What have you done with a PowerPC today?

[mectojic]

So, I'm a huge fan of the Power Mac G4 Sawtooth. I strongly prefer it over the Gigabit Ethernet model that followed, for both aesthetic and functional reasons.
However, the GigE model did have one major advantage over the Sawtooth, especially in OS X – dual processors.

Some Sawtooth boards are capable of dual processor upgrades, if they have a logic board that is Uni-north 7. I've been looking for one of these boards for a while, but all 4 G4s I tried didn't have it. This week I finally found one with the correct board – it was made in week 20 of 2000, just before the Gigabit model was released. I had to travel for 2 hours both ways to get it, but it was totally worth it to me! I then did a board swap and processor swap.

Now my Sawtooth has DUAL 500MHz processors. Photo below – the definitive proof is the internal firewire 400 port, which no other Power Mac model has. I thought I may as well use it, with an internal HD – in graphite of course!

 

[TheShortTimer]

So, I'm a huge fan of the Power Mac G4 Sawtooth. I strongly prefer it over the Gigabit Ethernet model that followed, for both aesthetic and functional reasons.
However, the GigE model did have one major advantage over the Sawtooth, especially in OS X – dual processors.

The Sawtooth also holds sentimental value for me as that was my entry into the Mac world.

Some Sawtooth boards are capable of dual processor upgrades, if they have a logic board that is Uni-north 7.

That's interesting. I was under the impression that they could all accommodate this upgrade. Does this also apply to third-party products like the Sonnet range?

I had to travel for 2 hours both ways to get it, but it was totally worth it to me!

I almost travelled more than double that journey time across the UK to buy a Mac. If something is worth having then it's worth the effort involved, I say.

Photo below – the definitive proof is the internal firewire 400 port, which no other Power Mac model has.

View attachment 2121315

If your Sawtooth logic board features an internal FireWire port then that's a guarantee of dual CPU compatibility? My current machine is a 1999 model with this specification. That means it could run in dual CPU mode?

View attachment 2121316

Congrats!

 

[mectojic]

If your Sawtooth logic board features an internal FireWire port then that's a guarantee of dual CPU compatibility? My current machine is a 1999 model with this specification. That means it could run in dual CPU mode?

Ah, no. Should've been clearer. All Sawtooths have the internal Firewire port, that was just proving it wasn't a Gigabit model.
1999 Sawtooths won't support duals – the manufacture needs to be some time in 2000. Therefore all 350MHz models are out, and the early models that shipped without a DVI port.

There's no way to be completely sure though except by running the program I use in the photo above – UniNorthASICChecker.

 

[TheShortTimer]

Ah, no. Should've been clearer. All Sawtooths have the internal Firewire port, that was just proving it wasn't a Gigabit model.

Actually they don't all have the internal FireWire port because it was absent on my previous Sawtooth - a 2000 model. It no longer works but I still have it and can take a photo of the logic board if you're curious.

1999 Sawtooths won't support duals – the manufacture needs to be some time in 2000. Therefore all 350MHz models are out, and the early models that shipped without a DVI port.

Understood.

There's no way to be completely sure though except by running the program I use in the photo above – UniNorthASICChecker.

Thanks.

 

[mectojic]

Actually they don't all have the internal FireWire port because it was absent on my previous Sawtooth - a 2000 model. It no longer works but I still have it and can take a photo of the logic board if you're curious.

Wow, really!! Please do share. That must've been quite late in the production line. I can't think of any other Mac that had a port removed without a refreshed product launch. The Sawtooth really was an evolving product over its 9 month life.

 

[TheShortTimer]

Wow, really!! Please do share. That must've been quite late in the production line. I can't think of any other Mac that had a port removed without a refreshed product launch. The Sawtooth really was an evolving product over its 9 month life.

Here you go.

Excuse the dust and general poor state, its been abandoned for about a decade...

 

[B S Magnet]

Here you go.

Excuse the dust and general poor state, its been abandoned for about a decade...

Whoa, your model has the ultra-rare Pepper packet adapter. That ought to spice things up!

 

[mectojic]

Here you go.

Excuse the dust and general poor state, its been abandoned for about a decade...

Haha. That is a Gigabit Ethernet G4. You can tell because it has the power socket for ADC to the right of the AGP video slot.
I think I remain correct that all Sawtooths should have an internal firewire.
The processor however is single and from 1999. That's weird. Maybe it was swapped? Unless Apple had leftover 450 singles from 1999. Unlikely though.

 

[TheShortTimer]

Haha. That is a Gigabit Ethernet G4. You can tell because it has the power socket for ADC to the right of the AGP video slot.
I think I remain correct that all Sawtooths should have an internal firewire.

All this time I thought it was a Sawtooth. I was actually sold a superior G4 model and didn't even realise!

The processor however is single and from 1999. That's weird. Maybe it was swapped? Unless Apple had leftover 450 singles from 1999. Unlikely though.

No, the CPU is a 400Mhz unit because the computer is an early version of the Gigabit Ethernet which featured a slower processor. I upgraded it to the Sonnet Encore ST G4 1Ghz/2M. At some point after the machine died and I transferred the parts over to the Sawtooth, I must've re-inserted the original CPU for some reason - or possibly even inserted the Sawtooth's 350Mhz one.

Either way, it was originally 400Mhz. See for yourself.

 

[mectojic]

All this time I thought it was a Sawtooth. I was actually sold a superior G4 model and didn't even realise!



No, the CPU is a 400Mhz unit because the computer is an early version of the Gigabit Ethernet which featured a slower processor. I upgraded it to the Sonnet Encore ST G4 1Ghz/2M. At some point after the machine died and I transferred the parts over to the Sawtooth, I must've re-inserted the original CPU for some reason - or possibly even inserted the Sawtooth's 350Mhz one.

