Jim Dunford
Level 1
(9 points)
Q: Graphics Card upgrade for Mac Pro 3,1
Hi
I've recently bought a Mac Pro 3,1 running El Capitan and desperately needs a graphics card update.
Been looking at an Nvidea GE Force GTX 980 and found one on ebay. Spec as follows:
Nvidia GeForce GTX980 GPU
Tech stuff:
GTX 980 Engine Specs:
2048CUDA Cores
1126Base Clock (MHz)
1216Boost Clock (MHz)
144Texture Fill Rate (GigaTexels/sec)
GTX 980 Memory Specs:
7.0 GbpsMemory Clock
4 GBStandard Memory Config
GDDR5Memory Interface
256-bitMemory Interface Width
224
Display Support:
5120x3200Maximum Digital Resolution*
2048x1536Maximum VGA Resolution
Dual Link DVI-I, HDMI, 3x DisplayPort 1.2 Standard Display Connectors
4 displaysMulti Monitor
YesHDCP
InternalAudio Input for HDMI
GTX 980 Graphics Card Dimensions:
4.376 inchesHeight
10.5 inchesLength
Dual-widthWidth
Couple of questions...
1. I've asked the vendor if is compatible with the Mac (he didn't know the answer). Are they compatible for both mac/pc or is there a version for each? Will this one work in a mac pro 3,1?
2. Will I have to provide an extra power source for this or will the leads already installed suffice?
Many thanks
Mac Pro, iOS 10, 3,1
lllaass
Level 10
(190,896 points)
Yes that will work in a 3.1 based on:
http://www.macvidcards.com/store/p42/Nvidia_GTX_980_4_GB.html
You need 10.10.5 or later.
You do not need an extra power supply but yoo do need Nvidia drivers
http://www.macvidcards.com/drivers.html
If you do not have a card that has it firmware flashed for a Mac you will not see a boot screen so you can't use special startups like Recovery, Option key boot since nothing will be shown on the screen
This place with flash a PC card for a Mac for $180
http://www.macvidcards.com/store/p81/Nvidia_Flashing_Services.html
You will have to install the required drives before exchanging cards. If the existing card does not require use of one of the AUX connectors on the logic voard yo can likl;eu uhave both cards installed
