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maclove4life

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 17, 2014
206
1
I don't know where to get some 12 gb...what's good company...i thought crucial or owc...but i dunno. any suggestion..i'm buying this for os x yosemite...due to memory hog. i have 8 gb ram now.
 

The-Pro

macrumors 65816
Dec 2, 2010
1,453
40
Germany
I don't know where to get some 12 gb...what's good company...i thought crucial or owc...but i dunno. any suggestion..i'm buying this for os x yosemite...due to memory hog. i have 8 gb ram now.

I personally have always used Samsung RAM but have used Kingston in several other 2009 Mac Pros from work.
As far as I know Mac Pros shipped with Hynix memory so thats a good choice too.
You will need DDR3 240pin 1066MHz RAM with ECC. If u want 12 GB then get 3x4GB sticks. That gives u the option to add another 4GB stick in the 4th slot when 12GB becomes too little or just add one of your 2GB sticks in the 4th slot for 14GB.
 

maclove4life

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 17, 2014
206
1
I personally have always used Samsung RAM but have used Kingston in several other 2009 Mac Pros from work.
As far as I know Mac Pros shipped with Hynix memory so thats a good choice too.
You will need DDR3 240pin 1066MHz RAM with ECC. If u want 12 GB then get 3x4GB sticks. That gives u the option to add another 4GB stick in the 4th slot when 12GB becomes too little or just add one of your 2GB sticks in the 4th slot for 14GB.

Ah ok. 4x3 it but where could I get some?
 

maclove4life

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 17, 2014
206
1
Very good.

I had a PowerMac G5 Quad and an iMac G5 1.8GHz (both PPC Macs). I was able to get the RAM I needed for both of those machines from OWC and they were great. Plus, it's a shop that's tailored for Mac products AND they are also a sponsor of http://www.everymac.com.

thank you so much. I'm surprised they still have 2009 memories...
 

RedCroissant

Suspended
Aug 13, 2011
2,268
96
thank you so much. I'm surprised they still have 2009 memories...

Well they memory modules from way before 2009. My PowerMac G5 was from 2005. The iMac I had was from 2004.

AND, they still have memory modules available for G3 machines including iBooks and iMacs. It's a great resource.
 

maclove4life

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 17, 2014
206
1
I always buy in Amazon
if you type DDR3 1066 mac pro ECC into the search field you will find them
lots of them are even labeled for 2009
Nehalem Mac Pro

yeah i checked it out..apparently it's no more 12 gb ram....unfortunate...amazon would be my go to...
 

RedCroissant

Suspended
Aug 13, 2011
2,268
96
yeah i checked it out..apparently it's no more 12 gb ram....unfortunate...amazon would be my go to...

12GB is plenty when you have the CPU computing power that you do. Plenty. But then again, you should check that to make sure 12GB is the most bc I'm pretty sure that Apple changed the amount of Max Ram for that machine a couple of times and it might even be higher than that.

According to Everymac.com that machine can support 48GB. So...maybe you should check your machine specs and some other forums to make sure before you settle on 12 when you could have had more than that.

My 2009 iMac 2.66C2D maxed out at 8GB. and the PMG5 Quad that I had maxed out at 16.
 

The-Pro

macrumors 65816
Dec 2, 2010
1,453
40
Germany
yeah i checked it out..apparently it's no more 12 gb ram....unfortunate...amazon would be my go to...

You stated in your original post that you wanted 12 GB :D
You can buy 12 and then add one of the sticks you allready have, I presume you have 4x2GB sticks currently. then you have 14GB.
I have also found single 4GB sticks on amazon labeled for mac pro 2009.
A more beneficial way might be to buy 2x 8GB sticks giving you a cheap way to expand further if needed. You dont have to buy RAM labeled to be for the Mac Pro, any 1066MHz DDR3 240 pin ECC RAM sticks will work

48GB is the max RAM for your machine yes but I believe this involves having to update your firmware so that it looks to be a 2010 version for 48GB to work.
Without this 32GB is the max. If my memory serves me right thats how it goes.
 

thats all folks

macrumors 6502a
Dec 20, 2013
675
750
Austin (supposedly in Texas)
OWC is usually overpriced.

another vendor I use often,
https://www.transintl.com/mac-pro.html

the 2009/2010 Mac Pros have triple channel memory controllers. The optimum configuration is 3 or 6 matched sticks. That there are 4 slots in these Mac Pros is an Apple thing but using that 4th slot will cause the RAM to run slower. Not a problem in all situations but one to keep in mind.

