eBay bargains - what's your latest conquest?

[ToniCH]

For a long time I've been looking for a G4 Mini but haven't spotted any for sale locally for years. Now a collector had 3 for sale at the same time! So, I made a deal on a 1.42GHz. Finally.

My personal list of G4 straight flush is getting quite complete: PM MDD FW800, Cube, TiBook, iBook 14", PowerBook 12" and now the Mini! Only the iMac G4 20" is still on my wanted list. And maybe the PowerBook 15"...and 17"... 😂

 

[thewireless]

 

[ToniCH]

View attachment 2458367

Well, that looks familiar. What is it sitting in?

 

[thewireless]

Well, that looks familiar. What is it sitting in?

View attachment 2458457

It's the 1.4 GHz model in a Sawtooth. I received the Power Mac today from a friend, but I haven't booted it up yet.

 

[Doq]

Update:

The 190cs works! I did desolder and remove the battery connector on the logic board though-- it was unsaveable-- so it's AC only. I wasn't gonna throw batteries in it anyway.

I got jumpscared when it played the PowerPC startup sound, but it has an LC040 as I thought (and saw on the logic board).

3400c is still in the air as the power adapter for it has not arrived yet but seeing as it was cleaner inside than the 190cs it probably works too.

 

[MarkC426]

Update:

The 190cs works! I did desolder and remove the battery connector on the logic board though-- it was unsaveable-- so it's AC only. I wasn't gonna throw batteries in it anyway.

I got jumpscared when it played the PowerPC startup sound, but it has an LC040 as I thought (and saw on the logic board).

View attachment 2459183

3400c is still in the air as the power adapter for it has not arrived yet but seeing as it was cleaner inside than the 190cs it probably works too.

So what age is that….…………?

 

[Doq]

So what age is that….…………?

According to the serial mine is week 23 of 1996, making it about 28 and a half years old. It also makes it older than me, and also makes it the oldest Mac in my collection.

It's also old enough to not have a section on MR forums. Shhhhh on that though 🤫

 

[AdamBuker]

It's also old enough to not have a section on MR forums. Shhhhh on that though 🤫

Tell me about it. I wish we had an equivalent Apple II forum on MacRumors. I tried posting in the collectibles forum some time ago but it seems that it's full of people collecting the machines rather than using them.

 

[weckart]

Tell me about it. I wish we had an equivalent Apple II forum on MacRumors. I tried posting in the collectibles forum some time ago but it seems that it's full of people collecting the machines rather than using them.

MacTech68 is very knowledgeable about older tech and often posts helpful advice on repairs if he's around on that forum.

 

[TheShortTimer]

Tell me about it. I wish we had an equivalent Apple II forum on MacRumors. I tried posting in the collectibles forum some time ago but it seems that it's full of people collecting the machines rather than using them.

68kmla.org is the place to go for help with any Apple gear that's 68K or older and it has a friendly, helpful community.

 

[ToniCH]

For a long time I've been looking for a G4 Mini but haven't spotted any for sale locally for years. Now a collector had 3 for sale at the same time! So, I made a deal on a 1.42GHz. Finally. View attachment 2458315

My personal list of G4 straight flush is getting quite complete: PM MDD FW800, Cube, TiBook, iBook 14", PowerBook 12" and now the Mini! Only the iMac G4 20" is still on my wanted list. And maybe the PowerBook 15"...and 17"... 😂

Received the Mini G4 today. Didn't get it to work with my Samsung 27", result looked like broken GPU. But, luckily that seems to be incompatibility between the Mini, the cable and/or the display.

Works perfectly with 23" Cinema Display. Has Tiger, 1.42GHz G4, 1GB RAM, CD-RW and a 80GB HDD. The AirPort Extreme card seems to support my Wifi.

 

[TheShortTimer]

But, luckily that seems to be incompatibility between the Mini, the cable and/or the display.

It is an incompatibility with the display.

