Level 1

8 points

Processor upgrade 1.1 macpro. is it worth it?

HI

I have a mac pro v.1.1 (2006) with 2x 2ghz core duo (intel 5130) 8gb ram, 4tb HDD.
Past year Mac pro started to be slow, It take too much time to render video, browse Safari, etc, I tried to reinstall Snow leopard and I guess this machine is getting old and Im getting often annoyed, my new macbook pro is faster then this.

Right now I'm thinking to boost the processor speed. On ebay I find good deal for 2x 2.66ghz quad core Intel 5355.

But my question is, is it worth it to upgrade? in comparison 5130 vs 5355? and in 5355 and recent version of quad core?

thanks for help?

Macbook Pro 2ghz, Apple MacPro 2x2.0 GHz Dual Core Xeon, 8 GB RAM, 1.250 TB HD, Mac OS X (10.5.5), 1TB Time capsule, 2TB external HDD,

Posted on Apr 8, 2011 3:25 AM

154 replies

mikecorp Author

Level 1

8 points

Aug 22, 2011 1:37 AM in response to mikecorp

I upgraded the processors,

I got new Ram total at the moment is 22GB

and I have 4x 1TB Samsung HDUJ3

-> I'm thinking to buy 1x SSD, does anybody installed SSD (crucial?) into MP 1.1 I would like to have one in a optical bay (hope it is the right name for it) What kind of SSD MP 1.1 Supports?

On SSD I would run Lion, but does it get faster as they describe in man. specs? 415 read 250 write?

-> how does Lion perform on MP 1.1, is it faster than SL? I do not have the Trackpad, is it worth to get it?

thnx

Aug 22, 2011 1:41 AM in response to mikecorp

yes i have a crucial 128gb ssd in the optical bay runs fine and yes does incerase speed performace. Also a trackpad is well worth the doe i switch it out for a magic mouse and increse workflow for me at least. But, if you get a trakpad i would also installed BetterTouchTool or Jitouch. Those are two there are various more makes the trakpad have even more function

mikecorp Author

Level 1

8 points

Aug 22, 2011 1:45 AM in response to stevefromtempe

which ssd did you get, they have several version m4? does it get all the speed as they say you get?

what else did you have to buy to get it install in Optical bay?

whooops, my bad, I do not have a bluetooth 😠 , hopefully I can find one that works with wifi N.

Aug 22, 2011 1:58 AM in response to mikecorp

I dont know the exact model of it but it does do as advertised grest read and write speeds also boot extremly fast. i dont exaclty how fast the read and right speeds are but when lets say i copy a large .mp4 file at like a gb or 2 it can do 350mbps to 400 mps.. I just did a test with it and it says i can only take 3min to copy a 10gb folder. Also with it being attacth in the optical bay i used this : http://eshop.macsales.com/item/IcyDock/MB982IP1S/. But if you every want to mount more then the ssd you can mount i think up to 4 sata drives in the optical bay then i would recommend this http://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/MM352A52MP8/. Also you will need

One (1) 18″ Serial ATA right angle connector to straight connector cable
One (1) 18″ Serial ATA straight connector to straight connector cable
One (1) 4 Pin Male to 15 Pin Power "Y" 2 Position Cable

But, you should already get these items when you get any sata cab;le but if not this is what you need to buy k hope this helps. Also did have one question for u. When you installed the x5355's Did you or have you every ran a RAID system? With a Apple RAID card or a Software RAID with disk utility?

mikecorp Author

Level 1

8 points

Aug 22, 2011 2:22 AM in response to stevefromtempe

thanks for the info:

I started this thread in April, I upgraded short after, I bought them on ebay, from Germany.

I had 8gb ram before, and I had a Software Raid 0

->After new processors in place the raid volumes, become quite noisy, I heard ticking noise, and vacuum cleaner like sound. I did many tests but not mistakes found, As I had 1.6 TB of data on them, It was pain to repair, and safe the files. I managed at the end, but at the moment, I do not have Software Raid. all drives are fine and no noise.

