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Can I upgrade the 2008 mac pro processor?

Y

yiyiyaya

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 2, 2010
3
0
Hello all,

I'm new here, got a question about upgrading the core processor of the mac pro. My friend decide to let his computer, he bought the mac pro in mid 2008, it came with a 2XQuad Core Xeon E5462, although they work very well, I'm still wondering can I replace the old core with the new Intel Xeon X5570 2.93 GHz (8 cores)? Can I do it myself or need to send to apple shop?

thank you very much.
 
No you can't. You can upgrade to other 5400 series Xeons, but the 5500 is a different socket and different platform.
 
thank pal, the 2nd one costs around half of the new 2.26G mac pro, it's confusing to buy it or not :confused:
 
yiyiyaya said:
Hello all,

I'm new here, got a question about upgrading the core processor of the mac pro. My friend decide to let his computer, he bought the mac pro in mid 2008, it came with a 2XQuad Core Xeon E5462, although they work very well, I'm still wondering can I replace the old core with the new Intel Xeon X5570 2.93 GHz (8 cores)? Can I do it myself or need to send to apple shop?

thank you very much.
Click to expand...

Actually, yes you can upgrade your Mac Pro 1,1 processors but not with the Xenon X5570 processors...
There is a DIY on doing the processor upgrade on Mac Pro system....

Here are few links that you can research:

http://www.anandtech.com/mac/showdoc.aspx?i=2832&p=6
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/669219/

You need to get the Xenon Clovertown processors but they will cost you plenty of $$$$ for you to do this. I have other projects to complete but when the time comes I will be doing this upgrade to my Mac Pro. You end up going from 4 cores to 8. But you will only be running 2.66Ghz. It will be interesting to run an Oct sys on a Mac Pro 1,1 though...:D

Here's some more information on the processor you want to use...

http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=28035
http://www.intel.com/p/en_US/produc...pecifications?iid=products_xeon5000+tab_specs

Pricing for processor (each - they do not come in a set):
- Xenon 5355 2.66Ghz Quad Core
http://www.compuvest.com/Desc.jsp?iid=712416

- Xenon 5365 3.0 Ghz Quad Core
http://www.compuvest.com/Desc.jsp?iid=1059666

Either one of this "should" work but you need to do further research just to make sure. I myself have not researched this enough to be completely satisfied. From my initial research, it looks like these should work though. When I am ready I will be going with the 3.0 Ghz Quad core processors although they will command high prices...for me I since I already have a Quad Core 3.0 Ghz system I don't want to go down in processor speed....I guess it's the number thing for me but going from a Quad 3.0 Ghz to an 8-Core 3.0 Ghz on a Mac Pro 1,1 does sound nice, doesn't it? As for computer architecture, I realize that my Mac Pro is the first gen but even with having my Quad Core based system it's all the computer I will ever need for home use. I'm not using my computer for any intense lab related work or gaming so purchasing a completely new computer does not make any sense. Even with the processor upgrade all I will gain is the ability to have an 8-Core system over a Quad Core system. I'm sure I will see notable speed improvements after the processor swap which will be a very nice side benefit...:cool:

Hope this helps....:apple::apple::apple:
 
He was asking about Mac Pro 2008 which is rev. 3,1.

You can upgrade your CPU to:

- Xeon E5472 3.0 GHz
- Xeon X5472 3.0 GHz
- Xeon X5482 3.2 GHz
- Xeon X5492 3.4 GHz (not tested)
 
If anyone knows (a) whether it works (b) what the procedure is (c) how to source the 3.4GHz parts at a reasonable price, I would love to hear it. I have 08 Pro 2.8GHz so this would be a useful boost at the right price.

The Mac CPU upgrade market seems to have got very poor in recent years. I recall years ago companies like Powerlogix and Sonnet did, and still do offer big performance boosts with pin-compatible CPU swaps for older Macs. Since Apple switched to Intel this has got a lot harder, IMHO. Too many socket changes - probably a deliberate plot to derive new kit sales?
 
ZennZero said:
I don't think anyone has confirmed the 3.4GHz parts will work, but this site confirmed that the 150W revision of the 3.2GHz parts work (which is the same TDP as the 3.4's).

http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=11938
Click to expand...
For some strange reason I was remembering it had, and I searched when I saw this post. If it has, I can't find it. :eek:

Nice if it had though, as those interested wouldn't need to be the guinea pig to find out. ;) :p
 
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