Problem getting a RX580 card running on Mac Pro 5,1

[MIKX]

It appears so. When I bought it I went with a 16gauge, I was reading the heavy gauge would be better?

I noticed on this one I bought (initial cable), the end has all black wires on the end top row where the rest of the top row is blue (left photo). Man I hope that the wiring wasn't incorrect ?

I now bought another cable, but made sure the listing is for Mac Pro video cards, pic on the right.
View attachment 925477 View attachment 925478

I stuck back in the original 5770 with original cable, and even the 5870 with it's original dual power cables. Same thing, Press power button, no light on power button, thus not booting, but definitely the video card fans spinning on all the video cards, including the new RX580.

Thank you all for your guidance indeed. Daughter is coming over tomorrow and she's pretty smart ( bio medical engineer ), and we'll go through the troubleshooting guide one step at a time.

HAPPY FATHERS DAY TO ALL AND YOUR FAMILIES

Alex I've seen on eBay bootRom chips that can be replaced. Is that an option ?

Yes, looks OK. Don't worry about the blue wires, just an assembly variation.

 

[KeesMacPro]

Pixlas mod , is a very good idea, regardless if the card runs without it or not, you are dragging all gpu current through an old backplane, older capacitors, that are getting electronically leaky, and showing more esr.

Saying pixlas in not needed, is an opinion, and not a very good one “electronically speaking”

Technically speaking I agree with you completely.
When the MP was designed , AFAIK there were no GPU's drawing 300watts or even more...
300 Watts minus 75w PCIe power draw means ~18 Ampere running through some thin copper lines on the PCB...

Pixlas may not be necessary in a lot of cases , but it is definitely a wise decision if there's one (or multiple) powerful GPU installed..

 

[basslik]

Yes, looks OK. Don't worry about the blue wires, just an assembly variation.

Okay, will play it safe though and use the other cable I recently purchased.

 

[MarkC426]

and when the backplane dies, in a year or so....
Remember what I wrote

Well (touch wood) it's been fine for 2.5 years......?

 

[Chips Stephens]

The PCIe x16 slot also supplies power to GPUs as do the two Mini 6 pin AUX sockets along with ( if needed ) the SATA sockets. My MSI Armor RX580 8gb is showing 21w usage at the moment.
Just saying

21 watts doing what?
Idle? I assure you that card draws more than 21 watts....
Can’t change physics...
Just sayin

2 Aux 6 pin: 2 x 75 W = 150 W
What does the rx580 draw from pcie?
And why is it so low?
History.......ati is gun-shy about running to much power here.
They got burned pushing a bit to much in the past.

blows me away, people will dump lots of money on adapters, yet a simple spade crimp that works better and cost less, people are so against?
I Don’t get it.
It’s a very simple mod.

 

[basslik]

Well ordered a used, but guaranteed PSU. Stripped the Mac. Did all the steps, short/jump, with DIAG. Light procedure, and the EFI done light is the only thing lit, GPU no go. Any thoughts ?

 

[tsialex]

Well ordered a used, but guaranteed PSU. Stripped the Mac. Did all the steps, short/jump, with DIAG. Light procedure, and the EFI done light is the only thing lit, GPU no go. Any thoughts ?

GPU_DONE LED only will lit when you press DIAG button if it's an Apple OEM GPU. 3rd party GPUs, even flashed, will always be off. Always diagnose with an Apple OEM GPU.

If you replaced the PSU and your Mac Pro still don't work, next step is to test the backplane and then the CPU tray.

 

[basslik]

Hi Alex, Went through all the steps, stripped down to just the backplane, disconnected everything. CPU checks out okay went through sequences, with original video card.

