|
|
Post by mike on Jan 13, 2018 1:06:27 GMT
Hi,
Thinking of buying an iMac Pro, and I do like some casual gaming in Bootcamp now and then. However, I've heard claims about the Vega Pro cards in iMac Pro being "locked in", ie. not being able to undervolt, overclock, or change the fan speed. Is this true? Vega Pro 64 is the Frontier Edition, a pro card not primarily ment for gaming, unlike the regular RX Vega (which the Vega 56 Pro is based upon afaik). Does MSI Afterburner (overclocking, undervolting) work with Vega Pro 56, or Radeon Pro (triple buffering) and Mac Fan Control? Maybe it's just an issue with the unfinished drivers that came with Bootcamp?
It seems AMD use unnecessary amounts of power to run the Vega GPU, and if undervolting is an option - the Vega 56 could be tweaked for higher performance with similar thermals.
Thanks!
|
|
|
|
Post by Mat HD on Jan 13, 2018 1:11:27 GMT
Hopefully someone who has been testing the drivers for iMac pro can come back with an answer for that.
|
|
|
|
Post by penguin on Jan 14, 2018 9:31:16 GMT
Hi Mike, I have an iMac Pro and downloaded Mac Fan Control. I'm running the Pro Vega 56. Mac Fan Control doesn't work - doesn't display any options/settings to adjust (however I don't know much about computers so maybe there is a way to get it to work). Ps Mat, just wanted to say thank you for running this site. I've been contacting Apple and AMD for weeks about games being unplayable on bootcamp and they've tried to tell me it's my fault/AMD's problem (which it isn't) and deflected responsibility at every turn. Thank you for caring and for offering driver support. Hopefully Apple/AMD will release something soon that properly supports the iMac Pro so I don't have to play games at 1 FPS.
|
|
|
|
Post by mike on Jan 14, 2018 18:44:34 GMT
Hi Mike, I have an iMac Pro and downloaded Mac Fan Control. I'm running the Pro Vega 56. Mac Fan Control doesn't work - doesn't display any options/settings to adjust (however I don't know much about computers so maybe there is a way to get it to work). Ps Mat, just wanted to say thank you for running this site. I've been contacting Apple and AMD for weeks about games being unplayable on bootcamp and they've tried to tell me it's my fault/AMD's problem (which it isn't) and deflected responsibility at every turn. Thank you for caring and for offering driver support. Hopefully Apple/AMD will release something soon that properly supports the iMac Pro so I don't have to play games at 1 FPS. Thanks for the response. I think I'll stay on the fence for now with regards to the iMac Pro, and see how these issues turn out. My present iMac is getting ripe for an update, but I guess I wait a little longer...  |
|
ralphjj
Newbie Boot Camper
Posts: 4 
|
Post by ralphjj on Jan 18, 2018 16:11:44 GMT
I've mentioned this in the other thread as well, but all my games are now running fine using the iMac Pro process that is on the front page of BootCampDrivers.com (I have the Vega 64). I have not dabbled into more tweaking yet; the current performance is already a lot better than what my 3yr old iMac is capable off so I'm happy for now.
|
|
|
|
Post by mike on Jan 19, 2018 16:32:32 GMT
Thanks Ralph, appreciate it. How often does the fans ramp up when playing, esp. newer more demanding dx11/dx12 games? How audible are the fans? Thanks again!
|
|
|
|
Post by microbrewer on Jan 22, 2018 5:46:56 GMT
I have an iMac Pro with Vega 56. I've followed the thread regarding Alpha testing the drivers since early on and followed the instructions to force install the driver for the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 set. With this, I have played Fallout 4 at 1440P with all other graphic options set to the max. The game never drops below 60 FPS despite have played it for hours on end. The fan never ramps up audibly but plenty of heat comes out of the back. I'm concerned for now that the lack of fans may be indicative of a sensor problem because if I boot back into macOS, the fans do kick on for a bit to cool it down.
I do have Macs Fan Control installed. This is a product that I've used for years in my other devices, however according to their website, the iMac pro ships with a new SMC (System Management Controller) which monitors power management, thermal sensors, and fan speed. They say that the iMac Pro has the first 'new' SMC in over 10 years. They are currently working on an upgrade but not sure when that will be released. In the meantime, the product is new, and as a result, under warranty. I'm not concerned with he heat yet, but I may change my mind in time based on their ability to provide an upgrade.
