Macintosh conversion to HDMI Display - RISC OS

[Pacific1972]

Apple Macintosh - HDMI case conversion

Macintosh Performa 200 - Macintosh Classic - Macintosh SE/30 🍎 1:1 HDMI conversion

This is the beginning of a thread to combine old Macintosh cases with 4:3 HDMI screen
1024x768 as an exclusive hardware MOD, I start with

Macintosh Classic case

Schematics of my ideas.

Display - AustrianMegaTech (on ETSY) with Acrylic screen front & bezel.

Macintosh inside stuff - to disassembe everything except the metal frame !



Additional stuff:

these are at least some ideas for a Desktop conversation - you need 5V USB Power supply for IC and
screen - like HDMI screen / Raspberry Pi / separate ON/OFF switches / HDMI Splitter and Amplifier.

I look for additional ideas for building up an HDMI Screen -
but of course I have some additional surprises for the future !

Macintosh - 40th Anniversary Edition

🙂 😉 😊

 

[Pacific1972]

The next surprise - later (if I become the Display and
the Raspberry Pi Zero) should be 🥳 this...

POWER BANK 1000000 mAh (66W) inside 😂

I have a look on ebay for a 1000000mAh Camping tool
which provides up to 66W (overall) for charge and go 😄 !

So if you use the Macintosh case with 8" HDMI Display and
Raspberry Pi Zero (2W), you can use the machine separate
as a RETRO WORKSTATION (mobile without cable)...

Power should be available for about 4-6h - if you carry the
complete machine with a power consumption of a notebook
I think that should be totally cool...

 

[Pacific1972]

Arrival of the two 40 y.o. cases (one complete but defected)

...only case (without metal frame inside)

...you can close the openings on the back with Sheet metal + rivets or screws.

...cut out the lower plug-in for the Mac Mini

2nd Macintosh (complete, defected power supply, I believe)

The housing are both in bad condition, the complete Mac (last picture) is more
yellow than the separate case, but I began to saw out the bottom position (for
the Mac Mini) with a jigsaw, but unfortunately it's already getting dark here...

To disassemble the other one (last picture), it takes time 'cause I must wait
for further spare parts and I only ordered one HDMI-Display first - it is not
possible to convert two Macintosh computers to a HDMI display at the same
time, I start with one case...

It's difficult to get cheap Macintosh housings on ebay or Kijiji 😬 and the
whole MOD-process should be cost more that I believe when I began...

 

[Pacific1972]

Work in progress...

after getting a few cables, Splitters, the 8" HDMI screen and a few other components
I start with a Macintosh case in a bad condition to build up a first HDMI screen +++

HDMI Line-through-socket ...ports with wallmount

HDMI inside (one port in to HDMI screen / one port out from Splitter)

Edge protection from the car industry...

Wallmount Power Supply plug (switchable, almost without cable) + HDMI

 

[Pacific1972]

- part 2 (Fix the Front Bezel without inner metal frame)

...not finished yet !

(look at the wooden board, it looks like stonehenge and take an additional
look at the position of the screws, you drill holes from inside to outside and
use this holes for the screws to fix the front bezel to the back case).

 

[Pacific1972]

Macintosh 30th Anniversary

Electric installation (so far) 🤭 - it's not possible to use
a small powered 40W USB-C Socket plug power supply,
...take a PD (Power delivery) up to 100W for the Display

3D printed frame + 8" HDMI Display from AustrianMegaTech

The plexiglass pane is very susceptible to micro-scratches !

I began to take screws from front to back, but... I close the holes with rivets !

Not very beautiful, but I fixes the panel + access to the added remote control

Also a Mac Mini M1 or same case form is fitting (if somebody want)

...but I think I close the Mac Mini opening again with sheet metal or acrylic sheet

"Today, I was just looking for some junk in my workshop to get this
Macintosh up and running. Further devices will surely be better..."

"God bless the broken road !"

 

[Pacific1972]

NEWS - History Tour

Apple Macintosh powered by Acorn RISC-OS Computer

This is my called Resto-MOD which I build last evening. As backgroud information, Acorn RISC OS Computer
was one of the first ARM-powered Mainstream PC which was in the end of the 1990 very popular in the british
Commonwhealth !

