders

Well since you're probably going to hook it up via SATA 2, it probably doesn't matter much as far as brand (the speed is going to be throttled on like 100% of drives), just make sure they have a got warranty, and enable trim when you get it (google "trim enabler")

 

[basilt]

οκ then ! i think the 1.1 has sata2 or sata 3 connectors on the board so i should be fine i presume. lets see what the bids are going to bring me...

 

[hwojtek]

SATA2 on all Mac Pro models except the recent Black Trashcan.

 

[basilt]

Back again with a power cable Q.

I seen on my motherboard 2 6pin sockets, that marked on pcb as PCIE power.
So, i need 2x6pin cables to power 1 card.

on a GB7850 OC, i follow i saw a photo of a 2x4pin molex cable with a 6-pin output like the macpro gpu socket on motherboard.
Is this 2x4-to-6pin a cable for pc or can be also used on mac. I tried to notice 4-pin molex inputs but nothing.
Macpro inside has no cables hanging.

If i loose my chance to win a 7950/70 card by tommorrow i will dive to 7850's and want to make sure i will be ok with purchase.
Any answers will be appreciated.

 

[hwojtek]

There is a single spare Molex 4-pin in your DVD bay. Routing it from there to the video card is a bitch, though. This is exactly what (and why) I called it ghetto a couple of posts before
Your AMD card will have 6/8 pin PCIE inputs, not Molex, so keep it the usual way and power the new GPU from the motherboard using the cables mentioned earlier.

 

[basilt]

hwojtek, i asked the seller about the number of power connectors on card, and he told me that
the card has 1x6pin gpu power supply only !

Power supply system requirement: 500W (or greater) power supply with one 75W 6-pin PCI

I remember in your past column you said, if card has 1 only connector i should not buy it.
Am i correct ? The model is Gigabyte AMD radeon HD7850 OC 2GB for pc, blue eye on box, 2 fans.

Thanks

 

[hwojtek]

No, I just said it's rare. Still, it's a 7850, so I'd rather try to find a 7950, as it is really easily flashable.