Note: When connecting the Mac Pro to AC power, verify that the LEDs for OVTMP CPUA and
OVTMP CPUB briefly flash red (less than 0.5 sec). The LEDs are located under hard drive bay 1
on the backplane board. If they do not illuminate briefly, there is an issue with either the power
supply or the backplane board. checks okay

3. Press the DIAG button, and verify 5V STBY LED (amber) illuminates. checks okay

4. Disconnect AC power cord. Reinstall processor cage with fans and processor board. Do not
reinstall processor(s), heatsinks, or memory.
5. Connect AC power cord. Press the DIAG button to verify the 5V STBY LED illuminates. checks okay

6. Momentarily jump the SYS_PWR solder pads to turn ON the Mac Pro.
Expected behavior:
• Front and rear processor cage fans (and PCIe fan, if installed) should spin slowly ( FANS ARE NOT SPINNING )
• One red-colored error LED illuminates on the processor board (next to the memory slots). checks okay

7. Press and hold the DIAG button.
Expected behavior:
• PSU PWROK (green), 5V STBY (amber) NOT LIT
• EFI DONE (green) LIT
• 5V STBY (amber) NOT LIT
• No startup tone
I.m thinking backplane bad ?

 

[MIKX]

basslik

Just checking . . . . .

Please look at Post #54

Did you do the "Three Consecutive Happy Mac NVRAM re-set " ?​

it is crucial to HOLD DOWN and not let go . . .the P + R + Option + Apple keys until you hear the THIRD CHIME !



Alternately, I wonder if when you upgraded the CPUs whether they now need either SLIGHT loosening or tightening ?

Good Luck !

==========================================

PS : It would help if you go to your Macrumors Member Profile and make a SIGNATURE to tell us EVERYTHING about how your Mac Pro is setup.

You can see my SIGnature at the bottom of this post as an example.

( You can edit or delete your SIG after you solve the current problem. )

 

[tsialex]

Hi Alex, Went through all the steps, stripped down to just the backplane, disconnected everything. CPU checks out okay went through sequences, with original video card.

Note: When connecting the Mac Pro to AC power, verify that the LEDs for OVTMP CPUA and
OVTMP CPUB briefly flash red (less than 0.5 sec). The LEDs are located under hard drive bay 1
on the backplane board. If they do not illuminate briefly, there is an issue with either the power
supply or the backplane board. checks okay

3. Press the DIAG button, and verify 5V STBY LED (amber) illuminates. checks okay

4. Disconnect AC power cord. Reinstall processor cage with fans and processor board. Do not
reinstall processor(s), heatsinks, or memory.
5. Connect AC power cord. Press the DIAG button to verify the 5V STBY LED illuminates. checks okay

6. Momentarily jump the SYS_PWR solder pads to turn ON the Mac Pro.
Expected behavior:
• Front and rear processor cage fans (and PCIe fan, if installed) should spin slowly ( FANS ARE NOT SPINNING )
• One red-colored error LED illuminates on the processor board (next to the memory slots). checks okay

7. Press and hold the DIAG button.
Expected behavior:
• PSU PWROK (green), 5V STBY (amber) NOT LIT
• EFI DONE (green) LIT
• 5V STBY (amber) NOT LIT
• No startup tone
I.m thinking backplane bad ?

DIAG button don't power up your Mac Pro.

Could be that your CPU tray is damaged, but the first step is to check if your Mac Pro works with another backplane or test your CPU tray with another working Mac Pro to be sure that it's working.

 

[bmoraski]

The RX 580 8gb fans start up when the cMP starts up .. then . . they stop until the GPU gets hot enough to warrant starting the fans again. ( My MSI Armor RX 580 8gb behave just like this.

If your cMP fans are running then everything is normal.

To test the fans . . take your cMP side cover off and then run some high quality videos & maybe a game or x-plane 11 demo..

Watch your fans . . they should spin up.

The RX 580 8gb cards have more sophisticated thermal control than the older 7xxxx or R9 series cards.

Im having an issue with my My MSI Armor RX 580 8gb. When installed i get the boot chime but then i keep getting a lower sounding boot chime over and over. I installed My radeon saphire rx580 8g and no issues. I know the armor works because its what ive had in my gaming rig. I thought at first maybe it wasnt seated proper but tried reseating few times and even tried different port. Im assuming the chime is telling me something but im not familiar enough with my Mac pro 5,1. Any input would be great.
Update:
I think it was a seating problem. I went ahead and installed the rx580 Sapphire im my Mac Pro since it was working. Installed the Armor in my Hackintosh ( which is running Mojave ) and no issues.

