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Can I connect my Power Mac G4 (model M5183) to a modern flat screen monitor? I already tried it with a small flat screen TV which works fine with my MacBook Pro but couldn't make it work with the G4. I only need the G4 for a SCSI slide scanner that I use occasionally, and would love to get rid of the mostrosity of a monitor that came with the G4. I've updated the processor in the G4 to 1 GHz and run it with OS 10.5.8.
G4, Mac OS X (10.3.9)
Hi Ron, what ports are on the G4's Video card? VGA, DVI, or AGP?
Which Video card?
At the Apple Icon at top left>About this Mac.
Then click on More Info>Hardware>Graphics/Displays and report like this...
NVIDIA GeForce 7800GT:
Chipset Model: GeForce 7800GT
Type: Display
Bus: PCI
Slot: SLOT-1
VRAM (Total): 256 MB
Vendor: nVIDIA (0x10de)
Device ID: 0x0092
Revision ID: 0x00a1
ROM Revision: 2152.2
Displays:
VGA Display:
Resolution: 1920 x 1080 @ 60 Hz
Depth: 32-bit Color
Core Image: Supported
Main Display: Yes
Mirror: Off
Online: Yes
Quartz Extreme: Supported
Display:
Status: No display connected
What Monitor & Ports does it have? What is the native rez of the monitor?
Power Mac G4: Display Compatibility...
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1825
Then, it may be possible to enable Screen Sharing on the G4 & control it all through the MBP.
The book that came with it says it has a VGA port. When I connected it to a new flat screen TV with a VGA input nothing showed up on the screen. I worked fine with the output from my MacBook Pro.
Video card info:
ATY,Rage128Pro:
Chipset Model: ATY,Rage128Pro
Type: Display
Bus: AGP
Slot: SLOT-1
VRAM (Total): 16 MB
Vendor: ATI (0x1002)
Device ID: 0x5046
Revision ID: 0x0000
ROM Revision: 113-72701-130
Kernel Extension Info: No Kext Loaded
Displays:
Apple Studio Display:
Resolution: 1024 x 768 @ 99 Hz
Depth: 32-Bit Color
Core Image: Software
Main Display: Yes
Mirror: Off
Online: Yes
Quartz Extreme: Not Supported
It is connected to the Apple Studio Display that came with it.
The book does mention an Apple to VGA adaptor needed if connected a monitor to the VGA port or a DVI to ADC adaptor if connecting it to DVI. Could the solution be as simple as that?
If it's hooked VGA to VGA that should work, try booting from an OSX Install Disc & see if the Monitor shows up, might be that it's set in the Past tto the DVI port.
Also try holding the Shift key at bootup to set a default rez.
What is the native res of the monitor?
Apple advertised that the Rage 128 can support "up to 1600 by 1200 pixel resolution at 32 bits per pixel (millions of colors) and up to 85-Hz refresh rate." The Rage 128 Pro can support up tp 1920 by 1200.
But may have trouble with Widescreen displays.
Thanks. That gives me something to work with. I haven't purchased a flat screen monitor yet, but I'll use this info to help choose one and see if I can make it work. I might be back with more questions if I encounter more mysteries.
Great, looking forward to hearing good news... or questions. 🙂
Apple advertised that the Rage 128 can support "up to 1600 by 1200 pixel resolution at 32 bits per pixel (millions of colors) and up to 85-Hz refresh rate." The Rage 128 Pro can support up tp 1920 by 1200.
<smirk, scoff> Yeah, right..... <end smirk, scoff>
Stay away from 1920x1200 screens with that graphics card.
I have yet to see the Rage properly support a monitor at that resolution.
Stick with 17" or smaller, 16:10 or 4:3 perspective monitors.
The larger you go, the greater the chance of issues/non-support.
16:9 perspective resolutions are not part of the Rage ROM.
Thanks, I thought that claim was a bit strange myself.
Problem solved. I bought the flat screen display and got it up and running with my MacBook Pro. Then I used screen sharing to contol the Power Mac from the laptop. It works! I don't expect I'll be able to boot the Power Mac into System 9 without a display, but it's been a while since I've had a need to do that. However, the SCSI scanner works fine, which is all I was concerned about.
Thanks for the help.
Great to hear Ron, thanks for the report! 🙂
Can I use a flat screen monitor with my Power Mac G$?
