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Will new MAC PRO 2009 (with new intel i7 cpu's) come also with better graphic card ?.
- Thread starter Berko666
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We don't even know that there will be one in Q1 2009.
But we do know that they won't use the 9800 GTX.
The power draw is too high.
Apple doesn't care about gaming.
This is the most likely card selection:
Base: Radeon 3870 or GeForce 9800 GT
Mid: GeForce 9900 GT
Professional: Quadro 5800 (the new one with four gigabytes of RAM)
But we do know that they won't use the 9800 GTX.
The power draw is too high.
Apple doesn't care about gaming.
This is the most likely card selection:
Base: Radeon 3870 or GeForce 9800 GT
Mid: GeForce 9900 GT
Professional: Quadro 5800 (the new one with four gigabytes of RAM)
Mostly about power draw and having a driver they can quickly put together.
For the base card they will still likely hit a 50W Limit for 4 card capability.
Middle card under 150W for dual cards using one aux connector and a high end single card under 200-225W using both aux power connectors.
Unless Apple changes the machine and adds two more aux power connectors.
For the base card they will still likely hit a 50W Limit for 4 card capability.
Middle card under 150W for dual cards using one aux connector and a high end single card under 200-225W using both aux power connectors.
Unless Apple changes the machine and adds two more aux power connectors.
Those aren't base cards they are old midrange cards. Apple have used current graphics cards when they release Mac Pros on new architectures.
The Radeon 4670 is the ideal candidate of current cards for the base slot due to it's very low idle power draw and overall power usage statistics. Which probably means the GTX 260 as the middle option and AMD offering the 4870 3rd party. Though from a performance point of view the 9600GT base and 4870 mid from Apple would be better I think.
The GTX 270 may be the Nvidia card we end up seeing though as it will use the same core as the Quadro FX 4800 and Apple have had a trend so far of using the same core in the midrange and high end quadro offerings (probably so they can use the same drivers). Assuming the GTX 270 is just the GTX 260 on a 55nm process.
There is no 9900GT. There is no rumored 9900GT. It wouldn't make sense to have a 9800GT and a 9900GT (if it existed) as options for the Mac Pro. The performance would be too close. They're the same class.
Currently the 2600 is significantly slower than the 8800; Apple knows this is a good gap in performance (Price on the other hand...
).I agree. The 3870 was a competitor of the 8800GT, both were performance value cards compared to the 8800 Ultra. The 4870 on the other hand competes with the GTX 260. If Nvidia doesn't market a Mac compatible card that competes with the 4870, there will be no reason to buy it.
Unfortunately, I'm not very impressed with anything Nvidia has come out with since the 8 series. The NV 400 series is my best bet for a really solid card: GDDR5, hopefully a die that isn't ridiculously huge, and maybe, just maybe, a performance jump like the 8 series had over the 7 series.
Why won't the savior I'm talking about be the 300 series? It's a rehash/shrink of the 200 series. Great.
I imagine that is the most likely stock card as well if they keep ATI as the standard. I'm just hoping that we get a 4870 either as a CTO option or aftermarket upgrade, not because I have anything against NVIDIA but the ATI drivers still seem to be the best all round option for games and pro apps.
It would be nice but I don't expect that as generally the stock card is half length and low power and the 3870 is full length and needs additional power.
And I believe the reference design uses a 2-slot cooler. No room for 4 cards that way, meaning no 8 displays, and some people need that. Curiously, the 8800GT uses a single-slot fan as well. Which leads me to suspect the 4850 as being its replacement. It fits the bill, middle-to-high end card w/1 slot fan. Price is similar to 8800GTs pricing when the current machine was introduced.
I don't know about the stock card. 3650 is the direct successor, isn't it? The 2600 was a generation old even at release of the MP, so I don't see why they wouldn't do it again. The the 3650 is plenty for people not doing graphics work, and it can drive a 30in display. Why not? Well, it wouldn't be much of a performance boost, and maybe considering Apple's recent dealings with Nvidia, they may want to use another Nvidia part. That would probably wind up being the 9500GT.
For the high end...if they used a pro card, the Quadro FX 5800 makes sense. I can't see them NOT offering a high-end pro card, considering the MPs prominence as a creative professional's workstation. BTW, to whoever said the 8800GT and FX 5600 use the same core, they actually don't. The 8800 uses the G92, the FX 5600 uses the G80.
