MP 1,1-5,1 Success: RX-6800XT in cMP 4,1/5,1

[prefuse07]

I posted this in the 6800XT/6900XT thread, but I feel like it's not getting the visibility it deserves, so I'm posting in the main forum, so that people can see that the cMP is STILL going strong, now with the addition of AMD's 6k series cards, all thanks to Syncretic.

I am more than happy to report that @Syncretic 's patch does work 100% to install an RX-6800XT on a cMP 4,1>5,1 running OpenCore 0.8.0, Big Sur 11.6.5, the rest of my specs are in my sig. (@Greggant, if you wanna mention this confirmation on the DMUG youtube, gimme a shoutout! )

As soon as Syncretic made his post, I returned my RX-5700XT and acquired a brand new RX-6800XT.

Whilte I waited for the 6800XT to arrive, I went back to my XFX RX-580, so you will see before and after pics below. Since I had previously already done the Pixlas mod for the 5700XT, it was a simple plug and play.


Here you go folks, as promised, the excitement!:

The day I installed it (May 1st), I ran some quick benchmarks:

I made a GB5 account a few days later, so here are more results:

MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for a MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for a MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

And of course Windows:

Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for an Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for an Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

As you can see from the various benchmarks, the cMP now easily DECIMATES the 20-core Ultra Mac Studio in terms of graphics processing power. Just had to put that out there as I'm tired of reading BS posts from iSheep around that.

I ran a bunch of different benchmarks in the 6800XT thread, so if you're interested in that, take a look beginning on page 39.

Again, just wanted to put this here, so that it gets the visibility that it deserves. This proves that, thanks to the brilliant work by members of this community, our cMP's are STILL very powerful and capable machines, even 12 years down the line. I want to thank you guys, especially Syncretic, and the OpenCore team for keeping this very capable machine, still purring like a kitten!


Cheers!

 

[ssj92]

I found someone local selling RX 6800. I may sell my 5700 XT and go this route. I will be running Monterey. Seems like I can just stick the RX 6800 in my pc and flash.

I've been working on a youtube video for complete tutorial on how to install opencore/monterey on cMP and may delay further to add this info/process in. I'm actually editing the video on the cMP in FCPX lol

Long live the cMP

 

[MisterAndrew]

Awesome news! Thanks for verifying that the patch works. I'm also curious about the technical details of the out of the box incompatibility. I wonder if the patch would also provide any benefit for 6,1 and 7,1 users.

 

[prefuse07]

Awesome news! Thanks for verifying that the patch works. I'm also curious about the technical details of the out of the box incompatibility. I wonder if the patch would also provide any benefit for 6,1 and 7,1 users.

AFAIK, the 6800xt and 6900xt are plug-and-play on 7,1's without any patching required. Just wire it up and connect it into the PCIe slots, and it should work.

Of course, using Boot Camp with aftermarket cards is a whole other issue on the 7,1.

More info here

I know the 6,1 does support AVX2, but i've seen that macOS has problems with eGPUs, and I don't know if this patch solves those issues, as those seem to be more macOS related issues, but I could be wrong.

 

[MisterAndrew]

I know RDNA 2 GPUs are plug-and-play with the 7,1, and 6,1 as eGPU with a patch such as Kryptonite, but I'm curious if it would increase any technical aspects of compatibility. I think there are a few glitches with 3rd party GPUs in the 7,1 compared to genuine Apple GPUs, such as fan behavior, but I don't have a 7,1 yet so I haven't done any testing.

 

[ssj92]

@prefuse07 is your 6800 xt , 2-slot, 2.5-slot or 3-slot?

I just realized 6800 is 2-slot but 6800 xt reference is 2.5-slot. So I am not sure I can run my PCIe NVMe card in slot 2 if I were to get a 6800 xt.

 

[Stex]

I think there are a few glitches with 3rd party GPUs in the 7,1 compared to genuine Apple GPUs, such as fan behavior, but I don't have a 7,1 yet so I haven't done any testing.

Maybe stick to reliable 4,1/5,1 then...! Forever! ?

 

[prefuse07]

@prefuse07 is your 6800 xt , 2-slot, 2.5-slot or 3-slot?

I just realized 6800 is 2-slot but 6800 xt reference is 2.5-slot. So I am not sure I can run my PCIe NVMe card in slot 2 if I were to get a 6800 xt.