Both computers, the Apple Macintosh and the Acorn RISC Computer (A3000 / A4000 / A5000) costs in 1994
perhaps about 3000 $ - they were both no 1st choice Mainstream like the Atari ST or the AMIGA series !

With Next-Gen OS the Acorn RISC Computer and the Apple Macintosh were Dream-Machines in the 1990th.
I think that old ARM-based computers are the reason of the success of Apple (IPhone & Mac) today !

RISC-OS was the Grandfather of Task-Bar based Windows 95 or (later) MacOS. I think you can make today
everything with the 30 year old RISC-OS (with fluid Multitasking) ! 😉 So lets go, look at the pictures...

In fond memory of the 1990s, Steve Jobs (Apple and NeXT Computer) and Acorn RISC OS - Pop culture of the 1990th !!!

 

[Pacific1972]

“We’re raising the flag of history !”

This build honors a quiet revolution. In Cambridge, Acorn’s ARM2 (1987) introduced a low‑power RISC design in the Archimedes
that shaped a generation of British computing. Apple’s early collaboration and investment in ARM technology for the Newton helped
commercialise the architecture. Although Acorn itself faded from the market by the late 1990s, its ideas endured - now powering the
modern ARM‑based Macs and devices we use every day !

In the mid‑1980s a small, determined team in Cambridge set out to solve a practical problem: how to build a fast, efficient processor
without the complexity and cost of mainstream chips. The result was the ARM concept and the production ARM2 CPU, which powered
the Acorn Archimedes - a machine that arrived in 1987 and stunned observers with RISC performance in a home/workstation form factor.

Acorn’s machines became a cultural fixture across the UK education system, shaping a generation of programmers and engineers. Yet outside
the British Commonwealth the company’s footprint was small - in the United States and much of continental Europe Acorn remained largely
unknown, which helps explain why its name is unfamiliar to many younger Apple users today !

Apple’s interest in low‑power RISC designs led it to collaborate with Acorn and others, helping to form the commercial path for ARM technology.
Apple’s early investment - driven by projects like the Newton - seeded a technology that would, decades later, become central to Apple’s own silicon
strategy ! The rise from Newton to the modern M‑series chips is a story of patient engineering and strategic foresight.

From Cambridge to the Mac:
Acorn’s ARM2 (1987) seeded an architecture that powered education, inspired Apple’s early RISC work
for Newton, and ultimately underpins today’s ARM‑based Macs.

Acorn’s role:
Acorn Computers developed the ARM architecture and shipped the Archimedes family in 1987, the first
widely known RISC‑based home computer.

ARM: The ARM2 was the first production ARM CPU used in those Archimedes machines and established
the low‑power, high‑efficiency design that later scaled massively.

Apple’s early involvement: Apple joined Acorn and VLSI to form Advanced RISC Machines (ARM Ltd.) in
1990, investing to secure a low‑power CPU for the Newton project.

Acorn’s market footprint: Acorn was primarily a UK institution - its machines were ubiquitous in British schools but rare
in the US and much of continental Europe, which helps explain why Acorn is little known outside the Commonwealth.

Company fate: Financial troubles led Acorn to close its workstation division in September 1998 and the company was
effectively dismantled by 1999.

• 1983–1986: Acorn designs the ARM concept in Cambridge.
• 1987: Archimedes & RISC-OS (Arthur) ships with the ARM2 CPU.
• 1990s: ARM becomes a commercial venture with industry partners; Apple invests for Newton‑era CPUs.
• 1998–1999: Acorn’s workstation division closes; the company dissolves while its ideas continue.

A little bit of background information ! (AI supported by MS CoPilot)

 

[Amethyst1]

Apple Macintosh powered by Acorn RISC-OS Computer

Das ist großartig. Ich hatte einen StrongARM-RiscPC mit RISC OS 4.39. Das System war so schön schlank und schnell.

Translation: That's great. I used to own a StrongARM-powered RiscPC running RISC OS 4.39. The OS was delightfully lightweight and fast.

 

[Pacific1972]

Das ist großartig. Ich hatte einen StrongARM-RiscPC mit RISC OS 4.39. Das System war so schön schlank und schnell.

Translation: That's great. I used to own a StrongARM-powered RiscPC running RISC OS 4.39. The OS was delightfully lightweight and fast.

