Silver Tower Mac Pro Q&A - Updated May 28, 2013
A prime example is the latest MacBook Pro, which, while offering great performance, lacks the PCIe expansion slots necessary to support specialty cards that connect pro video and audio inputs, transcode data, and connect to high-speed storage and networks.
All Mac Q&As >>Silver Tower Mac Pro Q&A (Home)
To be notified of new Q&As, sign up for EveryMac.com's bimonthly email list.
If you find this page useful, please Bookmark & Share it. Thank you.
How many PCI slots of what type are provided by the Mac Pro models? How do you install a PCIe card in the Mac Pro?
All Mac Pro models support PCIe (PCI Express) cards, but the type of cards supported varies, particularly between early and later systems. The installation procedure varies, too.
Photo Credit: Apple, Inc. (Mac Pro)
Identification Help
If you're not sure which Mac Pro you have, several lines share the A1186Model Number so this identifier is insufficient for the purpose of ensuring PCIe card compatibility. The A1289 model number is sufficient to identify the 'Early 2009,' 'Mid-2010' and 'Mid-2012' Mac Pro lines, which share the same PCIe slots.
However, each Mac Pro series can be identified uniquely externally by EMC Number and 'close enough' to an exact match to determine PCIe compatibility by the Model Identifier in software. In turn, each model can be uniquely identified via model identifier and one or more secondary identifiers (like processor speed and/or processor type).
The EMC number is located on the rear of the system in small type. To locate the model identifier in software, select 'About This Mac' under the Apple Menu on your computer and click the 'More Info...' button. If the Mac Pro is running OS X 'Lion' (10.7) or later, click the 'System Report' button after clicking 'More Info...' as well.
A full chart of the Mac Pro lines, corresponding identifiers, and PCIe compatibility is provided below.
EveryMac.com's Ultimate Mac Lookup feature -- as well as the EveryMac app -- also can identify these systems by their Serial Numbers. More details about identifiers are provided in EveryMac.com's Mac Identification section.
Supported PCIe Card Types
The original Mac Pro models have four PCIe 1.0 expansion slots with one double-wide 16-lane PCI Express slot occupied by a NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT in the default configuration, and three full-length PCI Express slots open.
The 'Early 2008' Mac Pro models have two PCIe 2.0 and two PCIe 1.0 expansion slots, with one double-wide 16-lane PCIe 2.0 slot occupied by an ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT in the default configuration. This leaves one 16-lane PCIe 2.0 slot and two four-lane PCIe slots open.
The 'Early 2009,' 'Mid-2010,' and 'Mid-2012' Mac Pro models have four full-length PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0 expansion slots, two x16 slots and two x4 slots. In the default configurations, one PCIe 2.0 x16 slot is occupied by the graphics card. There is a 300W combined maximum for all PCI Express slots in these models as well.
These details are easiest to visualize as a chart (for simplicity, the Server models have been omitted, but they have the same PCIe support as the 'regular' models):
Mac Pro | Subfamily | Model ID | EMC | PCIe Slots |
Original | 1 Double Wide 16-Lane (1.0) 3 Full (1.0) | |||
Original | 1 Double Wide 16-Lane (1.0) 3 Full (1.0) | |||
Original | 1 Double Wide 16-Lane (1.0) 3 Full (1.0) | |||
Original | 1 Double Wide 16-Lane (1.0) 3 Full (1.0) | |||
Early 2008 | 2 Double Wide 16-Lane (2.0) 2 4-Lane (1.0) | |||
Early 2008 | 2 Double Wide 16-Lane (2.0) 2 4-Lane (1.0) | |||
Early 2008 | 2 Double Wide 16-Lane (2.0) 2 4-Lane (1.0) | |||
Early 2008 | 2 Double Wide 16-Lane (2.0) 2 4-Lane (1.0) | |||
Early 2009 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Early 2009 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Early 2009 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Early 2009 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Early 2009 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Early 2009 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2010 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2010 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2010 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2010 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2010 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2010 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2012 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2012 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2012 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2012 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 | |||
Mid-2012 | 2 Full 16-Lane 2.0 2 Full 4-Lane 2.0 |
PCIe Card Installation Instructions
To add a PCIe card to the Mac Pro models, site sponsor Other World Computing provides helpful step-by-step videos of the simple procedure.
