Upgrading old Mac Pro to 8800 GT graphics?

[snugharbor]

Well, the man said the problem was being worked (not worked on). That's one way of working the problem, ignoring it until it goes away. Seriously, even if that card shows up, it'll likely be the last card for the old Mac Pros. So slim pickings anyway.

The "checks in the mail" has been stated on January 20th, when the upgrade was "a few weeks away" said the NVIDIA PR director. I will buy stock if there is a card available even by May 1st. I think on May 1st we will still be saying, soon....soon....the "checks (card) is in the mail (available).

SH

 

[SolidShadow]

To be honest, if I had known about all this a year ago when buying my mac initially, I would have bought a normal PC and installed a hacked copy of OSX and have whatever video card i wanted (almost). Sad that I have to 'steal' OS X to get what I should be getting as opposed to paying for it legit. I've been thinking of getting an X1900 XT as well and 'be done with' but I'm wondering how the card performs at 1920x1200 resolutions in counter strike source and Half Life 2 episode 2. I know the 8800GT will do just fine at max settings.

Understood. I've had similar thoughts about my next system in a few years. It all depends on what happens between now and then. I came very very close to an imac this time around because I wanted to save money and buy a new computer sooner, but I got swept up in the upgradability talk and spent more for something to last longer.

For the record, I'm not an overly demanding guy. One good upgrade would be fine for me in an upgradable machine. I don't expect Apple to continue to support a unit years after. But this machine was bought late last summer. One good graphics upgrade is all I want and I'll be perfectly happy.

 

[Colossus]

I was swept up with the upgrade hype as well. When I purchased the MP from the Apple Store they said a new card for this machine is coming. I would be happy with one upgrade as well. As for some of the people intrested in what are we doing that we need a new card for is none of their business and if you dont want people to have a new card then stop responding to this thread.

 

[dreamof3d]

> Upgrading old Mac Pro to 8800 GT graphics?

I could wait if the Ati card worked properly in Linux. I used to have major problems booting into Vista 64. Red & blue vertical stripes, artifacts everywhere...the only fix was to shut down the machine, have a smoke or something, the boot into windows. Always in fear of a Windoz program asking to re-boot to complete an install. LOL. By mistake, I found a firmware upgrade for the ailing Ati card, 8 months after I told customer care I had issues. They told me since it was only when I booted Windows, they weren't responsible.
Nice plan for $300 something bucks.
Now, Windows and Mac work perfect, but Linux with Open GL enabled, the card sounds like a damn F-16 with full afterburners. Seems like the video is stable, but somehow I think it's cooking under Linux.
Friday, I managed to talk to a supervisor at Nvidia@the California plant, and they told me it's in Apple's hands, not there's. They just make the GPU, and Apple makes the product work with their specific machines. What a joke to go through to upgrade "Apple's most upgradeable machine" God help me......

 

[MacFanBoyIIe]

Friday, I managed to talk to a supervisor at Nvidia@the California plant, and they told me it's in Apple's hands, not there's. They just make the GPU, and Apple makes the product work with their specific machines. What a joke to go through to upgrade "Apple's most upgradeable machine" God help me......

If nVidia says it's up to Apple, then why did nVidia's PR nerd open his mouth?

I'd like to shove my 7300 up his arse.

 

[ungraphic]

If nVidia says it's up to Apple, then why did nVidia's PR nerd open his mouth?

I'd like to shove my 7300 up his arse.

but isnt that generally how its always been? nvidia makes the chip and the rest are just rebranded; xfx, asus, bfg, and APPLE?

It is apple's fault, completely, nvidia doesnt make macs nor are they obligated to provide mac compatible components, that is apple's responsibility and they failed big time. and if they didnt fail, they lied about the upgradability. i persnoally, dont care how great a machine is initially. if i cant add to it, i will never bother with it, hence why i would *never* buy an imac or pay more than 1k on a laptop, they become bricks after a year and this is nearly the case with the mac pro for graphic purposes, and with that said......anyone buying a mac pro is usually somehow involved in media content. For apple to pull this kind of stunt is not only stupid, it is unforgivable seeing how they boast about macs being such great media computers.