Their is another option. The X58 will allow for an SLI-capable Mac Pro for the first time. You MIGHT see an option for a second quadro, or possibly an Nvidia card in the mid tier as well (there is no single-slot card with equivalent power though. Maybe a 9800GTX+ or GTX 260, but they are both 2 slot.)
Well, why not?One of the Mac Pro's PCIe slots is double-wide, so that still leaves room for three single-slot cards*- unless, of course, you want four double-slot cards.
Who cares if it means a larger logic board.
Such an ability should exist if Apple wishes to stay ahead of the competition. //OK. Fun over...Back to reality. 
Nope. It will be coincidental if the graphics cards from the Gainestown Mac Pro work in the Harpertown Mac Pro.
Not that I'm saying that Apple will purposely prevent compatibility, they just won't do anything to promote it.
And you can forget about them trying to get anything to work with the 2006 Mac Pro at all.
I remember this thread... 9900 GT...
That's the last time I listen to rumors!... wait...
Non-Apple rumors.
Nope. It will be coincidental if the graphics cards from the Gainestown Mac Pro work in the Harpertown Mac Pro.
Not that I'm saying that Apple will purposely prevent compatibility, they just won't do anything to promote it.
And you can forget about them trying to get anything to work with the 2006 Mac Pro at all.
I remember this thread... 9900 GT...
... wait...
Non-Apple rumors.
IMO this(GPU'S) is the biggest problem with the mac pro line. I was debating on wether to wait for the refresh or to go ahead an just get the current 8 core mac pro. This and the intel nvidia mess are making it hard.
IMO this(GPU'S) is the biggest problem with the mac pro line. I was debating on wether to wait for the refresh or to go ahead an just get the current 8 core mac pro. This and the intel nvidia mess are making it hard.
What nVidia mess? The only chip affected is the 8600M GT. That's a mobile chip, even. It has nothing to do with the Mac Pro.
Last August this rumour came out so maybe the 4870 might have legs:
"Associate report that AMD plans to release the Mac- version of ATI radeon HD 4870 and Radeon HD 4850.
These video card will be used in the working stations mac pro : The only rule apple computers , which use PCI express video card. At the same time according to our associate, MAC do not plan to release the Mac- version with ATI radeon HD 4870 X2 video adapter .
Associate tested the performance of video adapters radeon 4870, Radeon 3870, GeForce 8800 GT and GeForce GTX 280 in boot camp regime . The GTX 280 in the majority of tests proved to be faster than the Radeon HD 4870, But here associate assumes that AMD video adapter is the best selection for Apple, since drivers are internal ON video adapters . ATI radeon 2600 XT and 3870 are optimized for Core image better than comparable in characteristics NVIDIA cards , including GeForce 8800 GT and Quadro FX 5600."
"Associate report that AMD plans to release the Mac- version of ATI radeon HD 4870 and Radeon HD 4850.
These video card will be used in the working stations mac pro : The only rule apple computers , which use PCI express video card. At the same time according to our associate, MAC do not plan to release the Mac- version with ATI radeon HD 4870 X2 video adapter .
Associate tested the performance of video adapters radeon 4870, Radeon 3870, GeForce 8800 GT and GeForce GTX 280 in boot camp regime . The GTX 280 in the majority of tests proved to be faster than the Radeon HD 4870, But here associate assumes that AMD video adapter is the best selection for Apple, since drivers are internal ON video adapters . ATI radeon 2600 XT and 3870 are optimized for Core image better than comparable in characteristics NVIDIA cards , including GeForce 8800 GT and Quadro FX 5600."
Personally, I think the ATI Radeon 4830 would be a viable option as the mid-range card...it's very close in performance to the 4850 but with lower power consumption. (And it uses a single PCI-E six-pin power connector)
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What about compatability with new cinema displays? How will apple accomdate those of us without the fancy new display connection? Forgive my ignorance, but won't we need a graphics card update of some sort?
Irish1978 said:
What about compatability with new cinema displays? How will apple accomdate those of us without the fancy new display connection? Forgive my ignorance, but won't we need a graphics card update of some sort?
The Gainestown Mac Pro is expected to have dual Mini DisplayPort out on its graphics cards. There won't be a dedicated update of cards for current users, but the next Mac Pro should support Apple's displays natively.