PowerMac G5 bundle fun

[1042686]

I responded to a craigslist ad for a "top of the line" powermac G5 bundle for $50.00 (A1177, kb/ms, 20" cinema display, MOTU 2048, Behringer Pro-8, Logic Pro 8, sound track pro, wave burner, main stage etc.). Seller didnt know what it was (was her musician husbands evidently) but sent photos that showed the box was A1177 - so dual 2.0, 2.3 or quad 2.5ghz max ram DDR2 16gb. I scored the bundle and while hoping for a quad, it turned out to be the dual core 2.0Ghz,500/160Gb hdd,10.5Gb DDR2. I A/B'd it next to my dual 2.0ghz A1047 and it was significantly faster (sorry guys didnt run benchmarks at this point) - reminded me of my white 24" Core Duo imac in peppiness. I'm excited to have a non-Intel PPC dual core Mac. I think that's pretty cool.

Anyhow, the next day, I get the great idea to repaste them both as I've never disassembled & repasted a A1177 before. I finish up, plug em back up, Install some extra DDR2 ram into the A1177 to 12GB, clean up the man cave a bit and to my surprise the A1047 wont boot. No PSU click sounds, no lights - just a whole lotta nothing. Visual check of cables, reseat ram, hit that psu reset button thing, still nothing. So it looks like the PSU finally died. It's been acting weird for about 4 months, so Im not entirely surprised - knew it was on its way out.

Anyhow, so I'm super excited with the A1177 which is a great upgrade although still on the hunt for a quad. I'm also on the hunt for a new PSU for my A1047 LOL. If anyone has one they want to move, please PM me otherwise, Ill be prowling on ebay.

Fun times. What's that saying? Gotta spend money to make money? Yeah I guess

 

[eyoungren]

The dual cores are nice. I have a 2.3DC and it's just an awesome and stable machine. Congrats about yours!

 

[1042686]

Thanks Erik. I'm stoked about the additional instrument interfaces & software this box came with. I have a pair of Gen1 (non-rounded) KRK Rokit 8 studio monitors that have been collecting dust and this is the perfect set up to get those beauties back up and in use ... eventually. They produce a great sound - super transparent & clean but they're kind of big. I'm not exactly sure how or if I'll be able to get them on this desk in particular with 3 towers on it already. Anyhoo, at least the gear part of the equation is solved at this point.

Now it's purely a space issue which typically is much easier to solve.

 

[AphoticD]

I responded to a craigslist ad for a "top of the line" powermac G5 bundle for $50.00 (A1177, kb/ms, 20" cinema display, MOTU 2048, Behringer Pro-8, Logic Pro 8, sound track pro, wave burner, main stage etc.). Seller didnt know what it was (was her musician husbands evidently) but sent photos that showed the box was A1177 - so dual 2.0, 2.3 or quad 2.5ghz max ram DDR2 16gb. I scored the bundle and while hoping for a quad, it turned out to be the dual core 2.0Ghz,500/160Gb hdd,10.5Gb DDR2. I A/B'd it next to my dual 2.0ghz A1047 and it was significantly faster (sorry guys didnt run benchmarks at this point) - reminded me of my white 24" Core Duo imac in peppiness. I'm excited to have a non-Intel PPC dual core Mac. I think that's pretty cool.

Anyhow, the next day, I get the great idea to repaste them both as I've never disassembled & repasted a A1177 before. I finish up, plug em back up, Install some extra DDR2 ram into the A1177 to 12GB, clean up the man cave a bit and to my surprise the A1047 wont boot. No PSU click sounds, no lights - just a whole lotta nothing. Visual check of cables, reseat ram, hit that psu reset button thing, still nothing. So it looks like the PSU finally died. It's been acting weird for about 4 months, so Im not entirely surprised - knew it was on its way out.

Anyhow, so I'm super excited with the A1177 which is a great upgrade although still on the hunt for a quad. I'm also on the hunt for a new PSU for my A1047 LOL. If anyone has one they want to move, please PM me otherwise, Ill be prowling on ebay.

View attachment 746795

Fun times. What's that saying? Gotta spend money to make money? Yeah I guess

Well done Rhian. It's a mighty job to repaste the G5s (at least compared to a Power Mac G4!). It took me hours to strip, clean and re-paste three of them. I agree that the dual core late '05 feel much zippier than the dual proc units, even at the same speed and in every test I have put them through, the DC runs cooler and quieter than my DPs.

If you're looking for a further speed bump, it's simple to replace the 2.0Ghz CPU with a 2.3Ghz. It just drops straight in and also boosts the bus speed up to 1.15Ghz, no changes to cooling required. Also on my rig, when I did this upgrade, I tried booting into ASD to recalibrate the CPUs and it said it wasn't required. For what it's worth, I found my 2.3Ghz DC CPU (with heatsink) on ebay out of the UK for about $25 plus shipping.

There is also the possibility that a single DC 2.5Ghz CPU from a Quad could be used if you were to replace the LCS with the single air-cooled heatsink, but it's probably not as easily sourced as the 2.3.

Also, with your A1047, did you test the PSU voltage pinouts? Check "Power Supply Verification" on Pages 178-182 here: http://tim.id.au/laptops/apple/powermac/powermac_g5.pdf

I have seen the PSUs float around on ebay, but more often than not, it's cheaper to buy a complete G5 than the PSU alone.. People try to get smart about scrapping these old macs.

Well done on all the audio gear too, that's a perfect rig for some new tunes. Be sure to share when you've got some new recordings, I'd love to hear more of your work.

