Apple Mac Pro "Eight Core" 2.8 (2008) Specs (MA970LL/A)
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The Mac Pro "Eight Core" 2.8 (Early 2008) is powered by two 2.8 GHz Quad Core 45-nm Intel Xeon E5462 (Harpertown/Penryn) processors with 12 MB of level 2 cache per processor (each pair of cores shares 6 MB), a 128-bit SSE4 SIMD vector engine, and 1.6 GHz "64-bit dual independent frontside buses." Via custom configuration, this model could be equipped with a single 2.8 GHz Quad Core Xeon E5462 processor, two 3 GHz Quad Core Xeon E5472 processors, or two 3.2 GHz Quad Core Xeon X5482 processors.
By default, it was configured with 2 GB of 800 MHz DDR2 EEC "fully-buffered" FB-DIMM memory, a 320 GB (7200 RPM, 8 MB cache) 3Gb/s Serial ATA hard drive, a double-layer 16X "SuperDrive", and an ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT graphics processor with 256 MB of GDDR3 memory and two dual-link DVI ports.
Expansion includes two external 5.25" "optical" bays (one free by default), four internal 3.5" "cable-free, direct attach" hard drive bays (three free by default), two PCIe x4 slots, and two PCIe 2.0 x16 slots (one free with one graphics card installed). Ports include dual Gigabit Ethernet, five USB 2.0 ports, two Firewire "400" ports, two Firewire "800" ports, and optical digital audio in/out, among others. Bluetooth 2.0+EDR is standard, AirPort Extreme (802.11g/n) and a modem are optional.
Compared to the original Mac Pro that it replaced, the Mac Pro "Eight Core" 2.8 uses a more advanced architecture with faster and more efficient processors with larger level 2 caches, a more advanced vector engine, faster frontside buses (1.6 GHz instead of 1.33 GHz), faster memory (800 MHz instead of 667 MHz), support for optional faster Serial Attached SCSI drives (with the installation of the Mac Pro RAID card), and two 16-lane PCIe 2.0 slots.
Also see:
- What are the differences between the "Early 2008" Mac Pro configurations?
- What are the major differences between the "Early 2008" (Harpertown/Penryn) Mac Pro and the original Mac Pro?
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| Introduction Date: |
January 8, 2008 |
Discontinued Date: |
March 3, 2009 |
| Details: |
The "Introduction Date" refers to the date a model was introduced via press release. The "Discontinued Date" refers to the date a model either was replaced by a subsequent system or production otherwise ended. |
| Processor Type: |
Q. Core Xeon E5462 x2 |
Processor Speed: |
2.8 GHz |
| Details: |
Each of two 45-nm Xeon E5462 (Harpertown/Penryn) processors has four independent processor "cores" with 12 MB of level 2 cache per processor (each pair of cores shares 6 MB). It also features a 128-bit SSE4 SIMD vector engine, and 1.6 GHz "64-bit dual independent frontside buses."
Also offered, via custom configuration, were a single 2.8 GHz Quad Core Xeon E5462 processor for US$500 less, two 3 GHz Quad Core Xeon E5472 processors for US$800 more, or two 3.2 GHz Quad Core Xeon X5482 processors for US$1600 more.
Also see: How much faster are the "Early 2008" (Harpertown/Penryn) Mac Pro models compared to the original Mac Pro? |
| Processor Upgrade: |
Socketed* |
FPU: |
Integrated |
| Details: |
*The processors in this model are socketed and can be physically upgraded, although it is possible that the upgrade has been blocked in EFI.