 

[pipomolo42]

If nVidia says it's up to Apple, then why did nVidia's PR nerd open his mouth?

My guess would be: Apple is NVidia's customer. NVidia provides hardware, software and sells licenses, but some other supplier of Apple builds the hardware and finally Apple sells it (or decides not to, in this case).

Here, it's hard to tell whose fault it is. Nvidia definitely provided a 64bit only driver. Question is why ? Did Apple just "forget" to instruct Nvidia to provide them a solution compatible with the older Mac Pros ? did Nvidia raise this issue to them ? Did Nvidia fail to deliver a better solution, and gave no other choice to Apple ? Did none of them care about it ?

 

[ungraphic]

My guess would be: Apple is NVidia's customer. NVidia provides hardware, software and sells licenses, but some other supplier of Apple builds the hardware and finally Apple sells it (or decides not to, in this case).

Here, it's hard to tell whose fault it is. Nvidia definitely provided a 64bit only driver. Question is why ? Did Apple just "forget" to instruct Nvidia to provide them a solution compatible with the older Mac Pros ? did Nvidia raise this issue to them ? Did Nvidia fail to deliver a better solution, and gave no other choice to Apple ? Did none of them care about it ?

nvidia would only deliver what would be required by them to deliver for apple.

its apples request to get a mac compatible product from its suppliers.

do you really believe that apple would overlook its compatibility with 'older' mac pros? i really, REALLY doubt that.

 

[Colossus]

Yes, and they did. That's why this forum was created. Very interesting that Apple has deleted almost all of their forums regarding this topic. Apple has been caught with their pants down.

Do you really believe that apple would overlook its compatibility with 'older' mac pros? i really, REALLY doubt that.

 

[ungraphic]

Yes, and they did. That's why this forum was created. Very intresting that Apple has deleted almost all of their forums regarding this topic. Apple has been caught with their pants down.

Did they really hide threads about people complaining that they got robbed for not having a graphics card upgrade such as the geforce 8800?

If so, that sounds like something a scientologist would do.

 

[Colossus]

Some of the threads that were blocked weren't complaining and nor were they malicious. They were mostly just asking questions about what are the other alternatives and those threads were locked down. There are couple of people (maybe more) that were blocked from Apple's forums site due to this topic.

Did they really hide threads about people complaining that they got robbed for not having a graphics card upgrade such as the geforce 8800?

If so, that sounds like something a scientologist would do.

 

[giantrobot]

Some of the threads that were blocked weren't complaining and nor were they malicious. They were mostly just asking questions about what are the other alternatives and those threads were locked down. There are couple of people (maybe more) that were blocked from Apple's forums site due to this topic.

At one point, there was a very large thread dedicated to this topic that dwarfed every other thread on the board much like this one. That thread and a few similar threads all disappeared suddenly from the support site. No official word why.

 

[lampliter]

Where is the proof

Guys I have been following this 8800 issue closely because I would love to get an upgrade from my 7300.Alot of people in these forms say the upgrade is coming because nvidia and steve jobs have said so.I can`t for the life of me find these replies from either of these companies.The only thing I can find is that someone said steve jobs e-mailed them and said its being worked on and someone else said that someone from nvidia is talking care of it. I can`t believe that this is what everyone is basing this on.Alot are saying that a company like apple would never come out and give a response to an issue such as this,so why is it we are to believe that steve jobs is personally informing us on the issue.Sorry I find that hard to wrap my head around.So could someone show me something more sensible to the upgrade issue.I am not trying to be sarcastic here I would just like to make a decision on what I am going to do with my mac pro.

 

[Colossus]

I am not surprised. I cannot figure out why Apple would delete those threads. I think they're covering their tracks, due to possible legal action might take place. Apple being petty.

At one point, there was a very large thread dedicated to this topic that dwarfed every other thread on the board much like this one. That thread and a few similar threads all disappeared suddenly from the support site. No official word why.

 

[Colossus]

Been dealing with the same run around myself. All I have seen is one person 'name withheld' that has submitted an email to Engadget. Then Engadget has posted the article. There is a lot of people here with false hopes and/or they have privy information. All in all I think some of these people are pretentious and trying to get a rise out of the individuals that want the upgrade. They remind of the annoying kid with the ball in grade school.