Works perfectly with 23" Cinema Display. Has Tiger, 1.42GHz G4, 1GB RAM, CD-RW and a 80GB HDD. The AirPort Extreme card seems to support my Wifi.

Congrats.

 

[ToniCH]

It is an incompatibility with the display.

Ok, thanks for that. I suspected that is the most likely case as my monitor has 2 inputs: DP and HDMI and I tried all my DVI to DP or HDMI cables, adapters, adapter combos (DVI-VGA-DP etc.) and only couple of those gave any pic at all. And those which did gave me the broken GPU look where even menu texts were unreadable.

 

[ojfd]

When it comes to displays, Mac Mini G4s are finicky.

Mac Mini G4 display compatibility

Mac Mini G4 display compatibility

macos9lives.com

 

[Certificate of Excellence]

Not tech related (well I did use technology to buy it) but I picked up a cast iron trivet that hung in my mom n dads kitchen in (I assume) from when they were married in the 70s to the early 80s when I have memories of it. Like this:

Kissin dont last; cookin do.

There are lots of variations on this but this is the one I remember. The one I bought looks like this. Now, the big question is: Do I give this to my wife as a stocking stuffer, proactively hang it up in the ktchen somewhere or fearing reprisal just keep it as part of my collections as a nostalgic reminder of the simple times of being a kid and the warm & inviting smells of good food.

 

[PPC_505]

Received the Mini G4 today. Didn't get it to work with my Samsung 27", result looked like broken GPU. But, luckily that seems to be incompatibility between the Mini, the cable and/or the display.

Works perfectly with 23" Cinema Display. Has Tiger, 1.42GHz G4, 1GB RAM, CD-RW and a 80GB HDD. The AirPort Extreme card seems to support my Wifi.

If you want to maximize it, follow the guide at House of Moth and OC it. While you're in there, don't forget to repaste it and perhaps replace the spinning rust with something more modern. I added an M.2 drive housed in a PATA adapter to mine.

 

[TheShortTimer]

While you're in there, don't forget to repaste it and perhaps replace the spinning rust with something more modern.

Definitely replace the HDD because even by contemporary standards, it's mediocre at best and hinders the Mini's potential.

On that note...

I added an M.2 drive housed in a PATA adapter to mine.

Same here and the difference is like night and day.

 

[ojfd]

While you're in there, don't forget to repaste it ..

It is easy to damage the plastic pins holding heatsink in place. If Mini is not overheating, it's better to leave it untouched. Itchy fingers usually lead to extra expenses.

I added an M.2 drive housed in a PATA adapter to mine.

M.2 is a good option, since good mSATA drives are becoming rare these days. I've tried them all, Delock including, but I usually remove the plastic case for better cooling, cut it and only use one corner of PCB to hold it in place.
Even cheaper option and the one that I favour lately is to use small PATA to SATA adapter and use "naked" regular SSDs removed from their casings. Very cost effective.

Spoiler

 

[ToniCH]

Well, I've done dozens of repaste jobs and HDD to SDD swaps etc. but I am not sure if I bother with the G4 Mini. Ideally yes, it would be a good upgrade - if I would plan to actually use it for something. I have several G5's, G4 MDD (2x1.25GHz) and the Cube (1GHz) for example and use them much more likely than the Mini. Mini is more of a collection item for me among my other G4-machines (and Minis, I also have 4 Intel Minis in this type of case, 3 are cpu, RAM & SSD upgraded).

In fact I do have several new mSATA drives and adapters without a machine at the moment but I also have several machines without a SSD which could be more useful for me with one like the TiBook and the PB 12".

 

[weckart]

M.2 is a good option, since good mSATA drives are becoming rare these days. I've tried them all, Delock including, but I usually remove the plastic case for better cooling, cut it and only use one corner of PCB to hold it in place.
Even cheaper option and the one that I favour lately is to use small PATA to SATA adapter and use "naked" regular SSDs removed from their casings. Very cost effective.

