The next Mac Pro should have..................

[m1stake]

It won't matter what the Xeon 5500 series parts, the X58 parts, or any specific board can do. It's in the PCIe specs, and is hardwired into the PCIe controller bus.

Fortunately, the newer versions are/will be backward compatible. So if you manage to get a board that's strictly PCIe 2.0, your PCIe 1.1 cards will still work.

LOL WOW

 

[nanofrog]

LOL WOW

What?

 

[Tallest Skil]

What?

I think he mistook your "PCIe 2.0 is backwards compatible with PCIe 1.1" to mean that you were saying that the X5500 series was backwards compatible with the boards in the current model.

Which, as all three of us know, they are NOT, in the least.

 

[m1stake]

I think we've written the same thing five times

 

[jjahshik32]

Anyways this thread has gone way off topic.

 

[Tallest Skil]

Anyways this thread has gone way off topic.

Oh. It's a good thing we know what the Nehalem Mac Pro will have in terms of hardware, then.

I see nothing off topic here.

 

[nanofrog]

I think we've written the same thing five times

Maybe.
Let's beat the horse some more and make absolutely sure it's dead.

 

[Tallest Skil]

Maybe.
Let's beat the horse some more and make absolutely sure it's dead.

For clarification purposes, let's beat it one FINAL time (and I'll make a post with all the relevant data once we've collaborated it), because I have absolutely no idea what you're all talking about that we've been repeating?

 

[nanofrog]

For clarification purposes, let's beat it one FINAL time (and I'll make a post with all the relevant data once we've collaborated it), because I have absolutely no idea what you're all talking about that we've been repeating?

Let's say the PCIe spec is v 2.0 on a motherboard. The device plugged in one of the slots is a v 1.1. That device will only run at 1.1 speeds, so 250MB/s for each lane.

The slowest data link in the chain sets the speed, no matter if it's the card or the motherboard.

Does this help?

 

[Tallest Skil]

Let's say the PCIe spec is v 2.0 on a motherboard. The device plugged in one of the slots is a v 1.1. That device will only run at 1.1 speeds, so 250MB/s for each lane.

The slowest data link in the chain sets the speed, no matter if it's the card or the motherboard.

Does this help?

Yes. So, what is being said is:

There are no PCIe graphics cards in existence that require data transfer speeds anywhere close to being in excess of PCIe 2.0, so there is no need for PCIe 3.0 at any point in the near future.

Right?

 

[nanofrog]

Yes. So, what is being said is:

There are no PCIe graphics cards in existence that require data transfer speeds anywhere close to being in excess of PCIe 2.0, so there is no need for PCIe 3.0 at any point in the near future.

Right?

Yup.

Not until v 2.0 is saturated @ all 16 lanes.

 

[jjahshik32]

Yes. So, what is being said is:

There are no PCIe graphics cards in existence that require data transfer speeds anywhere close to being in excess of PCIe 2.0, so there is no need for PCIe 3.0 at any point in the near future.

Right?

Wow, this starts to make me think that Nehalem wont be a HUGE upgrade from what the current 8 core xeons offer already.

I feel as if the current mac pro is the best time to buy until a next upgrade.

 

[RobLS]

I want the next Mac Pro to come with wireless as standard. I hate adding that 50$ option.

 

[Tallest Skil]

I want the next Mac Pro to come with wireless as standard. I hate adding that 50$ option.

AH! That's what I forgot (in my other thread)! Thanks!

 

[Rick Here]

Will they add a RAID card with a battery that doesn't slow the system each time it re-conditions?

 

[RobLS]

AH! That's what I forgot (in my other thread)! Thanks!

Lol no prob, I was actually thinking of messaging you to add it there.

 

[hatehereyes]

I want the next Mac Pro to come with wireless as standard. I hate adding that 50$ option.

i picked up a broadcome mini-PCIe wireless card off ebay for a total of $3.60.

works perfectly.

 

[RobLS]

i picked up a broadcome mini-PCIe wireless card off ebay for a total of $3.60.

works perfectly.

But it takes up a slot doesn't it?

 

[nanofrog]

Wow, this starts to make me think that Nehalem wont be a HUGE upgrade from what the current 8 core xeons offer already.

I feel as if the current mac pro is the best time to buy until a next upgrade.

The PCIe slots on a Gainestown board will still run the a current device (v 2.0 or v1.1) at it's rated speed, so long as you have one with enough lanes available.

The only time this will change, is if you place a v 3.0 device in a v 2.0 slot, and it actually saturates it.

Either way, the performance gains acquired from the Nehalem architecture will still be worth it (processor and memory), provided your needs really require such a system.

 

[jjahshik32]

I wish I could get the current mac pro running with my 24" LED ACD. Then I think I would just pick up the current 2.8ghz mac pro and just stick my intel x25-m SSD in it along with 16gb of ram.

 

[m1stake]

Wow, this starts to make me think that Nehalem wont be a HUGE upgrade from what the current 8 core xeons offer already.

I feel as if the current mac pro is the best time to buy until a next upgrade.

It's painfully obvious that Nehalem offers a massive performance increase. There are benchmarks all over the place!

I wish I could get the current mac pro running with my 24" LED ACD. Then I think I would just pick up the current 2.8ghz mac pro and just stick my intel x25-m SSD in it along with 16gb of ram.

Why can't you?

 

[jjahshik32]

It's painfully obvious that Nehalem offers a massive performance increase. There are benchmarks all over the place!



Why can't you?

The 24" LED ACD uses a mini display port and currently there is no way to connect it to the current mac pros, imacs or mac mini.

Only the unibody macbook and macbook pro can hook up to the 24" LED ACD (which is what I currently use) but can use more raw CPU/GPU power.

 

[nanofrog]

The 24" LED ACD uses a mini display port and currently there is no way to connect it to the current mac pros, imacs or mac mini.

Only the unibody macbook and macbook pro can hook up to the 24" LED ACD (which is what I currently use) but can use more raw CPU/GPU power.

Do you already have the 24" LEC ACD?

 

[jjahshik32]

Do you already have the 24" LEC ACD?

Yes, I've had it for about a month now and its the best display I've ever used!

I'm running it in dual monitor mode with my 2.53ghz unibody mbp + intel x25-m (nice little setup and very fast) but I could use more cpu power.

I'm itching to stick the intel x25-m SSD drive in an mac pro either the 2.8ghz 8 core or a nehalem, SSD upgrade is the best upgrade I've ever made in the last 18 years (well next to 3d graphics of course).

 

[m1stake]

1. Buy the dongle
2. Buy Mac Pro
3. ???
4. Profit

There are no PCIe graphics cards in existence that require data transfer speeds anywhere close to being in excess of PCIe 1.1, so there is no need for PCIe 3.0 at any point in the near future.

Fixed, no graphics cards are even particularly close to hitting the 1.1 barrier. It's just a future proofing device more than anything that you could get an immediate benefit out of.