Mac Pro (mid-2012)

Question

Level 2

289 points

Mac Pro (mid-2012)

I have a Mac Pro (mid-2012 version) currently running High Sierra (Mac OS X 10.13.6). I am told that if I upgrade to a "metal capable" graphics card, I can upgrade to Mojave and then Catalina.

Here are the graphics card recommendations made by Apple:

"These specific third-party graphics cards are Metal-capable and compatible with macOS Mojave on Mac Pro (Mid 2010) and Mac Pro (Mid 2012):

MSI Gaming Radeon RX 560 128-bit 4GB GDRR5
SAPPHIRE Radeon PULSE RX 580 8GB GDDR5
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 7950 Mac Edition
NVIDIA Quadro K5000 for Mac
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 Mac Edition"

My question is, which of these 5 graphics cards would you recommend and why? Would installing one of these cards cause any unintended issues?

Also, I use an Apple Cinema Display (23 inch). Again, would the new graphics card be compatible with my existing monitor?

I would welcome any informed opinions.

Thank you.

Mac Pro, macOS 10.13

Posted on Jan 30, 2020 8:01 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Best reply

Eau Rouge

Level 8

42,554 points

Jan 31, 2020 12:58 AM in response to Craig Kaplan

First thing is that if you buy a Metal capable graphics card you will only be able to upgrade to macOS Mojave.

macOS Catalina does not officially support the 2012 Mac Pro. See the screenshot below.

It would be recommended to get a graphics card that is a Mac edition or has been 'flashed' for Mac,

these cards have the mac boot efi which allows you to see the start up screens and the Startup Manager.

If you decide to buy a PC card it will work fine but you will not get those boot screens so hold on to any mac

graphics card you have even if it is not 'Metal' it is useful if you ever need to do trouble shooting and need to see

those boot screens and Startup Manager. Keep a copy of an older OS on the mac for similar reasons.

My MacPro has an Nvidia GTX680 Mac Edition running a 23inch Cinema Display and a Sony 4k UHDR TV.

The 23inch Cinema Display uses a DVI connection so look for that on the graphics card otherwise adapters

will be necessary.

This may be of interest, https://www.pro-tools-expert.com/production-expert-1/2018/6/12/how-do-you-find-mojave-compatible-graphics-cards-for-cheese-grater-apple-mac-pro-51-computers

Reply

Answer 2

Craig Kaplan Author

Level 2

289 points

Feb 12, 2020 4:44 AM in response to Eau Rouge

OK, I ordered and installed the new Graphics Card. Here is what About this Mac now says:

Mac Pro (Mid 2012)

Processor 3.2 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon

Memory 32 GB 1066 MHz DDR3

Startup Disk Macintosh HD

Graphics NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 2048 MB

Serial Number XXXXXXXXXXXX

And, when I look at the System Report under Graphics/Displays, I get:

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680:

Chipset Model: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680

Type: GPU

Bus: PCIe

Slot: Slot-1

PCIe Lane Width: x16

VRAM (Dynamic, Max): 2048 MB

Vendor: NVIDIA (0x10de)

Device ID: 0x1180

Revision ID: 0x00a2

ROM Revision: 3731

Metal: Supported, feature set macOS GPUFamily1 v3

Displays:

Cinema Display:

Display Type: LCD

Resolution: 1680 x 1050 (Widescreen Super eXtended Graphics Array Plus)

UI Looks like: 1680 x 1050

Framebuffer Depth: 24-Bit Color (ARGB8888)

Main Display: Yes

Mirror: Off

Online: Yes

Rotation: Supported

Automatically Adjust Brightness: No

So, the new graphics card is definitely "metal capable" and is on the approved list of cards that support the installation of Mojave on this machine.

My question to the group is, will the installation of Mojave cause any unexpected issues on this platform? Are there a significant number of apps that run fine on High Sierra that will no longer run on Mojave?

Are there any other things I should do before attempting to install Mojave? I am planning to do a full backup of my startup disk before the installation.

Will I see any performance degradation on Mojave (vs. High Sierra)?

My reason for upgrading to Mojave is to extend the life of this machine by running an OS that will be supported by Apple longer.

Any hints from individuals who have been through this process on a legacy MacPro would be appreciated.

Thank you, in advance.

Reply

Answer 3

Craig Kaplan Author

Level 2

289 points

Jan 31, 2020 11:40 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

While Apple may not support the installation of Catalina on this machine, the vendor states that with this graphics card installed, the Mac Pro (mid-2012) can definitely be upgraded to Catalina with no concerns. Also the Mactracker app for IOS states that this machine can be upgraded to the "Latest release of macOS with a recommended Metal-capable graphics card". This would also seem to support the ability to install Catalina on this upgraded machine. Just thought you would like to know.

Reply

Answer 4

Jan 31, 2020 6:07 PM in response to Craig Kaplan

I said above:

The Mac Pro 2010-2012 model is not officially supported for Catalina regardless of what upgrades you make to it.

I stand by what I wrote.

Un-Aided Apple Installer will not install it, because it is not supported.

Reply

Answer 5

Craig Kaplan Author

Level 2

289 points

Jan 31, 2020 6:19 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I clearly said "While Apple may not support the installation of Catalina...". All I meant to convey to the group was that these machines are capable of running Catalina once upgraded. This was meant to impart information to the group.

I, too, stand by what I wrote.

Reply