Upgrading a 400MHz G4 (AGP)...
Okay, started this new job and they're probably going to bring a part-time ringer in to help out in production a bit. The G4 I'm currently using will be passed to the new person, I'll inherit the snazzy Quicksilver tower from the other graphics guy and he'll get a new one I guess (seniority and all...hey, I ain't bitchin', just happy to have a job).
Anyway, this 400MHz G4...here's the specs: 384MB RAM, 10GB(!) hard drive, DVD-ROM drive and whatever the hell else came with those models (I'm guessing a 8MB graphics card or something?).
Currently running 9.2.2 (but perhaps by summer I'll have the joint "Jaguar-ized".
This will be a light-medium duty machine. Some scanning, but mostly page layout and magazine/catalog design using InDesign 2.0.
The RAM is no problem...I know how to handle that. Help me with:
- Hard drive (what kinda, speed, specs, etc.). I'd like to get at least 20-30GB in it
- Can I drop in an internal CD-RW drive instead of the DVD-ROM?
- Okay, just for giggles (not a huge priority), what about the video card? Is this upgradeable on that particular model? Pop the original out and stick in a nice 32MB one from nVidia or ATi?
This is actually quite a snappy, solid machine. Don't let the 400MHz throw you off...we're not splitting atoms with it. The speed isn't an issue at all, just it's storage capacity and media handling (or lack of it).
Any suggestions, directions where to look, brand recommendations, etc. is greatly appreciated.
Anyway, this 400MHz G4...here's the specs: 384MB RAM, 10GB(!) hard drive, DVD-ROM drive and whatever the hell else came with those models (I'm guessing a 8MB graphics card or something?).
Currently running 9.2.2 (but perhaps by summer I'll have the joint "Jaguar-ized".
This will be a light-medium duty machine. Some scanning, but mostly page layout and magazine/catalog design using InDesign 2.0.
The RAM is no problem...I know how to handle that. Help me with:
- Hard drive (what kinda, speed, specs, etc.). I'd like to get at least 20-30GB in it
- Can I drop in an internal CD-RW drive instead of the DVD-ROM?
- Okay, just for giggles (not a huge priority), what about the video card? Is this upgradeable on that particular model? Pop the original out and stick in a nice 32MB one from nVidia or ATi?
This is actually quite a snappy, solid machine. Don't let the 400MHz throw you off...we're not splitting atoms with it. The speed isn't an issue at all, just it's storage capacity and media handling (or lack of it).
Any suggestions, directions where to look, brand recommendations, etc. is greatly appreciated.
Comments
Originally posted by pscates
Okay, started this new job and they're probably going to bring a part-time ringer in to help out in production a bit. The G4 I'm currently using will be passed to the new person, I'll inherit the snazzy Quicksilver tower from the other graphics guy and he'll get a new one I guess (seniority and all...hey, I ain't bitchin', just happy to have a job).
Anyway, this 400MHz G4...here's the specs: 384MB RAM, 10GB(!) hard drive, DVD-ROM drive and whatever the hell else came with those models (I'm guessing a 8MB graphics card or something?).
Currently running 9.2.2 (but perhaps by summer I'll have the joint "Jaguar-ized".
This will be a light-medium duty machine. Some scanning, but mostly page layout and magazine/catalog design using InDesign 2.0.
The RAM is no problem...I know how to handle that. Help me with:
- Hard drive (what kinda, speed, specs, etc.). I'd like to get at least 20-30GB in it
- Can I drop in an internal CD-RW drive instead of the DVD-ROM?
- Okay, just for giggles (not a huge priority), what about the video card? Is this upgradeable on that particular model? Pop the original out and stick in a nice 32MB one from nVidia or ATi?
This is actually quite a snappy, solid machine. Don't let the 400MHz throw you off...we're not splitting atoms with it. The speed isn't an issue at all, just it's storage capacity and media handling (or lack of it).
Any suggestions, directions where to look, brand recommendations, etc. is greatly appreciated.
Okay, we have the same machine in the studio, and I've been running Jaguar on it for some time now.
Hard drive. Anything with an IDE interface is going to work. There are two different types widely available, the only difference is the rotational speed - 5,400rpm and 7,200rpm. The faster the better, especially on an old machine. On any machine, the hard disk is usually the slowest component, so upgrading it usually yields significant speed increases. Maxtor, Seagate and IBM are all good drives. Something like an 80GB Maxtor Diamond Max 9 will see you right. Don't worry to much about the 66/100/133 figure after the UltraATA, that only refers to how quickly the disk can transfer data that's already in its cache, rather than the data on the disk itself.
CD writer. Again, pretty much anything with an IDE interface is going to work. I'd recommend a Lite-On or LG drive. Apple have used both in recent models. You can check www.apple.com/itunes/compatibility for details of which drives will work. The "mechanism" column is the most useful.
Graphics card. No matter what you do, you'll never be able to take advantage of ADC, as the "Sawtooth" motherboard doesn't have the power header that's required. This means Studio displays and Cinema Displays won't work. You can however fit a graphics card that will take advantage of Quartz Extreme. You might be able to pick up an Apple GeForce 2MX card on ebay, but a far better bet would be to get hold of ATi's retail Radeon 9000 Pro card. Very impressive card (it came as standard with the Dual 1GHz/1.25GHz MDD boxes). About the only card on the market at the moment with an ADC interface (pity you can't use it).
With a good hard disk drive and bags of RAM a 400MHz Sawtooth is still a very potent machine. Jaguar is certainly useable, and a fast 48x+ Lite-On CD-RW will be faster than most drives fitted to G4s out there.
Any questions send me a private message! Good luck
BTW, ADC capabilities aren't an issue. I'm using a ViewSonic 19" CRT monitor, so that's fine. It's quite nice: the screen itself is perfectly flat and seems really crisp and vivid. I like it a lot.
Just a bit boxy and all...so weird using non-Apple hardware all of a sudden. Everything is so damn...well, ugly.