MP 7,1 Is it worth buying a MacPro7.1?

[Krisz]

Hello
Since MacPro 5.1 does not support AVX, I thought about replacing it with 7.1
Apple will completely end support for Intel machines next year, I would like to ask for help from knowledgeable people
There will be third-party developments even though the system will no longer be supported ?
By this I mean the browser, VLC, etc., the complete cessation of application development for Intel-based Macs will occur?
I don't care about the demise of the Safari browser because I don't use it anymore due to its unstable operation.
But other browsers like Vivaldi will still be available?
Sorry if I'm confusing you, but it's not easy with Google Translate...
The point is, if I buy a 7.1 system now, how long will I be able to use it?
I definitely need a machine that can run Windows as well as MacOS
and the last such Mac is 7.1 if I remember correctly
The 7.1 MacPro can accept PC video cards without editing the firmware (RX 6xxx).
And the SSD is just as problematic as the 5.1 MacPro?
SSD no longer has the compatibility issues like 5.1?

Sorry for the bad wording.
Thank you in advance for any help.

 

[tsialex]

Hello
Since MacPro 5.1 does not support AVX, I thought about replacing it with 7.1
Apple will completely end support for Intel machines next year, I would like to ask for help from knowledgeable people
There will be third-party developments even though the system will no longer be supported ?
By this I mean the browser, VLC, etc., the complete cessation of application development for Intel-based Macs will occur?

macOS versions are supported by the year of release and two additional years.

Said that, only recently browsers started to remove Catalina support (Brave/Chrome does not support Catalina anymore). So, you got a lot of unofficial support by developers.

I don't care about the demise of the Safari browser because I don't use it anymore due to its unstable operation.
But other browsers like Vivaldi will still be available?
Sorry if I'm confusing you, but it's not easy with Google Translate...
The point is, if I buy a 7.1 system now, how long will I be able to use it?

At least 3 years from September 2025.

I definitely need a machine that can run Windows as well as MacOS
and the last such Mac is 7.1 if I remember correctly

Yes.

The 7.1 MacPro can accept PC video cards without editing the firmware (RX 6xxx).

Yes.

And the SSD is just as problematic as the 5.1 MacPro?
SSD no longer has the compatibility issues like 5.1?

Sorry for the bad wording.
Thank you in advance for any help.

Usually the same compatibilities SSD wise with some exceptions. What usually doesn't work with a MacPro5,1 most frequently also doesn't work with a MacPro7,1.

 

[Krisz]

macOS versions are supported by the year of release and two additional years.

Said that, only recently browsers started to remove Catalina support (Brave/Chrome does not support Catalina anymore). So, you got a lot of unofficial support by developers.



At least 3 years from September 2025.



Yes.



Yes.



Usually the same compatibilities SSD wise with some exceptions. What usually doesn't work with a MacPro5,1 most frequently also doesn't work with a MacPro7,1.

Thanks for the help

Then I guess I wouldn't be able to use the Samsung 870 SSD with the MacPro 7.1 either
Even now, 7.1 is expensive and then I would have to buy a PCI-E M2 NVME adapter, which is also not cheap.
I still have to think about buying this MacPro 7.1

 

[tsialex]

Thanks for the help

Then I guess I wouldn't be able to use the Samsung 870 SSD with the MacPro 7.1 either

Some people have the 870EVO connected via a PCIe card and seems to works fine when installed this way. Since 2019 Mac Pro only have two native SATA ports and requires a cage to install any 3,5/2,5 drives, most people usually prefer to install big HDDs instead.

Even now, 7.1 is expensive and then I would have to buy a PCI-E M2 NVME adapter, which is also not cheap.
I still have to think about buying this MacPro 7.1

There are single PCIe M.2 adapters from $10…

Same restrictions for cards that have multiple blades, PCIe switch required. Intel PCIe Lane Partition not supported.

 

[Regulus67]

Then I guess I wouldn't be able to use the Samsung 870 SSD with the MacPro 7.1 either

I have a 1TB installed in my Mac Pro, connected to the SATA port (Promise Pegasus J2i). Together with the original Toshiba 8TB HD.

 

[Krisz]

Thank you for the answers.
I wouldn't want to use old HDDs because they are too slow.
If I decide to buy the MacPro7.1, I would prefer to use 2 SSDs, one for MacOS and one for Windows.
I thought that if MacOS becomes unusable, I will switch to Linux
Linux will be supported for a very long time, but I want to use MacOS as long as possible.
Could you please send me some links to Pcie cards that are compatible with MacPro 7.1?
SSD and NVME are also possible

Thank you in advance.

