###              ###        ####                       ###  ###  ##   ##
    ## ## ## ##  #   ## ##   ## ##     ###    ##    ### #   ##   ## ## ### ###
   ## ## ## ## #### ## ##  #    ####  ## ## ## ## ##   ###  ##   ## ## ## # ##
  ## ## ## ##  ##  ## ## ####     ## ####  ##### ##   ##### ##   ## ## ##   ##
 ## ## ## ##  ##  ## ##  ##      ## ##    ##    ##     ###  ##   ## ## ##   ##
 ###   ###    ##  ###   ##   ####  ##     ###   ###     #    ###  ###  ##   ##
     
To the Core! Last modified: 04/03/23 10:03:46 PM
  FrankenMac
  • Intro
  • Mobo
  • Case
  • Wiring
  • Accesories
  • Software
  • Gallery
  • Links
    OutOfSpec
  • OutOfSpec.com
    •      		 

    Choosing a motherboard determines everything else you do, so start here. Many times your choice will be limited or even dictated completely by parts availability. If all that is available are partially fried 'Yikes' mobos, you either wait or use what you can get.

    Apple marketed many different editions of the PowerMac G4 that used the same external housing. The machines are differentiated by the motherboard utilized. Most Mac enthusiasts refer to them by their internal development names, or distinguishing features. The first case style had 4 motherboards run through it. All of these machines use common SDRAM, either PC100 or PC133 dependant on FSB. Specifications on the IDE interfaces for these mobos are a bit harder to find. Apple shipped UDMA33 drives in 'Yikes' machines, and UDMA66 in the others, but I have no idea what the interface maxes out at. There are two IDE buses, one intended for optical drives, one for hard drives, and I'm not certain how absolute those restrictions are.

    Yikes Sawtooth Gigabit Digital Audio
    CPU FSB 100mhz 100mhz 100mhz 133mhz
    RAM Slots 4 4 4 3
    Graphics Slot PCI 32bit/66mhz AGP 2x AGP 2x AGP 4x
    PCI 64bit/33mhz Slots 3 3 3 4
    IDE ??? ??? ??? ???
    Power Supply 20pin 20pin 22pin 22pin
    Ethernet 10/100 10/100 10/100/1000 10/100/1000


    Most people will want to avoid the 'Yikes' machine, even if buying a whole unit used, just because it lacks AGP. 'Gigabit' boards are the most common on the market. I suspect that once it came out, Apple used it to repair older G4s as it's basically a drop-in replacement with no feature loss. Repair shops started stocking them, and eventually figured they could move the excess for more profit than performing warranty work by selling to people like me.

    For my box, I've opted for the 'Digital Audio' motherboard. The faster FSB makes it far more appealing to me than the earlier variants... and I got a good buy on one with a 466mhz cpu, heatsink, and a couple test fodder Mac ROM'd ATi RagePro vid cards. This model is also the entry point for AGP 4x support. You can never have a fast enough AGP interface, even if benchmarks show that AGP 8x isn't THAT much faster than AGP 2x with current games. There are cpu upgrades available for it from multiple vendors, including dual 1.4ghz setups, so while Distortion won't feel threatened any time soon in the performance department, I can crank up the perf a decent amount should I decide to.

    There are newer G4s available as well. The 'Quicksilver' variants came out in a new case design, but feature-wise only differ in the components offered. The motherboards used are pretty similar to the 'Digital Audio'. One of the few differences is 'Quicksilver' and newer motherboards make use of a 4pin P4 header, so make sure you get an appropriate power supply. 'Quicksilver' and later motherboards also supply +12v through a mounting post to the cpu module. 'Quicksilver' cpu moudles are not backwards compatible with the 'Digital Audio' motherboard and vice versa. The aftermarket upgrade CPUs are usually designed to work on both, using an external power header to sneak power from a spare molex connector when installed on 'Digital Audio' motherboards.

    The third case revision in the G4 line brought with it an updated motherboard. The 'DDR' board, as you have probalbly guessed switched to DDR memory. The FSB was aslo upped to 166mhz. Apple also put 3 IDE buses on the motherboard, each a different speed for some unknown reason, one each UDMA 33, UDMA 66, and UDMA 100. The system got an upgrade adding a bluetooth port in January 2003. Given that the 'Mirrored Drive Door' design didn't come out till August 2002, you aren't likely to find parted out units very often.

    Just to drive the point home, make sure to get the appropriate power supply. 'Yikes' and 'Sawtooth' should be able to share power supplies. Because of the P4 requirement, 'Quicksilver' boards must have 'Quicksilver' power supplies. You CAN use a 'Gigabit' power supply on a 'Digital Audio' motherboard, so you have some flexibility choosing a 'Digital Audio' motherboard if you buy your motherboard outside a bundle deal.

    Up
    Last
    Next