June 12 , 2019 – Milwaukee , Wisconsin .
Today , Creation Machines , LLC has demonstrated , for the first time , that it is possible to internally install and power a matching pair of AMD Vega Frontier Editions in a Classic Mac Pro . A pair of these cards provide 128 CU of rendering power , the highest available internally in any Mac . Frontier Editions have blower type coolers , which helps to exhaust hot air quicker inside a workstation than most models of graphics cards .
In a brief three minute test , running the LuxMark 3.0 Open CL benchmark , the prototype machine remained stable and cool , safely delivering a whopping score of 50,446 .
The test machine was a heavily modified Single Processor Mac Pro 5,1 , which utilized a custom power harness of heavy gauge crypto currency mining power extension cables tapped into the machine’s factory power supply unit in order to adequately supply the four booster power connectors of the two high end GPUs . The total power consumed by the System during the demonstration was approximately 770 Watts .
The machine previously was benchmarked earlier this year as being the fastest Mojave FCPX editing rig , utilizing an external PSU to power the Dual Vegas . It then scored 12 seconds in the industry standard BruceX benchmark , a record with that macOS using a prores 4444 XQ file . It outperformed an iMac Pro with an Vega 56 eGPU , the most powerful new Macintosh configuration .
Today’s test indicates that it is possible for a Classic Mac Pro to be built running the current shipping macOS with a pair of the most powerful rendering GPUs installable , without the need of an inconvenient external power supply unit or an eGPU .
Update : June 18 , 2019
Several benchmarks and extended ( at least of one hour in duration ) System wide stress test were successfully undertaken . All 12V PSU rails and power booster cables maintained ambient temperatures ( 25 to 27 C ) even at System full load . Cable management has been improved . Side access door can now be closed properly and all System air channels functioning normally .