 

[basslik]

basslik

Just checking . . . . .

Please look at Post #54

Did you do the "Three Consecutive Happy Mac NVRAM re-set " ?​

it is crucial to HOLD DOWN and not let go . . .the P + R + Option + Apple keys until you hear the THIRD CHIME !



Alternately, I wonder if when you upgraded the CPUs whether they now need either SLIGHT loosening or tightening ?

Good Luck !

==========================================

PS : It would help if you go to your Macrumors Member Profile and make a SIGNATURE to tell us EVERYTHING about how your Mac Pro is setup.

You can see my SIGnature at the bottom of this post as an example.

( You can edit or delete your SIG after you solve the current problem. )

View attachment 927040

MIKX
Unable to even get it to power up to reset NVRAM. When I press the power button I hear a click it powering on but no power light, only the video card fan spinning, whether it's the new RX580/original 5770 or the 5870, same result, the fans run on the video cards and nothing else. CPU tray shows in testing it lights indicating OKAY.

 

[MIKX]

basslik

In this situation I would reduce a cMP to it's basic minimum configuration.

1. Minimum RAM installed = TWO RAM sticks

2. proved working EFI flashed GPU. Even a HD5770 would be Ok for testing,

3. No other PCIe cards installed.

4. Only ONE HDD / SSD installed ( a spare one )

5. 1005 De-dust THE CMP - including ALL fan blades and ALL the cheesegrater holes.

6. Check the NorthBridge Tdiode pop rivets.

==========

MOST important

7. Re-install both of your CPUs - clean and replace thermal paste. Keep a record of how many TURNs
done to replace the CPUs.
While you are at it, clean and replace Northbridge thermal paste.

7.1
Detach and re-attach ALL motherboard cables . . .especially the PSU to motherboard cable.

==============================================================
8.

When deemed ready for testing do the " Three CONSECUTIVE Happy mac NVRAM re-set for first test,
Keep holding the P + R + Option + Apple keys DOWN for longer than normal . . listen for the three chimes.


9.
PS : I would also probably remove the motherboard = backplane for de-dusting and cleaning with a soft, long haired, non-conductive brush ( like a Chinese or Japanese calligraphy script brush

==============================================================

Hopefully you have a proved working, bootable backup to try for booting.

I always have THREE proved working backup SSDs on hand ( El Capitan + High Sierra + Mojave )
These SSDs are barebones FULL installs with absolutely NO 3rd. party apps installed.

Good Luck and Don't give up.

Best I can do for you at the moment.

 

[bmoraski]

I always have THREE proved working backup SSDs on hand ( El Capitan + High Sierra + Mojave )
These SSDs are barebones FULL installs with absolutely NO 3rd. party apps installed.

I absolutely love this. You my friend speak my language.

 

[basslik]

basslik

In this situation I would reduce a cMP to it's basic minimum configuration.

1. Minimum RAM installed = TWO RAM sticks

2. proved working EFI flashed GPU. Even a HD5770 would be Ok for testing,

3. No other PCIe cards installed.

4. Only ONE HDD / SSD installed ( a spare one )

5. 1005 De-dust THE CMP - including ALL fan blades and ALL the cheesegrater holes.

6. Check the NorthBridge Tdiode pop rivets.

==========

MOST important

7. Re-install both of your CPUs - clean and replace thermal paste. Keep a record of how many TURNs
done to replace the CPUs.
While you are at it, clean and replace Northbridge thermal paste.

7.1
Detach and re-attach ALL motherboard cables . . .especially the PSU to motherboard cable.

==============================================================
8.

When deemed ready for testing do the " Three CONSECUTIVE Happy mac NVRAM re-set for first test,
Keep holding the P + R + Option + Apple keys DOWN for longer than normal . . listen for the three chimes.


9.
PS : I would also probably remove the motherboard = backplane for de-dusting and cleaning with a soft, long haired, non-conductive brush ( like a Chinese or Japanese calligraphy script brush

==============================================================

Hopefully you have a proved working, bootable backup to try for booting.

