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MacPro upgrades
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Mac Elite
Join Date: May 2000
Location: northeast PA
Status:
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I haven't owned a Tower since my dual G5 days. I'm thinking about a new or recent Mac Pro and would appreciate any info on cpu and graphics card upgrades?
Example, can you start with a 4 core and upgrade to an 8 core later on? Can you upgrade to faster cpus? What is the graphics card upgrade situation like today? Any 3rd party upgrades?
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Posting Junkie
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: in front of my Mac
Status:
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Mac Elite
Join Date: May 2000
Location: northeast PA
Status:
Offline
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Thanks for the link Simon. The upcoming dual 6-core MacPros seem worth the wait.
But what about upgrades? I remember being extremely disappointed (make that disgusted) that there were no cpu upgrades for my G5 compared to the older G3/G4 Towers. And precious few graphics card upgrades also. Is this still the case with MacPros?
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Los Angeles
Status:
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Joe, regarding your point about being angry that there were no upgrades for the G5s, the G5s were designed to be locked into their originally configurations so that even if you took a 2.3 GHz G5 part and put it in your 2 GHz G5, it would still only run at 2 GHz. Just the way it was, unfortunately.
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"The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground." TJ
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Posting Junkie
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Houston, TX
Status:
Offline
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You can upgrade the CPUs in a Mac Pro; people have done both clockrate and number of core upgrades.
The recent ones may not allow you to add a second chip because they use different daughterboards.
GPU upgrade options are dismal; dated (at least a generation old) and expensive (easily double the price of the PC card).
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Posting Junkie
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: in front of my Mac
Status:
Offline
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Originally Posted by joe 
Thanks for the link Simon. The upcoming dual 6-core MacPros seem worth the wait.
Definitely. Even if the new MPs don't satisfy you, you'll very likely be able to get the current generation for less once the update has arrived.
The writing is on the wall. New MPs are coming soon.
But what about upgrades? I remember being extremely disappointed (make that disgusted) that there were no cpu upgrades for my G5 compared to the older G3/G4 Towers. And precious few graphics card upgrades also. Is this still the case with MacPros?
You can upgrade both the CPUs and the GPU. CPUs are usually limited to the same generation (chipset support). GPU upgrades are available. Selection is limited though and they aren't cheap.
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Mac Elite
Join Date: May 2000
Location: northeast PA
Status:
Offline
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Thanks very much mduell & Simon for the MacPro info. I'm not all that surprised about the graphics card situation. But the possibility of upgrading the cpu down the road is a real benefit.
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Posting Junkie
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Houston, TX
Status:
Offline
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Originally Posted by joe
But the possibility of upgrading the cpu down the road is a real benefit.
Ehh, kind of. Intel rarely has compatibility over more than 1 generation, and the prices of the previous generation stay where they were while the new generation comes in at lower prices/higher speeds. So yes there is some headroom to upgrade if you don't max it out initially, but it remains an expensive upgrade to (then) older parts.
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