5870 crossfire success stories? (for windows side)

[Weepul]

A crossover bridge may not be necessary. User studiox reports that he has 2x Apple 5770s running in crossover through the bus.

 

[neckarb]

A crossover bridge may not be necessary. User studiox reports that he has 2x Apple 5770s running in crossover through the bus.

That's interesting, that certainly wasn't the case with my 2006 Mac Pro, but that could be a combination of the earlier model, and the fact that the bandwidth of 5870/5970 would be significantly higher.

 

[crw]

I just received my optical drive bay modular PSU (the $20 one that NewEgg is selling). I have a 2010 Mac Pro and, unfortunately, Apple engineered the system so precisely there is not enough room to route the cables for the PSU from the optical bay to the expansion card bay. I only see 3 options to get this to work in a 2010 Mac Pro:

1. Purchase thinner cables for the OD PSU as the ones provided are too thick to fit into the small space where the existing SATA cables are routed out of the optical bay. Even with very thin cables I think you would have to do a major disassembly of the case because the cable-ends (i.e. the 6-pin plugs) are too big to squeeze through the small opening. I spent a couple of hours trying to disassemble the media bay spacer (the one between the optical bay/PSU zone and the expansion bay) with little success. This thing is built like a tank and it would be a significant undertaking to pull this case apart.
2. Drill a hole to make more space. This is probably a non-starter as it would require precise drilling and could permanently damage your case if done incorrectly. It would also be a major time investment as you would need to disassemble most of the case to get access to a good area to drill.
3. Keep the PSU external and route the power cables through the back of the case. I really don't like this as it would be UGLY. You'd probably also want to use a regular PSU for this because, with the optical bay PSU, you have to plug in a 4-pin Molex connector (using an adapter to an existing SATA power connector) to enable it to switch on so you would need to do a long cable run to the optical drive bay.

 

[ildondeigiocchi]

I just received my optical drive bay modular PSU (the $20 one that NewEgg is selling). I have a 2010 Mac Pro and, unfortunately, Apple engineered the system so precisely there is not enough room to route the cables for the PSU from the optical bay to the expansion card bay. I only see 3 options to get this to work in a 2010 Mac Pro:

1. Purchase thinner cables for the OD PSU as the ones provided are too thick to fit into the small space where the existing SATA cables are routed out of the optical bay. Even with very thin cables I think you would have to do a major disassembly of the case because the cable-ends (i.e. the 6-pin plugs) are too big to squeeze through the small opening. I spent a couple of hours trying to disassemble the media bay spacer (the one between the optical bay/PSU zone and the expansion bay) with little success. This thing is built like a tank and it would be a significant undertaking to pull this case apart.
2. Drill a hole to make more space. This is probably a non-starter as it would require precise drilling and could permanently damage your case if done incorrectly. It would also be a major time investment as you would need to disassemble most of the case to get access to a good area to drill.
3. Keep the PSU external and route the power cables through the back of the case. I really don't like this as it would be UGLY. You'd probably also want to use a regular PSU for this because, with the optical bay PSU, you have to plug in a 4-pin Molex connector (using an adapter to an existing SATA power connector) to enable it to switch on so you would need to do a long cable run to the optical drive bay.

I'm in the same boat as you. After reading your post I decided to open up my system and begin analyzing it. It seems the space to route the cables from the card to the ODD is much smaller than 09 systems. I tried fitting the PCIe power cables but the only part that did fit was the mini PCIe power side and that would require another adapter.

I'm deciding to go with a quasi-total case disassembly. I think I can make this happen if someone provides me a link with how to remove the Mac Pro's power supply. This is the only way possible. The media separator simply will not budge. This is our last hope. Otherwise crossfire will RIP

 

[neckarb]

I'm in the same boat as you. After reading your post I decided to open up my system and begin analyzing it. It seems the space to route the cables from the card to the ODD is much smaller than 09 systems. I tried fitting the PCIe power cables but the only part that did fit was the mini PCIe power side and that would require another adapter.

I'm deciding to go with a quasi-total case disassembly. I think I can make this happen if someone provides me a link with how to remove the Mac Pro's power supply. This is the only way possible. The media separator simply will not budge. This is our last hope. Otherwise crossfire will RIP

Do what I did, I removed the inner frame on the door to the case, cut a small section out of it, where the cables come out from the ODD drive bay, then routed the cables down outside the HDD sleds, this way no permenant damage to the case other than a very small, not noticeable cut in the inside of the door frame. the door closes, easy to do, no problem

Should probably mention that I did buy smaller cables for this in the end as the door closes a lot easier

 

[ActionableMango]

Do what I did, I removed the inner frame on the door to the case, cut a small section out of it, where the cables come out from the ODD drive bay, then routed the cables down outside the HDD sleds, this way no permenant damage to the case other than a very small, not noticeable cut in the inside of the door frame. the door closes, easy to do, no problem

Should probably mention that I did buy smaller cables for this in the end as the door closes a lot easier

Pictures please!

 

[neckarb]

Pictures please!

Looks like this:

 

[ActionableMango]

That's a great solution. Thinking outside the box, so to speak. Thanks!

 

[neckarb]

That's a great solution. Thinking outside the box, so to speak. Thanks!

Thanks well said.

 

[lazy4u]

I just received my optical drive bay modular PSU (the $20 one that NewEgg is selling). I have a 2010 Mac Pro and, unfortunately, Apple engineered the system so precisely there is not enough room to route the cables for the PSU from the optical bay to the expansion card bay. I only see 3 options to get this to work in a 2010 Mac Pro:

1. Purchase thinner cables for the OD PSU as the ones provided are too thick to fit into the small space where the existing SATA cables are routed out of the optical bay. Even with very thin cables I think you would have to do a major disassembly of the case because the cable-ends (i.e. the 6-pin plugs) are too big to squeeze through the small opening. I spent a couple of hours trying to disassemble the media bay spacer (the one between the optical bay/PSU zone and the expansion bay) with little success. This thing is built like a tank and it would be a significant undertaking to pull this case apart.
2. Drill a hole to make more space. This is probably a non-starter as it would require precise drilling and could permanently damage your case if done incorrectly. It would also be a major time investment as you would need to disassemble most of the case to get access to a good area to drill.
3. Keep the PSU external and route the power cables through the back of the case. I really don't like this as it would be UGLY. You'd probably also want to use a regular PSU for this because, with the optical bay PSU, you have to plug in a 4-pin Molex connector (using an adapter to an existing SATA power connector) to enable it to switch on so you would need to do a long cable run to the optical drive bay.

have u try'd neckarb's solution?

 

[crw]

have u try'd neckarb's solution?

I don't want to cut my case. I am going to try custom-building some thin cables that I can route through the existing case openings.