Flash a PC Geforce 8400GS 512MB PowerMac G5 Dual-Core 2GHz?

Question

Flash a PC Geforce 8400GS 512MB PowerMac G5 Dual-Core 2GHz?

Ok so today I picked up a PowerMac G5 off craigslist (2GHz Dual Core 512MB ram [added 4GB i removed from PC ) so its sitting at 4.5GB of DDR2,). guy thought it was broken and gave it to me for 30 bucks. i put a new battery in it, along with pressing the button next to the PCI-E slots. cleaned it out, and fired it up. came right up. reinstalled Leopard and might i say it FLIES. (im coming from a hackintosh, and already LOVING this).

only problem is the video card is a joke. I have my old Geforce 8400GS 512MB sitting around not being used. I wonder if I would be able to flash it with the G5 rom so I can use it on here? I have googled, and I came up with nothing. thanks for any help!

nick

PowerMac, Mac OS X (10.5.8), 2Ghz Dual Core PowerPC G5 4.5GB ram

Posted on Jun 15, 2011 10:39 PM

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Answer 1

BDAqua

Level 10

239,213 points

Jun 15, 2011 10:44 PM in response to OzziesIronManOffRoad

Welcome to Macs Ozzie, fantastic deal! 🙂

Hopefully japamac will drop in with his extensive Video Card knowledge.

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Answer 2

Jun 15, 2011 11:09 PM in response to BDAqua

Thanks, I am glad I took the red pill. 🙂 Hackintoshing my AMD was fun, I got it so close to a genuine Mac, my buddy (a total Apple junkie) wants to buy it (though im keeping it.. too bad for him.. hehe..) and believe me I MISS parallels, but I could not pass up this deal. And I notice a difference even on this G5. Its nice not having a computer that sounds like its about to take flight.

I just hope that the 8400 is compatible with the PowerPC rom. I'd SO LOVE to flash my Geforce GT240 1GB into this system, but my experience with osx86 running 10.5 (what im running now in the G5), the GT215 core (i believe) isnt compatible with anything earlier than 10.6.3. If need be, I can get ahold of my old geforce 7900GS 256MB, OR my Radeon HD 3650... (yeah I was in a gamer stage and experimenting with video cards with too much money in my pockets... i miss those days).

I look forward to following any and all advice you guys got for me.

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Answer 3

BDAqua

Level 10

239,213 points

Jun 16, 2011 12:34 AM in response to OzziesIronManOffRoad

>I'd SO LOVE to flash my Geforce GT240 1GB into this system...

I think PPC's limit is 512MB VRAM... & very limited on the flashable cards from PCs.

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Answer 4

BDAqua

Level 10

239,213 points

Jun 16, 2011 12:54 AM in response to OzziesIronManOffRoad

Found this that may or may not help in a post from 1.5 years ago...

http://themacelite.wikidot.com/nvidia-section

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Answer 5

japamac

Level 7

24,400 points

Jun 16, 2011 5:25 AM in response to OzziesIronManOffRoad

I'd SO LOVE to flash my Geforce GT240 1GB into this system, but my experience with osx86 running 10.5 (what im running now in the G5), the GT215 core (i believe) isnt compatible with anything earlier than 10.6.3. If need be, I can get ahold of my old geforce 7900GS 256MB, OR my Radeon HD 3650...

All EFI cards, none of them even remotely possible to be made to run in the Open Firmware based PPC dual core G5........ Strike 3, You're Out!!!!! 😉

The best card that anyone has got going in the dual core G5's is a 512 MB Geforce 7800 GTX.

That is the pinnacle of performance in a PPC Mac.

All the cards that you talk about, without exception, are EFI PCIe cards that would be Mac Pro bound (or Hackintosh bound).

None will ever see service in a G5.

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Answer 6

Jun 16, 2011 7:01 AM in response to japamac

Really? I knew I was always horrible at baseball..... Crud. I could have sworn I saw someone selling a flashed Geforce 9600GT on ebay specifically for a G5, back when I first decided I wanted one...

So basically, what you mean, is I may know a bit more than the average Joe about EFI and getting EFI to read PC cards, but the PowerPC architecture is a whole new ballgame, and NONE of the same rules apply, correct?

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Answer 7

japamac

Level 7

24,400 points

Jun 16, 2011 7:17 AM in response to OzziesIronManOffRoad

So basically, what you mean, is I may know a bit more than the average Joe about EFI and getting EFI to read PC cards, but the PowerPC architecture is a whole new ballgame, and NONE of the same rules apply, correct?

Yep.

I put heavy emphasis on the most important part....NONE of the same rules apply.

Get a 7800 GTX.

The PPC G5 can still be fun!

For big graphics, though, stick with the Hacky. 🙂

I could have sworn I saw someone selling a flashed Geforce 9600GT on ebay specifically for a G5,

Undoubtably another of the multitudes that DON'T know the difference between a G5 and a Mac Pro.😐

Sure, they both look like aluminum cheese graters, but the similarities end there!👿

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Answer 8

Jun 16, 2011 7:29 AM in response to japamac

LOL. Okay. Gotcha. ....dont suppose its possible to put the 7800GTX rom on the 7900GS, huh? hahaha. if only... them PowerPC 7800GTX's aint cheap... the 2 on eBay right now are about 250, and thats more than triple what i spent on this computer.. haha

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Answer 9

The hatter

Level 9

60,990 points

Jun 16, 2011 9:06 AM in response to OzziesIronManOffRoad

We see a lot of people here say their "Mac Pro G5" or G5 Mac Pro" and "well they both LOOK the same on the outside!"

Open Firmware was the heart of Power architecture for 1997? until the switch to Intel architecture that was begun even earlier but under wraps.

PCs use BIOS, you won't find EFI or now UEFI, and Apple takes a standard but proprietary implementation.

Which is why you can't even get basic video out except with branded cards that have $100+ premium.

Because Apple used an 8800GT, there were some flashed PC cards, and as long as it was based on the same reference (G92?) and had a large enough ROM, there were some. $200 for flashed 8800GTs on ebay though dried up, too many problems it seems with solder joints and quality as well as over 3 yrs since manufactured.

Even the ATI 1900XT used in some PCI Express G5s was/is different than the ATI X1900 used in early Mac Pro ($449, $250 extra when BTO) even though 1900 and 1950s for PC were out, were half the price, they could not be cross-flashed. There were some PC cards that were to work in Mac Pro, but limited.

Shame that ATI 5770 or 6750 ($170) PC cards can't be used, even if only half the VRAM could be seen.

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Answer 10

Jun 16, 2011 9:21 AM in response to The hatter

yeah, the guy i bought this from even said it was an intel processor and could run windows. (i knew better though, because i used G5s in high school, and i am very familiar with the model. Mac Pros (intel) have 2 optical drive trays, and G5's have one. lol.). whats crazy is G5s on craigslist around here go for an average of 350 for the 1.8 model! the 2GHz Dual Core model ive seen as high as 600 something, with 4GB of memory. so i think i scored... hahaha.

the 8800GT problems... was that for the OEM model or the flashed model? and what difference was it between the mac and pc variations that caused them to be made weakly? My dad had an 8800GT, and never had problems with it, sold it to a friend and its still working. good to know, either way.... thanks!

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