 

[MacHeritage]

Both OWC: https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/SSD/OWC/lineup#pcie
and Sonnet Tech: https://www.sonnettech.com/product/computer-cards/cards.html
make PCI cards that are compatible with the 7,1.
There is also Trans International that carries some PCI cards and makes other add-ons for the Mac Pro 2019+: https://www.transintl.com

That is a start.

 

[Krisz]

Both OWC: https://eshop.macsales.com/shop/SSD/OWC/lineup#pcie
and Sonnet Tech: https://www.sonnettech.com/product/computer-cards/cards.html
make PCI cards that are compatible with the 7,1.
There is also Trans International that carries some PCI cards and makes other add-ons for the Mac Pro 2019+: https://www.transintl.com

That is a start.

Thanks

This may be a really stupid question, but isn't there an emulator that will be able to run applications written for ARM processors on Intel machines?

 

[CanPhantom]

Thanks

This may be a really stupid question, but isn't there an emulator that will be able to run applications written for ARM processors on Intel machines?

You mean like a backwards Rosetta? Sounds unlikely.

 

[Krisz]

You mean like a backwards Rosetta? Sounds unlikely.

It wouldn't be bad
But then Linux will remain

 

[avkills]

The only use case I could see as a positive for buying a 7.1 is that you want to be able to boot Windows. Although I am guessing in a couple years we will be able to do the same thing on the ARM Macs.

Tons of PCI bandwidth and slots I guess is also a plus.

 

[Allen_Wentz]

It all sounds like far too much trouble to me. IMO it makes much more sense to use Mac Studios plus Windows PCs until Apple releases its next Mac Pro. Leave the old Mac Pros for those folks who have legacy workflows already running on them.

 

[mattspace]

The only use case I could see as a positive for buying a 7.1 is that you want to be able to boot Windows. Although I am guessing in a couple years we will be able to do the same thing on the ARM Macs.

Virtualising Intel versions of macOS - that seems / seemed to be a blind spot for all the hypervisors on Apple Silicon.

 

[Adora]

I hope it's okay to write in here and don't make my own thread. I will read everything after posting.

I am interested in a 7,1 too, because it's one of the last Intel Macs and easy to upgrade. I have a 27" display lying around that I have no use for at the moment or it could share the 49" OLED display with my mini.
I can boot to any other OS and give it very much RAM and a good GPU for running VMs and local LLMs. But does this CPU even support more RAM and are those Xeons with more cores still expensive?
That website only offers the official Apple maximum RAM. Normally double is possible. At least this was the case for any iMac or MacBook with upgradable RAM.

I have no idea about prices, for the Mac itself and possible upgrades like CPU, RAM and a good GPU that will work with it. This one here in the screenshots would be $1,869.67 (incl. sales tax/VAT). For me this sounds cheap.
When I change the GPU, RAM or storage to lower options it only gets more expensive because the seller changes. Higher options are not available only condition "very good" for +€290.
It's mostly small repair shops all over the EU that do the refurbishment. This one even has it's own website and a physical store in Germany.
It's a little cheaper buying directly from them but then there is no warranty. Here I get 12 month free and could get up to 42 months for a low price upgrade. On the sellers own website there is the same one and for the same price one with a Radeon Pro W5500X 8GB GDDR6. otherwise same specs and condition. Both €1,549=$1,799 (incl. tax). I don't know much about GPUs anymore. Maybe about mid to late 90s and early 2000s ones.

The screenshots are auto-translated if something might sound strange, like EN (German) for the keyboard.

I only have good experience with this website. But I never bought a Mac. Only iPhones and iPads that in the worst condition (good) looked like new. The customer service is very good if something is wrong.

Does this make sense? Or should I rather buy a 2019 or 2020 iMac and upgrade the RAM to 128GB. Or get the iMac Pro with 128GB? I at least want an Intel Mac maybe even just for fun and lighter stuff. I only have a 2011 iMac that supports 32GB of RAM with an HDD and USB 2.0, it's even loud when doing nothing. I tried booting from a Thunderbolt drive but it wasn't recognized only when macOS was already running.

Or should I just wait for a possible M5 Max Studio and hope for better native Linux support in the future?
I already have an M4 Pro mini with 64GB. That RAM size is minimum for running local LLMs in a propper size. I didn't know I want to do that when I was buying it. The RAM was planned for running VMs of Linux/BSD and another macOS instance.