I haven't tried, or at least care to try, installing the Adrenaline or Crimson software at this time. I can say that the Vega 56 with the drivers described above, has performed very well so far.
|
|
|
|
Post by Mat HD on Jan 22, 2018 7:32:44 GMT
I have an iMac Pro with Vega 56. I've followed the thread regarding Alpha testing the drivers since early on and followed the instructions to force install the driver for the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 set. With this, I have played Fallout 4 at 1440P with all other graphic options set to the max. The game never drops below 60 FPS despite have played it for hours on end. The fan never ramps up audibly but plenty of heat comes out of the back. I'm concerned for now that the lack of fans may be indicative of a sensor problem because if I boot back into macOS, the fans do kick on for a bit to cool it down. I do have Macs Fan Control installed. This is a product that I've used for years in my other devices, however according to their website, the iMac pro ships with a new SMC (System Management Controller) which monitors power management, thermal sensors, and fan speed. They say that the iMac Pro has the first 'new' SMC in over 10 years. They are currently working on an upgrade but not sure when that will be released. In the meantime, the product is new, and as a result, under warranty. I'm not concerned with he heat yet, but I may change my mind in time based on their ability to provide an upgrade. I haven't tried, or at least care to try, installing the Adrenaline or Crimson software at this time. I can say that the Vega 56 with the drivers described above, has performed very well so far. Bootup does usually cause the fans to ramp up on every Mac because it pushes the CPU and SSD hard so that is not unheard of. I wouldn't recommend using MacsFanControl until they add support for the iMac Pro - using it right now could actually stop the fans from coming on as a worst case scenario (though this is unlikely as it probably is unable to control anything due to the new SMC). |
|
|
|
Post by penguin on Jan 26, 2018 13:15:10 GMT
I have an iMac Pro with Vega 56. I've followed the thread regarding Alpha testing the drivers since early on and followed the instructions to force install the driver for the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 set. With this, I have played Fallout 4 at 1440P with all other graphic options set to the max. The game never drops below 60 FPS despite have played it for hours on end. The fan never ramps up audibly but plenty of heat comes out of the back. I'm concerned for now that the lack of fans may be indicative of a sensor problem because if I boot back into macOS, the fans do kick on for a bit to cool it down. I do have Macs Fan Control installed. This is a product that I've used for years in my other devices, however according to their website, the iMac pro ships with a new SMC (System Management Controller) which monitors power management, thermal sensors, and fan speed. They say that the iMac Pro has the first 'new' SMC in over 10 years. They are currently working on an upgrade but not sure when that will be released. In the meantime, the product is new, and as a result, under warranty. I'm not concerned with he heat yet, but I may change my mind in time based on their ability to provide an upgrade. I haven't tried, or at least care to try, installing the Adrenaline or Crimson software at this time. I can say that the Vega 56 with the drivers described above, has performed very well so far. Hi Microbrewer, can you explain how you installed the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14? I downloaded the Crimson Relive 17.11.1 as I thought it was the only option available for the iMac Pro however eventually I had boot failures. |
|
|
|
Post by microbrewer on Jan 27, 2018 6:10:14 GMT
I have an iMac Pro with Vega 56. I've followed the thread regarding Alpha testing the drivers since early on and followed the instructions to force install the driver for the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 set. With this, I have played Fallout 4 at 1440P with all other graphic options set to the max. The game never drops below 60 FPS despite have played it for hours on end. The fan never ramps up audibly but plenty of heat comes out of the back. I'm concerned for now that the lack of fans may be indicative of a sensor problem because if I boot back into macOS, the fans do kick on for a bit to cool it down. I do have Macs Fan Control installed. This is a product that I've used for years in my other devices, however according to their website, the iMac pro ships with a new SMC (System Management Controller) which monitors power management, thermal sensors, and fan speed. They say that the iMac Pro has the first 'new' SMC in over 10 years. They are currently working on an upgrade but not sure when that will be released. In the meantime, the product is new, and as a result, under warranty. I'm not concerned with he heat yet, but I may change my mind in time based on their ability to provide an upgrade. I haven't tried, or at least care to try, installing the Adrenaline or Crimson software at this time. I can say that the Vega 56 with the drivers described above, has performed very well so far. Hi Microbrewer, can you explain how