Xeon X5680s Now $45... October 2018

[HCMarkus]

Based on monitoring MAcRUmors and other sites, I'd bet the number of 3.46 gHz x5690 souped up 4,1 and 5,1 Mac Pros numbers in the thousands. TooDamnHip's is the ONLY report I've seen of issues as he describes.

I've seen reports of crushed CPU sockets (4,1 dual exclusively.)

I've seen reports of bad CPUs.

But NEVER a claim of "motherboard under-voltage" issues.
Take a look here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_I ... processors
ALL Westmere EP Xeon CPUs (2-4-6 core) operate at from .75 to 1.35 volts at their core.

I'm not an electrical engineer. Someone explain this for us all.

[monkey man]

Sounds definitive to me, Sir Markus.

[Ferret]

Bumping this to give it some thought.
I have an 09 dual, but the jump from 8 core 2.66 to 12 core 3.33 would be about double speed. The main problem seems to be the lids on the CPUs, there's a de-lidding service for $200 that I guess makes it easy, then the price goes up...

I think I'll watch eBay for these for a while and bite when they become rare. Because of the possible damage to the machine, it makes the most sense to wait a while on this.

I have an 09 dual, with 8 core 2.66. I upgraded to 12 core 3.47 with the lids on. System works great without issues. Torquing the heat sinks is the trick. All screws just snug for heat sinks.

[toodamnhip]

Bumping this to give it some thought.
I have an 09 dual, but the jump from 8 core 2.66 to 12 core 3.33 would be about double speed. The main problem seems to be the lids on the CPUs, there's a de-lidding service for $200 that I guess makes it easy, then the price goes up...

I think I'll watch eBay for these for a while and bite when they become rare. Because of the possible damage to the machine, it makes the most sense to wait a while on this.

I have an 09 dual, with 8 core 2.66. I upgraded to 12 core 3.47 with the lids on. System works great without issues. Torquing the heat sinks is the trick. All screws just snug for heat sinks.

I would love to hear your explanation of torque, i've been fascinated by the subject. I've tried various techniques. I had a glitch by the way with my company and I haven't gotten a new chip yet . The funny thing is, my computer is starting every time regularly now . But I am wondering if some strange bugs I'm having are because of the chip. For example, I can't do a Crossfade on an audio file that has been recorded unless I I record again on the track after the pass prior, very strange at another small strange bugs tribute to the stupid situation .

[monkey man]

91ºC today during a video-file conversion. CPU was at around 60% for a few minutes.

Should I panic yet?

[HCMarkus]

Based on a little Googling, temp seems high MM. But I could't find anything definitive, and noted several folks saying 100c or higher is max (but that depends on where the temp is being measured!). The one thing I have noted repeated is the CPUs send a signal to the Mac to shut down if max temps are reached.

Questions:

1. How and what are you measuring at 91c?

2. How dust-free are your Mac's innards? Have you ever cleaned?

2. Have you noticed fan speed increasing as temps rise to the level described? Are you running any fan speed controls? Have you tried bumping up speeds?

Based on your description of how you pasted the CPUs, I would seriously consider pulling the CPU tray (I know, it means a lot of work given your setup) and cleaning and reinstalling using proper techniques as discussed previously. It might not make a difference, but you won't know until you actually do it.

And while you are at it, take the Mac outside and blow all the dust out of it.

[monkey man]

Thank you for responding, Sir Markus. It was a rhetorical question intended to be somewhat humorous, referencing this post a few pages back (if you read between the lines):

A-ha! So the answer is to live in fear.

Fantastic news! This describes my life to a T.

Thank you for the timely reminder, Jim... seriously.

Anyway, I'm grateful nevertheless for the response, HC. So kind of you.

As to your questions:

CPU A

Good to know about the auto-shutdown thing, HC.

Never cleaned. Little dust - just a smattering.

I think fan speed increased a little, but not much. No speed controls; I'm wary of these sorts of things 'cause I'm a luddite and am reluctant to futz with things I know little about.