Guys I have been following this 8800 issue closely because I would love to get an upgrade from my 7300.Alot of people in these forms say the upgrade is coming because nvidia and steve jobs have said so.I can`t for the life of me find these replies from either of these companies.The only thing I can find is that someone said steve jobs e-mailed them and said its being worked on and someone else said that someone from nvidia is talking care of it. I can`t believe that this is what everyone is basing this on.Alot are saying that a company like apple would never come out and give a response to an issue such as this,so why is it we are to believe that steve jobs is personally informing us on the issue.Sorry I find that hard to wrap my head around.So could someone show me something more sensible to the upgrade issue.I am not trying to be sarcastic here I would just like to make a decision on what I am going to do with my mac pro.

 

[antzona]

Guys I have been following this 8800 issue closely because I would love to get an upgrade from my 7300.Alot of people in these forms say the upgrade is coming because nvidia and steve jobs have said so.I can`t for the life of me find these replies from either of these companies.The only thing I can find is that someone said steve jobs e-mailed them and said its being worked on and someone else said that someone from nvidia is talking care of it. I can`t believe that this is what everyone is basing this on.Alot are saying that a company like apple would never come out and give a response to an issue such as this,so why is it we are to believe that steve jobs is personally informing us on the issue.Sorry I find that hard to wrap my head around.So could someone show me something more sensible to the upgrade issue.I am not trying to be sarcastic here I would just like to make a decision on what I am going to do with my mac pro.

It is odd that there has been no official comment from either party involved. The only reason I can come up with is that they are embarrassed of the blunder. I want to believe that they are working on this and we will get a card. Like I said, I did receive an email from Steve Jobs saying nVidia was working on the card and they aren't done yet. I am hoping that he (or his assistant) was being honest and it is actually being worked on. All we have to work with is a vague comment from a "PR rep" from nVidia and a couple emails from Steve Jobs. That makes me nervous, and I wish we had some real news. I'm just going to trust that his email was accurate and they are handling the issue in their normal secretive manner.

 

[antzona]

Been dealing with the same run around myself. All I have seen is one person 'name withheld' that has submitted an email to Engadget. Then Engadget has posted the article. There is a lot of people here with false hopes and/or they have privy information. All in all I think some of these people are pretentious and trying to get a rise out of the individuals that want the upgrade. They remind of the annoying kid with the ball in grade school.

Not sure I totally understand your post, but I was the one who emailed engadget and then they posted the article. I am just trying to track down as much information as possible since Apple and nVidia aren't providing any. I emailed engadget hoping that having some media coverage of the issue might prompt a response from Apple. All it got was a supposed message from nVidia's PR. I hope that our hopes are not false and that they come through with a card. The only people who remind me of the kid with the ball in grade school are the ones who don't care about this issue but continue to post in this thread trying to make us shut up, and telling us to get over it, it's just a video card.

 

[Colossus]

That's was my point. I think they're jealous because this thread is bigger than theirs, LOL. I do a lot of high-end design work and would appreciate an upgrade option. I am here to show my support for those who want a new video card for their older MP. Would be awesome if we all have the same mindset. I have learned a lot since I joined and participated in this thread

The only people who remind me of the kid with the ball in grade school are the ones who don't care about this issue but continue to post in this thread trying to make us shut up, and telling us to get over it, it's just a video card.

 

[Frozonecold]

but isnt that generally how its always been? nvidia makes the chip and the rest are just rebranded; xfx, asus, bfg, and APPLE?

It is apple's fault, completely, nvidia doesnt make macs nor are they obligated to provide mac compatible components, that is apple's responsibility and they failed big time. and if they didnt fail, they lied about the upgradability. i persnoally, dont care how great a machine is initially. if i cant add to it, i will never bother with it, hence why i would *never* buy an imac or pay more than 1k on a laptop, they become bricks after a year and this is nearly the case with the mac pro for graphic purposes, and with that said......anyone buying a mac pro is usually somehow involved in media content. For apple to pull this kind of stunt is not only stupid, it is unforgivable seeing how they boast about macs being such great media computers.