I was thinking, to get the raid card, but I think it is wiser to wait and buy second hand 2011 model 😉 hopefully with thuderbolt in 2-3 years.

Now I'm worried to proceed with Lion ;( hard decision.

Aug 22, 2011 2:26 AM in response to mikecorp

Ok so r you on lion right now then or not? Also, then they where no software problems with the drives just sounds from the drives?

And i agree once i do this upgrade if the release a new model of mac pro i feel like i wouldnt have to upgrade unless something amazing came about withtthese new machines.

mikecorp Author

Level 1

8 points

Aug 22, 2011 2:36 AM in response to stevefromtempe

I'm still in S.L,, I'm affraid to update, last time when I did that I screwed all my data. I use cs5 a lot and have lots of plugins, So I want to make sure, everything is compatible.

-> no problems with the HDD's I had many software checkups, I used Drive genius 3, and some other tools and benchmarks. The noise was just to loud, I have no idea what happened. Since I took the raid off, no noise at all.

well Octo is fast, I have 22GB ram that is fast, now what ***** is the HDD and my internet connection ;(

Aug 22, 2011 2:44 AM in response to mikecorp

sounds good except the last part about the HDD and internet connection hopefully i just dont run into problems really hope i dont recive any KP's if i do then and i have to S.L. then might have to wait either for lion support or to sell as an octo on S.L.. Who knows until i do the upgarde.

mikecorp Author

Level 1

8 points

Aug 22, 2011 3:22 AM in response to stevefromtempe

I cleaned up the HDD and run the geekbench test. I do not know if 10352 is any good, but before with 2x2ghz I had only 4716.

What have you got?

Aug 22, 2011 3:25 AM in response to mikecorp

um i have around 6000 without the cpu upgrade. hope to get to where your at if not higher. But i am going from 2.66ghz Quad Core to 2.66 Octo core

Aug 22, 2011 8:38 AM in response to mikecorp

Hello Mac Pro upgraders,

Long-time reader, first-time poster.

Does anyone know whether the "QWTH" version of the X5365 will work for this upgrade?

Thanks in advance for any help.

mikecorp Author

Level 1

8 points

Aug 22, 2011 11:58 AM in response to stevefromtempe

just had a Safari crash in 7.1 when I wrote you a message.

I risked it and updated today. I had several glitches so make sure you avoid them.

1- got error during install and reboot, NTFS tuxera did not work anymore. Solution -> Upgrade all OTHER system preferences!!!!

2-About this mac will show you Unknown Processor, App "about this mac 2" did not work for me. Solution -> Find the kext utility described by Harryb bit earlier in this discussion. Works after restart.

3-I had several crashes of Safari, Mail but not a big concern

4- I run the geekbench after 7.1 upgrade. ;( well do not know what it means, but my score is less then before.

mikecorp Author

Level 1

8 points

Aug 22, 2011 12:07 PM in response to brettallica

no Idea, I was searching for 5365 SLAEG, but no luck new were too expensive. I bought 5355 and works great.

Aug 22, 2011 1:14 PM in response to mikecorp

was there any kernal panics? If not could you please descrebe more in detail on how to fix those three problems

harryb

Level 1

30 points

Aug 22, 2011 2:46 PM in response to mikecorp

OWC strongly recommend TRIM be not enabled with their Mercury Extreme SSD as they use Sandforce 'garbage collection' to keep the drive in tip top condition. Regarding the CPU's appearing as unknown, look up this link:-

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=865267&page=2

Go to post number 40, and then download the 'Download 1.1' file and the kext utility file. Open the Download 1.1 and drag to the desktop the CPUInjector.fle, double click and open the Kext Utility. I box like icon appears, and drag the CPUInjector file and drop onto the box. Apple System Profiler will then read 'Processor 2 x 2.66GHz Quad-Coore Intel Xeon'.

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Processor upgrade 1.1 macpro. is it worth it?