I had thought of doing that a while back. Problem is, that voids any warranty and if your drive craps out within that period, you've lost your money. Some brands, in my experience, don't ask for the drive back if you RMA, so Kingston might be one to choose if you want to go down that route. Keep the packaging or the housing at least, so you don't have to pull your Mini/whatever apart again if you should need to claim.

 

[ToniCH]

I had thought of doing that a while back. Problem is, that voids any warranty and if your drive craps out within that period, you've lost your money. Some brands, in my experience, don't ask for the drive back if you RMA, so Kingston might be one to choose if you want to go down that route. Keep the packaging or the housing at least, so you don't have to pull your Mini/whatever apart again if you should need to claim.

I don't buy new SATA SSDs for vintage machines with slower SATA-buses anymore. There have been too many compatibility problems. And quite often smaller capacity is required or even compatible as some Macs do not support larger drives than 120GB etc. These are not so common any more in new SATA SSDs or cost too much for what they are.

Old SSDs in good shape with only few euros each are a much better solution IMO. With vintage computers which are not used 24/7 one will probably work as long as the machine will. I prefer sellers who can provide a report on drive condition before buying it. Like DriveDx or some Win software is ok for me. I can then verify it when I have the drive at hand. No problems this far.

Lately I've been mostly buying Intel Pro server SSDs or older Samsungs. I think with these I've only once run into a drive which didn't want to work in some old Mac (iMac G5?), I think it was Intel 5400 series. But, it worked in some other machine. With new drives much more problems with vintage Macs. Even G5s do not accept everything.

 

[weckart]

I don't buy new SATA SSDs for vintage machines with slower SATA-buses anymore. There have been too many compatibility problems. And quite often smaller capacity is required or even compatible as some Macs do not support larger drives than 120GB etc. These are not so common any more in new SATA SSDs or cost too much for what they are.

Old SSDs in good shape with only few euros each are a much better solution IMO. With vintage computers which are not used 24/7 one will probably work as long as the machine will. I prefer sellers who can provide a report on drive condition before buying it. Like DriveDx or some Win software is ok for me. I can then verify it when I have the drive at hand. No problems this far.

Lately I've been mostly buying Intel Pro server SSDs or older Samsungs. I think with these I've only once run into a drive which didn't want to work in some old Mac (iMac G5?), I think it was Intel 5400 series. But, it worked in some other machine. With new drives much more problems with vintage Macs. Even G5s do not accept everything.

That's fine. How far back can you go before the PCB is too large to fit with an adapter in older Mac laptops?

 

[ToniCH]

That's fine. How far back can you go before the PCB is too large to fit with an adapter in older Mac laptops?

No idea, I use mSata with those like I pointed out above. You guys started talking about naked SATA SSD's and that is what I commented to.

But, I think I would say I use SATA SSD in unibodys and mSata in older ones.

 

[ojfd]

I had thought of doing that a while back. Problem is, that voids any warranty and if your drive craps out within that period, you've lost your money.

As @ToniCH suggested, just buy used 128/256GB quality brand SSD and be done with it. But don't use naked SSDs in PowerBooks and other portables. You don't want the drive rattling around there. Use proper mSATA or M2 adapters for that.

 

[Amethyst1]

I suspected that is the most likely case as my monitor has 2 inputs: DP and HDMI and I tried all my DVI to DP or HDMI cables, adapters, adapter combos (DVI-VGA-DP etc.) and only couple of those gave any pic at all.

FWIW DP-to-DVI/HDMI/VGA adapters or cables are not bidirectional. To go from DVI to DP you need e.g. an Atlona AT-DP200 or AT-DP400.

That's fine. How far back can you go before the PCB is too large to fit with an adapter in older Mac laptops?

What do you mean, too large?

Even G5s do not accept everything.

They’ve been known to be picky with regards to SSDs.