Mac Pro PCIe Card Installation Video
Original (2006 & 2007) & Early 2008 (A1186)
Original (2006 & 2007) & Early 2008 (A1186)
Mac Pro PCIe Card Installation Video
Early 2009, Mid-2010 & Mid-2012 (A1289)
Early 2009, Mid-2010 & Mid-2012 (A1289)
After watching these videos, it should be clear that installing a PCIe card in all Mac Pro models is simple. However, if you do not feel comfortable -- or have the time -- to perform the installation yourself, hiring a professional never is a bad idea.
PCIe Card Purchase Options
In addition to providing helpful upgrade videos, Other World Computing sells a variety of PCIe cards as well as other upgrades -- for all of the Mac Pro models.
Popular PCIe card upgrades from OWC include USB 3.0 cards, higher performance video cards, eSATA controllers, and PCIe cards equipped with fast SSDs, although other upgrade options are available, too.
Also see:
- What are the default graphics cards provided with each Mac Pro? What Mac Pro compatible video cards are available for purchase later? Which video cards have which ports?
- How does the original Mac Pro allocate lanes for the PCIe bus? What configurations are possible?
- How do you upgrade the hard drives in the Mac Pro to SSDs? What SSD options are available? Which SSD configuration provides the fastest performance?
Permalink | E-mail a Friend | Bookmark & Share | Report an Error/Typo
Suggest a New Q&A | Sign Up for Bimonthly Site Update Notices
<< Mac Pro Q&A (Main) | All Mac Q&As
EveryMac.com is provided 'as is' without warranty of any kind whatsoever. EveryMac.com, and the author thereof, shall not be held responsible or liable, under any circumstances, for any damages resulting from the use or inability to use the information within. For complete disclaimer and copyright information please read and understand the Terms of Use and the Privacy Policy before using EveryMac.com. Use of any content or images without expressed permission is not allowed, although links to any page are welcomed and appreciated.
Tips
By Mike Wuerthele
Friday, January 13, 2017, 08:23 pm PT (11:23 pm ET)
An inexpensive card available from Amazon allows users of Apple's Mac Pro tower with PCI-E slots to get some of the benefits of the new USB-C connector —and faster USB 3.1 speeds. AppleInsider tells you what you need.Friday, January 13, 2017, 08:23 pm PT (11:23 pm ET)
For a long time, adventurous Mac Pro users have been fiddling with third-party hardware to extend the life of the systems. For some older gear, the tinkering has mostly come to an end, but properly outfitted, the last two models of the Mac Pro tower can still be competitive with the '6,1' Coke-can 2013 Mac Pro.
The key for some of these adventures sometimes relies on third-party drivers, like for PCI-e graphics cards from Nvidia. However, from time to time, there are solutions that just drop in, and nothing is needed from a software perspective.
Despite not advertising macOS compatibility, Aukey has a macOS 10.11 and 10.12-compatible USB 3.1 Type C card, that AppleInsider has been testing. The Aukey B01AAETL6Y PCI Express card with 2 USB 3.1 Type-C ports does work on the 3,1, 4,1 and 5,1 Mac Pro, and can deliver a full 10 gigabits per second transfer speed from each port.
Considering the USB native to the Mac Pro tower is USB 2.0, the much faster speed is welcome.
The card worked driver-free in the 4,1 and 5,1, but was slightly problematic in the 3,1 under El Capitan with periodic disconnects of input devices —but no problems with mass storage. But, why would you want to hook up a keyboard or mouse to USB-C anyway with other ports available?
Caveat emptor
The card must be powered to completely meet the USB-C specification, and for most of us, the best way is to use to the power leads in the 5.25-inch optical drive bay. Failure to do so prevents the card from functioning. The power extension is child's play, though, especially if you're used to Mac Pro tinkering.
We haven't delved into the maximum power the card can deliver, but an assortment of USB-C hubs and peripherals needing power from USB worked fine.
The Aukey USB-C card isn't compatible with alternate modes, so if you want to hook up a monitor, just get a PCI-E card to do so. Additionally, Aukey could change the chipset on the card at any time in future manufacturing runs —so if this is something you need for your Mac Pro, you probably should get it now!
The Aukey B01AAETL6Y PCI Express card with 2 USB 3.1 Type-C ports retails for $30, but can be found on sale for $16 frequently at Amazon.