I too am annoyed that there is no 8800GT for my 3 Month old Mac Pro, but I am hoping that it is indeed in the works. But I completely disagree with some of your comments. I have a 1 1/2 year old iMac and it is far from a brick. If I didn't buy my Mac Pro I would be using it for my graphic work without any complaints.

 

[jemo07]

I too am annoyed that there is no 8800GT for my 3 Month old Mac Pro, but I am hoping that it is indeed in the works. But I completely disagree with some of your comments. I have a 1 1/2 year old iMac and it is far from a brick. If I didn't buy my Mac Pro I would be using it for my graphic work without any complaints.

What? I am annoyed as hell that my 3 moth old MP will be a brick! I can't run my filter on my photos no faster that some can with the New Mac Book Pro! and I bought it with the X1900XT. After the fiasco of having to return two cards, I went back to the 7300 which as I mention makes my system no faster than a MBP!

Trust me, if I could have done my work with my MBP, I would have never bought the MP in the first case. This is becoming a real disappointment for me to have bought into the Mac and OSX, now if I want to move back to Windows, I would have to spend lots of $$$ just to get the OS and SW to meet my needs, not to mention the wasted time in Automator Scripts and Aperture workflow! C'mon Apple, gives an upgrade already.

 

[Frozonecold]

To be honest the X1900XT is fine for my needs as the 8800gt is sucky for pro apps. I am more annoyed about the better memory controller that is in the new Mac Pros.

 

[lampliter]

Hi again guys,my post wasnt meant to say that the people with the info on the steve jobs e-mail where wrong(I appreciate your efforts)Im just saying I dont believe it is acctually jobs himself,like I said if apple would never comment on such a problem than it makes no sence that jobs is personally talking to us about it,I would like to believe but theres no substance to the story,unless you know him personally or something and then we can only take your word.I guess the only thing that we have is that you have contact with jobs himself.Can you confirm it is actually him,I would just like to know before know before I get rid of this thing.Thanks

 

[dreamof3d]

Frozencold said,"To be honest the X1900XT is fine for my needs as the 8800gt is sucky for pro apps. I am more annoyed about the better memory controller that is in the new Mac Pros."
Is this true? Applications like Maya,Aperture,FCP,Modo,Cinnema4d, etc won't get any benefit's over the x1900 ? I thouhjt I once saw a thread about the card being a disappointment for Mac apps. that use Open GL.
I was hoping to upgrade as well. Actually I'm not too far from a new machine with 2.8 dual quads, 6 gig ram, and the 8800gt. Guess I'd better start strangling the piggy bank if this card only benifits "gamers" I have some cool games, but it sounds like pro app users need a Quaddro set-up.

 

[jjahshik32]

Frozencold said,"To be honest the X1900XT is fine for my needs as the 8800gt is sucky for pro apps. I am more annoyed about the better memory controller that is in the new Mac Pros."
Is this true? Applications like Maya,Aperture,FCP,Modo,Cinnema4d, etc won't get any benefit's over the x1900 ? I thouhjt I once saw a thread about the card being a disappointment for Mac apps. that use Open GL.
I was hoping to upgrade as well. Actually I'm not too far from a new machine with 2.8 dual quads, 6 gig ram, and the 8800gt. Guess I'd better start strangling the piggy bank if this card only benifits "gamers" I have some cool games, but it sounds like pro app users need a Quaddro set-up.

I believe barefeats does indeed test the HD 2600 vs. 8800gt on pro apps and the hd 2600 does have better benchmarks.
But expect a new update for the nvidia 8800gt in a 1-2 months time for it to far exceed the HD 2600 card.

 

[knome]

I believe barefeats does indeed test the HD 2600 vs. 8800gt on pro apps and the hd 2600 does have better benchmarks.
But expect a new update for the nvidia 8800gt in a 1-2 months time for it to far exceed the HD 2600 card.

There is no way that is possible. The 2600 isn't even in the same class as the 8800. Its designed as a replacement/competitor to the 7300 and an 8600 in pc. The 8800 even beats the 1900 by like 80%. Unless there is a HUGE driver issue with the 8800 or pro aps are ridiculously lopsided then its not possible.