Yeah, I've decided to redo the CPUs when I pull the unit out for the AVB upgrade in a few months' time. The only thing I'm stuck on is just how big the Arctic Silver "blob" should be. It's pretty obvious I smeared way too much on last time with the cardboard piece, no doubt creating pockets of air. I seem to recall reading a description of the amount to use, but I couldn't relate to it. A pinhead, a standard matchstick head, a sphere measuring 2 or 3mm in width... I think I need a foolproof real-world reference in order to be able to get it right.

Once I'm clear on this and the new gear arrives, I'll be right on it. Thank you ever so much, as always, HC.

EDIT: Oh, I'm using Temperature Monitor

[HCMarkus]

Sorry if I missed the humor MM… I worry about my friends, and simply want you to have a "No Worries" computer!

With this in mind...

http://www.arcticsilver.com/pdf/appmeth ... e_v1.1.pdf

The Xeon 5600 series calls for the "vertical line" approach described in the Arctic Silver instructions. The above link was previously posted by Mr. Halloran, but since this is a "sprawling thread", I thought it wise to repost.

I don't think it is extremely critical exactly how much thermal paste is applied, but a clinical approach is called for to avoid introduction of particles that could prevent a tight mating of the CPU and heatsink surfaces.

[monkey man]

Oh, please don't feel bad HC; the reference only seemed obvious to me because my visitations to this esteemed home of the Unicorn have been more crudely quantised than those of most here, I reckon. I dip into a thread, and often a page or few have been added since I last got my mitts wet, so the continuity, from my perspective, follows a compressed timeline. Hence, what I said 10 days ago seems like yesterday, and what I'll say next week shall doubtlessly not make sense. That's my excuse, anyway!

Gee, I originally read up on the vertical-line method (from the manuals you referred to) 'cause I thought someone determined that it was the one for me, but then for some reason I was under the impression that someone else had corrected this and directed me towards the dot method.

Thank you for clearing this up, HC. Somehow I feel more confident making a line than a dot; it feels like there'd be more margin for error.

... I worry about my friends...

If I had friends, I'd worry about them too.

... and simply want you to have a "No Worries" computer!

A man after my own heart. That's the way, Sir Markus.

Thank you!

[HCMarkus]

...my visitations to this esteemed home of the Unicorn have been more crudely quantised than those of most here...

You are truly a poet MM.

[monkey man]

Yatapmm, HC.

That's your response, quantised using a MonkeyLabs Transient Preservation™ algorithm.

Yeah, I'm a real poopit.

[bdr]

A big thanks to everyone for the info in this thread...really helped me figure out options in terms of replacing my dying 2008 Mac Pro. Ended up with a 5,1 12-core, totally thrilled (except I'm doing a clean install )

[monkey man]

Awesome, Brett.

Woohoo!

[danworks]

Hi there,

at the beginning of the year, thanks to this thread, I've successfully upgraded the CPU on my MacPro5,1 and I've to say I'm very happy with it. Now I probably have a chance to get another second hand MacPro 5,1 6 core 3,33Ghz and I was thinking to upgrade that too.

My question to the gurus is: is it possible to install 2 Intel Xeon on the above MacPro 5,1 6 core machine? Thank you

ciao

[HCMarkus]

Hi there,

at the beginning of the year, thanks to this thread, I've successfully upgraded the CPU on my MacPro5,1 and I've to say I'm very happy with it. Now I probably have a chance to get another second hand MacPro 5,1 6 core 3,33Ghz and I was thinking to upgrade that too.

My question to the gurus is: is it possible to install 2 Intel Xeon on the above MacPro 5,1 6 core machine? Thank you

ciao

Unfortunately, you would need to get your hands on a dual processor tray and two heatsinks, an a and a b, to convert a single CPU Mac to dual CPU. These parts are not cheap.

If you want a hot single CPU Mac Pro, the best deal now is to buy a 2009 quad ($500 at MacOfAllTrades.com), flash the firmware to 5,1, and install an X5680 or 90 or W3680 or 90.