Mac Pro Graphics Card Upgrade

Please tell me this isn't a lost cause!!

I have a Mac Pro - Dual 3.0GHz Quad-Core \ ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB
I am having trouble running a couple of games (mainly Borderlands & Trine, it seems to be a problem with games that have Nvidia Physx ) and decided that I would see what graphic cards are out that I could upgrade to. When I bought the Mac Pro I bought it b/c I wanted to be able to make upgrades, mainly to my graphics card. I have not had any luck in finding information that I could install a new card that would last me another couple of years.

Apple support told me that the only cards that I could install besides the one I already have is NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500 512MB (minor upgrade, still a 2 year old card) or the NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT 256MB (downgrade). I hope someone has figured out some type of hack or something so I am not stuck with this ****** card in my awesome rig.

I had to change the ATI Radeon X1900 XT since I had the problem (like many are having) with overheating and I got a NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT, which works fine. Would that not be an upgrade?

rogerinlondon said:

I had to change the ATI Radeon X1900 XT since I had the problem (like many are having) with overheating and I got a NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT, which works fine. Would that not be an upgrade?

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I'm not sure if it would be a step up, not very familiar with graphic cards since I switched to my mac . You were just able to plug this right in, no problems?

When I talked to apple they didn't say anything about this card being supported. Does that mean THEY won't support it but it will work? All I care about is a card working and I want to get the best one that I can... thats under $400 .

I have the first generation MacPro and I recall that the options were very limited for me since they changed something so that other cards fits in later versions. Bought it from the Apple Store though. And yes, could install it myself. No problems apart from having to get a portcover from a third-party supplier since Apple do not stock them!! (If you look on the back, you will see that the ATI card takes two ports, but the other card only takes up one.)

I've got a first generation Mac Pro 1,1 (2.66GHzz) Dueal Core Intel Xeon and recently decided to upgrade the graphics card it came with (NVIDIA GeForce 7300GT). Like you I had a lot of trouble finding a card that I could upgrade to, but finally found some chat rooms that recommended the ATI Radeon HD4870....they assured me it would work in all models of Mac Pro from 2006 onwards. I bought the Apple upgrade, which was more expensive but seemed to offer some assurance that it would be compatible (you can get cheaper 512K and 1MB versions through third party vendors but I was not convinced that these were apple compatible). Anyway, it arrived today with a good set of instructions and it took me about 10 minutes to fit. Works great, too. Good luck.