It takes up 3 slots on the cMP:

I used to have an SSD sitting in an OWC PCIe adapter sitting in Slot 4, but I moved it into the SATA bays, and moved my bluetooth/wifi antennas up a notch, as you see in the pic.

 

[Stex]

I used to have an SSD sitting in an OWC PCIe adapter sitting in Slot 4, but I moved it into the SATA bays, and moved my bluetooth/wifi antennas up a notch, as you see in the pic.

Maybe time for a PCIe NMVe.2 card and blade on your cMP, even in slot 4 would give you about x3 times speed of your 2.5" SSD, very beneficial for games and more...

 

[MauiPa]

I posted this in the 6800XT/6900XT thread, but I feel like it's not getting the visibility it deserves, so I'm posting in the main forum, so that people can see that the cMP is STILL going strong, now with the addition of AMD's 6k series cards, all thanks to Syncretic.

I am more than happy to report that @Syncretic 's patch does work 100% to install an RX-6800XT on a cMP 4,1>5,1 running OpenCore 0.8.0, Big Sur 11.6.5, the rest of my specs are in my sig. (@Greggant, if you wanna mention this confirmation on the DMUG youtube, gimme a shoutout! )

As soon as Syncretic made his post, I returned my RX-5700XT and acquired a brand new RX-6800XT.

Whilte I waited for the 6800XT to arrive, I went back to my XFX RX-580, so you will see before and after pics below. Since I had previously already done the Pixlas mod for the 5700XT, it was a simple plug and play.


Here you go folks, as promised, the excitement!:
View attachment 2002055
View attachment 2002056
View attachment 2002057
View attachment 2002058
View attachment 2002059


View attachment 2002060
View attachment 2002061



The day I installed it (May 1st), I ran some quick benchmarks:
View attachment 2002062
View attachment 2002063
View attachment 2002064
View attachment 2002066
View attachment 2002067
View attachment 2002068


I made a GB5 account a few days later, so here are more results:

MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for a MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for a MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

And of course Windows:

Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for an Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for an Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

As you can see from the various benchmarks, the cMP now easily DECIMATES the 20-core Ultra Mac Studio. Just had to put that out there as I'm tired of reading BS posts from iSheep around that.

I ran a bunch of different benchmarks in the 6800XT thread, so if you're interested in that, take a look beginning on page 39.

Again, just wanted to put this here, so that it gets the visibility that it deserves. This proves that, thanks to the brilliant work by members of this community, our cMP's are STILL very powerful and capable machines, even 12 years down the line. I want to thank you guys, especially Syncretic, and the OpenCore team for keeping this very capable machine, still purring like a kitten!


Cheers!

Isn’t that Xeon pretty mediocre at best? Does it totally decimate the ultra, what no? Who knew. For the record, all condescension aside, no one has ever said the ultra would beat a high end graphics card in a Mac Pro. I think the reference is that it is pretty powerful for a 4000 package and does have good performance in certain graphics tasks. But a high end dedicated graphics card, no, no one said that, literally ever. Kindo tired of the BS from the ihaters

 

[avro707]

It takes up 3 slots on the cMP:

......


I used to have an SSD sitting in an OWC PCIe adapter sitting in Slot 4, but I moved it into the SATA bays, and moved my bluetooth/wifi antennas up a notch, as you see in the pic.

This will cause difficulties for me if I were to try it, I have a Sonnet NVME sled in the #1 slot, RX580 currently in #2 slot and #4 slot has the mandatory Gigabyte Titan Ridge thunderbolt:

So for anyone thinking of this, be mindful of the above. The sonnet still runs quite fast in #3 slot.

I definitely noticed your post however. But I don't have a PC in order to flash one of these cards to work so I need to find someone local in Australia near me whose computer I can borrow!

 

[prefuse07]

This will cause difficulties for me if I were to try it, I have a Sonnet NVME sled in the #1 slot, RX580 currently in #2 slot and #4 slot has the mandatory Gigabyte Titan Ridge thunderbolt:

View attachment 2002198

So for anyone thinking of this, be mindful of the above. The sonnet still runs quite fast in #3 slot.

I definitely noticed your post however. But I don't have a PC in order to flash one of these cards to work so I need to find someone local in Australia near me whose computer I can borrow!

