Want to change my ATI 5870 to better GPU

[LEOMODE]

Hi I have the latest version (even though i bought it in 2010 lol) Mac Pro, 3.33ghz 6core with 4 memory slot body.

Initially Ive ordered it with 3.33ghz 6core CPU and ATI 5870 GPU and later upgraded myself with 16GB of RAM.

But I feel the lacking of GPU power when I run games for my spare time on newer GPU hungry games (its also for WOW Mist of Pandaria and Diablo 3, and want to run on full highest setting possible) and I would like to purchase an Mini display compatible, and better power than 5870 GPU card.

Without any issue, what is the most easiest and powerful GPU upgradable card out there? What I mean is upgrading the GPU without any hassle, almost like just pop out 5870 and pop in new GPU. I would prefer ATI since I personallt dont like Nvidia. Thanks.

 

[MacVidCards]

Hi I have the latest version (even though i bought it in 2010 lol) Mac Pro, 3.33ghz 6core with 4 memory slot body.

Initially Ive ordered it with 3.33ghz 6core CPU and ATI 5870 GPU and later upgraded myself with 16GB of RAM.

But I feel the lacking of GPU power when I run games for my spare time on newer GPU hungry games (its also for WOW Mist of Pandaria and Diablo 3, and want to run on full highest setting possible) and I would like to purchase an Mini display compatible, and better power than 5870 GPU card.

Without any issue, what is the most easiest and powerful GPU upgradable card out there? What I mean is upgrading the GPU without any hassle, almost like just pop out 5870 and pop in new GPU. I would prefer ATI since I personallt dont like Nvidia. Thanks.

You are already wearing your Ruby slippers.

Nowhere to go yet.

 

[Cougarcat]

A 5870 will be more than enough for those games. A Mac Pro update is due Any Day Now (if they don't discontinue it) so you might see an upgrade option then.

 

[LEOMODE]

A 5870 will be more than enough for those games. A Mac Pro update is due Any Day Now (if they don't discontinue it) so you might see an upgrade option then.

Actually after the latest expansion for wow (cataclysm), i cannot run in the highest option whereas it was at highest option before the expansion. Now with the same card on bootcamp it runs a little better. So with the fact that the driver is really bad for mac i assume, i also felt that i do need better GPU that can support the new expansion that will come out this year. So I dont think i can run the game satisfactorily since i was able to run the game at the highest option previously.

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You are already wearing your Ruby slippers.

Nowhere to go yet.

I see. So basically no plug and play (not the modification version where it takes some time and labor) GPU better than 5870 for mac pro. Thanks.

 

[CaptainChunk]

I see. So basically no plug and play (not the modification version where it takes some time and labor) GPU better than 5870 for mac pro. Thanks.

It's more like, no drivers. The 6870 works, but that card is actually slower than the 5870.

The only way you're really gonna get a faster AMD GPU is run one on the Windows side. Alternatively, you can run practically any NVIDIA card without flashing (but no boot screen) with the new drivers from NVIDIA's website.

 

[chrono1081]

It's more like, no drivers. The 6870 works, but that card is actually slower than the 5870.

The only way you're really gonna get a faster AMD GPU is run one on the Windows side. Alternatively, you can run practically any NVIDIA card without flashing (but no boot screen) with the new drivers from NVIDIA's website.

??? Can you elaborate on this please??? Are you talking for the Mac OS side or the Windows side?

I don't meant to hijack the thread so if you are talking the Mac side I'll PM you with a question if you don't mind.

 

[The-Pro]

nVidia has released drivers for mac so you can use pretty much all gpus. There are several threads about this here.

 

[FluJunkie]

Actually after the latest expansion for wow (cataclysm), i cannot run in the highest option whereas it was at highest option before the expansion. Now with the same card on bootcamp it runs a little better. So with the fact that the driver is really bad for mac i assume, i also felt that i do need better GPU that can support the new expansion that will come out this year. So I dont think i can run the game satisfactorily since i was able to run the game at the highest option previously.

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I see. So basically no plug and play (not the modification version where it takes some time and labor) GPU better than 5870 for mac pro. Thanks.

I've been running Cataclysm on Ultra using a 5870 and getting fine framerates in Windowed mode for in both raid and group PvP settings.