Also see: Are the CPUs on the Mac Pro upgradable? How are they mounted? |
| System Bus Speed: |
1.6 GHz |
Cache Bus Speed: |
2.8 GHz (Built-in) |
| Details: |
1.6 GHz (1600 MHz) 64-bit dual independent frontside buses. |
| ROM/Firmware Type: |
EFI |
ROM/Firmware Size: |
N/A |
| L1 Cache: |
N/A |
L2/L3 Cache: |
12 MB* |
| Details: |
*Each Quad Core processor has 12 MB of level 2 cache with 6 MB of level 2 cache shared between each pair of cores. |
| RAM Type: |
ECC DDR2 FB-DIMM |
Min. RAM Speed: |
800 MHz |
| Details: |
Uses "800 MHz DDR2 ECC fully-buffered DIMM (FB-DIMM) memory" and has a "256-bit wide memory architecture".
Also see: How do you upgrade the RAM in the "Early 2008" (Harpertown/Penryn) Mac Pro? How much RAM of what type does it support? Is it backwards compatible with RAM from the original Mac Pro? |
| Standard RAM: |
2 GB |
Maximum RAM: |
32 GB |
| Details: |
2 GB of RAM installed as two 1 GB modules. 6 slots free. RAM must be installed in pairs, and for "best acoustic performance" contain an "Apple-approved heat sink".
Site sponsor Other World Computing sells Mac Pro memory, as well as hard drives, accessories, and other upgrades. |
| Motherboard RAM: |
None |
RAM Slots: |
8 |
| Details: |
Apple reports that the system has "eight FB-DIMM slots on two memory riser cards (4 slots per card)." |
| Video Card: |
Radeon HD 2600 XT |
VRAM Type: |
GDDR3 SDRAM |
| Details: |
By default, an ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT with 256 MB of GDDR3 memory is installed in a PCI Express 2.0 x16 slot. It has two dual-link DVI ports. Other graphics card options included the NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT with 512 MB of GDDR3 memory or a NVIDIA Quadro FX 5600 with 1.5 GB of GDDR3 memory. All of the video cards offered have two dual-link DVI ports, and the Quadro FX 5600 has a stereo 3D port as well.
Also see: What graphics cards are available for the Mac Pro? Which models have which ports? |
| Standard VRAM: |
256 MB |
Maximum VRAM: |
256 MB |
| Details: |
Other graphics cards could be pre-installed at the time of purchase or installed later. Other cards were available at the time of purchase with 512 MB and 1.5 GB of video memory.
Also see: How does the stock graphics performance of the "Early 2008" (Harpertown/Penryn) Mac Pro models compare to the original Mac Pro? |
| Display Support: |
Up to 8 Displays* |
Resolution Support: |
2560x1600* |
| Details: |
Apple advertised that this model can support "up to eight 30-inch displays" (with four video cards installed, one card is installed by default and can support two 30-inch displays). The default ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT is capable of supporting "digital resolutions up to 2560 by 1600" pixels and analog resolutions up to 2048 by 1536 pixels. |
| 2nd Display Support: |
Dual/Mirroring |
2nd Max. Resolution: |
2560x1600 |
| Details: |
The ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT is capable of supporting two 30-inch displays with a resolution of 2560x1600 in either dual display or mirrored mode.
Also see: Apple Cinema Displays. |
| Standard Hard Drive: |
320 GB (7200 RPM) |
Int. HD Interface: |
Serial ATA (3Gb/s) |
| Details: |
By default, this system shipped with a single 320 GB (7200 RPM, 8 MB cache) Serial ATA 3Gb/s hard drive. Apple formally supports up to 4 TB of storage with four 1 TB hard drives (one in each internal bay). This system also supports Serial Attached SCSI drives with the installation of the Mac Pro RAID card, and Apple formally supports up to 1.2 TB (1200 GB) in this manner with four 300 GB (15,000 RPM, 16 MB cache) SCSI drives.
Also see: How do you upgrade the hard drives in the Mac Pro models? How many drives of what type are supported? |
| Standard Optical: |
8X DL "SuperDrive" |
Standard Disk: |
None |
| Details: |
Apple reports that this PATA "16X" double layer DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW SuperDrive "writes DVD-R discs at up to 16x speed, writes DVD+R DL discs at up to 8x speed, reads DVDs at up to 16x speed, writes CD-R and CD-RW discs at up to 24x speed, [and] reads CDs at up to 32x speed."