you installed the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14? I downloaded the Crimson Relive 17.11.1 as I thought it was the only option available for the iMac Pro however eventually I had boot failures. Hello Penguin, I'm happy to help as best as I can. First I want to share that to the best of my knowledge, this only works with the Vega 56, although the same method, with a different driver was reported to work with the Vega 64. Also, I did not update the Crimson or Adrenaline software. Once I got my games working, I stopped tinkering. I may pick it back up again at a later date if things change and become easier. Ok, The first step, is a clean install of Windows 10 - 64-bit and then install the Bootcamp drivers provided by Apple as you would on any typical Bootcamp installation. Then, I downloaded the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 from Here (It's the 757 MB file) I extracted the contents to my Desktop. Then in Windows Device Manager - Expand Display adapters - Right click on the Radeon Pro Vega 56 Adapter - Update Driver - Browse my computer for driver software - Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer - Have Disk - ( Browse to the directory where you expanded your driver download and locate a subfolder named WT6A_INF) - Select the driver file named C0321736 - Then browse almost to the bottom of the supported cards by that driver and locate "Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series. Install this driver on top of the driver provided by Bootcamp. Windows will warn you about being sure that the driver is compatible, but it is. I did not do anything else or install any other products from AMD which also means that the AMD Settings software provided in the Bootcamp bundle doesn't accurately reflect the driver that I installed so I ignore these settings. I have been able to play Fallout 4 at 1440p and all graphics settings set to max without dropping below 60 FPS. I have also played Mass Effect Andromeda at 1080p and all other graphics set at max for hours on end without dropping below 60 FPS. Starcraft 2 never drops below 50 FPS at 1080p even when all I have are carriers with max interceptors swarming on the screen. Without this find, I would have returned my iMac Pro. I hope that this helps edit: In a hilarious turn of events, I'm unable to finish a level of Plants vs Zombies !. I don't really think it's the graphics card situation but it's interesting that the game crashes once there's a lot of zombies on the screen. |
|
|
|
Post by penguin on Jan 27, 2018 7:17:18 GMT
Hi Microbrewer, can you explain how you installed the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14? I downloaded the Crimson Relive 17.11.1 as I thought it was the only option available for the iMac Pro however eventually I had boot failures. Hello Penguin, I'm happy to help as best as I can. First I want to share that to the best of my knowledge, this only works with the Vega 56, although the same method, with a different driver was reported to work with the Vega 64. Also, I did not update the Crimson or Adrenaline software. Once I got my games working, I stopped tinkering. I may pick it back up again at a later date if things change and become easier. Ok, The first step, is a clean install of Windows 10 - 64-bit and then install the Bootcamp drivers provided by Apple as you would on any typical Bootcamp installation. Then, I downloaded the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 from Here (It's the 757 MB file) I extracted the contents to my Desktop. Then in Windows Device Manager - Expand Display adapters - Right click on the Radeon Pro Vega 56 Adapter - Update Driver - Browse my computer for driver software - Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer - Have Disk - ( Browse to the directory where you expanded your driver download and locate a subfolder named WT6A_INF) - Select the driver file named C0321736 - Then browse almost to the bottom of the supported cards by that driver and locate "Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series. Install this driver on top of the driver provided by Bootcamp. Windows will warn you about being sure that the driver is compatible, but it is. I did not do anything else or install any other products from AMD which also means that the AMD Settings software provided in the Bootcamp bundle doesn't accurately reflect the driver that I installed so I ignore these settings. I have been able to play Fallout 4 at 1440p and all graphics settings set to max without dropping below 60 FPS. I have also played Mass Effect Andromeda at 1080p and all other graphics set at max for hours on end without dropping below 60 FPS. Starcraft 2 never drops below 50 FPS at 1080p even when all I have are carriers with max interceptors swarming on the screen. Without this find, I would have returned my iMac Pro. I hope that this helps edit: In a hilarious turn of events, I'm unable to finish a level of Plants vs Zombies !. I don't really think it's the graphics card situation but it's interesting that the game crashes once there's a lot of zombies on the screen. Thanks so much for your help Microbrewer - that sounds great. I used a similar install process downloading the driver using the 'iMac Pro' button on the bootcampdrivers.com but after a few system restarts bootcamp wouldn't load and I had to restore the original bootcamp drivers. Using this method I installed the Rx Vega driver (as per the instructions) however I note your method uses the "Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series" driver. I have the Pro Vega 56 so I might try your method if you haven't had these issues. I'd like to try without a clean win 10 install first though so I don't have to set everything up again! |
