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Level 1

32 points

Which graphic card for Mojave on Mac Pro 5,1 (mid 2010)?

Hello,

which graphic card for Mojave on Mac Pro 5,1 (mid 2010)/3,33 GHz 6-Core Intel Xeon, do you suggest?

This is a machine only for photography and video editing work, using Da Vinci Resolve, Premiere, Affinity Photo, Affinity Designer, DPP4 and the Mac OS? I don´t play games with this machine.

Install macOS 10.14 Mojave on Mac Pro (Mid 2010) and Mac Pro (Mid 2012) - Apple Support

I know there is this compatible graphic cards list but, this a piece of hardware I don´t know nothing about.

The main reason to upgrade is, apart from the new Mojave OS, that I am experiencing image problems with my work (posterization, banding, rendering problems, etc).

I guess my graphic card is becoming too old for my RAW photos and HD video editing.

More memory will help too so, I will also upgrade RAM memory in order to keep using this machine, that I like very much its design and architecture, a couple more years.

Thanks in advance for all your help.

Kind regards.

Mac Pro, macOS High Sierra (10.13.6), Eizo CG241W

Posted on Nov 10, 2018 4:14 PM

Best reply

Grant Bennet-Alder

Level 10

127,555 points

Posted on Nov 10, 2018 7:29 PM

Although Apple doesn’t publish a list of which ones work and which ones don’t,

Um, yes they do:

Make sure that your graphics card works with Mojave

Next, check to see if the graphics card in your Mac Pro is compatible. You can use System Information to find out which graphics card your Mac has:

Press and hold the Option key while choosing Apple () menu > System Information.

In the sidebar, select Graphics/Displays. If your graphics card is compatible, you see "Supported" next to the Metal entry. You can also note the name of your graphics card and see if it's in the list below.

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

Some other third-party graphics cards* based on the following AMD GPU families might also be compatible with macOS Mojave on Mac Pro (Mid 2010) and Mac Pro (Mid 2012):

AMD Radeon RX 560

AMD Radeon RX 570

AMD Radeon RX 580

AMD Radeon Pro WX 7100

AMD Radeon RX Vega 56

AMD Radeon RX Vega 64

AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100

AMD Radeon Frontier Edition

If the graphics card in your Mac Pro isn't listed above, you need to install one that's compatible with macOS Mojave. If you need additional help, contact Apple Support.

* Third-party graphics cards vary, so you should check with the vendor of your specific graphics card for compatibility details.

from:

the article cited above,

Install macOS 10.14 Mojave on Mac Pro (Mid 2010) and Mac Pro (Mid 2012) - Apple Support

Cards based on the same Big Chips will work, BUT:

List of approved graphics cards is shown in the article, but not the footnotes:

• If you need "boot-up screens" you will need a Mac-edition card, or a specially-flashed card. Others will show their first picture at the USER login screen.

• FileVault encryption of the Boot drive is therefore NOT supported for ANY graphics cards, since you would have to enter the FileVault login on a dark screen in some cases.

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30 replies

Johnb-one

Level 6

9,156 points

Nov 12, 2018 1:13 PM in response to ateliercunha

Yeah... the rx 580 should be fine. If Apple says it works with mojave, or high sierra , good enough for me...what Grant B-A said is also true. Performance is good enough, and i’m ok with it. ( the 7950) But if you can find one, any one that does the job fine, that Apple says is ok, or is listed as mac compatible, and it doesn’t break the bank, then go for it!!

Just my opinion

John b

ateliercunha Author

Level 1

32 points

Nov 12, 2018 2:20 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I'm not sure I understand this. You mean the Mac on boot does not show the usual grey screen with the progress bar and the grey apple logo? So what about the user name and password screen? Sorry for my ignorance.

;-(

Nov 12, 2018 2:28 PM in response to ateliercunha

You mean the Mac on boot does not show the usual grey screen with the progress bar and the grey apple logo?

Exactly. The screen stays blank. and also Installer, Safe mode, Alt/Option boot screens -- blank.

So what about the user name and password screen?

The first screen you see is the username and password login screen, because it occurs the moment after the Driver loads.

Nov 12, 2018 2:44 PM in response to ateliercunha

The cards work great once you get the driver loaded and see the login screen.

I am more like a developer than an editor. I am always switching disks and systems and logging in differently and installing different stuff (and yes, breaking things). So for me, a card that can't show the Alt/Option boot screen is not very useful.

But if your work is straightforward and you are not frequently switching things around, you may be able to save money by using with a card with no boot screens.

Nov 12, 2018 5:35 PM in response to ateliercunha

No boot screens limits what you can do if everything goes bad at once. You may have to re-Install an old card to debug and get things back on track. That is a little bit inconvenient, but may be tolerable.

How much is the price difference for cards that you like with and without?

Nov 13, 2018 6:25 AM in response to ateliercunha

I contacted Sapphire Customer Support and they reply "The RX 580 does not support MAC OS".

I guess this is their "official" reply because this a PC card. What is your opinion?

That is their official reply because it does not have Mac firmware on board. I think you are correct, and are making the case for saving 300 Euro but putting up with no boot screens.

ateliercunha Author

Level 1

32 points

Nov 13, 2018 7:05 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Thank a lot Grant for your words. I guess I will live well without the boot screen.

Two last doubts; please:

1. will I be able to turn on the Mac in Recovery Mode (Cmd+R)?

2. will I be able to keep using the Mac Pro DVD to perform the Hardware Tests that helped me find this problem?

Thank you .-)

ateliercunha Author

Level 1

32 points

Nov 14, 2018 3:22 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I know that I have marked this matter as resolved and again thank you for all your help but allow me to return to it; is there any way to get Boot Screens back without being reinstalled on the machine, the old graphics card, in case of problems? Any remote or other way to access or generate Boot Screens for diagnostic testing and troubleshooting? Thank you.

Nov 18, 2018 5:36 AM in response to ateliercunha

If there were a way to get boot screens, there would be no difference between the cards. No one is holding out on you.

To get Boot screens, buy the safe choices -- a "Mac-Edition" card. Second choice is where the vendor promises that their flashing of the card provides some or all of the boot screens. If you trust them, that is a good second choice.

Nov 13, 2018 10:53 AM in response to ateliercunha

No and no.

are those worth 300 Euros? only you can decide.

ateliercunha Author

Level 1

32 points

Nov 12, 2018 2:34 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

Thank you, Grant.

So for a regular use of the Apple system the only drawback is not seeing the usual startup screens?

Does everything else in the system work normally?

ateliercunha Author

Level 1

32 points

Nov 12, 2018 3:01 PM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

I turn on my Mac every morning, open the photo/video editing programs, the OS apps and do my work. At the end of the day I turn off the Mac. This is my normal routine .-)

Do I need boot screens?