Yeah, you'd also have to be very careful with which RX-6800XT you choose, as the majority of them are too long to fit into the cMP without having to disconnect the fan! (same goes for the 6900XT). Even more-so with how many things you've got in there!

 

[MisterAndrew]

Maybe stick to reliable 4,1/5,1 then...! Forever! ?

I like your enthusiasm for the cMP, but a lot of 3rd party GPUs have had serious issues in the cMP. The GPUs in this thread didn't even work before someone made a patch. I think GPU compatibility will be less problematic with the 7,1. As time passes the 7,1 will become very cheap, so no reason to keep cMP forever.

 

[exoticSpice]

Maybe stick to reliable 4,1/5,1 then...! Forever! ?

4,1/5,1 have outdated CPUs(The M1 in the iPad Air destroys it). 7,1 would much be a better Intel Mac in the future.

Won't the CPU bottleneck the RX6800, I really don't why you are using a great GPU with a outdated chip.

 

[exoticSpice]

DECIMATES the 20-core Ultra Mac Studio

The 4,1 has pitiful CPU speed. The Intel i9 12900K is much better. Honestly it's better to build a hackintosh.

Intel didn't even have Xeons with the Alder Lake arch and when they do it's gonna get interesting. There are rumours of Intel doing a 24 Core Xeon and up to 112 Core Xeons.

Apple's next Mac Pro won't even stand a chance in Multicore. Let's face it the last best powerful Mac is the 7,1. In 8-10 years time it would get much cheaper.

our cMP's are STILL very powerful and capable machines

Expect in Video editing and gaming(even in Windows, you still have that cpu to deal with)

That being said enjoy your RX 6800.

 

[Matty_TypeR]

I posted this in the 6800XT/6900XT thread, but I feel like it's not getting the visibility it deserves, so I'm posting in the main forum, so that people can see that the cMP is STILL going strong, now with the addition of AMD's 6k series cards, all thanks to Syncretic.

I am more than happy to report that @Syncretic 's patch does work 100% to install an RX-6800XT on a cMP 4,1>5,1 running OpenCore 0.8.0, Big Sur 11.6.5, the rest of my specs are in my sig. (@Greggant, if you wanna mention this confirmation on the DMUG youtube, gimme a shoutout! )

As soon as Syncretic made his post, I returned my RX-5700XT and acquired a brand new RX-6800XT.

Whilte I waited for the 6800XT to arrive, I went back to my XFX RX-580, so you will see before and after pics below. Since I had previously already done the Pixlas mod for the 5700XT, it was a simple plug and play.


Here you go folks, as promised, the excitement!:
View attachment 2002055
View attachment 2002056
View attachment 2002057
View attachment 2002058
View attachment 2002059


View attachment 2002060
View attachment 2002061



The day I installed it (May 1st), I ran some quick benchmarks:
View attachment 2002062
View attachment 2002063
View attachment 2002064
View attachment 2002066
View attachment 2002067
View attachment 2002068


I made a GB5 account a few days later, so here are more results:

MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for a MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for a MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

And of course Windows:

Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for an Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 - Geekbench

Benchmark results for an Apple Inc. MacPro5,1 with an Intel Xeon X5690 processor.

browser.geekbench.com

As you can see from the various benchmarks, the cMP now easily DECIMATES the 20-core Ultra Mac Studio. Just had to put that out there as I'm tired of reading BS posts from iSheep around that.

I ran a bunch of different benchmarks in the 6800XT thread, so if you're interested in that, take a look beginning on page 39.

Again, just wanted to put this here, so that it gets the visibility that it deserves. This proves that, thanks to the brilliant work by members of this community, our cMP's are STILL very powerful and capable machines, even 12 years down the line. I want to thank you guys, especially Syncretic, and the OpenCore team for keeping this very capable machine, still purring like a kitten!


Cheers!

Amazing work to keep the Mac Pro 4.1 5.1 alive and kicking, and yes we all know the 7.1 with better CPU's ect would be the better option but I don't think you will see high end 7.1 machines going that cheap when the new Mac Pro arrives. Even low end ones will need upgrades the 7.1 with RX580's is no match for the above. the studio is beaten by this setup. yes it takes up to many slots but not if you use a water cooled version and replace the Pcie fan with a rad fan combination.

