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Recommendations for Graphics Cards for 2012 Mac Pro for 4K Editing (supported High Sierra/Mojave)

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gory

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Jan 27, 2019
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Just recently purchased a 2012 Mac Pro (2.66 12 Core). I’m looking to upgrade the graphics card (from the 5870) for 4K editing on Final Cut Pro primarily.

I was wondering what hassle free graphics cards you would recommend that are supported in High Sierra (currently installed) and also potentially supported in Mojave if I was to upgrade? Are there any good ones that will also display the logo/boot screen? Happy to consider other options if that is not possible. And ideally looking for one that is quiet, with minimal fan noise. Thanks!
 
Have a hard time recommending anything but one of these on the official list below directly from APPLE.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208898

These specific third-party graphics cards are Metal-capable and compatible with macOS Mojave on Mac Pro (Mid 2010) and Mac Pro (Mid 2012):
  • 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

https://www.apple.com/final-cut-pro/specs/

Minimum System Requirements
  • macOS 10.13.6 or later
  • 4GB of RAM (8GB recommended for 4K editing, 3D titles, and 360° video editing)
  • OpenCL-capable graphics card or Intel HD Graphics 3000 or later
  • 256MB of VRAM (1GB recommended for 4K editing, 3D titles, and 360° video editing)1
  • Discrete graphics card, macOS High Sierra or later, and SteamVR required for VR headset support. AMD Radeon RX 580 graphics card recommended for best performance.
  • 3.8GB of disk space
 
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Thank you bsbeamer!

It looks like the SAPPHIRE Radeon PULSE RX 580 8GB GDDR5 is the best option. Will this run on High Sierra?

And do you know if that card can be installed directly into the Mac Pro 2012 without purchasing any additional adaptors or cables? I currently have the standard ATI Radeon 5870 installed.
 
Runs in High Sierra.

You’ll need a dual mini 6 pin to standard 8 pin power cable. Search posts on this forum, I’ve posted link several times to cable I’ve purchased. Several others also work. Can post tomorrow.

Card is a tight fit if you have all PCIe slots full. There’s another thread with setup/install suggestions. Can post tomorrow.
 
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Chiming in.. Anything from the rx480 forward will do. There are plenty of cards available that aren't a 2.5x width card. I've been running the rx480 8g and rx470 4g reference design for years and they have been a rock-solid install with 4k monitors.
 
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Thanks bsbeamer, look forward to the links when you get time. And thanks handheldgames for your input.

Until I can upgrade to a 4K monitor, I’ll need to run my old 30” Apple Cinema HD Display. Would you know what adapter I would need to be able to use the monitor with the RX 580/480 cards?
 
Along with an upgraded GPU, you would be well served with upgrading the CPUs. Some of the video workflow, like some variants of h264 export, do better with more CPU resources. And X5680s, at 3.33GHz, are relatively inexpensive and easy to swap in. This will help: http://tim.id.au/laptops/apple/macpro/macpro_mid2010.pdf
I'm happy with my Sapphire Pulse RX 580 - runs on both 10.13. and 10.14 with no issues.
 
kohlson said:
Along with an upgraded GPU, you would be well served with upgrading the CPUs. Some of the video workflow, like some variants of h264 export, do better with more CPU resources. And X5680s, at 3.33GHz, are relatively inexpensive and easy to swap in. This will help: http://tim.id.au/laptops/apple/macpro/macpro_mid2010.pdf
I'm happy with my Sapphire Pulse RX 580 - runs on both 10.13. and 10.14 with no issues.
Click to expand...

Thanks Kohlson. Excuse my ignorance, but being an existing 2012 twelve core machine with 2 x 2.66GHZ six core processors, would I need to purchase two of the X5680s at 3.33GHz CPUs for it to be twelve core? Is there a higher option available at 3.46GHz which would be better? And are they easy to install for a newbie or better to be done professionally?
 
This is the dual mini 6-pin to single standard 8-pin power cable I have:
https://www.moddiy.com/products/App...tandard-PCI%2dE-8%2dPin-Video-Card-Cable.html

They now sell a version with a sleeve to tidy up the wires.

These ones should also work:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07J336WY4
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MV3G9QV

There's a surge of them on Amazon lately after the need to use with RX 580.

This is the Sapphire Pulse RX 580 8GB GPU that is approved. I've purchased this same GPU and it's identified as
11265-05-20G. There is another version and unsure if that is the same or what the modification is/was.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ6FMF8

You may also need this:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014DV2RGG

Believe the older 30" ACD uses Dual Link DVI only (been awhile since I've used). These are active adapters. Do not believe the passive adapters have resolution required. Some may need mDP>DP adapters (above).
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A493CNY
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00856WJH8
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001IF252C

If you're scared of the CPU swap/upgrade and interested, dual 3.46GHz trays are available for purchase. It's much more expensive, but another option. If you do this just MAKE SURE you buy an authentic 5,1 tray and not a 4,1>5,1 tray. They physically look the same but are different parts.
[doublepost=1548769025][/doublepost]For RX 580 install suggestions, review this thread:
https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...-for-pcie-slot-2.2134562/page-2#post-26413743
 
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gory said:
Thanks bsbeamer, look forward to the links when you get time. And thanks handheldgames for your input.