So that computer is best served by 12 (3X4) or 24 (3X8) GB. Also, while that CPU uses 1066MHz RAM, you should just go for the 1333MHz. They are often the same price. The RAM will run at 1066 for now but should you ever do a CPU upgrade on that machine, you will already have the right RAM. Plus, the faster RAM will be worth more should you ever sell off that system.
 

maclove4life

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 17, 2014
206
1
You stated in your original post that you wanted 12 GB :D
You can buy 12 and then add one of the sticks you allready have, I presume you have 4x2GB sticks currently. then you have 14GB.
I have also found single 4GB sticks on amazon labeled for mac pro 2009.
A more beneficial way might be to buy 2x 8GB sticks giving you a cheap way to expand further if needed. You dont have to buy RAM labeled to be for the Mac Pro, any 1066MHz DDR3 240 pin ECC RAM sticks will work

48GB is the max RAM for your machine yes but I believe this involves having to update your firmware so that it looks to be a 2010 version for 48GB to work.
Without this 32GB is the max. If my memory serves me right thats how it goes.

I currently have 4x2 axiom memory...so i doubt it would work if i purchased 12...because from my understanding it has to be paired or something.

----------

OWC is usually overpriced.

another vendor I use often,
https://www.transintl.com/mac-pro.html

the 2009/2010 Mac Pros have triple channel memory controllers. The optimum configuration is 3 or 6 matched sticks. That there are 4 slots in these Mac Pros is an Apple thing but using that 4th slot will cause the RAM to run slower. Not a problem in all situations but one to keep in mind.

So that computer is best served by 12 (3X4) or 24 (3X8) GB. Also, while that CPU uses 1066MHz RAM, you should just go for the 1333MHz. They are often the same price. The RAM will run at 1066 for now but should you ever do a CPU upgrade on that machine, you will already have the right RAM. Plus, the faster RAM will be worth more should you ever sell off that system.
how is that possible? 1333 mhz is only for 2010 model, yes? or at least that's what i thought.
 

The-Pro

macrumors 65816
Dec 2, 2010
1,453
40
Germany
I currently have 4x2 axiom memory...so i doubt it would work if i purchased 12...because from my understanding it has to be paired or something.

----------


how is that possible? 1333 mhz is only for 2010 model, yes? or at least that's what i thought.

Your mac pro has a triple channel memory controller which means that for optimum performance it is best to have 3x the same size RAM stick from the same manufacturer.
If you use 4 RAM sticks you will loose RAM performance however it is nearly impossible to notice as the performance hit is something like 2-3%.
You can mix RAM sticks however you want really, it will work but you also loose like 3% or so of their performance doing it. In most cases the benefit of having more ram greatly outways the tiny performance hit. I guarantee you will never notice the tiny loss in speed.

RAM can adjust its frequency. So if you put 1333Mhz RAM into a computer whose controller only supports up to 1066Mhz then it will downclock and run at 1066.


You can upgrade your 2009 Mac Pro to a 2010 Mac Pro through a simple firmware flash. This would show your mac pro as a 5.1 instead of 4.1. Sou can then exchange the cpu for one that was in a 2010 like the 6core for example. These cpu's also support 1333Mhz RAM.
Thats why the other poster said if you are planning on uograding the cpu at one point you might aswell buy faster RAM now.
 

