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Second Video Card, 2008 Mac Pro 3,1

Velin

Velin

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Jul 23, 2008
2,151
2,311
Hearst Castle
I currently have a 2008 Mac Pro, ATI Radeon HD 2600 card with two monitors attached to it.

Love the 2008 Mac Pro, it's been a great machine, don't want to replace it, plenty powerful.

My dilemma: want to attach a third monitor (a projector) to the Mac Pro. Can anyone advise me on what card I should buy from Apple? What is currently available that will work with my logic board and will not give me any problems in the 2008 Pro?

Also, I'd rather not take the time to flash another card, etc., I just want to buy the card, stick it in the machine, plug in my projector and be done with it. Thank you for any suggestions or experiences.
 
Great, thank you very much. And this will work with the 2008 Pro?

Also, even with the adaptors, there will be enough room to plug in three devices?
 
Should not be a problem. I got it working on a 3.0GHz 2008.
Check the backplate. 2 mini-display and 1-DVI. The adapters hang down so there should be plenty of space.
 
Do they still sell the GT120? They were $175 from Apple.

I've got a spare kicking around if you're interested in second hand.

I'd personally slap the ATI 5870 in there though.
 
Actually, one of the reviews of the 5770 states that on any MacPro before 2010 models you can only use 2 monitors at a time.

You could of course keep the 2600 and just add another card. Personally I've got the 8800GT and I added a GT120 that I got of ebay for AU$130. I'm running 3 Cinema Displays and a HDTV simultaneously. The GT120 is a weak card for gaming and such, but it is much more efficient with power and produces less heat.
 
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Yeah. There may be problems (spoke too soon). Easy enough, don't get rid of the 2600. Use it for the projector and the 5770 for your display's. 2 on the 5770 is no issue.
 
I have 2 x 5770s in my 2008 Mac Pro. In order to get all 3 outputs on a single card to work, one of the adapters has to be the $100 adapter.

Works great though. No issues.

The problem with the 2600 is that they die. I had 3 of them when I bought my Mac Pro. 1 of them still works.
 
O.K. keep the 2600 and get the 5770. I assume, then, there is enough room to seat the card. That's what I'm going to do, and I'll run both my monitors out of the 5770 and the projector out of the 2600.

The problem with the 2600 is that they die. I had 3 of them when I bought my Mac Pro. 1 of them still works.
Click to expand...

Yep. One year in my first 2600 died. Apple replaced it for free. Been working for a couple years, sure do hope it lasts. Gonna get that 5770. Just bought the projector tonight too, looking forward to getting it set up in my office.
 
I have a question, sorry in advance for the noobiness of it.

The advice here was to get the ATI Radeon HD 5770 Graphics Upgrade Kit for Mac Pro (Mid 2010), but the OP's was a 2008 Mac Pro...that's possible? I thought when they wrote *mid 2010* that the card wasn't applicable for older Mac Pros, or am I wrong?

I ask because I'm looking to upgrade my Mac Pro quad-core 2009 similarly like OP. I'd love to be able to get a new card and just stick it in, maybe even along with the other still there, but the Apple Store says the only card for my pc is the one that costs 450.

So what's the deal on this card applicability with the Mac Pros of the recent past? Thanks again.
 
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