Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
MP 1,1-5,1 testing TB3 AIC with MP 5,1
- Thread starter Flint Ironstag
- Start date
-
- Tags
- cmp egpu gigabyte mojave 10.14 tb3
- Sort by reaction score
On a Hackintosh, each ThunderboltDROM is overridden by some code in an SSDT. The least significant byte of the UUID is the Thunderbolt Bus number in macOS. OpenCore can be used to add SSDT code for each card.
Or maybe the firmware can be modified for each card you have to have a different UUID for the ThunderboltDROM?
Another option (that I haven't tried) might be a ThunderboltDROM in a device property. This can be added with OpenCore, or you can put it in NVRAM if you don't want to use OpenCore.
A set of functions to examine and modify Thunderbolt DROMs
A set of functions to examine and modify Thunderbolt DROMs - ThunderboltUtil.sh
gist.github.com
macOS nvram boot variables, device properties, EFI device paths
macOS nvram boot variables, device properties, EFI device paths - gfxutil.sh
gist.github.com
I finally got my setup working briefly using a Titan Ridge (v2). I installed Opencore and used the Thunderbolt SSDT on my Mac Pro 5.1, Graphics RX580 Card on Mojave. I connected my Universal Audio Arrow (a bus powered TB3 audio device) recognised upon 2 restarts and a kernel panic. Audio will play out of headphones but no input signal when I connect guitar or bass. Do you think this is a power issue and the Titan Ridge card need additional power. Any help would be great. Cheers.
Last edited:
Hey guys,
So, after I managed to fix my Mac Pro I went ahead and went upgrading. I got myself a Titan Ridge card flashed with all the goodies. I used DSM2 SSDT file and at the moment I am in a situation where the card reads as following:
So the card looks like it reads perfectly. I can confirm TB3 passthrough video signal also works fine, however, I am unable to get any data to read or work. My USB-C drive doesn't work via direct connection neither through my OWC TB3 Dock. Audio doesn't work as well.
Anyone has any advise to share?
Thank you in advance peeps!
So, after I managed to fix my Mac Pro I went ahead and went upgrading. I got myself a Titan Ridge card flashed with all the goodies. I used DSM2 SSDT file and at the moment I am in a situation where the card reads as following:
So the card looks like it reads perfectly. I can confirm TB3 passthrough video signal also works fine, however, I am unable to get any data to read or work. My USB-C drive doesn't work via direct connection neither through my OWC TB3 Dock. Audio doesn't work as well.
Anyone has any advise to share?
Thank you in advance peeps!
Hi everyone!
I own a cMP 2010 and LG 34" Ultrawide 34" 5K2K Thuderbolt Monitor. (34BK95U-W)
I would like to buy a Flashed Titan Ridge card for below usage:
Thunderbolt connect to LG to 5K2K display use with USB 3.0 port build in with Montior.
I need to buy a flashed Titan Ridge card? Thunderbolt 3 cable?
My monitor only a thunderbolt port besides display port and HDMI TB single and is not support chain. There is a USB 3.0 type A for connect USB device too.
I am running Open Core, Catalina / Big Sur, with h9826790 config.
It should have TB enable.
Thanks!
I own a cMP 2010 and LG 34" Ultrawide 34" 5K2K Thuderbolt Monitor. (34BK95U-W)
I would like to buy a Flashed Titan Ridge card for below usage:
Thunderbolt connect to LG to 5K2K display use with USB 3.0 port build in with Montior.
I need to buy a flashed Titan Ridge card? Thunderbolt 3 cable?
My monitor only a thunderbolt port besides display port and HDMI TB single and is not support chain. There is a USB 3.0 type A for connect USB device too.
I am running Open Core, Catalina / Big Sur, with h9826790 config.
It should have TB enable.
Thanks!
Hi everybody,
I signed up to share with the community my testing experience so far with the Titan Ridge.
I have it now working properly. It connects with my Thunderbolt Display and can control camera, audio, brightness, and USB hub. I do have few issues, however, such as display disconnecting after sleep or cold boot.
Below are my steps to get to this point:
1- flashed the card following steps found in this thread. installed opencore using h9826790's steps.
2- connected to Mac Pro on slot 4. I also tried slot 3 and it worked fine. Currently, it is installed back on slot 4.
3- performed Pixlas Mod, where I connected the GPU with the new power cable and the titan ridge directly to the logic board. (before, without power, the camera, audio, brightness, and USB hub did not work.)
My system is:
Catalina macOS. CPU 2x 3.46, 64 GB RAM. RX 580. Opencore 0.6.2 is installed and Thunderbolt is enabled. Pixlas mod. I am connecting two displays—one via thunderbolt and one via DVI.
Few hiccups after this installation:
The camera, audio, brightness, and USB hub worked fine, but after rebooting, they stopped working. I was perplexed. I did not change anything in the system. It was a cold reboot. After few attempts and hardware checks, I decided to "bless" opencore again, and that did the trick. Not sure why "bless" was needed again.
