Need Some Answers Before Purchasing a GTX 285

[BRIANinDIGITAL]

Hello Everyone,

I am going to buy a gtx 285 video card for my 2008 mac pro. My mac pro has the 8800gt video card and has two optical drives installed. I have been searching the forums for a couple of days now and I am still a little confused with some of the details.

1. Power Setup

Looking at a picture of the gtx 285 I know that it requires two six pin connections. The logicboard offers two six pin connection oppenings so I link one of the connections to the 285 using the ati cable. The other logicboard connection goes to the 8800gt correct? So then do I have to disconnect one of my optical drives and use that 4 pin molex power source to the other six pin connection of the 285 using a 4 to 6 pin adapter? Or does the 8800gt use an 8 pin connection and I use the super drive molex cable to connect to it and therefore connect both 285 cables to the logicboard? If the later would I need some sort of 4 to 8 pin adapter? If this is the case then what is the original powersource for the 8800gt straight from the factory if it now needs a logic board connection?

Do I need to remove one superdrive in order to use the 4pin molex cable?
Do I need to order two ati cables?

As you can see I am kinda confused on what to do.

2. Brand Preference

Is one brand more preferable than another, is evga better than bfg and so on? All I know is that it has to be an nvidia card.

3. Also, Newegg is selling gtx 285's with a 30 day replaceable non-refundable return policy. They are selling their gtx 280 with a standard 30 day refund policy. Do I have to worry about the 285 in some way not working on a mac pro even in windows and therefore better to buy the 280? In other words is the performance of the 285 on a mac worth the risk of a non-refundable product?

Any help would be greatly appreciated or even a link to a previous post. Thanks

 

[Tallest Skil]

You'll need to split the power from one optical drive and run a cable down to the PCIe bays to have enough power to run it.

 

[BRIANinDIGITAL]

You'll need to split the power from one optical drive and run a cable down to the PCIe bays to have enough power to run it.

So I don't have to remove one of the optical drives? Also this connection would go to the 8800gt or the gtx285? And do i need some sort of adapter to it?

 

[blackhand1001]

I actually have a question if the osx86 project has gotten other graphics cards to work in genuine macs? Its probably possible. Anyone know more cause it would be nice to not be limited by apples limited hardware choices in their pro machines.

 

[BRIANinDIGITAL]

I actually have a question if the osx86 project has gotten other graphics cards to work in genuine macs? Its probably possible. Anyone know more cause it would be nice to not be limited by apples limited hardware choices in their pro machines.

I think it would be more effective to start your own thread.

 

[blackhand1001]

I think it would be more effective to start your own thread.

I was wondering this more becaue it could benefit you not having to switch cards to switch OS's. I don't have a mac pro myself.

 

[10THzMac]

Windows probably OK, OS X not

I have recently put a Zotac 260 in a 2008 Mac Pro alongside an 8800GT and it works happily under Windows Bootcamp using the NVIDIA drivers. I got this very cheap to see if it works, and it does. I am now pondering a 285 or even a 295, but am leaning to the Palit or Novatech 285 cards with 2G RAM.
I will be very surprised if a 285 does not work under Windows.

There are little signs of life from the 260 under OS X. The forums are full of speculation but on my machine 10.5.6 somehow sees the card but cannot use it.

For power I have an external ATX supply sitting on top of the case feeding the two connectors - I have not solved the details of a pure internal power supply solution, partly because with an external supply I can turn of this card separately if there is a conflict, and partly because I might put a 295 in, which needs an 8pin supply.

If I install one of these bigger cards I will let you know what happens.

 

[10THzMac]

Pakit 285 in 08 Mac Pro

My Palit GTX 285 with 2G RAM arrived today and is installed in an 08 Mac Pro. The card runs quiet and is fast running NVIDIA CUDA apps under Windows Bootcamp, alongside an 8800GT.

Only reservation was over fitting the card - was difficult to seat properly. But operation is great (under Windows),

If anyone can tell me how to get power from the optical bay or other area to one of the three PCI power connectors on the 8800/285 that would be a help. I have the necessary motherboard cables but linking to the optical power is a mystery to me still using an external PSU right now.