I can't pay a 512GB RAM Studio whatever Ultra anyway. I only know that memory bandwidth and unified makes it much faster for local LLMs and even my M4 Pro might do better than a 6 year old Intel Mac. But I don't really know.

It's also not only that I want a huge amount of RAM. It's the possinility to install older macOS versions native and in VMs and the native x86 support mainly for finding the best Linux to dual-boot and maybe also running Windows 7, 8.1 or 10. I don't really care if macOS 27 will not run on it anymore.


Sorry, the post got a little chaotic and too long. I just would like to know if this is a reasonable price please.

 

[Regulus67]

I just would like to know if this is a reasonable price please.

This is the low end for this spec, in Europe atm. And the price is reasonable.

But you should consider what you need. Upgrading parts gets expensive. So you should probably consider if it is enough to meet your needs?

Otherwise I would recommend going for a higher spec from the start. Memory is not a problem I think, as you can find reasonably good prices for large amounts. Compared to the prices for the machines with large memory specs on offer.
The 16-core supports up to 768GB RAM. Or 1TB if you choose not to follow the 6 channel memory spec.

But upgrading the CPU, or the internal SSD kit (extremely hard to find), will add up the total cost.
GPU price will be higher if you go for an MPX GPU. They cost more than regular AMD cards, but have more VRAM as well. And Thunderbolt.

 

[Krisz]

Thanks for the replies
I would also like to know if the MacPro 7.1 can accept 7xxx series video cards
I know it's not supported on MacOS, but it might be useful on Windows and later on Linux.

 

[m1maverick]

I hope it's okay to write in here and don't make my own thread. I will read everything after posting.

I am interested in a 7,1 too, because it's one of the last Intel Macs and easy to upgrade. I have a 27" display lying around that I have no use for at the moment or it could share the 49" OLED display with my mini.
I can boot to any other OS and give it very much RAM and a good GPU for running VMs and local LLMs. But does this CPU even support more RAM and are those Xeons with more cores still expensive?
That website only offers the official Apple maximum RAM. Normally double is possible. At least this was the case for any iMac or MacBook with upgradable RAM.

I have no idea about prices, for the Mac itself and possible upgrades like CPU, RAM and a good GPU that will work with it. This one here in the screenshots would be $1,869.67 (incl. sales tax/VAT). For me this sounds cheap.
When I change the GPU, RAM or storage to lower options it only gets more expensive because the seller changes. Higher options are not available only condition "very good" for +€290.
It's mostly small repair shops all over the EU that do the refurbishment. This one even has it's own website and a physical store in Germany.
It's a little cheaper buying directly from them but then there is no warranty. Here I get 12 month free and could get up to 42 months for a low price upgrade. On the sellers own website there is the same one and for the same price one with a Radeon Pro W5500X 8GB GDDR6. otherwise same specs and condition. Both €1,549=$1,799 (incl. tax). I don't know much about GPUs anymore. Maybe about mid to late 90s and early 2000s ones.

The screenshots are auto-translated if something might sound strange, like EN (German) for the keyboard.

I only have good experience with this website. But I never bought a Mac. Only iPhones and iPads that in the worst condition (good) looked like new. The customer service is very good if something is wrong.

Does this make sense? Or should I rather buy a 2019 or 2020 iMac and upgrade the RAM to 128GB. Or get the iMac Pro with 128GB? I at least want an Intel Mac maybe even just for fun and lighter stuff. I only have a 2011 iMac that supports 32GB of RAM with an HDD and USB 2.0, it's even loud when doing nothing. I tried booting from a Thunderbolt drive but it wasn't recognized only when macOS was already running.

Or should I just wait for a possible M5 Max Studio and hope for better native Linux support in the future?
I already have an M4 Pro mini with 64GB. That RAM size is minimum for running local LLMs in a propper size. I didn't know I want to do that when I was buying it. The RAM was planned for running VMs of Linux/BSD and another macOS instance.

I can't pay a 512GB RAM Studio whatever Ultra anyway. I only know that memory bandwidth and unified makes it much faster for local LLMs and even my M4 Pro might do better than a 6 year old Intel Mac. But I don't really know.

It's also not only that I want a huge amount of RAM. It's the possinility to install older macOS versions native and in VMs and the native x86 support mainly for finding the best Linux to dual-boot and maybe also running Windows 7, 8.1 or 10. I don't really care if macOS 27 will not run on it anymore.


