I want to get a 9800 GX2 but want to get one from NVIDIA and not from companies like XFX, EVGA, BFG or PNY. I want one made directly from NVIDIA. Where can I get one for my Mac Pro?
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Where to get a NVIDIA VIDEO CARD
- Thread starter ildondeigiocchi
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I think that he means in general; there is and never will be a Mac-compatible 9800 GX2.
I believe that nVidia branded hardware is only available through sellers like Apple. Otherwise you'll need a third-party card. It's hard to call them that, as they're really the only way of obtaining hardware of this nature.
I believe that nVidia branded hardware is only available through sellers like Apple. Otherwise you'll need a third-party card. It's hard to call them that, as they're really the only way of obtaining hardware of this nature.
I don't believe NVIDIA makes first party cards. They just make reference board designs which are then passed on to third-party manufacturers which are produced with hardly any changes (usually just to the stuff printed on the heatsink/fan assemblies).
Actually NVIDIA does make first party cards becuz my mac pro has the 8800 from nvidia and t only says nvidia on it. it isnt from a third party.
That's only a special case with apple.
For PC dedicated cards, nvidia ships a reference board to 3rd party companies, and they make the card. So you have to buy it from one of the companies you listed.
Even if you go to nvidia's site, and you shop for a card, it links you to 3rd party sellers.
OP, you'll have to shut down, take out the 8800 GT, plug in the 9800 GX2, and close the case to boot into Windows. The reverse is true of OS X; you can't just leave them both in.
I have run the BFG GeForce 9800 GX2 in my Mac Pro 3.2GHz Harpertown. It boots Vista 64 nicely and is screamingly fast running 3D games. However, I do have to physically remove it and insert a Mac compatible GPU to boot OS X. If I leave it in, put a Radeon 2600 XT in slot 2, and try to boot OS X, I get a kernel panic. But this isn't just about the power.
Although the 9800 pulls 268 watts under load (according to hardocp), it idles at only 99 watts. That means if you don't have a display connected to it, that's all it should be pulling.
Furthermore, the Radeon 3870 X2 pulls 284 watts under a load -- more than the 9800 GX2 -- yet it happily coexists with the Radeon 2600 XT. I can boot Mac OS X with the 2600. I can boot Vista 64 with either or both. The 3870 X2 isn't quite as fast as the 9800 GX2 but it's fast - much faster than the 8800 GTX or GT.
I tried one other thing. I tried booting a 2007 Mac Pro 8-core with the 9800 GX2 and GeForce 7300 GT installed. Another kernel panic.
Although the 9800 pulls 268 watts under load (according to hardocp), it idles at only 99 watts. That means if you don't have a display connected to it, that's all it should be pulling.
Furthermore, the Radeon 3870 X2 pulls 284 watts under a load -- more than the 9800 GX2 -- yet it happily coexists with the Radeon 2600 XT. I can boot Mac OS X with the 2600. I can boot Vista 64 with either or both. The 3870 X2 isn't quite as fast as the 9800 GX2 but it's fast - much faster than the 8800 GTX or GT.
I tried one other thing. I tried booting a 2007 Mac Pro 8-core with the 9800 GX2 and GeForce 7300 GT installed. Another kernel panic.
Would you please try the GX2/2600 set up with the 2600 XT in slot one and tell us how that works? I thought I read in another thread that OS X boots fine from the 2600 this way.
Also, how do u handle booting with the GX2? Does it display the two partitions when you choose which one to boot off of? Thanks, Paul.