MP 1,1-5,1 Adding PCIe firewire 800

[jack070767]

I need advice for adding firewire 800 PCIe fully working on my cMP mid 2010 5.1, because I need more firewire ports.
I looked on Amazon but without having found anything fully working.
Thanks...

 

[joevt]

I bought this FireWire card in 2016 which works for macOS:

VANTEC 2+1 FireWire 800/400 PCIe Combo Host Card Model UGT-FW210 - Newegg.com

Buy VANTEC 2+1 FireWire 800/400 PCIe Combo Host Card Model UGT-FW210 with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Once you know, you Newegg!

www.newegg.ca

 

[skizzo]

I know these comments are "snarky" but you must not be looking that hard, or at all. It's not like these are in such high demand that they are hard to find. There are many cards like this on Amazon....I can vouch this one works well and is in stock.

Syba Low Profile PCI-Express Firewire Card with Two 1394b Ports and One 1394a Port (2B1A), TI Chipset, Extra Regular Bracket SD-PEX30009

Low Profile PCIe 1394b/1394a (2B1A) Card, TI Chipset, Extra Regular Bracket. 1-Lane (x1) PCI-Express with transfer rate 2.5Gbps Full Duplex channel .

www.amazon.com

 

[basslik]

skizzo I need your help please. I have a 2008 mac pro and I need a firewire card since my firebus is not working. bought two already and they were the wrong size fit, and get this. I bought both from Mac resellers and both told me they would work but they didn't fit. Anyhow greatly appreciate your help please on finding one that will fit. THANKS

 

[joevt]

skizzo I need your help please. I have a 2008 mac pro and I need a firewire card since my firebus is not working. bought two already and they were the wrong size fit, and get this. I bought both from Mac resellers and both told me they would work but they didn't fit. Anyhow greatly appreciate your help please on finding one that will fit. THANKS
View attachment 975654

That's a PCI card (can you show an image of the entire thing?). you need PCIe (PCI Express) card.

 

[basslik]

Thanks for chiming in joevt.

I since then sent the card to seller. Can you recommend a firecard for the 2008 Mac pro. Thank you.

 

[joevt]

Thanks for chiming in joevt.

I since then sent the card to seller. Can you recommend a firecard for the 2008 Mac pro. Thank you.

I posted the card I bought in #2. I can't recommend anything else since I have not tried anything else.

 

[basslik]

Thanks for chiming in, the original poster says he has a 2010 Mac Pro. I have a 2008.

 

[DeltaMac]

Both your 2008, and the 2010 MacPro take PCI-e cards. As pointed out, the picture you posted was of a PCI card, which can't work in any MacPro. The last Macs that could use PCI cards were PowerMac G5, Early 2005 and older.
Post 2 and 3 links for PCI-e Firewire cards should be OK. Not so much demand for those these days, so stock might be limited - but you should be able to find what you need.

 

[joevt]

Thanks for chiming in, the original poster says he has a 2010 Mac Pro. I have a 2008.

I think any PCIe FireWire card should work. If the card has a power connector like the one I got then you'll want to plan a method to get power to the card using power splitters from the four pin molex connectors in the DVD drive bays or SATA power from the 22 pin connectors of the four hard drive bays. There exists splitters that will let you continue to use DVD or SATA device from the bays.

SATA 22 Pin Male to SATA 7 Pin and 2 X 15 Pin SATA Female Connectors - 6 Inch

This is a splitter cable allowing the cable to split off power from an existing SATA 22 Pin Power and DATA connection. Perfect for adding an addition SSD drive with limited power sources.

www.microsatacables.com

Phobya 4-Pin Molex Extension - 90cm | Black (87489) - Newegg.com

Buy Phobya 4-Pin Molex Extension - 90cm | Black (87489) with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Once you know, you Newegg!

www.newegg.ca

Phobya 4-Pin Molex to 2x Molex Splitter Cable - 20cm | Black (81117) - Newegg.com

Buy Phobya 4-Pin Molex to 2x Molex Splitter Cable - 20cm | Black (81117) with fast shipping and top-rated customer service. Once you know, you Newegg!

www.newegg.ca

You can convert between SATA and molex power with adapter - but note that SATA has a 3.3V line that molex does not use or provide (most devices don't require 3.3V). I would choose SATA power as the source for any device with a SATA power connector just in case it uses 3.3V though.

 

[basslik]

Thank you very much folks. So these cards need a separate power source ?.
Here's my problem is that I believe my Firewire bus gone bad and I need a firewire card so I can run my Digidesign 003 interface, and preferably without needing a power source due to I need all the slots for drives.

 

[tsialex]

Thank you very much folks. So these cards need a separate power source ?.
Here's my problem is that I believe my Firewire bus gone bad and I need a firewire card so I can run my Digidesign 003 interface, and preferably without needing a power source due to I need all the slots for drives.

Why not replace the logic board?

It's a MP3,1, no? I have a search on eBay for MP3,1 logic boards,
(820-2128-a, 661-449, 661-4676), and from time to time I get an email showing boards for around $75~80 + shipping, like this one:

Apple Mac Pro A1186 2008 OEM Logic Board Motherboard 820-2128-a 661-4449 No CPU for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Apple Mac Pro A1186 2008 OEM Logic Board Motherboard 820-2128-a 661-4449 No CPU at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Seems in excellent condition, plus two X5472 3.0GHz Xeons.

 

[joevt]

Thank you very much folks. So these cards need a separate power source ?.
Here's my problem is that I believe my Firewire bus gone bad and I need a firewire card so I can run my Digidesign 003 interface, and preferably without needing a power source due to I need all the slots for drives.

I said using power splitter will let you continue to use the drives - you just need to mount the drives a little differently (except the DVD drives can stay where they are - there's room enough there to split the molex power).

See here: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/usb-c-cards-for-mac-pro-5-1-4-1.2093601/post-27893524