Sorry, the post got a little chaotic and too long. I just would like to know if this is a reasonable price please.

This is the exact configuration I purchased last year for $1,650. Is the seller iPowerResale?

As to whether you should buy a 7,1 only that is something you can answer. I would say the only reason to purchase any Intel Mac is

1. You have a specific use case for it. If this is the situation then I think the answer speaks for itself.
2. You intend to use it in a "hobbyist" situation. If this is the situation only you can decide if it's worth it.

Outside of one of these two use cases I recommend everyone purchase an AS Mac.

 

[Regulus67]

I would also like to know if the MacPro 7.1 can accept 7xxx series video cards
I know it's not supported on MacOS, but it might be useful on Windows and later on Linux.

It can fit a few 7xxx cards, but most are to long to fit inside. I believe the limit is 304mm.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/mac-pro-7-1-rx7900xtx-saphire-pulse-dont-try-this-at-home.2463105/

This is the exact configuration I purchased last year for $1,650. Is the seller iPowerResale?

I believe he lives in Europe, so looking at US sellers will not make any sense. The shipping cost is very high, and then we have to add VAT on top (19% in Germany, 25% in Sweden).

mac-store24 often has ok prices in Germany. But they never ship with the original box and no accessories, only the power cable.

 

[keksikuningas]

Is the seller iPowerResale?

This looks to be Refurbed

 

[m1maverick]

I believe he lives in Europe, so looking at US sellers will not make any sense. The shipping cost is very high, and then we have to add VAT on top (19% in Germany, 25% in Sweden).

I was thinking perhaps they have a presence in Europe. This is a standard configuration at the $1,700 price point.

 

[Krisz]

Thanks for the replies
If I understand correctly, the machine can accept 7xxx series cards
I was looking at the 7.1 machines on Ebay and unfortunately all the ones with lower prices have 580x video cards!
This would be a big drop in performance compared to the currently used rx6600xt
If I replace the original video card with a more powerful PC card, I won't have a boot screen
Is it possible to get a boot screen with a PC video card without using openCore?
Unfortunately, OpenCore caused me a lot of problems with my 5.1 machine, for example, Windows 10 got stuck at the logo.

 

[Regulus67]

This would be a big drop in performance compared to the currently used rx6600xt
If I replace the original video card with a more powerful PC card, I won't have a boot screen
Is it possible to get a boot screen with a PC video card without using openCore?

The Mac Pro 2019 is not like the old Mac Pro 5,1 (EFI).
Your RX 6600 XT card will work without problem, with boot screen. And macOS has drivers for your card.
You can use the 8-pin power cable with the 8-pin mini plug as well.

Later you can upgrade to a 7xxx serie card, if you like (for windows)

Even Nvidia cards will have a boot screen in Windows.
MPX version of your rx6600 xt

AMD Radeon Pro W6600X Specs

AMD Navi 23, 2479 MHz, 2048 Cores, 128 TMUs, 64 ROPs, 8192 MB GDDR6, 2000 MHz, 128 bit

www.techpowerup.com

 

[Krisz]

The Mac Pro 2019 is not like the old Mac Pro 5,1 (EFI).
Your RX 6600 XT card will work without problem, with boot screen. And macOS has drivers for your card.
You can use the 8-pin power cable with the 8-pin mini plug as well.

Later you can upgrade to a 7xxx serie card, if you like (for windows)

Even Nvidia cards will have a boot screen in Windows.
MPX version of your rx6600 xt

AMD Radeon Pro W6600X Specs

AMD Navi 23, 2479 MHz, 2048 Cores, 128 TMUs, 64 ROPs, 8192 MB GDDR6, 2000 MHz, 128 bit

www.techpowerup.com

According to this, any PC video card has boot screen with the 7.1 MacPro? (rx6xxx 7xxx)
I got scammed on a hungaryan Mac forum! They said there would be no boot screen, only with the factory Mac video cards!
Thanks for letting me know this information
it makes me even more excited for 7.1!

 

[Regulus67]

They said there would be no boot screen, only with the factory Mac video cards!

I think they do not know how the Mac Pro 2019 with T2 chip works.
Even Apple Support can not give proper guidance, as they seem to believe it is a MacBook Pro one needs support for.

Don't be annoyed by the hungarian forum, but teach them as you will have your own Mac Pro, with hands on experience

 

[Regulus67]