 

[gpzjock]

5870 is fine for WoW, OpenGL is the bit that sucks

I use a 5870 in a 2008 Octo Mac Pro to run WoW, it has more than enough grunt. Unfortunately the OpenGL drivers that Mac OS X uses are well behind DirectX in development so things like Liquid Detail and Sunshafts are limiting to it. I turn the water effects down a bit and the sunshafts off to get better performance in raids on full screen mode. Also if you have your distance turned down to High instead of Ultra it copes far better with new zones and rapid turning.
If you boot the same Mac Pro in Windows 7 and use DirectX drivers the card is fine at Ultra settings.

This is how it performs under DirectX:

This is how more up to date cards compare:

These are the current top end cards performing in Windows; none of them will run in OS X without major modding to your rig and even then they might not perform:

If you still can't accept the loss of eye candy a GTX570 or GTX560Ti would be a good replacement, if you don't mind losing the boot screen, Mini Display ports and Apple's support for the card. This still won't fix the OpenGL drivers, only Apple can do that by updating them.

 

[CaptainChunk]

??? Can you elaborate on this please??? Are you talking for the Mac OS side or the Windows side?

I don't meant to hijack the thread so if you are talking the Mac side I'll PM you with a question if you don't mind.

Mac side. This thread discusses this. The drivers require that you are running 10.7.3, however. Otherwise, you're still stuck with either flashing or the ATY_Init method.

 

[MacVidCards]

The FASTEST EFI card continues to be our GTX480.

Has some limitations, etc but then again...it has boot screens.

It beats the 5870 in the new Uningine benchmark and has stunning CUDA power.

And just yesterday I found out why it works so well. It appears that either Apple or Nvidia planned to release this as a OSX card in some form or another. Someday hopefully we'll hear why it never came out.

 

[LEOMODE]

I've been running Cataclysm on Ultra using a 5870 and getting fine framerates in Windowed mode for in both raid and group PvP settings.

Can you tell me the settings? Because I don't wanna compromise Ultra (or full, the highest setting). So I want to have the maximum performance on the graphic card with minimized down tweak to the setting.

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I use a 5870 in a 2008 Octo Mac Pro to run WoW, it has more than enough grunt. Unfortunately the OpenGL drivers that Mac OS X uses are well behind DirectX in development so things like Liquid Detail and Sunshafts are limiting to it. I turn the water effects down a bit and the sunshafts off to get better performance in raids on full screen mode. Also if you have your distance turned down to High instead of Ultra it copes far better with new zones and rapid turning.
If you boot the same Mac Pro in Windows 7 and use DirectX drivers the card is fine at Ultra settings.

Thanks can you tell me your setting? Because I can get 60 fps easily but I just want to see the similar maximum performance as if I would run it on bootcamp.

 

[gpzjock]

My WoW settings for 5870 in OS X

I find this best for raiding:
Display mode: Fullscreen
Resolution: 1680 x 1050 (native for my 22" LCD screen)
Refresh rate: 60 Hz
Multisampling: 2x
Vertical Sync: Disabled
Texture Resolution: High
Texture Filtering: 4x Anisotropic
Projected Textures: Enabled
View Distance: High
Environmental Detail: Good
Ground Clutter: Fair
Shadow Quality: Good
Liquid Detail: Fair
Sunshafts: Disabled
Particle Density: Good

This runs over 60 fps 90% of the time but when the crap is raining from all sides and you have the whole raid and a big boss in view (e.g. Ultraxion) it can drop to below 25 fps unless you shorten the view distance and turn projected textures off.
Of course DirectX is the real solution ultimately. If you can stand bootcamping.

 

[derbothaus]

And just yesterday I found out why it works so well. It appears that either Apple or Nvidia planned to release this as a OSX card in some form or another. Someday hopefully we'll hear why it never came out.

Maybe the abysmal power usage? It is known around the PC crowd as something of a turd. Good for Mac users today but was too power hungry, hot, and underwhelming performance wise at release. GTX580 resurrected Nvidia respect. Apple seems to try to sell balance. Something the GTX480 was not.

 

[MacVidCards]

Maybe the abysmal power usage? It is known around the PC crowd as something of a turd. Good for Mac users today but was too power hungry, hot, and underwhelming performance wise at release. GTX580 resurrected Nvidia respect. Apple seems to try to sell balance. Something the GTX480 was not.

