Mac Pro (Early 2008) power supply issues

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Mac Pro (Early 2008) power supply issues

My early 2008 Mac Pro tower recently began shutting down unexpectedly not long after going to sleep, and sometimes at other occasions for no given reason. After doing this for a while the computer stopped turning on completely (press the power button, light comes on and fans spin up then shuts down within about 2 seconds). I did some research and saw that a few people have had success dismantling the power supply and blowing the dust out of it and the rest of the case, so I gave it a shot and to my surprise it actually worked! The computer ran fine for about 2 days but started shutting down randomly again and is now back to not even booting. Where do I go from here, spend $300 on a new power supply or what...?

Mac Pro, OS X El Capitan (10.11.5), Early 2008

Posted on May 17, 2016 5:43 AM

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Answer 1

Aug 20, 2016 10:08 PM in response to willrockhopper

Hi willrockhopper, I had the same symptoms on my MacPro 3,1. Had owned the machine for several years and began experiencing random shutdowns and restarts. Replaced the PSU (and cleaned the dust from the fan assemblies, etc.). Since then, have experienced no further symptoms.

You may want to read this thread: http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=1562408

I also found this helpful: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Mac+Pro+First+Generation+Power+Supply+Unit+Replacem ent/32222

The repair is not for the faint of heart, but it's possible to do yourself if you have the correct tools and feel comfortable working on the components in your machine.

Good luck!

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