After all if apple wanted they could fit the next Mac Pro with a thread ripper CPU and decimate everything before it. but apple silicon will now be dominant in everything they do into the future with all Mac's as they tighten there grip on the Mac eco system. when the next Mac Pro ships we will see if people are willing to let go there 7.1 machines or not.

So well done to the above results a cost effective way to keep your Mac Pro 4.1 5.1 alive.

 

[Dayo]

This will cause difficulties for me if I were to try it

Most of the size is probably just the cooler and it would probably benefit from adding a water cooling solution to take it down to two slots.

 

[TracerAnalog]

Cool stuff???

 

[Bug-Creator]

As you can see from the various benchmarks, the cMP now easily DECIMATES the 20-core Ultra Mac Studio. Just had to put that out there as I'm tired of reading BS posts from iSheep around that.

Current 300W AMD card beats current <100W integrated Apple GPU !!!


News at 5

This proves that, thanks to the brilliant work by members of this community, our cMP's are STILL very powerful and capable machines, even 12 years down the line.

Sure if you run stuff that heavily relies on parts of the machine that you have replaced with current HW it is indeed powerful and capable.

For everything else it's an obsolete joke even compared to a base config MacMini.


Just a disclaimer, I was on a somewhat upgraded 2010 cMP (not as crazy as yours) right until the Studio dropped and it for sure did what it had to do in a reasonable way, but there was also no denying that it was a 12 years old workstation with some 5-7 years old parts sprinkled into it.

 

[Matty_TypeR]

People who are thinking of purchasing a radeon 6900XT for there Mac should be aware that Mac osx only supports XTX versions of the 6900XT weather it be in Mac Pro 7.1 or Egpu a lot of the newer 6900XT GFX cards have the newer XTXH chip which so far is not supported in Mac OSX and offers a black screen.

 

[Rob__Mac]

Word of warning for anyone with a 7,1 - the maximum card length is 310mm. And, for example, the current "Second Edition" version of the Gigabyte 6900XT is 320mm.

 

[sprihoda]

It takes up 3 slots on the cMP:

View attachment 2002141

I used to have an SSD sitting in an OWC PCIe adapter sitting in Slot 4, but I moved it into the SATA bays, and moved my bluetooth/wifi antennas up a notch, as you see in the pic.

Off topic, but did you buy that WiFi/Bluetooth antenna extender? Something like that would really cleanup my setup, but wasn’t finding anything with a quick search.

 

[startergo]

Most of the size is probably just the cooler and it would probably benefit from adding a water cooling solution to take it down to two slots.

The size is a real killer for my PC:

As you can see the reference RX6900XT occupies 3 slots. What is even worst is if I install a 2 slot reference card in the first PCIE slot it almost touches the 6900XT. That is why I had to go with a single slot card. Also see how am I running the wifi/BT card? I will most probably rearrange everything with my PCIE expander chassis. Even with PCIE2 it has 80GB bandwidth and it is better than any thunderbolt (40GB only).

 

[mikas]

People who are thinking of purchasing a radeon 6900XT for there Mac should be aware that Mac osx only supports XTX versions of the 6900XT weather it be in Mac Pro 7.1 or Egpu a lot of the newer 6900XT GFX cards have the newer XTXH chip which so far is not supported in Mac OSX and offers a black screen.

Did not know about that, though I've seen the letters mentioned on forums.
How would one find out the chip version used in a card? Do air cooled reference cards have XTXH chips in them. Or can you see this straight from the specs listed about a card?

I've got one 6900XT, but it's in my PC. Just wondering if it can be detected easily with some tools. Either PC or Mac, doesn't matter to me.

 

[Matty_TypeR]

Did not know about that, though I've seen the letters mentioned on forums.
How would one find out the chip version used in a card? Do air cooled reference cards have XTXH chips in them. Or can you see this straight from the specs listed about a card?

I've got one 6900XT, but it's in my PC. Just wondering if it can be detected easily with some tools. Either PC or Mac, doesn't matter to me.

If you load hardware info on the PC it will tell you if its XTX or XTXH version of the chip. all reference cards are XTX the up rated Navi chips are XTXH these have boost clocks of 2500 plus as the original XTX chips upto 2300.