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Mac Pro Gains New AMD Radeon PRO W6600X GPU Upgrade Option

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Following the launch of the new Mac Studio with M1 Ultra chip, AMD today announced that it has introduced the AMD Radeon PRO W6600X GPU for the existing Intel-based Mac Pro lineup.

mac-pro-amd-gpu.jpg

The AMD Radeon PRO W6600X GPU is built on AMD's RDNA 2 architecture, which AMD says offers "stunning visuals and exceptional performance" for the Mac Pro.

The GPU supports up to 8GB of GDDR6 memory with up to 256 GB/s bandwidth, 32MB of last-level data cache integrated on the GPU die to reduce latency and power consumption, and enhanced video compositing and editing for professional workflows.

The W6600X is a $300 upgrade for the base Mac Pro, and it joins other higher-end graphics options like the W6800X and the W6900X.

Apple confirmed today that it is working on an Apple silicon-based version of the Mac Pro that will see the company transitioning away from Intel chips and AMD graphics, but there is no word on when such a machine might launch.

Article Link: Mac Pro Gains New AMD Radeon PRO W6600X GPU Upgrade Option
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2022/03/08/mac-pro-amd-w6600x-gpu/
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One of the last Intel machines left. Nice they added and upgraded GPU option.

Was really stunned they left the 27 iMac without mention saying they were done with the switchover except for the Mac Pro.
 
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If Apple does transition over to Apple silicon for the next MacPro then the 7,1 will hold its value quite well. Many top end creatives still reliant upon intel. Nice to see they haven’t abandoned all together by providing these types of updates.
 
LOL, the 6600 XT performs the same as the 5700 XT, the only thing the 6600 XT does better is power consumption. Why didn't Apple get drivers for the 6700 XT?
 
I am not trolling, just...who would buy a new Mac Pro now?
The only thing I am guessing this Mac Pro would be better is to natively run Windows 10/11. If that is even possible, I don't know.
 
Such a pity the latest Monterey 12.3 kills the performance of the 68000/6900TX cards compared to prior versions.
 
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Not sure by now anyone would be interested in an Intel Mac. I'm glad I hold off buying a Mac Pro despite the need I had. They were/are extremely overpriced.
 
Was hoping they'd also give the Mac Pro a same-style silent CPU upgrade today. (There were rumors about new MP-grade Intel chips referenced in Xcode since end of last year I believe.)

Though guess the speed comparisons with the Mac Studio during the keynote wouldn't have looked that impressive then… (don't get me wrong the M1 Ultra is super impressive - but it's a comparison with ~3 year old Intel hardware)
 
Trusteft said:
I am not trolling, just...who would buy a new Mac Pro now?
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At a guess, people running it in a professional setting (where it is aimed), who have application software that either runs badly under emulation or won't run at all under emulation. Particularly if they have, say, a dozen (Intel-based) Mac Pros and one breaks, or they decide they need a couple more - you wouldn't want to have to support 11 of one kind and 1 of a completely different kind.

For one-off use, and for making your web browser go really fast, the Mac Studio would be a better choice, but either would be ridiculous overkill for most people.
 
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blazerunner said:
LOL, the 6600 XT performs the same as the 5700 XT, the only thing the 6600 XT does better is power consumption. Why didn't Apple get drivers for the 6700 XT?
Click to expand...

Pretty sure that this is mainly so Apple can drop the W580X. Which I'm pretty sure AMD doesn't even want to make anymore. This is more about availability than performance. All the original MPX modules have been dropped at this point. ( They started off being relatively "old" and get even older over last two years ).

They probably can't buy any more 580X so they needed another lower end GPU to charge about $800 for. Apple probably can still get some 5700 for the next 4-6 months. In the Fall, there should be a 6750 they could switch to in the Fall.

These aren't the mainstream AMD models. The W5700 has 16MB of VRAM ( unlike the mainstream version). The W6600 has 8GB. If talking workloads where push large enough data sets to the card to do work, that will be enough of a difference.
 
Sasparilla said:
Was really stunned they left the 27 iMac without mention saying they were done with the switchover except for the Mac Pro.
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I think they are waiting for that delayed "Ah ha!" moment to kick in for customer when look at Studio Mac + Studio Monitor is 3,589 instead of around $2K . They wanted to leave the stage before that sunk in.

[ Don't have to buy the Apple monitor (or the $300 adjustable stand ) , but $1,999 used to get you can Mac+Screen before. Now that is just the headless Mac . ]
 
Sasparilla said:
One of the last Intel machines left. Nice they added and upgraded GPU option.

Was really stunned they left the 27 iMac without mention saying they were done with the switchover except for the Mac Pro.
Click to expand...

Or they could do what I hope they'll do with the higher end Mac mini, add the M1 Pro (with associated benefits) with a simple press release (same design, just an upgraded chip + larger display).
 
Sasparilla said:
One of the last Intel machines left. Nice they added and upgraded GPU option.

Was really stunned they left the 27 iMac without mention saying they were done with the switchover except for the Mac Pro.
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Yes. Why is nobody talking about this??!! I’ve been holding out for over 2 years for a mac silicon imac 27”
 
New option is good. But will be wise to wait it out for the Mac Pro replacement with Apple Silicon.
 
I don't get why people complain about this stuff, haha. Don't you want Apple to make its legacy products a better buy for the people who can't or won't wait for the next machine? Especially since the Mac Pro's extensibility is part of the whole point, I've been really happy to see them actually put effort into first-party MXM modules (pour one out for the Afterburner, though—that's definitely not existing in an Apple Silicon world.)
 
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Trusteft said:
I am not trolling, just...who would buy a new Mac Pro now?
The only thing I am guessing this Mac Pro would be better is to natively run Windows 10/11. If that is even possible, I don't know.
Click to expand...

Some possibilities
- To run software or plugins not yet ARM native.
- Need for lots of GPU power (multiple GPU rendering)
- Need for lots of high speed storage (NVMe RAID)
- Lots of RAM (256GB to 1.5TB)
- Various other PCIe Expansion

The ARM chips offer tremendous CPU speed per watt. But they still have serious drawbacks. In terms of expandability and software support. But this affects a niche market. Although it's also a market which is willing to pay very high premiums for hardware.
 
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