I always have THREE proved working backup SSDs on hand ( El Capitan + High Sierra + Mojave )
These SSDs are barebones FULL installs with absolutely NO 3rd. party apps installed.

Good Luck and Don't give up.

Best I can do for you at the moment.

Man you guys are amazing !. THANKS.

Will go through all those steps, and everything is apart.

I already bough a power supply, and a backplane just came in from eBay today.

Will keep you folks posted, and thank you so much all. Have a great 4th.

 

[basslik]

( UPDATE ).

First off I want to thank everyone for helping me trying to get my beloved Mac rolling again.

Well I tried everything and just ended up buying another Backplane and up and rolling again.

The Backplane already shipped with BootRom 144.

(((okay ))).

I'm reluctant to try to install the new
SAPPHIRE PULSE Radeon RX 580 DirectX 12 11265-05-20G 8GB 256-Bit GDDR5 ,and wondering if I bought the correct model ?

When I purchased most of the reviews were people buying this particular card for their Mac Pro's ?

I need guidance to make a success install of the RX580. Been so long I forget (WOW)

I'm already on High Sierra, firmware 5,1, BootRom 144.

Should I give it a whirl >?. I'm aware no boot screen, and do I have everything ready ? THANKS

 

[MarkC426]

Yeah, correct gpu.
Pop it in and boot.
Make sure you have the dual mini 6 pin to 8 pin cable, and remove the 5870.

 

[basslik]

10- 4, here I go. THANK YOU ALL

*UPDATE*, EVERYTHING IS ALL GOOD. THANK YOU

I can change my sig to the RX580 LOL

 

[Chuckyarla]

when I put both gpu’s, I only get display on the gtx 120 but the rx 580 appers like this in sistem information View attachment 898336 View attachment 898337

Can I ask you how did you solve the problem you are talking about in this thread? I have the same problem

 

[basslik]

Okay I totally overlooked this issue. I'm running Pro Tools 10 with Mt. Lion and the computer will not boot with the Sapphire RX580. I thought it would work with every O.S. up to Lion ?.

 

[tsialex]

Okay I totally overlooked this issue. I'm running Pro Tools 10 with Mt. Lion and the computer will not boot with the Sapphire RX580. I thought it would work with every O.S. up to Lion ?.

RX 580 initial support starts with 10.12.6, but it's buggy as hell and enough only for 2D applications/non METAL. Real support for RX 580 is High Sierra.

Maybe you are confounding with GTX 680, where the initial support starts with 10.7.5.

 

[basslik]

Thanks Alex, yeah I think I was looking at another card. perhaps the GTX, or MSI. Crap, I have to stay with Pro Tools 10 due to 32bit plugins I need to use.
Will I have any problems putting back in my 5870 with the new BootRom 144. ?

 

[tsialex]

Will I have any problems putting back in my 5870 with the new BootRom 144. ?

None, works perfectly fine up to High Sierra and without any acceleration with Mojave - if it's the AppleOEM GPU. Apple removed HD 5770/5870 support with Mojave, but the Mac EFI driver still works and show the display unaccelerated, nothing that needs METAL will work, btw.

 

[basslik]

Thank you sir, greatly appreciate it.

The corrupt backplane I removed and possibly bricked, is there a way to restore the corrupt NVRAM.

I seen on ebay you can resolder a refurbed chip one with BootRom 144. already on it ?

 

[tsialex]

Thank you sir, greatly appreciate it.

The corrupt backplane I removed and possibly bricked, is there a way to restore the corrupt NVRAM.

I seen on ebay you can resolder one with BootRom 144. already on it ?

Not with the eBay route. Macs BootROM are unique, if you use a dump from another Mac, you are cloning it, Apple will detect it and block iCloud/iMessage/FaceTime.

It's possible to use a dump from your corrupted SPI flash, if it's not dead, as a source of the hardwareIDs (there are several, read the article) needed to reconstruct your own Mac Pro BootROM.