Apple pro speaker compatability

Question

Level 1

14 points

Apple pro speaker compatability

I am thinking of getting a set of Apple pro speakers off ebay.

Does anyone know if the Apple pro speaker (with minijack) work with the Powerbook G3 pismo? I cant remember if this model was one of the first to ship with the new minijack!

Powerbook G3 Mac OS X (10.4.7)

Powerbook G3, Mac OS X (10.2.x)

Posted on Aug 22, 2006 7:23 AM

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Answer 1

a brody

Level 10

82,841 points

Aug 22, 2006 10:04 PM in response to ezra rushen

No they will not. They were designed to work with the PowerMac G4 Digital Audio, the iMac G4, and the PowerMac G4 Cube.

Powerbook G4 17" of January 31, 2005 shipped with a different new minijack which supports both headphones and SPDIF based audio for 5.1 speaker systems. Later the 15" models got the SPDIF ports. But the SPDIF is not compatible with Apple's Pro Speakers. Those speakers are no longer sold.

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Answer 2

a brody

Level 10

82,841 points

Aug 23, 2006 5:40 AM in response to a brody

I stand corrected as far as the Cube speakers are concerned. A friend tells me these two articles discuss what can use the Pro Speakers:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=25236

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=86420

And there is a device that is now discontinued called the iFire that if you can get ahold of can add Pro Speaker compatibility to machines that don't have it:

http://www.griffintechnology.com/support/ifire/

As you can see the Pro speaker port is actually smaller than a standard 1/8th inch RCA jack.

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Answer 3

Dave2

Level 6

12,275 points

Oct 9, 2006 8:08 PM in response to a brody

I found the iFire two weeks ago at a local store (London Drugs). They are a pharmacy but also sell everything else... they had a few in the warehouse at that time. $49 bux canuk.

Griffin also had a unit called the POwerWave that will run the Pro Speakers but it was more pricey.

The iFire (and PowerWave I think) draws 5 v power from the FireWire port and connects to the standard mini-plug in your PowerBook (or alternate).

I hacked the connector (opened the eyeballs, desoldered the wires, resoldered wires from my amp... it works... sort of but the sound is aweful). Sound quality is good thru the iFire.

D.

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Answer 4

Oct 10, 2006 3:39 AM in response to Dave2

I have the PowerWave. It is a USB device. It can use the USB bus for power, but for best amplification results, it comes with an external "power brick." You can connect through the standard mini-plug as input, but for Macs with USB, the best way to connect is via USB cable. It comes with adapters to plug in the Apple Pro Speakers. It also comes with a special cable for connecting standard music system speakers, with PowerWave acting as the amp.

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