PowerMac G4 400 PCI Upgrade Help

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Level 1

10 points

PowerMac G4 400 PCI Upgrade Help

Hi there,
I recently received PowerMac G4 from a co-worker that is running OS X Panther 10.3.9. Everything seems to work pretty well and I'm getting the hang of using it, but running multiple applications and seems to tax it a bit heavily and I'm looking into upgrading some of the components in it so that it will run smoother.

Any suggestions on what I could upgrade to make this machine run a little smoother are greatly appreciated. The main things I want are for programs to load relatively quickly, transitions while moving windows don't take forever, and the ability to play back media without the system choking or VLC stuttering, but I really don't know where to begin.

All the hardware on the system appears to be what came with the machine except possibly some additional RAM, and I've posted the specs below.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!

PowerMac G4 PCI (Yikes!)
Machine Model: Power Mac G3 (PCI graphics)
CPU Type: PowerPC G4 (2.6)
Bus Speed: 100 MHz
Boot ROM Version: 1.1.2f2
Number Of CPUs: 1
CPU Speed: 400 MHz
L2 Cache (per CPU): 1 MB

Memory: 832 MB
DIMM0/J19:
Size: 256 MB
DIMM1/J20:
Size: 256 MB
DIMM2/J21:
Size: 256 MB
DIMM3/J22:
Size: 64 MB

Display: ATY,Rage128:
Type: display
Bus: PCI
Slot: J12
VRAM (Total): 16 MB
Vendor: ATI (0x1002)
Device ID: 0x5245
Revision ID: 0x0000
ROM Revision: 113-57407-204

PowerMac G4 400 PCI Mac OS X (10.3.9)

Posted on Nov 29, 2006 5:09 PM

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Answer 1

Nov 29, 2006 8:37 PM in response to xelement5x

Hello! The "Yikes" G4 is really more of a G3 than the G4. You'd probably be better off spending your money on a Mini or at least a newer model G4. Sonnet makes a processor card for the PCI G4 (Yikes) but it's expensive at about 300 bucks from OWC. Tom

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Answer 2

xelement5x Author

Level 1

10 points

Nov 29, 2006 8:57 PM in response to Thomas Bryant

The machine runs quite well for what I need, I just need a little bump in speed, not a brand new machine. I have looked at the processor upgrade cards and saw that they were a bit pricy for what I needed.

I guess the big question is whether additional RAM or a better video card (I've seen Mac Radeon 7000 around for about $50-$60) would give me the increase that I need? I'm trying to find out what would give me the best bang for the buck at this point so I can continue to browse the web, listen to music and watch movies without the little jitters and slowdown that has been affecting me.

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Answer 3

Nov 29, 2006 9:05 PM in response to xelement5x

Hello! With the ram you have most of your slowdown is caused by the slow processor speed and somewhat by slow bus speeds on the motherboard. I've used a B&W G3 (similar to your Yikes) and finally got rid of it because of slow speeds. It probably would perform better on 9.2.2 than OSX or at least that's my experience however 9.2.2 limits some web page stuff. I'm real happy with my Sawtooth with a 1.2 Sonnet using 10.3.6 and another one with a 1.8 Sonnet running 9.2.2 & 10.3.9. The fact is the more speed you get the more you want. I ran my Beige G3 at 500 mhz till I just coundn't stand it any longer and happened by another G4Sawtooth. I just don't think you'll get much bang for the buck. Tom

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Answer 4

fragmore

Level 3

661 points

Nov 30, 2006 7:25 AM in response to xelement5x

Well the best answer was the first. When it ia all said and done you can spend just as much on upgrading as you want and not be close to a mini, or even a more modern G4.

But the answer you seek is, for me, both. Max out your RAM [512mb = $50 each] and get a better video card. Things will smooth out, but never be speed demons by today's levels, and eventually your little machine [and mine] will not be strong enough to run new software [for example Apple Aperture].

But hey! the Hubble space telescope runs on 4kb of RAM.

