Then you had to switch back to Mac OS via boot screen or via the Boot Camp startup disk selector in Windows to get the card working on the Mac Pro 3,1 to 5,1 (the drivers would stay alive when warm booting back to MacOS and voila – Thunderbolt 3 on you Mac Pro). Previously, booting into Windows first (with the proper Thunderbolt Drivers installed for the card) and modifying the supplied USB type C header cable or adding a jumper was needed. These devices have been around a couple of years, but unfortunately (until this year), obtaining one and planning to use with your Mac required you to have Windows installed in Boot Camp alongside MacOS. Recent Advancements Make the GC Titan Ridge and GC Alpine Ridge a Boon for Mac Pro 3,1 to 5,1 Users No matter what, all of these options are a far cry from the 40 Gb/s data path offered by modern Macs equipped with Thunderbolt III, but what about the cMP (known commonly as the classic Mac Pro)? Is there any black cauldron, dark magic wizardry add-in Thunderbolt 3 cards? As a matter of fact there are! The Mac Pro 3,1 to 5,1 Continues Strong Thanks to the GC Titan Ridge and Alpine Ridgeįeast your eyes on a couple amazing devices from the hardware manufacturer Gigabyte.Įnter the GC Titan Ridge and the GC Alpine Ridge… If you look at the majority of 2008-2010 Macs, you then step down to SATA II and 3 Gb/s data rates and max out at 800 Mb/s data rates for external devices with FireWire-800 ports. In most Macs of this vintage, you’re looking at Thunderbolt 1 as your best option for external devices (in 20 Macs) and are thus limited to bi-directional 10 Gb/s, which indeed is nearly double the 6 Gb/s offered by SATA III and these Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge Macs. Many are getting long in the tooth and have limited external upgrade potential or simply can’t even keep up with the best options offered today in terms of approaching optimal throughput for external graphics (also known as eGPU) or getting the most out of blazing fast NVMe storage. Imagine the average 8-12 year old Mac sitting on your desk today. Expansion and I/O Challenges with Older Macs

Usb 3 card for mac pro