Airport card installation for 2005 Power Mac G5

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Airport card installation for 2005 Power Mac G5

OK guys, I'm trying to get an airport card to work on my 2005 Power Mac G5. Here's the relevant info:

Power Mac G5 running on Mac OS X 10.4.11
Machine model: PowerMac7,3 (so this would be "early 2005" I guess?)
Airport card: M8881LL/A AirPort Extreme Card

I installed the card as described from the Apple Support site. It seemed to go in fine and I did hook up the antenna wire to the card and an actual antenna is attached to the back of the computer.

When I fired it back up, the computer still can't find the AirPort card. If I open AirPort Setup Assistant (from utilities) it says Airport hardware was not found.

Any chance there is some kind of driver or other missing software I need? Any suggestions?

Power Mac G5, Mac OS X (10.4.11)

Posted on Apr 2, 2011 1:15 PM

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Answer 1

BDAqua

Level 10

239,483 points

Apr 2, 2011 1:36 PM in response to OdinWanderer

Hi OdinWanderer , and a warm welcome to the forums! 🙂

The 7,3 could be 6 different models from Mid 2004 to early 2005.

At the Apple Icon at top left>About this Mac.

Then click on More Info>Hardware and report this upto *but not including the Serial#*...

Hardware Overview:

Machine Name: Power Mac G5 Quad
Machine Model: PowerMac11,2
CPU Type: PowerPC G5 (1.1)
Number Of CPUs: 4
CPU Speed: 2.5 GHz
L2 Cache (per CPU): 1 MB
Memory: 10 GB
Bus Speed: 1.25 GHz
Boot ROM Version: 5.2.7f1

Try re-seating the card as it worked hhere...

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=13028610&#13028610

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Answer 2

OdinWanderer Author

Level 1

10 points

Apr 2, 2011 1:52 PM in response to OdinWanderer

@BDaqua,

Here's the info:

Machine Name: Power Mac G5
Machine Model: PowerMac7,3
CPU Type: PowerPC G5 (3.0)
Number Of CPUs: 2
CPU Speed: 2.3 GHz
L2 Cache (per CPU): 512 KB
Memory: 1 GB
Bus Speed: 1.15 GHz
Boot ROM Version: 5.2.4f1

I did try twice already to remove and reinstall the airport card. Seems like if it was just a seating problem that would have done something. But I can try again if that's the best suggestion. Should I be looking for something inside the computer when I install it (should I leave the side off to watch for some kind of panel light when I start it up)? Seems like the link you posted mentioned something about that...

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Answer 3

BDAqua

Level 10

239,483 points

Apr 2, 2011 2:00 PM in response to OdinWanderer

OK, that is an Early 2005...

http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powermacg5/stats/powermac_g5_2.3dp.html

Does it boot into Open Firmware with CMD Option+of ?

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=42642

reset-nvram (press Enter)
set-defaults (press Enter)
reset-all (press Enter)

Have you done a PRAM reset, CMD Option+pr...

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=2238

How to reset the SMU/PMU on a Power Mac G5 (Late 2004) or Power Mac G5 (Late 2005) ...

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1436

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Answer 4

OdinWanderer Author

Level 1

10 points

Apr 2, 2011 2:19 PM in response to OdinWanderer

@BDaqua,

Doesn't seem like booting into Open Firmware with CMD Option+of or the PRAM reset (CMD Option+pr) had any effect. The computer is still not recognizing the airport card.

I also tried (for a third time) to take the card out and put it back in so see if I could get it to seat better. No luck.

Should I assume the card is defective or can you think of anything else I should try first?

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Answer 5

BDAqua

Level 10

239,483 points

Apr 2, 2011 2:32 PM in response to OdinWanderer

I can't think of anything more at the moment, hopefully some of the better helpers will drop in soon with some ideas.

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Answer 6

Apr 2, 2011 6:28 PM in response to BDAqua

BDAqua wrote:
I can't think of anything more at the moment, hopefully some of the better helpers will drop in soon with some ideas.

Maybe go back to system profiler and make sure that the card is not being seen at all.

Under the Network heading, click *Airport Card* and see if anything is found. If it reports "No information found." you probably have a dead card.

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Answer 7

OdinWanderer Author

Level 1

10 points

Apr 3, 2011 12:00 PM in response to OdinWanderer

System profiles:Airport doesn't see it ("no information found") so maybe the card is dead.

I am correct that my model Power Mac uses the Airport Extreme card right? See top of this thread for all relevant machine details. I just want to be completely sure before I ask for a replacement card from the vendor. I know the late 2005 G5 Power Macs use some kind of combo Airport/Bluetooth card but I believe my G5 should be "early 2005" as stated above.

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Answer 8

BDAqua

Level 10

239,483 points

Apr 3, 2011 12:25 PM in response to OdinWanderer

APPLE WIRELESS AIRPORT EXTREME CARD 802.11g
Apple Model: A1026; M8881LL/A; Part # 661-3045?

Compatible with:
All Apple Products that Accept the Extreme Airport Cards
Such As: iBook G4, iBook G4 (12-inch Late 2004), iBook G4 (Early 2004), iBook G4 (14-inch), iBook G4 (14-inch Early 2004), iBook G4 (14-inch Late 2004), PowerBook G4 (12-inch), PowerBook G4 (12-inch 1.33Ghz), PowerBook G4 (12-inch 1.5Ghz), PowerBook G4 (12-inch DVI), PowerBook G4 (15-inch FW800), PowerBook G4 (15-inch 1.5/1.33GHz),PowerBook G4 (15-inch 1.67/1.5Ghz), eMac (USB 2.0), eMac (ATI Graphics), eMac (2005), AirPort Extreme Base Station, AirPort Extreme Card, Power Mac G4 (FW 800), Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors), Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Door 2003), Power Mac G5, POWER Mac G5 (June 2004), Power Mac G5 (Late 2004), Power Mac G5 (Early 2005), Mac mini, iMac G5 (17-inch), iMac (17-inch Flat Panel, 1GHz), iMac G5 (20-inch), iMac (USB 2.0), Etc.

http://tinyurl.com/3ovq734

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Answer 9

Apr 3, 2011 1:54 PM in response to OdinWanderer

OdinWanderer wrote:
System profiles:Airport doesn't see it ("no information found") so maybe the card is dead.

I am correct that my model Power Mac uses the Airport Extreme card right? See top of this thread for all relevant machine details. I just want to be completely sure before I ask for a replacement card from the vendor. I know the late 2005 G5 Power Macs use some kind of combo Airport/Bluetooth card but I believe my G5 should be "early 2005" as stated above.

You are correct. Only the PCIe models used the combo module.

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