Hallo, das glaube ich Dir gern mit dem RISC-PC 😊 !

Ich hatte 1996-1999 einen Archimedes A3010 mit 2MB und 1.6MB HD Floppy. Für mich damals der
32Bit RISC-Computer im Homecomputer-Format. Software & Games waren nach dem Laden oftmals
sauschnell und mit geringem Speicherverbrauch, wenn man 16Mhz bedenkt.

Damals gab es ein Archimedes Forum im "Computer-Flohmarkt" auf Papier, Downloads gab es auf
einigen FTP-Servern der Unis, alles ZIP Files - Internet, Chat & Downloads eher im Internet-Cafe.

Es gab eine kleine Acorn-Community in Oldenburg (UNI Oldenburg) 😉...naja ist schon 30 Jahr her !

Neue Software (immer noch 32 Bit, daher die 4GB Grenze z.B. bei Raspberry Pi) kommt nur
sporadisch raus. Die englische Community ist wohl seit einiger Zeit dabei, ein 64Bit RISC-OS
zu erstellen, dann werden sicher auch Maschinen mit 16GB und anderer Leistung kommen...

RISC-OS soll aber auch zur 26Bit / 32Bit Software abwärtskompatibel sein 😊

Stören tut mich, daß beim Raspberry ab RISC-OS 5.31 Update jede Menge Module geladen werden,
das OS läuft dann eher flüssig auf einem RPi 4 mit 4GB, für den RPi Zero mit 512MB ist das nix.

Mal sehen, was bei den englischen Mini-Roadshows 'rauskommt und ob man dann den direkten
Start von Disk-Images ins RISC-OS integriert (notwendig für Software & Games auf Diskette).

Schematics of 26Bit vs 32Bit vs 64Bit 😉 (RiscOSOpen.org)

Hi, I totally believe you about the RISC-PC 😊 !

From 1996 to 1999, I had an Archimedes A3010 with 2MB of RAM and a 1.6MB floppy drive.
For me back then, it was the 32-bit RISC computer in a home computer format. Software
and games were often lightning-fast after loading and used very little memory, considering
it was only 16 MHz.

Back then, there was an Archimedes forum in the print edition of “Computer-Flohmarkt”
and downloads were available on some university FTP servers - all ZIP files.
Internet, chat, and downloads were mostly done at internet cafes.

There was a small Acorn community in Oldenburg (University of Oldenburg)
😋 ...well, it’s been 30 years already!

New software (still 32-bit, hence the 4GB limit, e.g., on the Raspberry Pi) is only released
sporadically. The English community has apparently been working for some time on creating
a 64-bit RISC-OS, which will then allow for machines with 16GB and other specs - however,
RISC-OS is also supposed to be backward compatible with 26-bit/32-bit software 😊

What bothers me is that with the Raspberry Pi, starting with the RISC-OS 5.31 update, a whole
bunch of modules get loaded, the OS then runs fairly smoothly on a RPi 4 with 4GB, but that’s no
good idea (with the Updates) for the RPi Zero with 512MB.

Let’s see what comes out of the English mini-roadshows and whether they’ll then integrate the
direct booting of disk images into RISC-OS (necessary for software & games on floppy disks).

 

[Pacific1972]

HDMI 8" Display 1024x768 Conversion - 2nd (cheap) Version
(no Acrylic bulbed Glass front and no 3D printed frame - 4:3 screen ratio - AliExpress / Amazon !

For that HDMI display conversion I use another Apple MacIntosh case from SE 1/40.

As you can see the screen was without acrylic glass front and without 3D frame for fixation inside.

Of course this solution was ok for usage as a 2nd HDMI monitor for Raspberry PI or another
device (Mac Mini / Mini PC - Linux or WIN) - but the Macintosh case take a lot space on the desk.

- I use some plastic rail pcs left and right to fix the screen with superglue.
- use black strong tape (duck tape) to fix and center the screen (look at picture 2).
- There were additional metal holders left and right + screws on top and bottom.
- the display controller was outside and not in the viewable area under the floppy

Hopefully you can see everything, pictures are sometimes better than words !
(a relatively cheap solution with usable HDMI screen, but of course no really good quality).