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Answer 5

fragmore

Level 3

661 points

Nov 30, 2006 7:27 AM in response to fragmore

One other thought. Check out the forums at http://www.xlr8yourmac.com. They have all sorts of specific ideas.

Power Mac G4 (AGP Graphics) Dual 500 Mac OS X (10.4.8) 2 GB Ram, Nvidia FX5500 agp card EMBO Tech 8800 eliminator.

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Answer 6

xelement5x Author

Level 1

10 points

Nov 30, 2006 8:08 AM in response to fragmore

Thanks for the advice! Do you what maximum amount of RAM I can put in this machine is and what kind of RAM I would need to use?

I believe it is PC100, but I'm not completely sure.

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Answer 7

fragmore

Level 3

661 points

Nov 30, 2006 9:04 AM in response to xelement5x

Get Mactracker [it's free]. It will answer the memory question and more for you.

It shows that you can put in a max of 1GB of ram.

It shows that you need PC100 3.3v, unbuffered, 8-byte, non-parity 168-pin SDRAM.

I put PC 133-333 in mine and it works fine. It was much easier to find and the higher speed rating has no effect as the computer runs it at the appropriate speed.

I got mine at a local computer store, real cheap and with the agreement that I could return it if it didn't work [it was used and out of a PC], it worked fine. A lot of people will warn against used RAM, in fact I did buy some from a guy on ebay that sounded right but would not work in the MAC. The local guy took it on trade for whaI had paid.

Otherworld computing can sell you RAM at good prices. But shop around RAM prices vary quite a bit. You can always go to an Apple store and pay significantly mmore for it.

Power Mac G4 (AGP Graphics) Dual 500 Mac OS X (10.4.8) 2 GB Ram, Nvidia FX5500 agp card EMBO Tech 8800 eliminator.

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Answer 8

xelement5x Author

Level 1

10 points

Dec 1, 2006 8:54 AM in response to fragmore

Thanks for your help! Mactracker works great, and swapping out the 64MB stick for 256MB has definitely made it faster. As well, I think I located the Radeon 7000 for Macs at quite a good price on eBay.

This is the card:
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Apple-Mac-ATI-Radeon-7000-PCI-32MB-DDR-Video-Card_W0QQit emZ300054048619QQihZ020QQcategoryZ25449QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Would this card work in my machine and probably help decrease the video playback jitters that I get?

Thanks again for your help!

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Answer 9

aloha

Level 1

45 points

Dec 2, 2006 10:19 AM in response to xelement5x

Hello,

I have this very same Mac and have recently upgraded several parts on it, here is what I did.

1) more memory, definetly helped, smart move, the max is 1G, any more and I'm guessing it will cause an error

2) put in a pioneer dvd player, helps if you want to install 10.4.., mostly sold on dvd's, but cd's can be had

3)added a 120G HDD (the max size for this model) as a second for storage, I like Western Digital, there are others who don't, that's fine. Look around for good prices, know that the HDD DOESN'T have to be Mac specific, you will have to format in utilities, not a problem, and lastly,

4) I just upgraded the processor that I got from OWC, it is a PowerLogix G3 1.1Ghz, they no longer sell this model and it was a bit pricey ($250).

As far as changing out the video card, I would read up and check to make sure that if you change the card out that you will get the most benefits. I've yet to come across a card that will make use of Quartz Extreme, used for some apps.

Yes, I could have probably bought a mini for the money that I've spent, but it was cheaper than a new G4, and I've done this over several months and looking for the best deals.

Hope this helps and good luck.

Tammy

G4 Yikes, Mac OS X (10.4.8)

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Answer 10

xelement5x Author

Level 1

10 points

Dec 5, 2006 9:28 AM in response to aloha

Thanks for your help! I've purchased the video card so I can get a bit more video RAM for now (Can't complain for $30).

I may look into a larger hard drive and processor upgrade (I cannibalized a Pioneer DVD drive from my PC which seems to work fine), but for now everything seems like it will work fine.

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