PowerMac G4 Sawtooth IDE>SATA adapter for HDD>SSD conversion.

Question

Level 1

4 points

PowerMac G4 Sawtooth IDE>SATA adapter for HDD>SSD conversion.

Hey- hoping someone can help.

I've got an 1999 PowerMac G4 Sawtooth with its original 20gb IDE drive that really sings. I purchased a new StarTech IDE2SAT2 red adapter with a retired 120GB Kingston SATA SSD (SH103S3/120G, SATA Rev 3.0 (6Gb/s), backward compatible to SATA Rev 2.0 (3Gb/s), SandForce® SF-2281) but when I install it, nothing happens. This StarTech adapter is the gold standard for this situation. The Mac powers up, my screen gets a signal to wake it, but literally nothing after that. No chimes, no Mac on the screen. Just black.

At first I thought the drive was an issue, but I was able to plug it into a generic USB>SATA cable, connected to Mac (running off of the old IDE drive), and the Mac saw the SSD. I formatted it, and was able to clone the IDE>SSD. So my SSD should be good to go.

I tried unplugging the original IDE CD and iOmega drives thinking for some reason they might be causing a conflict, but no, no change. I moved the SSD/StarTech adapter to the IDE cable that was previously connected to the CD. No difference.

I've tried all of the jumper settings on the StarTech, but I started with MASTER. No difference.

I checked the molex power cable on the adapter for voltage. All good.

I tried plugging in a known-good 500GB Barracuda SATA HDD to the StarTech. Nothing other than the drive spooled up because I could hear it.

I got on the line with StarTech chat support. (Wish I could get that hour back. The computer is older than any of their chat techs.) They suggested the adapter was defective and to swap it, which I did with the seller. (Staples). Got replacement today. Same issue.

OS 9.2

I must be missing something. ?

Earlier Mac models

Posted on Jun 26, 2024 6:36 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Best reply

Jeff

Level 6

12,130 points

Jun 27, 2024 3:48 AM in response to nomarkup

This suggestion sidesteps the issue that you're describing, but would you prefer to install a SATA controller PCI card in your G4 instead? This no-name card is described by the seller as being compatible with most G4 models, including your Sawtooth. Buyer feedback confirms that it is. Sonnet and FirmTek were two Mac-compatible brands that marketed SATA PCI controller cards for older Macs, before PCIe replaced the interface. Those older cards are now discontinued.

Reply

Answer 2

Jeff

Level 6

12,130 points

Jun 28, 2024 12:27 AM in response to Jeff

Contradicting my own speculation about OS 9's compatibility issues with SATA technology, I came across this discussion topic in which I participated over 2 years ago. In it, the author ended up buying a FirmTek "SeriTek/1S2" SATA PCI controller card for his Quicksilver G4. It was compatible with both OS 10.4 and OS 9.2.2, so with a card that was designed/marketed specifically for Macs, a SATA upgrade was/is possible. The card that I linked on ebay is probably a flashed, PC SATA card with a Mac-friendly controller chip. A smaller ROM chip capacity may be responsible for omission of OS 9.x support when it was flashed. If you could find a used SeriTek card at a reasonable price, your goal would be accomplished.

Reply

Answer 3

BDAqua

Level 10

240,923 points

Jun 26, 2024 8:48 PM in response to nomarkup

What is the StarTech model, this one?

https://www.startech.com/en-eu/hdd/ide2sat2

Here's some others, all should work...

https://www.newegg.com/p/17Z-00W6-00034

https://www.amazon.com/SinLoon-Female-Adapter-Computer-Interface/dp/B07TPBC34F?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=A69X5KMJHM850

Are the IDE jumpers set correctly?

Last but not least...

Power Macs earlier than the 2002 Quicksilver models do not have built-in support for IDE hard drives with capacities over 128 GB. Without a third-party solution, larger drives can only be formatted to 128 GB in these models. There are three options:
- Intech’s ATA Hi-Cap Support Driver
- A PCI IDE card that supports big drives
- A FireWire enclosure that supports big drives
Power Mac G4 (AGP): Single channel SCSI cards may interfere with wake from sleep, Apple Knowledge Base, 2002.07.22. Computer may incorrectly assume card supports power down mode and not wake properly from sleep under OS 8.6.

https://lowendmac.com/1999/power-mac-g4-sawtooth/

And not sure on this, but it may also need to be sATA 1 compatible & those don't always check te SATA compatibility in the right order to work.

