Will the ATI RADEON HD 3870 512 MB work on Mac Pro

Question

Will the ATI RADEON HD 3870 512 MB work on Mac Pro

I'm configuring my Mac Pro to purchase in the next few days. I was wondering if anyone had the ATI RADEON HD 3870 512 MB install in their Mac Pro(2009). This is my first Mac and want your opinion if I should get the 120 vid card and upgrade to the 3870. I’m looking to do a dual monitor setup , some video editing. What do you guys think?

Mac Pro, Mac OS X (10.5.7)

Posted on May 21, 2009 7:12 AM

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Answer 1

The hatter

Level 9

61,031 points

May 21, 2009 7:26 AM in response to Quicksilver337

GT120 and RAdeon 4870. Or wait for the Nvidia GTX 285 (along with GT120).

Somewhat depends on your monitors, too.

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Answer 2

May 21, 2009 11:41 AM in response to The hatter

I know the 120 and the 4870 are what apple offers but I wanted to get the ATI 3870 from a store becuase it has dual dvi outputs for my setup. Just wanted feed back from someone that is using the ATI 3870. Or should I go with 2 GT120 cards?

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Answer 3

The hatter

Level 9

61,031 points

May 21, 2009 12:32 PM in response to Quicksilver337

Have you looked at threads on 3870? they go back to last summer and also check
http://www.xlr8yourmac.com for reader reports (noise, fan, adding copper).

If you are using 2 displays, any two cards are fine. You have to get the GT120, so unless you want to run two displays off the 3870, doesn't help or matter in the end.

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Answer 4

May 22, 2009 5:18 AM in response to Quicksilver337

Great performing card but I had two and they were both noisy as ****.

Get 4870 and a mini display port adaptor if it's possible.

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Answer 5

May 22, 2009 9:40 AM in response to Quicksilver337

HD 3870 card is excellent at the pro apps like Motion. I have 2 of them and never had a loud noise problem, guess im lucky cos I have read a lot of complaints. I also found it made my mac a little snappier. Works for me!

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Answer 6

May 22, 2009 10:02 AM in response to BROOKLYNTREEZ

No problem with noise from the 3870 here either. Card has been flawless for the 6 months I've had it.

-phil

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Answer 7

May 22, 2009 2:16 PM in response to The hatter

ATI RADEON HD 3870 512MB GDDR4 $195.49 buy.com - install= self 2 DVI for dual monitor setup
-vs-
ATI Radeon HD 4870 512MB GDDR5 $300.00 Mac - install= Mac + Dual-Link DVI Adapter $29.00 = $329.00 + $23.03(tax)= $352.03

Diffrence of $156.54

-vs-

(2X) NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 512MB GDDR3 - install= Mac $150.00

Is the GT 120 good enough for video/picture editing?

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Answer 8

noice_T

Level 3

545 points

May 26, 2009 3:20 AM in response to Quicksilver337

If you need 2 DVIs, and have some time. Just wait for the Nvidia 285 GTX (dropping in june), and be done with it. Granted it is more expensive, $480. But I'll definitely future proof your system over a 3870. Plus with video editing, if at all possible, you don't want to skimp on the graphics card.

On a side note though, if you're doing a custom config for the mac pro online, isn't the 4870 $200? not $300? Budget and performance wise the 4870, I think would be your best bet, especially if you can buy in pre-configured.

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