|
|
|
Post by microbrewer on Jan 27, 2018 7:36:05 GMT
Hello Penguin, I'm happy to help as best as I can. First I want to share that to the best of my knowledge, this only works with the Vega 56, although the same method, with a different driver was reported to work with the Vega 64. Also, I did not update the Crimson or Adrenaline software. Once I got my games working, I stopped tinkering. I may pick it back up again at a later date if things change and become easier. Ok, The first step, is a clean install of Windows 10 - 64-bit and then install the Bootcamp drivers provided by Apple as you would on any typical Bootcamp installation. Then, I downloaded the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 from Here (It's the 757 MB file) I extracted the contents to my Desktop. Then in Windows Device Manager - Expand Display adapters - Right click on the Radeon Pro Vega 56 Adapter - Update Driver - Browse my computer for driver software - Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer - Have Disk - ( Browse to the directory where you expanded your driver download and locate a subfolder named WT6A_INF) - Select the driver file named C0321736 - Then browse almost to the bottom of the supported cards by that driver and locate "Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series. Install this driver on top of the driver provided by Bootcamp. Windows will warn you about being sure that the driver is compatible, but it is. I did not do anything else or install any other products from AMD which also means that the AMD Settings software provided in the Bootcamp bundle doesn't accurately reflect the driver that I installed so I ignore these settings. I have been able to play Fallout 4 at 1440p and all graphics settings set to max without dropping below 60 FPS. I have also played Mass Effect Andromeda at 1080p and all other graphics set at max for hours on end without dropping below 60 FPS. Starcraft 2 never drops below 50 FPS at 1080p even when all I have are carriers with max interceptors swarming on the screen. Without this find, I would have returned my iMac Pro. I hope that this helps edit: In a hilarious turn of events, I'm unable to finish a level of Plants vs Zombies !. I don't really think it's the graphics card situation but it's interesting that the game crashes once there's a lot of zombies on the screen. Thanks so much for your help Microbrewer - that sounds great. I used a similar install process downloading the driver using the 'iMac Pro' button on the bootcampdrivers.com but after a few system restarts bootcamp wouldn't load and I had to restore the original bootcamp drivers. Using this method I installed the Rx Vega driver (as per the instructions) however I note your method uses the "Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series" driver. I have the Pro Vega 56 so I might try your method if you haven't had these issues. I'd like to try without a clean win 10 install first though so I don't have to set everything up again! The RX Vega Driver was reported to only work on the iMac Pro with Vega 64. Also, I think that as long as you install any driver using the Remove Driver software on this site, then install the boot camp driver, than install the Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series driver, it should work. Cheers! |
|
|
|
Post by penguin on Jan 27, 2018 8:27:36 GMT
Thanks so much for your help Microbrewer - that sounds great. I used a similar install process downloading the driver using the 'iMac Pro' button on the bootcampdrivers.com but after a few system restarts bootcamp wouldn't load and I had to restore the original bootcamp drivers. Using this method I installed the Rx Vega driver (as per the instructions) however I note your method uses the "Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series" driver. I have the Pro Vega 56 so I might try your method if you haven't had these issues. I'd like to try without a clean win 10 install first though so I don't have to set everything up again! The RX Vega Driver was reported to only work on the iMac Pro with Vega 64. Also, I think that as long as you install any driver using the Remove Driver software on this site, then install the boot camp driver, than install the Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series driver, it should work. Cheers! Thanks again Microbrewer. I don't suppose you known how to extract the contents of the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 package? |
|
|
|
Post by penguin on Jan 27, 2018 8:40:39 GMT
The RX Vega Driver was reported to only work on the iMac Pro with Vega 64. Also, I think that as long as you install any driver using the Remove Driver software on this site, then install the boot camp driver, than install the Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series driver, it should work. Cheers! Thanks again Microbrewer. I don't suppose you known how to extract the contents of the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 package? Never mind I figured it out. Fingers crossed! |