Let me know if you have any questions.
I signed up to share with the community my testing experience so far with the Titan Ridge.
I have it now working properly. It connects with my Thunderbolt Display and can control camera, audio, brightness, and USB hub. I do have few issues, however, such as display disconnecting after sleep or cold boot.
Below are my steps to get to this point:
1- flashed the card following steps found in this thread. installed opencore using h9826790's steps.
2- connected to Mac Pro on slot 4. I also tried slot 3 and it worked fine. Currently, it is installed back on slot 4.
3- performed Pixlas Mod, where I connected the GPU with the new power cable and the titan ridge directly to the logic board. (before, without power, the camera, audio, brightness, and USB hub did not work.)
My system is:
Catalina macOS. CPU 2x 3.46, 64 GB RAM. RX 580. Opencore 0.6.2 is installed and Thunderbolt is enabled. Pixlas mod. I am connecting two displays—one via thunderbolt and one via DVI.
Few hiccups after this installation:
The camera, audio, brightness, and USB hub worked fine, but after rebooting, they stopped working. I was perplexed. I did not change anything in the system. It was a cold reboot. After few attempts and hardware checks, I decided to "bless" opencore again, and that did the trick. Not sure why "bless" was needed again.
Let me know if you have any questions.
Could you share your Blackmagic eGPU firmware, please?
I'm trying to use GC TitanRidge like an adapter between my eGPU and LG Ultrafine 5k.
Interesting, do you have the v1 or v2 card? I have the v2 here.
I got myself set up but only had TB2 peripherals, so needed to get my hands on a TB2 to TB3 converter. I have one now and though devices I connect appear correctly in the tree (tried the TB2 to Ethernet and TB2 to FireWire adapters) I experience the same issue as you - they don't actually work in macOS.
No new ethernet device in System Preferences and no drive connected via FireWire.
No new FireWire bus either, just the built-in one.
I have the hotplug link connected, the firmware flashed and the .aml added through OpenCore. Is there any chance having SIP disabled might be causing it? Seems like a long shot to me, but it was a thought.
Same behaviour without the SSDT too, though the USB 3.1 bus works just fine.
Has anyone else experienced this and figured it out?
Last edited:
Hold the phone.
Posting this with my internet connection through the Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet adapter now! For some reason this came to life. Let's try the drive again.
EDIT: Nope, no sign of the drive, though the adapter is seen again.
EDIT2: Okay, I've done my due diligence with and without OpenCore inserting SSDT-TBOLT3.aml.
The short version is that you definitely need the SSDT, at least with the v2 card.
I hooked up both of my Thunderbolt to Ethernet adapters and they both work with hotplugging, no problem. I then disabled the SSDT and performed a warm reboot. Ethernet adapters were present in the tree, but didn't work.
Re-enabling the SSDT and warm rebooting was not enough to bring them back - only a full power-off cold reboot resurrected them and they're working perfectly again now.
I have no idea why the FireWire adapter doesn't work; well, perhaps there's a clash with the built-in system? Regardless, I wouldn't be using it with the MacPro5,1 which has abundant FW800 anyway.
Last edited:
Can anyone speak to compatibility with the newer model (27MD5KL-B) of the Ultrafine 5K or are most people’s experience here with the old one?
I was curious because I read on some hackintosh forms people had issues with the USB ports on the display. To be clear I am hoping to get an UltraFine 5K display to use with my cMP, but I am not sure which to get. My hope is the newer model will be more functional with ambient light sensor and USB-C alt mode.
I was curious because I read on some hackintosh forms people had issues with the USB ports on the display. To be clear I am hoping to get an UltraFine 5K display to use with my cMP, but I am not sure which to get. My hope is the newer model will be more functional with ambient light sensor and USB-C alt mode.
I have this newer model hooked through Titan Ridge. You must use 2 DP cables coming from your video card to drive it at full 5K resolution.
My video card is Radeon Pro W5700, which has a USB-C output, so I can even get boot screens with OpenCore, but only at 4K max. When driven by my video card at 4K, the web camera is unstable and drops frames, as well as the sound gets choppy. It looks like there is not enough bandwidth or there is a bottle neck somewhere. I am using a high quality Belkin USB-C cable.
With Titan Ridge (2 DP cables and a Belkin TB3 cable) my web camera works well, all USB-C port functions work and the sound is good. All of this works only after a warm boot. Before that I was using 1 DP cable and the TB3 cable that came with the monitor and I was getting mixed results with the web camera. No luck with the ambient light sensor – I never saw it working... No night mode by default on Mac Pro 5.1 either.
This is all great and very useful information. Did you flash your firmware & are you using SSDT’s, or are you just using the jumper trick and warm boot?
It’s great to get confirmation of boot screens as well. Now I just need to find one of these to purchase.
Can you get the OpenCore boot picker to appear when connected through the Titan Ridge card?