Either way, it was originally 400Mhz. See for yourself.

My mistake. You're right about that. Gigabits came in 400, dual 450 and dual 500. They were first released in July 2000, but it's more plausible Apple still had the exact same 400MHz processors from their 1999 batch, and there was no need to change the year labelled (as it typical with most chips).

The other giveaways that the Mac is a Gigabit is the white power light, and the lack of the graphite '3D' holographic sticker on the back I/O plate.

Gigabits were the last Macs to have a monitor power port, as pictured above. A handy feature that I wish towers still had. It was scrapped because of ADC, but didn't come back after the ADC era ended.

 

[Tratkazir_the_1st]

@TheShortTimer
Excuse me but the videocard looks ... strange .

 

[TheShortTimer]

Gigabits were the last Macs to have a monitor power port, as pictured above. A handy feature that I wish towers still had. It was scrapped because of ADC, but didn't come back after the ADC era ended.

On my PC's, the last one that had with that feature was a 486 and I missed it on my subsequent Pentium towers. Discovering its presence on the G4 was a welcome surprise.

@TheShortTimer
Excuse me but the videocard looks ... strange .

That's a dead computer which has been put to one side for a decade and forgotten about.

 

[B S Magnet]

All this time I thought it was a Sawtooth. I was actually sold a superior G4 model and didn't even realise!



No, the CPU is a 400Mhz unit because the computer is an early version of the Gigabit Ethernet which featured a slower processor. I upgraded it to the Sonnet Encore ST G4 1Ghz/2M. At some point after the machine died and I transferred the parts over to the Sawtooth, I must've re-inserted the original CPU for some reason - or possibly even inserted the Sawtooth's 350Mhz one.

Either way, it was originally 400Mhz. See for yourself.

I can parse that this was assembled at the factory in Cork (as most European market Macs are) on the 31st week of 2000 — 31 July to 6 August.

Aside from that, I sort of smile at the 00:30:65:… ethernet MAC address; both my indigo 366 and Ti PB 400 were 00:30:65: prefixes.

 

[Tratkazir_the_1st]

@B S Magnet
Is it Broadcom-based Ethernet? (With Apple's OUI)

 

[ervus]

That is a Gigabit Ethernet G4. You can tell because it has the power socket for ADC to the right of the AGP video slot.

It also has the gigabit chip.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/cpu-upgrades-the-powermac-g4-digital-audio-da.2322393/post-30590820

 

[mectojic]

It also has the gigabit chip.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/cpu-upgrades-the-powermac-g4-digital-audio-da.2322393/post-30590820

I believe a Sawtooth could have gigabit as a build to order option, so that doesn't always prove it.
Never seen one with gigabit though. Very few people needed those speeds back then.

 

[B S Magnet]

@B S Magnet
Is it Broadcom-based Ethernet? (With Apple's OUI)

No idea, sorry.

 

[ifrit05]

Aside from that, I sort of smile at the 00:30:65:… ethernet MAC address; both my indigo 366 and Ti PB 400 were 00:30:65: prefixes.

The first 3 octets (xx:xx:xx) in a MAC address are usually reserved for the Organizationally Unique Identifier (OUI). A vendor may have many OUI's associated with itself. 003065 is one of them Apple used in the past.

APPLE TV MAC ADDRESS – Oui Lookup

ouilookup.com

 

[B S Magnet]

The first 3 octets (xx:xx:xx) in a MAC address are usually reserved for the Organizationally Unique Identifier (OUI). A vendor may have many OUI's associated with itself. 003065 is one of them Apple used in the past.

APPLE TV MAC ADDRESS – Oui Lookup

ouilookup.com

Oh! Today I learnt! Thank you!

I’m guessing the ethernet vendor across all the 2000–2001 Macs were all handled by the same vendor, hence the same OUI.

 

[ifrit05]

I’m guessing the ethernet vendor across all the 2000–2001 Macs were all handled by the same vendor, hence the same OUI.

Yes, they were all handled by Apple. Apple was the vendor.

On that site I linked it shows all the OUIs Apple uses/has used.

 

[B S Magnet]

Yes, they were all handled by Apple. Apple was the vendor.

On that site I linked it shows all the OUIs Apple uses/has used.

Well, heck… this site will undoubtedly leave me distracted for a spell!

00:30:65

 

[Tratkazir_the_1st]

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/what-have-you-done-with-a-powerpc-today.2233788/post-31771758

Look near needle radiator, right of it. There is word "ETHERNET" if I read it correctly & chip with Broadcom logo there . (I never hear about NIC chip fully designed & produced by Apple itself ).

 

[TheShortTimer]

I can parse that this was assembled at the factory in Cork (as most European market Macs are) on the 31st week of 2000 — 31 July to 6 August.

That's right: both my Gigabit Ethernet and Sawtooth state on their casings "Made in Ireland."

When I mentioned to this an Irish friend, she responded: "They must be old."

 

[ifrit05]

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/what-have-you-done-with-a-powerpc-today.2233788/post-31771758

Look near needle radiator, right of it. There is word "ETHERNET" if I read it correctly & chip with Broadcom logo there . (I never hear about NIC chip fully designed & produced by Apple itself ).

Apple is the OUI vendor providing MAC Addresses. Doesn't mean they actually make the chip itself.

MAC address - Wikiwand

A MAC address is a unique identifier assigned to a network interface controller (NIC) for use as a network address in communications within a network segment. T...

www.wikiwand.com

Look near needle radiator

First time I've ever heard someone call a heat sink that.

 

[Tratkazir_the_1st]

heat sink

Well, English is not my native language, m.b. term not really matches. I suppose you anyway got the idea .