Reply

Answer 4

Jeff

Level 6

12,130 points

Jun 27, 2024 11:53 PM in response to nomarkup

Oh, sorry about that. I think the OS version is your problem. The Mac OS ROM files for OS 9.x.x predate the introduction of SATA buses and drives in Apple computers. A bootable PCI controller card must be firmware-based and not driver-based, because driver(s) in the Extensions folder of the boot drive are read after the startup process has begun. If the technology is unrecognized because the G4 can't make heads or tails of the firmware code on the controller card, it can't function properly. That's likely why the SATA controller card I linked isn't compatible with OS 9.x. The StarTech adapter doesn't have the necessary code for booting your 1999/2000 Sawtooth G4 via the IDE bus, even if it can successfully convert the hardware interface in a more modern computer. The USB-to-SATA adapter is a simple electronic adapter, so that's why you could connect the SATA drive and clone the boot drive to it.

Just for the purpose of testing recognition on the bus (even though the drive can't be bootable when the adapter isn't set to Master), did you try connecting the SATA drive to the middle ribbon cable connector and set the adapter's jumper to Slave? Depending on the manufacturer, the original IDE drive at the end of the cable may need to be reconfigured as "Master with Slave Present" (as opposed to Master/Single).

Unlike SATA, the older IDE technology was long-recognized and fully-compatible with OS 9.x and 10.x. I installed a Sonnet Tempo 133 Ultra-ATA (PCI) controller card in my oldest B&W G3, as the workaround for the problematic IDE controller chip on the 1st revision motherboards. It worked out very well and was worth the $99 MSRP. Today, seeing used ones listed on ebay for several times that amount leaves you wondering who'd pay that much.

Reply

Answer 5

nomarkup Author

Level 1

4 points

Jun 27, 2024 7:36 PM in response to BDAqua

Wow, all very well thought out.

1) Yes, you listed the correct adapter from StarTech.

2) I've not explored other no-name adapters. The 2nd/3rd ones you listed don't have master/slave jumpers which I understand are required.

3) Yes, adapter set to MASTER. Easy to see it is correct.

4) My SSD is 120gb and I chose it because it removed the size limit variable.

5) I didn't even contemplate the PCI adapter as I was trying to keep this simple. (Not that it is necessarily less-simple, but this StarTech is mentioned repeatedly in G4 SSD setups.) I just believed it to be simple plug-n-play.

Reply

Answer 6

nomarkup Author

Level 1

4 points

Jun 27, 2024 7:38 PM in response to Jeff

Thanks for the idea. I now understand that to be an option, just not quite as tested as the IDE>SATA adapter (that hasn't worked.) lol

I did research on both brands you mentioned. I found 2 Sonnets on Ebay. The sellers want $500-600 for them. WOW !!!

Reply

Answer 7

nomarkup Author

Level 1

4 points

Jun 27, 2024 7:43 PM in response to Jeff

OH, and I'm running 9.2.2. I haven't updated to 10+ only because I can't find any of the original program CD's to reinstall the many programs on the machine that are valuable to me. (Illustrator, Quark, Photoshop, etc)

So I'm kind stuck with 9.2.2 and that is OK to me.

The no-name adapter specifically spells out that it is not compatible with OS 9 :(

Reply

Answer 8

nomarkup Author

Level 1

4 points

Jun 28, 2024 11:33 AM in response to Jeff

Yea, humbled by all the thoughtful comments.

Never did I dream this would be so complicated.

I just wanted to replace my HDD with a quiet SSD.

:(

As these older PCI cards appear to be unobtanium, perhaps a used IDE SSD. I know KingSpec makes them even though I don't think they are the best product out there.

Or maybe a PATA Compact Flash module?

Reply