kmos9: PCI Graphics - New Video Card won't play DVDs
Disclaimer: Apple does not necessarily endorse any suggestions, solutions, or third-party software products that may be mentioned in the topic below. Apple encourages you to first seek a solution at
Apple Support. The following links are provided as is, with no guarantee of the effectiveness or reliability of the information. Apple does not guarantee that these links will be maintained or functional at any given time. Use the information below at your own discretion.
The following FAQ applies specifically to OS 9.x
I upgraded the Video card in my PCI Graphics G4, and now I can't watch DVDs. I get an error code about missing hardware... what is wrong?
The Yikes! model of G4, aka PCI Graphics, is the only G4 that uses hardware decoding in order to play DVDs. The Video Cards of those models have a DVD Decoder Daughterboard that is attached to the Video Card in order to allow the machines to handle DVD. All other G4s use software decoding.
You can tell what method of DVD Decoding your G4 is doing by the version of the Apple DVD Player. All Apple DVD Player software 1.x is hardware decoding. All 2.x is software decoding. Normally, Apple DVD Player 2.x will not run on a Yikes! model of G4, however, there is a 3rd party patch that will allow you to use DVD Player 2.x on these models.
The maker of the patch lists an ATI Rage 128 or Nvidia GeForce as requirements, although some people have successfully got it to work with Radeon as well. Something to keep in mind is this is not endorsed by Apple, but it has worked for many people. Depending on what Video Card you bought, it can be a very good thing to try first to be watching DVDs again.
Good Luck!
Travis
Do you want to provide feedback on this User Contributed Tip or contribute your own? If you have achieved Level 2 status, visit the
User Tips Library Contributions forum for more information.