Also see: What options are available for the second "optical drive bay" on the Mac Pro? How do you install a second optical drive or replace the primary one? |
| Standard Modem: |
None |
Standard Ethernet: |
Gigabit (x2) |
| Details: |
An external Apple USB Modem was available for US$49. The system has
"two independent 10/100/1000BASE-T [Gigabit] Ethernet (RJ-45) interfaces with support for jumbo frames." |
| Standard AirPort: |
802.11a/b/g/n (Opt) |
Standard Bluetooth: |
2.0+EDR |
| Details: |
Bluetooth 2.0+EDR is standard. AirPort Extreme (802.11a/b/g) can be installed at additional cost. |
| USB Ports: |
5 (2.0) |
Firewire Ports: |
2 (400), 2 (800) |
| Details: |
The Mac Pro has five USB 2.0 ports on the system (two on the front panel and three on the back), two Firewire "400" ports (one on the front and one on the back), and two Firewire "800" ports (one on the front and one on the back). Apple also advertises "two USB 2.0 ports on included keyboard".
Also see: Complete Ports. |
| Expansion Slots: |
2 PCIe, 2 PCIe 2.0, AP* |
Expansion Bays: |
4 3.5", 2 5.25" |
| Details: |
*This model has two PCIe x4 expansion slots and two PCIe 2.0 x16 expansion slots (in the default confugration one PCIe 2.0 x16 slot is occupied by the graphics card). Apple also reports that "all slots provide mechanical support for 16-lane cards [and supports] 300W combined maximum for all PCI Express slots."
AirPort Extreme (802.11g/n) additionally can be installed at extra cost.
In the default configuration, one internal 3.5" bay is occupied by a hard drive and three are free, and one external 5.25" bay is occupied by a "SuperDrive" and the other is free. The Developer's Note also shows "two unpopulated 3 Gbps SATA buses for expansion". |
| Incl. Keyboard: |
Apple Aluminum KB |
Incl. Input: |
Mighty Mouse |
| Details: |
Ships with an "ultra-thin aluminum" Apple Keyboard (0.33 inches at the front edge) based on the polarizing keyboard design introduced with the MacBook.
Also see: How does the "ultra thin" aluminum keyboard compare to a more traditional desktop keyboard? How does it feel? |
| Case Type: |
Tower |
Form Factor: |
Mac Pro |
| Apple Model No: |
MA970LL/A |
Apple Subfamily: |
Mac Pro Early 2008 |
| Details: |
The Apple model number should be unique to this system. |
| Gestalt/Model ID: |
N/A |
Machine Model: |
MacPro3,1 |
| Details: |
Please note that these identifiers refer to more than one model. |
| Battery Type: |
N/A |
Battery Life: |
N/A |
| Pre-Installed MacOS: |
X 10.5.1 (9B2117) |
Maximum MacOS: |
Current |
| Details: |
Please note that this system can run the current version of MacOS X as of the date last updated (see bottom of page). |
| MacOS 9 Support: |
None |
Windows Support: |
Boot/Virtualization |
| Details: |
Also see: Are there any third-party programs to run MacOS 9/Classic applications on Intel Macs?
Site-sponsor OHS specializes in heavily upgraded Macs capable of running both MacOS X and MacOS 9 applications.
For more on running Windows on Intel Macs, please refer to the exhaustive Windows on Mac Q&A. |
| Dimensions: |
20.1 x 8.1 x 18.7 |
Avg. Weight: |
42.4 lbs. (19.2 kg) |
| Details: |
In inches - height by width by depth, (51.1 cm, 20.6 cm, 47.5 cm). |
| Original Price: |
US$2799 |
Est. Current Retail: |
US$2200-US$2500 |
| Details: |
Please note that on average the estimated current retail pricing of used systems is updated twice a year (please refer to the date on the bottom of the page for the date last updated).
Photo Credit: Apple Computer. |
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