RobinHood5

macrumors regular
Apr 23, 2012
157
0
I used to reccomend OWC ram but in the last year I've gone had it replaced twice. I'm now on my 3rd set and its going bad. They replace it for free but its usually a week or so. Once it was lost in the mail for 2 months.
 

maclove4life

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 17, 2014
206
1
Your mac pro has a triple channel memory controller which means that for optimum performance it is best to have 3x the same size RAM stick from the same manufacturer.
If you use 4 RAM sticks you will loose RAM performance however it is nearly impossible to notice as the performance hit is something like 2-3%.
You can mix RAM sticks however you want really, it will work but you also loose like 3% or so of their performance doing it. In most cases the benefit of having more ram greatly outways the tiny performance hit. I guarantee you will never notice the tiny loss in speed.

RAM can adjust its frequency. So if you put 1333Mhz RAM into a computer whose controller only supports up to 1066Mhz then it will downclock and run at 1066.


You can upgrade your 2009 Mac Pro to a 2010 Mac Pro through a simple firmware flash. This would show your mac pro as a 5.1 instead of 4.1. Sou can then exchange the cpu for one that was in a 2010 like the 6core for example. These cpu's also support 1333Mhz RAM.
Thats why the other poster said if you are planning on uograding the cpu at one point you might aswell buy faster RAM now.

okay..i understood...therefore might as well buy 2010 1333 mhz ram for 2009 even though it's 2009...and you're talking about saving money and investing on ram that i could use for 5.1 All it does is go down to 1066 until i upgrade it. therefore..compatibility of ram of 1333hz is NOT an issue with 4.1, correct?

----------

I used to reccomend OWC ram but in the last year I've gone had it replaced twice. I'm now on my 3rd set and its going bad. They replace it for free but its usually a week or so. Once it was lost in the mail for 2 months.

this is really scaring me. How did you resolve with mail lost?
 

The-Pro

macrumors 65816
Dec 2, 2010
1,453
40
Germany
okay..i understood...therefore might as well buy 2010 1333 mhz ram for 2009 even though it's 2009...and you're talking about saving money and investing on ram that i could use for 5.1 All it does is go down to 1066 until i upgrade it. therefore..compatibility of ram of 1333hz is NOT an issue with 4.1, correct?

Exactly. If you want more cpu performance pop in a 5.1 cpu and you will allready have the fastest ram to go with it.
it is NOT an issue to use 1333MHz in your 4.1.
 

maclove4life

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 17, 2014
206
1
Exactly. If you want more cpu performance pop in a 5.1 cpu and you will allready have the fastest ram to go with it.
it is NOT an issue to use 1333MHz in your 4.1.

it's strange that many websites that sell memory doesn't "officially" state 2009 compatibility with 2010 memory.
 

The-Pro

macrumors 65816
Dec 2, 2010
1,453
40
Germany
it's strange that many websites that sell memory doesn't "officially" state 2009 compatibility with 2010 memory.

yes thats true because officially thats not the case
but I can assure you it works. I am using a mixture of 1066 and 1333 sticks in my 2009 8-core. If you mix ram speeds then all sticks will run at the speed of the slowest stick.

you dont have to get 1333 even if you are planning on upgrading cpu. the difference in performance isnt noticable for 99% of the tasks.
 

maclove4life

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 17, 2014
206
1
yes thats true because officially thats not the case
but I can assure you it works. I am using a mixture of 1066 and 1333 sticks in my 2009 8-core. If you mix ram speeds then all sticks will run at the speed of the slowest stick.

you dont have to get 1333 even if you are planning on upgrading cpu. the difference in performance isnt noticable for 99% of the tasks.

I do trust you and some fellow Mac pro users so I'm all for that. Is the measurement of memory same I don't know why I'm even asking this...
 

Macsonic

macrumors 68000
Sep 6, 2009
1,706
97
it's strange that many websites that sell memory doesn't "officially" state 2009 compatibility with 2010 memory.

2010 Mac Pro memory can work at 2009 Mac Pros as I am using 1333mhz on my 2009 Mac Pro. The machine will downgrade the ram speed to 1066mhz. Note that the 1333mhz speed only works on 6 core processors. Quad Core processors will only have 1066mhz.
 
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