Buried deep in driver is a list of specific card id's. The last ones on the list are:

9400 mobile
9600GT mobile
GT330 mobile
Quadro 4800
GTX285
Quadro 4000
GTX480

You will note that ever other card there actually got produced in a Mac EFI version. It is possible that in early testing they ruled out 480 due to power draw. We have one for MP that we get to work by modding power needs and circuit so that it fits in Mac Pro power/heat envelope. A little slower than stock ones, but I sleep better knowing that they won't be burning up.

Maybe Apple couldn't find a compromise, or maybe they were just mad at Nvidia. But I am fairly certain that at one time this card was planned or in the pipeline.

 

[derbothaus]

Buried deep in driver is a list of specific card id's. The last ones on the list are:

9400 mobile
9600GT mobile
GT330 mobile
Quadro 4800
GTX285
Quadro 4000
GTX480

You will note that ever other card there actually got produced in a Mac EFI version. It is possible that in early testing they ruled out 480 due to power draw. We have one for MP that we get to work by modding power needs and circuit so that it fits in Mac Pro power/heat envelope. A little slower than stock ones, but I sleep better knowing that they won't be burning up.

Maybe Apple couldn't find a compromise, or maybe they were just mad at Nvidia. But I am fairly certain that at one time this card was planned or in the pipeline.

We definitely need options for both. I'd be pleased with 1 AMD and 1 Nvidia solution each cycle. No room for childish bickering between companies. Just thinking about the silverlight performance of Netflix in HD. My Mac Pro in OS X runs at 120% or so on distributed cores. In Win 7 (same Mac Pro) it uses 0-3%. It is a power waste to watch Netflix in OS X because of ridiculous in-fighting. So utterly pissed off Apple will not HW accelerate their cards.

 

[chrono1081]

Mac side. This thread discusses this. The drivers require that you are running 10.7.3, however. Otherwise, you're still stuck with either flashing or the ATY_Init method.

Thanks!

Mainly I want an NVidia card because Maya has an issue with ATI cards that are non-certified and it crashes when using the UV texture editor. I don't need the capabilities of a Quaddro card but I do need a card so I can use the UV Texture editor without it crashing all the time.

 

[FluJunkie]

Can you tell me the settings? Because I don't wanna compromise Ultra (or full, the highest setting). So I want to have the maximum performance on the graphic card with minimized down tweak to the setting.

Sure thing. I'm getting about ~30-40 FPS right now, sitting at the entry to a battleground. My settings are as follows:

64-bit Client
Display mode: Windowed
Resolution: 1024x576
Multisampling: 1x
Vertical Sync: Enabled
Graphics: Ultra
Textures: Resolution (High), Filtering (16x Anisotropic)
Environment: Distance, Detail, Clutter (Ultra)
Effects: Sunshafts (High), everything else is Ultra

The FPS is a little on the low side, but keep in mind I'm not running this to be good for FPS at the moment - I've got two monitors with stuff on them, programs in the background, windowed mode, etc.

 

[gpzjock]

Sure thing. I'm getting about ~30-40 FPS right now, sitting at the entry to a battleground. My settings are as follows:

64-bit Client
Display mode: Windowed
Resolution: 1024x576
Multisampling: 1x
Vertical Sync: Enabled
Graphics: Ultra
Textures: Resolution (High), Filtering (16x Anisotropic)
Environment: Distance, Detail, Clutter (Ultra)
Effects: Sunshafts (High), everything else is Ultra

The FPS is a little on the low side, but keep in mind I'm not running this to be good for FPS at the moment - I've got two monitors with stuff on them, programs in the background, windowed mode, etc.

You have a very strange set up there, I would turn off the vsync and reduce the filtering to 4x. Sunshafts make it harder to see properly and ground clutter is needless in battles. I prefer more pixels (native resolution looks best) and less glare/foliage in the way. Vsync is fine for keeping your card unstressed but when it needs to rev up it reacts slower. I use the 64bit client too, it is smoother.

 

[FluJunkie]

You have a very strange set up there, I would turn off the vsync and reduce the filtering to 4x. Sunshafts make it harder to see properly and ground clutter is needless in battles. I prefer more pixels (native resolution looks best) and less glare/foliage in the way. Vsync is fine for keeping your card unstressed but when it needs to rev up it reacts slower. I use the 64bit client too, it is smoother.

Eh, I've essentially retired from anything resembling serious play, so I enjoy watching the scenery. Most of the setup is based around either the defaults Blizzard picked, or what enables me to gather ore or randomly queue for battlegrounds while I code.