Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by greg328 »

Well, I can see the writing on the wall. My 3.1 is about to be relegated to the dustbin! :-(
Can anybody school me on the new 6.1 trash can Mac Pros?


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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by mikehalloran »

That makes sense but it is an early beta. Making firm statements other than Apple's ignores the history of the Mac.
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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by HCMarkus »

http://forums.macrumors.com/threads/mac ... ra.1978005

Other upgrades required to fully support Sierra's new features include WiFi and Bluetooth 4. There are cards available for under $40 at Ebay. People with 4,1s (flashed to 5,1) and 5,1s are getting full sierra compatibility with this or equivalents:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Broadcom-BCM943 ... rmvSB=true

Could well work on 3,1 with sierra. That said, you can get a lot more CPU horsepower with a 5,1 or flashed 4,1. But at least you can move forward with a 3,1 if you wish.
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Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by greg328 »

Ok so I've pretty much resigned myself to picking up a more recent Mac. Probably will go preowned. My decision is between a 5.1 tower or a 6.1 trashcan. The 2013 trashcans are almost affordable now. I'm using a PCI-424 with MOTU HD192 and 1296 interfaces. Pretty old by now. They still work fine though and I love having lots of outputs (I only use 4 inputs though).
So my questions for the knowledgeable around here are:
1). How much more horsepower do the 2013 6-core trashcans have than say a 12-core 5.1? Are they similar? If so I would lean towards 5.1 because of the PCIe slots.
2) if the 6.1 is worth the extra jump in $$ because of increased performance, I could go that direction but then I would have to make a decision: either get a Thunderbolt PCIe expansion chassis-another $350!, or sell my MOTU interfaces and card and go Thunderbolt UAD Apollo 8 interface-I love the idea of offloading some FX processing to the Apollo. My main reason for upgrading, other than to stay current with upcoming OSs, is to get more power for my many virtual instruments. And before you suggest it. I really don't want the hassle of running VE Pro, I love the convenience of everything under one roof!

So, please advise, I'm all ears! Remember, I'm currently using a 3.1 8-core so probably either machine will certainly be a step up but I want to make the best decision, especially to future-proof myself for awhile!
Best,
Greg


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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by James Steele »

HCMarkus wrote:Other upgrades required to fully support Sierra's new features include WiFi and Bluetooth 4. There are cards available for under $40 at Ebay. People with 4,1s (flashed to 5,1) and 5,1s are getting full sierra compatibility with this or equivalents:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Broadcom-BCM943 ... rmvSB=true
Interesting. I have 4,1 flashed to 5,1 with a hex processor in it. I noticed in the first photo of the card it looks like it has a little cable attached to take power off the motherboard somewhere? I have a graphics card already that gets additional power. I wonder if I'm tapped out already?
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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by HCMarkus »

greg328 wrote: 1). How much more horsepower do the 2013 6-core trashcans have than say a 12-core 5.1? Are they similar? If so I would lean towards 5.1 because of the PCIe slots.
Take another look at the Geekbench multi-core 64 bit scores I linked to earlier for a pretty good indication... the 5,1 12-core smokes the hex trashcan. A 5,1 with X5680s or 90s will score even higher. Of course, spend some of the money you save on some SATA or PCIe SSDs to make the 5,1 FEEL speedy.
James Steele wrote: Interesting. I have 4,1 flashed to 5,1 with a hex processor in it. I noticed in the first photo of the card it looks like it has a little cable attached to take power off the motherboard somewhere? I have a graphics card already that gets additional power. I wonder if I'm tapped out already?

I don't have the need James, so I have not researched, but I think the cable is for bluetooth... You might ask these guys, who offer a kit for $110:

http://www.osxwifi.com/review/product/l ... ategory/3/
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Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by greg328 »

So a 5.1 12 core outperforms the 6.1 6-core, I'll re-read your link. But now that I'm considering a new UA Apollo, I'd need a Thunderbolt connection. Maybe they're available on a PCIe card, never checked but that would seem like a bottleneck situation, if Thunderbolt is faster than PCIe, I have no idea if it is. Need to research the matter I guess... Thanks guys!
Greg


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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by mikehalloran »

There is no card that adds Thunderbolt capability to the Mac Pro tower. It can't be done.

TB capability is a motherboard issue—no Intel TB controller, no functionality. The PCIe to TB adapters on the market are designed to work with specific motherboards that have the correct onboard controller chip. They cannot add TB anything else.
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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by greg328 »

Thanks Mike, I figured as much.

Decisions, decisions!

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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by Maxxy »

Just installed the DN Computers 5680 kit … it was easier than I thought and I’m glad I chose this option… now running 12 core at 3.33!! yay !! ( :

and the RAM i bought a year ago upgraded itself to 1333 !! wonderful!

Geekbench 64 bit has single core speed up from 2331 to 2635…and muti-core from 17734 to 29233…

I did give the area under the heatsinks a good blast of air to get rid of the accumulated dust… I have given the MP an air clean every year or two since I’ve had it but this area looked to have remained untouched … it is running cooler now than I can recall ….at the moment in the 50’s (degrees centigrade) for CPU A and in the 40s for CPU B

All good…thanks to all for the tips
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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by HCMarkus »

Maxxy wrote:Just installed the DN Computers 5680 kit … it was easier than I thought and I’m glad I chose this option… now running 12 core at 3.33!! yay !! ( :

and the RAM i bought a year ago upgraded itself to 1333 !! wonderful!

Geekbench 64 bit has single core speed up from 2331 to 2635…and muti-core from 17734 to 29233…

I did give the area under the heatsinks a good blast of air to get rid of the accumulated dust… I have given the MP an air clean every year or two since I’ve had it but this area looked to have remained untouched … it is running cooler now than I can recall ….at the moment in the 50’s (degrees centigrade) for CPU A and in the 40s for CPU B

All good…thanks to all for the tips
Fantastic!
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Re: Mac pro 5.1 Xeon processor 5680/5690 upgrade for DP9

Post by Maxxy »

Thanks for your insights HC... really helped me...Mike...and others here.... it's just incredible to me that this *old* (by computer standards) machine can still kick it with the top of the line MPs...

Somebody said that the 4.1/5.1 Mac Pro was the greatest incarnation of a desktop machine and I can't argue with that...

This one might outlast me!! ( :
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