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The Definitive Classic Mac Pro (2006-2012) Upgrade Guide

34 points by surprisetalk

by stephen_g

4 subcomments

That Mac Pro is such an amazing design, truly a classic! I have a few retro Macs but that is one I would like to add one from that era my collection - it's just a matter of space because they are pretty big!
Thinking of the Pro though, I really do find it very odd what Apple are doing with the current Mac Pro at the moment. Literally all people want is basically a Mac Studio in a bigger chassis with just two extra things - replaceable drives, and two to four PCIe slots for professional audio interface cards, SDI video capture/playout cards, etc... Ideally rack-mountable too.
The Mac Pro is just so overkill in some ways but limited in others, and way too expensive - it just misses what people want and need on every axis...

by ProllyInfamous

0 subcomment

Among the craziest things about the MacPro5,1 community is that they're still discovering firmware/feature hacks fifteen years later (e.g. EnableGOP). MartinLo and DosDUDE are incredibly gifted dorks.
I only retired my 5,1 three years ago, with Apple Silicon's bonkers performance-per-watt. Definitely the machine that brought be back to childhood geekdom. Really enjoyed my 8awg Pixla's mod adaptation (direct to PSU pads); which honestly was too technical even for Greg's blog.

by accrual

0 subcomment

I have been reading through this guide a bit at a time on my phone simply because it's so well written and interesting. I don't even own a Mac Pro, it's just fascinating to read through all the challenges and workarounds to keep the platform modern. Kudos to the author and all the contributors who made it possible.

by riobard

0 subcomment

I hate the original Mac Pro case so much!!! The metal box is so heavy and the edges of the aluminum top handle is so sharp that you definitely need a pair of heavy-duty gloves to move it around.