|
|
|
Post by microbrewer on Jan 28, 2018 1:17:50 GMT
Hello Penguin, I'm happy to help as best as I can. First I want to share that to the best of my knowledge, this only works with the Vega 56, although the same method, with a different driver was reported to work with the Vega 64. Also, I did not update the Crimson or Adrenaline software. Once I got my games working, I stopped tinkering. I may pick it back up again at a later date if things change and become easier. Ok, The first step, is a clean install of Windows 10 - 64-bit and then install the Bootcamp drivers provided by Apple as you would on any typical Bootcamp installation. Then, I downloaded the Radeon-Pro-Software-17.Q4.1-WHQL-Dec14 from Here (It's the 757 MB file) I extracted the contents to my Desktop. Then in Windows Device Manager - Expand Display adapters - Right click on the Radeon Pro Vega 56 Adapter - Update Driver - Browse my computer for driver software - Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer - Have Disk - ( Browse to the directory where you expanded your driver download and locate a subfolder named WT6A_INF) - Select the driver file named C0321736 - Then browse almost to the bottom of the supported cards by that driver and locate "Radeon (TM) Pro WX Series. Install this driver on top of the driver provided by Bootcamp. Windows will warn you about being sure that the driver is compatible, but it is. I did not do anything else or install any other products from AMD which also means that the AMD Settings software provided in the Bootcamp bundle doesn't accurately reflect the driver that I installed so I ignore these settings. I have been able to play Fallout 4 at 1440p and all graphics settings set to max without dropping below 60 FPS. I have also played Mass Effect Andromeda at 1080p and all other graphics set at max for hours on end without dropping below 60 FPS. Starcraft 2 never drops below 50 FPS at 1080p even when all I have are carriers with max interceptors swarming on the screen. Without this find, I would have returned my iMac Pro. I hope that this helps edit: In a hilarious turn of events, I'm unable to finish a level of Plants vs Zombies !. I don't really think it's the graphics card situation but it's interesting that the game crashes once there's a lot of zombies on the screen. Thanks for the info! However, are you really forced to play Starcraft 2 and Mass Effect Andromeda at 1080p to get decent framerates? Starcraft 2 is a fairly old game, and if it doesn't play well in 1440p - there are problaby still some kind of incompability going on with the drivers. Starcraft 2 should fly on the Vega Pro 56 afaik.. PS: When Mac Fan Control is updated for iMac Pro, one could probably overclock the Vega 56 quite a bit. However, overclocking in Bootcamp with the default fan profile is NOT recommended. Hello Mike, The test results that I'm posting are just what I've tested with so far. The reason why I started here is because prior to installing the drivers in the method that I've outlined, Fallout 4 at 1080 with all graphics options set on lowest, was getting 5 FPS at best, usually 2 FPS. This was with the default drivers provided with the bootcamp installation. I also want to share that the method of installing the drivers that I've posted here, is a method that I learned from a different thread on this site. It's not a method that I discovered. The second reason why I posted 1440p results, is that this a new resolution for me. I haven't updated my computer in a long time and my previous computer couldn't get above 1080 on any game. At the moment, I care more about stability in gaming and not so much pushing my rig to the limits, although I will eventually get there. In the case of Starcraft 2 specifically, it's been interesting to use the same hardware and play a game natively produced for Windows and macOS at the same time. For whatever it may matter, on my computer, as a test, I played the same map 3 times (once in Windows using Direct3D, Twice in macOS, 1st with OpenGL 2.0, 2nd with Metal 2.0) Since I don't have a better way of benchmarking, I played the same 8 player map with only 2 players with the intention of trying to recreate the same level of computer demand across these 3 scenarios. In the test that I played, I was Protoss and figured that if I could build my army to only carriers, each with max interceptors, that would provide the most number of units on the screen at the same time that I could 'control' for. In all 3 times, the resolution and graphics settings were the same. In Windows, 50 FPS was a slow as it got. In macOS, with OpenGL 2.0, It was nearly identical performance except for a single second when it dropped to 40 FPS. In macOS with Metal, the performance was noticeably worse, dropping to as low as 30 FPS. Admittedly, I can't say that these numbers are 100% accurate because I was also playing the game while trying to monitor the FPS counter, but basically this game played the same in Windows and macOS with OpenGL 2.0 on the iMac Pro. Metal either needs work or Starcraft needs better optimization for Metal. Not sure if any of this helps. |
|
