4870 in a mac pro

connoleg

connoleg

connoleg

Associate
Joined
24 Oct 2008
Posts
22
Hi,
I would like to run a 4870 graphics card in my mac pro for bootcamp to run games. The mac pro has a 8800gt in it at present which I need to keep in for osx as it won't support the 4870. I vaguely understand that I need some sort of power adaptor(s) to power the card. Anybody done this and know where to source the adaptors? I would prefer not to make my own if possible as I don't want to risk blowing the mac! :(

TIA
Gary
 
Power adaptor is from an X1950 I think but you dont NEED the adaptor. People use the adaptor as it keeps everything tidy allowing the GPU to be powered from the motherboard I think, you can just use a molex from the PSU directly to power it :)
 
tsinc80697 said:
Power adaptor is from an X1950 I think but you dont NEED the adaptor. People use the adaptor as it keeps everything tidy allowing the GPU to be powered from the motherboard I think, you can just use a molex from the PSU directly to power it :)
Click to expand...

thanks - I've not seen a 4870 in the flesh, does it require one power connection? Does the molex from the psu plug straight into the card or does a molex to card lead come in the package?
 
Last edited:
Google for : Radeon X1900 Mac G5 Edition

Exactly what you want :) Otherwise check out forums.macrumors.com lots of help there

You can connect it using a cable supplied but in most peoples cases it overloads the 12v rail and wont boot so you need either that cable or one to the molex, not sure what that looks like though!

Im thinking of going from 2600XT to a GTX 260 myself, shouldnt need to upgrade that until I sell the mac pro then!

From macrumors :
Multiple graphics cards can be done, and will operate between OS X and Boot Camp. From what I've seen on the forum, most that have had trouble, resulted from inadequate power supplied to the new card. Some use a 6 pin PCIe power cable, others such as the HD4870 use both the 6 pin and a separate 8 pin PCIe power cable. The card comes with both, but the 6 pin won't work. You wind up trying to draw too much power off the same 12V rail (4 pin flat Molex connector).

You should use a 6 pin to 6 pin cable that attaches to the logic board, along with the 8 pin in the box.

Hope this helps, and good luck.
Click to expand...
 
connoleg said:
rather than spend £800-1000 on a gaming rig I thought I would go this route to have two graphics cards in it, the 8800gt for osx and the 4870 for windows.
Click to expand...
Ahh, I thought you were going to replace the 8800gt, in that case it should work in theory, but I've never seen anyone do it for real so good luck!
 
I think, not 100% but if you have ATI and nvidia there are conflicts in windows and you have to disable one. The bootup screen would be on 1 monitor and then windows would appear on the other

Personally Id get a GTX 260 which works in OSX and Windows as far as macrumors goes by :)
 
But like the 8800GT it will be expensive! I just picked up a second hand 8800GT for £50. Apple want over double that for a new one! Easy to flash yourself:)
 
That was my logic, if i could get a £200 GPU working in my mac pro it would give me some performance increase on the bootcamp-windows side.

Looking at a decent gamer rig would cost around £1000, do the math!! ;)
 
I want a 4870 for games on windoze and if the mac version is resonable (when it comes out) I'd out my 8800gt for that one too and X-fire later on.

Although I'm not going to rule out a gamer rig ;)
 
Last edited:
Not sure if thats the right cable, best asking on macrumors as you'll get a definite answer there! Ive gone for an 8800GT, PC version for £50 second hand. Going to flash it and should work fine in my mac pro, saves me some money on a mac 8800GT!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom