My "new" Mac Pro... Let the fun begin! Your input is welcome.

[tgcarroll]

Picked up an early 2009 Mac Pro last night with dual 2.26 Quad-Core processors and 16GB of RAM. It currently has 16GB of RAM and dual NVIDIA GT 120 cards. Paid $400.

Flashed the firmware from 4,1 to 5,1.

I dropped a Apricorn Velocity Solo X2 PCIe with a Samsung 500GB SSD into the system and re-loaded the OS. The former system disk (a 1TB standard drive) is now acting as a data drive.

A 4-port USB 3.0 PCIe card is going in this afternoon.

Next up. New GPU and procs. I have a GeForce 670 that I may go ahead an use for the time being for the GPU, and I'm thinking about going with a pair of X5670 for the processor upgrade.

Once one comes available, I'll grab a Wifi AC/BT card upgrade from @MacVidCards.

Looking for suggestions and input on my upgrade plans. Looking for a build to be my main system for Photoshop/Lightroom with some video editing occasion. Gaming will remain on my Windows machine and consoles, although I wouldn't mind having another system to run Minecraft.

I've been waiting on Apple to upgrade 2013 Mac Pro and decided that picking up a cMP would allow for a more economical option for the time being.

Thanks in advance for any input and suggestions.

Cheers!

 

[h9826790]

Just make sure you know how to upgrade the CPUs, the original CPUs are lidless.

 

[DPUser]

Picked up an early 2009 Mac Pro last night with dual 2.26 Quad-Core processors and 16GB of RAM. It currently has 16GB of RAM and dual NVIDIA GT 120 cards. Paid $400.

I'm thinking about going with a pair of X5670 for the processor upgrade.

Why not X5680 or 90? Faster clock is nice.

 

[tgcarroll]

Just make sure you know how to upgrade the CPUs, the original CPUs are lidless.

I've read a couple of methods, one being using washers, the other being counting the rotations to prevent over-tightening. I was planning on using washers.

 

[tgcarroll]

Why not X5680 or 90? Faster clock is nice.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll research pricing.

 

[tgcarroll]

I've read a couple of methods, one being using washers, the other being counting the rotations to prevent over-tightening. I was planning on using washers.

After more reading, I think I'll just count the turns and follow the guide by Thomas Pindelski.

 

[h9826790]

Why not both? You count the turns, and use washer as the safty net.

 

[tgcarroll]

Just pulled the trigger on a pair of matched x5680s. Very much looking forward to getting these into my system.

 

[Macsonic]

Just pulled the trigger on a pair of matched x5680s. Very much looking forward to getting these into my system.

I know you've already purchased a pair of x5680s, another option is to have them De-Lidded by using the De-lidding services being offered at eBay so installation is straightforward without using washers or modifying the heat sensor connection and thermal paste pad. Some members here have gone the route of having someone de-lid their processors and installation was smooth.

 

[tgcarroll]

I know you've already purchased a pair of x5680s, another option is to have them De-Lidded by using the De-lidding services being offered at eBay so installation is straightforward without using washers or modifying the heat sensor connection and thermal paste pad. Some members here have gone the route of having someone de-lid their processors and installation was smooth.

Thanks for the tip! I just sent an e-mail seller a message about his service. I got (what I think is ) a pretty good deal on the Mac Pro, so I'm ok with spending a little extra on the CPUs.