Yes, but only on a warm boot after the first cold boot, which initialises Titan Ridge properly. Flashed TR firmware, SSTD injected by OpenCore, jumper is also in place. There is a useful script you can grab from here to make your Mac Pro to reboot automatically after a cold boot.
Since my video card has a dedicated USB-C output, I can get the OpenCore boot picker on a cold boot that way. This is perfect, almost as if I had a re-flashed card. I did put the OpenCore on a USB device though, so that I am completely independent of my SSD arrangements inside Mac Pro. Just a bit annoying that you must have 2 separate cables for this monitor and switch between a USB-C cable for GPU and TB3 cable for TR.
I would love to get another LG 5K one day, but this also means another TR in slot 3. But this is where it gets tricky, as I haven't seen a pre-made SSDT that will work with a second TR in slot 3 to get a full 5K output for the second LG 5K.
Just looked around for VR2 cable... It might work, but something that has to be tested, of course. I am now very curious myself after seeing this. Still, LG's limitation of 4K over USB-C would not allow to drive LG 5K in full resolution, only Apple Pro Display can do this.
Last edited:
This is actually really good to know and makes me tempted to get the older model, since it can work after warm boot & it’s really hard to get the newer model with any sort of second hand discount. If the ambient light sensor doesn’t work on the 5,1 then ??♂️. I wonder if lilu can enable it + night shift.
There are SSDT’s to support a single TR in slot 3, right? (I have an Apple RAID Card in slot 4).
Perhaphs your second Titan Ridge could be external, if you only need display output from it.
I never tried to enable Night Shift. I know it would work on MacPro 5.1, but I believe Ambient Sensor is there specifically for Auto Brightness control. I saw online that LG 5K users have issues with that as well, but I cannot say more on that. Definitely saw a lot of complains about web camera freezes, which I experienced myself.
If you have an SSDT for Slot 3 – can you please point to where I can get it and try? Thanks.
If you have an SSDT for Slot 3 – can you please point to where I can get it and try? Thanks.
So we all are just using the SSDT someone made and it only works in Slot 4? Is it not possible to modifying and adjust these files ourselves?
Are these custom cards still a thing and coming ever?
And is the Alpine Ridge still considered superior to Titan Ridge?
Here is a SSDT I believe will make the card work in slot 3 I have attempted to teach myself how to make today.
I do not have a Titan Ridge yet but used the device path of my NVMe drive in Slot 3 after validating the path of my Apple RAID card in slot 4 matches the one in the widely distributed SSDT-TBOLT3.aml.
I would recommend testing this with a single Titan Ridge card in Slot 3 first, and then try again later with two Titan Ridge Cards in 3 & 5. On both SSDT.aml I have changed the path of the device to where it should be for slot 3, and in the -UNIQUE SSDT.aml have slightly changed what I believe is the Thunderbolt Bus ID and re-computed a checksum (the ThunderboltDROM section). If anyone would like to try this, let me know how it works. You will need to add this to Open Core and modify your config.plist. If someone more familiar with this thinks I made a mistake, let me know as well.
If this works, I can make modifications for Slot 2 and Slot 1. If there are issues I can play around more after I get a card and flash it. If this latest file has issues, I have one where I have not modified the DROM that might work better, but won't allow more than one card at a time.
P.S. Are you all using a Titan Ridge 1.0 card, or is there no functional difference between a 1.0 and a 2.0 after you flash custom firmware?
EDIT: Updated SSDTs again to change the name in some of these spots from Slot-4 to Slot-3.
Last edited:
Using the 2.0 card here and its behaviour after flashing the EPROM seems to be identical to everyone else's reports with the 1.0 version. I have one installed in Slot 4, flashed and using the SSDT. Everything has worked identically, including the issue of requiring a warm reboot to get the drivers loaded properly.
Did some testing with a Sonnet Echo Express SE IIIe chassis this evening. It works and has some useful diagnostic LEDs on the board to see what's going on. When "off" the chassis is actually powering the receiving Thunderbolt card, waiting to bring up the rest of the board. Usually* as soon as the Mac Pro is powered on the chassis jumps into life, with a quickly pulsing LED to indicate the Thunderbolt link is active.
There are a set of LEDs which show the status of the PCIe cards which stay dark on a cold boot until a split second after the macOS boot progress bar appears. This must simply be too late for macOS to bother with drivers for the cards, because on cold boot I get this:
All cards are identified correctly, but drivers are not loaded. Devices connected via the Titan Ridge USB 3.1 controller always work fine even from cold boot, meaning this is a good value USB 3.1 expansion card for the Mac Pro even if you never use Thunderbolt!
Perform a warm reboot and everything's fine:
*Sometimes, when powering on from cold, the Sonnet chassis doesn't burst into life. I've found no pattern as to when it does this, but power-cycling the chassis brings it back to life.
Last edited:
Fantastic, I'd been wondering about hardware RAID card users!
I'll investigate this myself, I'm also interested as to how this works.
Last edited: