— Part One
First time post since a couple of years. I’ve been in/out of Mac news environment particularly in regards to the ability to upgrade or hackintosh your system and looking back to engage in the fun.
I am very happy to see that the Mac community as a whole has continued to survive. ( FYI this could very well be a long read in parts- lol).
Being Apple fan and user for many years I have grown concerned over the lack expansion options in the recent Mac systems Apple has released.
I’ve been a Mac Pro user for many years with my last Pro system purchased in 2009 (yup you are reading correctly- a 2009 MacBook Pro).
It suffered the known issue of swollen battery of which has caused other issues over time. But it was a work horse. And now it’s retired and put aside until I can figure out something to do with it
Its’ replacement is a mid range iMac. Although I am extremely happy with the obvious performance boost. I am disappointed on the limited options for someone interested in a pro model but not looking to fork out over $4-5k if not more.
The question became - What could I do to get a Pro Mac system without Apple costs? Part of me was seriously considering just outright going to Windows (and I just dredge the idea) or get a PC model and hack it. But it had more cons then pros for my liking. Then upon more research I found the answer - The Mac Pro.
The best Mac system or any system by a landslide. I was surprised I forgot about these beauties especially after working on the first models back in 2006-2007.
Needless to say here was an opportunity to get a pro performance and I took it.
From the recent news, the longevity of an upgraded Mac Pro may or may not be short due to the future lack of support for micronodes since new Mac Pro will be released. I say - So what?!. These upgrades are for secondary use, experimentation and basically pushing the envelope on what this beauties (ie. Apple) was capable of.
AND who knows .. someone, somewhere may find a way to outright change a major component and again bring live to these lovely machines.
And now the fun and magic begins...
[doublepost=1558189177][/doublepost]— Part Two
Let me explain what my current setup is like. The Mac Pro systems I bought and a general idea of what I’m looking to do with them.
I have a iMac 2018 mid range
A Synology NAS 218 acting as a server.
Mac Pro 2009 & 2010 (single CPU)
I use my iMac for most of my work doing Graphics/video etc. I will be learning CAD with the potential of 3D rendition later in the year.
Because the iMac is not a Pro system, I will use one of the Mac Pro as secondary processing backup and the other Mac Pro for a sibling to use with their iPad Pro.
Secondly I would like to use both Mac Pros to experiment with and use none Apple sandboxed home automation options with/without Synology NAS.
Third project for either unit TBD after more research.
I will be doing Geekbench tests on all units as starting point (before and after on the Mac Pros).
[doublepost=1558189210][/doublepost]——- Part Three: Steps to upgrade (General)
I have looked and reviewed several posts and videos of others who have upgraded their Mac Pros.
The best overall guideline I found was a you tube video from createsuccestv.
From that list I modified it slightly to minimize the amount of disassemble.
Here is what I got (Im not expert as its been years since I dabbled in PC builds)
Any feedback would be great if I have missed anything vitally important.
0. Test unit as is, clean etc - Geekbench markers
1. Update firmware to 5,1 if not already
2. Disable SIP (El Captain) if necessary
3. Turn off file vault if active
4. Bootable HD or USB of High Sierra
5. Re-enable SIP
6. Install RAM
7. Change PRAM battery and Zap
8. Upgrade CPU
9. Upgrade to Mojave
10. Change Fans (ideally)
11. Upgrade bluetooth, wifi, USB and/or SSD Micro SSD (debating which as would like to assure GPU upgrade is using the higher port for better air circulation - but that will be later).
12. Install new GPU
13. Run new Benchmark tests.
I would gladly post updates if anyone is interested - however the process will be slow. LOL
First time post since a couple of years. I’ve been in/out of Mac news environment particularly in regards to the ability to upgrade or hackintosh your system and looking back to engage in the fun.
I am very happy to see that the Mac community as a whole has continued to survive. ( FYI this could very well be a long read in parts- lol).
Being Apple fan and user for many years I have grown concerned over the lack expansion options in the recent Mac systems Apple has released.
I’ve been a Mac Pro user for many years with my last Pro system purchased in 2009 (yup you are reading correctly- a 2009 MacBook Pro).
It suffered the known issue of swollen battery of which has caused other issues over time. But it was a work horse. And now it’s retired and put aside until I can figure out something to do with it
Its’ replacement is a mid range iMac. Although I am extremely happy with the obvious performance boost. I am disappointed on the limited options for someone interested in a pro model but not looking to fork out over $4-5k if not more.
The question became - What could I do to get a Pro Mac system without Apple costs? Part of me was seriously considering just outright going to Windows (and I just dredge the idea) or get a PC model and hack it. But it had more cons then pros for my liking. Then upon more research I found the answer - The Mac Pro.
The best Mac system or any system by a landslide. I was surprised I forgot about these beauties especially after working on the first models back in 2006-2007.
Needless to say here was an opportunity to get a pro performance and I took it.
From the recent news, the longevity of an upgraded Mac Pro may or may not be short due to the future lack of support for micronodes since new Mac Pro will be released. I say - So what?!. These upgrades are for secondary use, experimentation and basically pushing the envelope on what this beauties (ie. Apple) was capable of.
AND who knows .. someone, somewhere may find a way to outright change a major component and again bring live to these lovely machines.
And now the fun and magic begins...
[doublepost=1558189177][/doublepost]— Part Two
Let me explain what my current setup is like. The Mac Pro systems I bought and a general idea of what I’m looking to do with them.
I have a iMac 2018 mid range
A Synology NAS 218 acting as a server.
Mac Pro 2009 & 2010 (single CPU)
I use my iMac for most of my work doing Graphics/video etc. I will be learning CAD with the potential of 3D rendition later in the year.
Because the iMac is not a Pro system, I will use one of the Mac Pro as secondary processing backup and the other Mac Pro for a sibling to use with their iPad Pro.
Secondly I would like to use both Mac Pros to experiment with and use none Apple sandboxed home automation options with/without Synology NAS.
Third project for either unit TBD after more research.
I will be doing Geekbench tests on all units as starting point (before and after on the Mac Pros).
[doublepost=1558189210][/doublepost]——- Part Three: Steps to upgrade (General)
I have looked and reviewed several posts and videos of others who have upgraded their Mac Pros.
The best overall guideline I found was a you tube video from createsuccestv.
From that list I modified it slightly to minimize the amount of disassemble.
Here is what I got (Im not expert as its been years since I dabbled in PC builds)
Any feedback would be great if I have missed anything vitally important.
0. Test unit as is, clean etc - Geekbench markers
1. Update firmware to 5,1 if not already
2. Disable SIP (El Captain) if necessary
3. Turn off file vault if active
4. Bootable HD or USB of High Sierra
5. Re-enable SIP
6. Install RAM
7. Change PRAM battery and Zap
8. Upgrade CPU
9. Upgrade to Mojave
10. Change Fans (ideally)
11. Upgrade bluetooth, wifi, USB and/or SSD Micro SSD (debating which as would like to assure GPU upgrade is using the higher port for better air circulation - but that will be later).
12. Install new GPU
13. Run new Benchmark tests.
I would gladly post updates if anyone is interested - however the process will be slow. LOL
as well for non-coder. However so worth it. Cant wait for next model.