Mac Pro Video Card

[robwillett]

I am wondering if any of you can suggest a good card for gaming on a Mac Pro Quad Core.

I have heard good things about the Radeon x1900 XTX. Anyone have any feedback regarding this card?

Can anyone suggest another?

 

[Geeky1]

Assuming you're not willing to flash (and in some cases, physically modify) PC video cards, you're stuck with the X1900 that's offered with the machine as the only half acceptable choice. And I'm not sure you'd do any better if you WERE willing to flash a PC card... I haven't looked into flashing cards for a while and I don't know if anyone has beaten the Macs into submitting to running a GeForce 7x00 or 8x00 series card (of which only the 7950s and the 8800s would be faster than the x1900).

 

[mac57]

I just posted this in another thread for a different reason, but beware of the noise that the x1900 produces:

http://architosh.com/features/2007/reviews/aticard/aticard_1.html

For me, that would be a showstopper.

Further, if you ever plan to dual boot Linux on this machine, you will find the nVidia card to be the better bet. Linux support is much better with it.

 

[Geeky1]

Indeed, the x1900 is noisier than the 7300 by far (as I posted in reply to your post in the other thread, mac57 ), HOWEVER, the 7300 is TOTALLY USELESS for playing any game made in the past several years. It might as well be a boat anchor for all of the 3D processing power it possesses.

While the x1900 is noisy (but ONLY during gaming or other GPU-intensive tasks), the 7300 is **not** an option for gaming unless you're looking to play stuff that was cutting edge in 2002 or 2003. The gory technical details and reasons why can be found here:
http://www.gpureview.com/show_cards.php?card1=431&card2=377

 

[robwillett]

mac57,

that article was a good read. It seems that the cooling unit for the x1900 is a great option for those bothered by the noise.

I really appreciate the feedback guys. Have any of you played WoW on a mac pro using the x1900 vs the original 7300gt.

I am thinking very serious about an upgrade & I am wondering what kind of difference I can expect.

 

[Geeky1]

What resolution and detail settings would you be looking to run?

 

[robwillett]

I currently have a mac pro with 3 gigs of ram. I am running the 30" display on 2560 X 1600.

 

[Geeky1]

Get the x1900. End of story, no questions asked.

Be aware that if you already have a machine and are looking to upgrade the card, if you don't have Apple do it (or an Apple authorized service provider) you may void the warranty on the machine. However, there may not be any evidence of this... depends on if Apple has a tamper evident sticker on the card and slot or not.

Regardless... if noise is an issue I can show you how to quiet down the X1900 (again, at the expense of the warranty-this time on the card and/or computer, depending on if you're upgrading an existing machine or buying a new one-though if you keep the stock heatsink you can put it back on and nobody will ever know) for very little money and without spending a great deal of time.

 

[robwillett]

Does ATI make a version of this card with 512 on board memory?

I found this one on apple store... http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?mco=7E4EB91E&nplm=TL142LL/A

but its only 256.

*Edit*

Nevermind. I have found the XT.

 

[robwillett]

I am concered about this cards negative reviews from apple store buyers.

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore?spart=MA631Z%2FB

Anyone here had any issues with this card over heating and/or displaying "green pixels" and/or making "odd flashing geometry."

 

[Geeky1]

The card will not overheat if it was put together properly; the stock cooling system may do a VERY good impression of a hairdryer, and it may not be as effective as an aftermarket heatsink, but it will do the job. As far as the pixels/geometry issues go, that would be artifacting. Generally this is caused by one or more of the following things:
-GPU clocked too high (when overclocking)
-VRAM clocked too high (when overclocking)
-Failing GPU (unlikely, but possible)
-Failing VRAM (more likely than the GPU packing it in, in my experience)
-Overheating GPU
-Overheating VRAM

My gut feeling is that it is not as big of a deal as people are making it out to be. The card comes with a warranty anyhow, so... I'd go for it. And DON'T get the 1900GT. It's MASSIVELY overpriced at $349, and SIGNIFICANTLY slower than the XT.

 

[WakeCarver]

I am concered about this cards negative reviews from apple store buyers.

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore?spart=MA631Z%2FB

Anyone here had any issues with this card over heating and/or displaying "green pixels" and/or making "odd flashing geometry."

Yes, but it is a rev 1 version of the card. The issue has been resolved with the rev 2 version supposedly. If you experience problems just call apple and they will send you a replacement. I was able to fix most of my issues by changing out the heatsink and using high quality thermal paste. I also use SMC to control fan speeds during gaming.