Nvidia video card for mac pro
The only thing to make sure of is that the graphics card you intend to use requires 2 x 6-pin power connectors (the MSI Twin FROZR III we use does).įinally, if you can get your hands on an additional Mac-compatible graphics card that doesn’t require external power (such as the GT 120), this will act as a “helper” card, allowing you to see the boot screen and boot OS X even if something isn’t configured correctly. You can usually find 6-pin to 6-pin PCI-E power cables for Macs on eBay, though there are probably other places to get them. However, every Mac Pro motherboard actually has two sockets available in order to power more demanding graphics cards- you just need an additional cable. Basically, almost every Mac Pro ships with a graphics card that uses a single 6-pin PCI-E power cable (that runs from the motherboard to the card). The power issue is less of a concern, particularly if you pick the right graphics card. There are two main issues that make this process tricky: power and software support. You can also use a “Kepler” (6XX) series card too, see our guide for more information. Other cards may work, check the and macrumors forums. What you’ll need – hardwareĪt Mac Gamer, we use the very solid Nvidia GTX 570 (specifically, the MSI Twin FROZR III, not least of all because it runs the quietest of similar cards).
#Nvidia video card for mac pro install
Just install the hardware and you’re good to go. Mountain Lionįor OS 10.8 (and possibly 10.7.5 which shares the same drivers, but we haven’t tested it) onwards, the process is greatly simplified. For this reason, you should hang on to your original graphics card to be able to (temporarily) swap them back as needed. You should of course, have a complete and up-to-date backup before proceeding in any case.Īs the Nvidia cards don’t have an EFI Rom, you’ll be unable to see the boot screen, which means you can’t boot into recovery mode. If you don’t feel comfortable doing this, then please do not proceed. Some of the steps involve messing about with core functionality of the operating system. It takes a bit of tinkering, but the results are well worth it. Fortunately, the folks over at (amongst others) have made some good progress in to making high-end cards from ATI and nVidia work on Mac Pros.
#Nvidia video card for mac pro upgrade
Apple doesn’t really provide any way to upgrade the graphics card beyond what it ships with, which is a real shame. One of the biggest problems with Macs (at least as far as gaming is concerned) is the limited availability for graphics cards.