Until I can upgrade to a 4K monitor, I’ll need to run my old 30” Apple Cinema HD Display. Would you know what adapter I would need to be able to use the monitor with the RX 580/480 cards?
Click to expand...

You have multiple 30" ACD to run?

The PULSE RX580 has a DVI-D port, no adaptor required.
 
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gory said:
would I need to purchase two of the X5680s at 3.33GHz CPUs for it to be twelve core? Is there a higher option available at 3.46GHz which would be better? And are they easy to install for a newbie or better to be done professionally?
Click to expand...

1) Yes. As you already have a dual processor machine, you need to replace both processors.

2) The 3.46GHz chips are 0.13GHz (133MHz / 4%) faster, but cost fully twice as much on eBay. Up to you if it's worth it.

3) Your 2012 machine is a Mac Pro 5,1. Changing the CPUs is therefore easy, as long as you have some common sense and dexterity. Obviously, don't rush the job, and ask for advice if you need to.
 
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Thank you bsbeamer for your thorough rundown and the options, I appreciate it. Regarding the adaptors for the 30” cinema display, just to understand, what would be the purpose of buying one of those? Will it just work and display at the monitors maximum resolution, via the DVI-D port?

H9826790, yes I am only running one 30” Apple Cinema Display for now, thanks.

And thanks mode11 for the clarification on CPU.
 
If you’re just using one dual link DVI monitor (30” ACD) with GPU that has DVI-D (Sapphire Pulse RX 580 8GB) then you will not need adapters. Thought another monitor was involved. Should be very straightforward as long as you use the dual mini 6-pin to 8-pin power cable.
 
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Just curious what the risks are of changing over the CPUs? Could installing it incorrectly or installing a faulty CPU damage the rest of the machine and render it unusable? Or would the risks be more related to damaging the CPU itself?
 
gory said:
Just curious what the risks are of changing over the CPUs? Could installing it incorrectly or installing a faulty CPU damage the rest of the machine and render it unusable? Or would the risks be more related to damaging the CPU itself?
Click to expand...

The biggest risk is damage the socket (e.g. you accidentally drop the CPU onto the socket pins). However, as long as you do it with reasonable carefulness, it shouldn't be an issue.
 
Yeah, the CPUs are cheap these days, it’s the CPU trays that are more expensive. Also, Intel CPUs have a flat underside covered in gold-plated pads - there’s nothing on them to break (mechanically).

Install one CPU at a time and test - that way, if the Mac doesn’t boot, it’ll be obvious that particular CPU is faulty.
 
h9826790 said:
It's compatible.

(Not sure if that's the cheapest you can get, looks quite expensive to me)
Click to expand...

Thanks. Would you know of a reliable website or seller that has these at a cheaper price, that ships internationally?
 
Thanks all for your help. I have the Sapphire Pulse RX580 on the way and some dual 3.46GHz CPUs.

Regarding SSD, that can boot the operating system from, what would you guys recommend? I hear good things about NVME drives. Do they have native support in both High Sierra and Mojave, or just Mojave now? I would prefer something easy that I don’t have to jump through too many hoops and is simple to install.
 
As posted above:

This is the Sapphire Pulse RX 580 8GB GPU that is approved. I've purchased this same GPU and it's identified as 11265-05-20G. There is another version and unsure if that is the same or what the modification is/was.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06ZZ6FMF8

The link you are referencing is identified as 100411P8GOCL. Unsure what SAPPHIRE's identification of that part is, or if it correlates to the 11265-05-20G in any way. Regardless, it "SHOULD" work...

FYI, there is now a 11265-05 and 11265-06 version of the SAPPHIRE PULSE and believe the only difference is a fan modification:
http://www.sapphiretech.com/productdetial.asp?lang=eng&pid=77B48A1E-9FCB-4F19-BC2D-17C3087E4852

-----

Edit: B&H is one of the few with 11265-05-20G in stock. The existing stock is likely depleted and new part numbers for a new batch will likely be issued. Doubt any modifications that would cause incompatibility, but something to just look out for.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1389772-REG/sapphire_11265_05_20g_pulse_radeon_rx_580.html
 
Last edited:
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It looks like the difference between the 11265-05-20G and the 100411P8GOCL is that the latter includes a DVI-D port.

The 11265-05-20G has a dual link-DVI-D port. I'm not going to be hooking it up to a 4K monitor anytime soon, so maybe I'll try the 100411P8GOCL and see how it works out.

Wonder if the 4 GB models are ok?
 
gory said:
Hi all. Just checking, so would this be acceptable and compatible to buy for the upgrade from the 2012 / 2.66 (twelve core) to the 3.46 (twelve core)?

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/132914005304
Click to expand...
Hi, I am just curious if the speed increase for Photoshop/After Effects and occasional 3D render would benefit a lot upgrading to 3.46.
I have a MP 2010 12 core 2.66.
I rather spend my money upgrading my graphics card to SAPPHIRE Radeon PULSE RX 580 8GB GDDR5 and add 64gb RAM.
Thanks
 
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