MP 1,1-5,1 Mac Pro 5,1 RX 580 Stalls at Halfway Progress Bar During macOS 15 (Sequoia) Installation

[fredtk]

Hi everyone,

I’m running into a persistent issue with my Mac Pro 5,1 while trying to install macOS 15 (Sequoia) on an NVMe SSD, and I’m hoping the MacRumors community can help shed some light on what might be going wrong. I’ve been working through this for a while, and despite troubleshooting, I’m still hitting a wall. Here’s the full rundown:

My Hardware Setup​

• Mac Pro Model: Mac Pro 5,1 (Mid-2010)
• Boot ROM: 144.0.0.0.0 (supports NVMe booting)
• CPU: Intel Xeon X5675 (dual CPU tray)
• GPUs:
  • Primary GPU (Issue): Radeon RX 580 (8GB VRAM)
    • Installed in Slot-1 (PCIe x16)
    • Connected with dual power cables (confirmed working in macOS 10.14 Mojave)
  • Fallback GPU: ATI Radeon HD 5770 (non-Metal, 1GB VRAM)
    • Boots macOS 15 but with compromised graphics (laggy UI, high fan RPM)
• Storage:
  • 500GB NVMe SSD(Samsung 970 EVO): Target for macOS 15 installation
  • 4TB SATA Drive: Running macOS 10.14 (Mojave)
    • RX 580 works perfectly here, confirmed via System Information (Chipset: Radeon RX 570, Metal supported, 1920x1080 resolution)
• Installer: USB installer created with OpenCore Legacy Patcher (OCLP) for macOS 15

The Issue​

I’m trying to install macOS 15 (Sequoia) on my 500GB NVMe SSD using the RX 580 as my GPU. The installation process (via a USB installer created with OCLP) proceeds normally until the final boot phase. At this point, the Apple logo appears with the progress bar, but it stalls at the halfway mark, and the RX 580 stops (fan stops spinning, likely indicating a reboot or shutdown). This issue persists even after a fresh install with no OCLP patches applied.

Key Observations​

• RX 580 Behavior:
  • Works perfectly in macOS 10.14 (Mojave) on my 4TB SATA drive, as confirmed by System Information (full Metal support, smooth graphics).
  • Also works in Recovery Mode with macOS 15 (lightweight graphics stack), but fails during full macOS 15 boot or installation boot.
• Radeon HD 5770 Behavior:
  • Boots macOS 15 (previously installed) but with compromised graphics (laggy UI, no acceleration, high fan RPM maybe due to non-Metal GPU).
  • Allows boot screen visibility, unlike the RX 580.
• Fresh Install Attempt:
  • Wiped the NVMe SSD and started a fresh macOS 15 installation using the OCLP USB installer.
  • Installation proceeds until the final boot, where it stalls at the halfway progress bar, and the RX 580 stops (same behavior as before).
  • No OCLP patches were applied during this fresh install, ruling out patch-related issues.

What I’ve Tried​

1. Fresh Install with RX 580:
   • Wiped the NVMe SSD and reinstalled macOS 15 via the OCLP USB installer.
   • Installation stalls at the halfway progress bar during the final boot, and the RX 580 stops.
2. Radeon HD 5770:
   • Previously booted macOS 15 with this GPU, but graphics were compromised (expected for non-Metal).

Questions for the Community​

1. Has anyone successfully installed macOS 15 (Sequoia) on a Mac Pro 5,1 with an RX 580? If so, what steps or OpenCore settings did you use?
2. Could this be a firmware issue with the Mac Pro 5,1’s Boot ROM not supporting the RX 580 during macOS 15 boot? Any known fixes?
3. Any other suggestions to get past the halfway progress bar stall with the RX 580?

I’d really appreciate any insights or advice from the community! I’m happy to provide more details or try specific steps. Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[tsialex]

Can you install Monterey?

Do you have enough space inside the primary VSS store? Without enough space, at least 25KB after a NVRAM reset, you won't complete the macOS install. Try to do a deep NVRAM reset before doing the clean install.

 

[reader50]

If both your GPUs are installed at the same time, booting into Sequoia will fail. The HD 5770 is a non-metal GPU, while the RX-580 is a metal GPU. From Mojave onward, the system will not boot if both a metal and non-metal GPU are installed at the same time.

Install with one GPU or the other. And I agree with tsialex - don't jump directly from Mojave to Sequoia. Add an extra APFS volume to your drive, do a Monterey install first, and migrate your apps & user folder. Then jump further to Sequoia.

Which version of RX580 are you using? Most will run on the logic board connectors, but some of the overclock models, like a Sapphire Nitro+ require more power. This would result in a sudden shutdown whenever they exceed the onboard connector power limits.

 

[fredtk]

Can you install Monterey?

Do you have enough space inside the primary VSS store? Without enough space, at least 25KB after a NVRAM reset, you won't complete the macOS install. Try to do a deep NVRAM reset before doing the clean install.

Thanks for the suggestion! I tried a fresh install of macOS 15 via a bootable USB created with OCLP. The installation process itself completes without issues, but upon the final reboot, the system stalls at the halfway mark on the Apple logo, and my RX 580 stops (fans turn off).

 

[fredtk]

If both your GPUs are installed at the same time, booting into Sequoia will fail. The HD 5770 is a non-metal GPU, while the RX-580 is a metal GPU. From Mojave onward, the system will not boot if both a metal and non-metal GPU are installed at the same time.

Install with one GPU or the other. And I agree with tsialex - don't jump directly from Mojave to Sequoia. Add an extra APFS volume to your drive, do a Monterey install first, and migrate your apps & user folder. Then jump further to Sequoia.

Which version of RX580 are you using? Most will run on the logic board connectors, but some of the overclock models, like a Sapphire Nitro+ require more power. This would result in a sudden shutdown whenever they exceed the onboard connector power limits.

I initially tried the installation with both GPUs separately. First, I used the old GPU (Radeon HD 5770), and it booted into Sonoma just fine. However, after applying the OCLP patches and rebooting, it failed to boot.





At that point, I wiped everything and started fresh using only the RX 580. The installation process proceeded normally until the final boot stage, where it stalled at the Apple logo and the RX 580 stopped (fans turned off, indicating a shutdown or crash).





For power, the RX 580 is connected using the dual mini 6-pin to 8-pin PCIe power cable I mentioned earlier.

 

[tsialex]

Did you tried to install Monterey?

 

[fredtk]

No, but I can try that as a next step. Thank you