 

[Dronecatcher]

Do you have a bass for each day of the week?? I'm primarily a bassist too

 

[1042686]

Do you have a bass for each day of the week?? I'm primarily a bassist too

Bass is where it’s at Turns out the husband of the woman who I scored the above G5 from was a bassist as well moving to AustinTexas for more lucrative session work. Hmm, well assembled I have enough for Monday through Friday although with all of my bass bodies, necks n parts, I’m pretty sure it is enough to get Saturday & Sunday covered

 

[pl1984]

Well done Rhian. It's a mighty job to repaste the G5s (at least compared to a Power Mac G4!). It took me hours to strip, clean and re-paste three of them. I agree that the dual core late '05 feel much zippier than the dual proc units, even at the same speed and in every test I have put them through, the DC runs cooler and quieter than my DPs.

Any chance you, or anyone else who has dual process and dual core variants of the same speed, can perform some basic benchmarks and post them? As an owner of a dual processor 2.3GHz G5 I would be interested in benchmarks against the dual core 2.3GHz system. Perhaps Geekbench and Handbrake?

 

[0248294]

Any chance you, or anyone else who has dual process and dual core variants of the same speed, can perform some basic benchmarks and post them? As an owner of a dual processor 2.3GHz G5 I would be interested in benchmarks against the dual core 2.3GHz system. Perhaps Geekbench and Handbrake?

For Geekbench, you can find all the results for the 2.3GHz DC PowerMac G5 here, and for the 2.3GHz DP PowerMac G5 here. That should allow you to find the average result, and then compare those. It's not a huge difference from what I can see though, but it might be enough to allow the system to feel snappier. The 970MP processor used in the DC might also be more optimized than the 970FX processor in the DP, allowing OS X to run smoother.

 

[swamprock]

Do you have a bass for each day of the week?? I'm primarily a bassist too

Accumulating instruments (and gear) is an illness that I think all musicians have, at least for a while. I had ten guitars at one time, back in my band days, all with different tonal qualities and pickup combinations. Now I'm down to one guitar with one P-90 pickup, and a 5 watt Marshall head and cab. I guess getting older and comfortable with my tone, plus the fact that I'm done playing in bands, cured me of my illness. I was in the middle of downsizing anyway, while I was still out playing gigs

 

[1042686]

Accumulating instruments (and gear) is an illness that I think all musicians have, at least for a while. I had ten guitars at one time, back in my band days, all with different tonal qualities and pickup combinations. Now I'm down to one guitar with one P-90 pickup, and a 5 watt Marshall head and cab. I guess getting older and comfortable with my tone, plus the fact that I'm done playing in bands, cured me of my illness. I was in the middle of downsizing anyway, while I was still out playing gigs

So downsizing is all relative, my friend Plus I keep alot of my gear around in the hopes that my little one (hopefully to be little ones) will like and grow into this gear (vintage by that time) as future bringers of face melting rock ... yanno 20-25 years from now.

Besides they look beautiful on the wall and the MOST important thing - my wife likes them that way That simply cannot be said of my ppc mac collection or my computers in general.

 

[swamprock]

So downsizing is all relative, my friend Plus I keep alot of my gear around in the hopes that my little one (hopefully to be little ones) will like and grow into this gear (vintage by that time) as future bringers of face melting rock ... yanno 20-25 years from now.

Besides they look beautiful on the wall and the MOST important thing - my wife likes them that way That simply cannot be said of my ppc mac collection or my computers in general.

I use the term "illness" with all due respect, of course

My musical pursuits have changed dramatically over the years. I've recently been considering investing in an old Jupiter-8 synth (yeah right... your first born for payment, please) or similar and writing some 80s-influenced electronica/new wave. Think Wendy Carlos/Kraftwerk/Tangerine Dream meets prog.

My kid plays the trombone, and his mom is a music education major in college. Neither shows any interest in guitar rock, unfortunately. I'm somewhat over it myself, especially metal, and want to explore.

 

[1042686]

Hey, I started on Trumpet at 8, then baritone by 12, then the electric bass by 14 (won that privilege by coin toss) Yeesh the alternative was *gulp* drums. Anyhow, my point is that the bone could translate into any number of awesome electrified audible treats. Here ya go.

https://reverb.com/p/roland-jupiter...VU25-Ch337gWVEAQYAyABEgI3q_D_BwE&hfid=9146671

That's a steal. I mean it's cheaper than the new imac PRO. No offense taken in regards to the uncontrolled acquisition of musical gear. Gear acquisition syndrome is real. They make medicine for it ie: 29% credit card interest.

 

[swamprock]

Hey, I started on Trumpet at 8, then baritone by 12, then the electric bass by 14 (won that privilege by coin toss) Yeesh the alternative was *gulp* drums. Anyhow, my point is that the bone could translate into any number of awesome electrified audible treats. Here ya go.

https://reverb.com/p/roland-jupiter...VU25-Ch337gWVEAQYAyABEgI3q_D_BwE&hfid=9146671

That's a steal. I mean it's cheaper than the new imac PRO. No offense taken in regards to the uncontrolled acquisition of musical gear. Gear acquisition syndrome is real. They make medicine for it ie: 29% credit card interest.

Hahaha! Good old GAS.

I considered the Jupiter-80, having played around with one. It just didn't have the accuracy of the era's sound that I was looking for. My bud has a Jupiter-8 that I can play around with, his free time (and mine) permitting, but I'd really like to get one of my own. I can live without the MIDI control for the sake of "that sound." That is a great deal on a used J-80 though...

 

[1042686]

That is a great deal on a used J-80 though...

Whew man, I've got pocket change for a PMG5 but that J80 ... that redefines the notion of pocket change. My pockets do not runneth that deep, my friend lol! Synths are just stupid expensive. The really good ones anyways. I have a small collection of vintage electric pianos but have not stepped into that realm and for very good reason.

You are a braver man than I. If I brought home a 2K+ synth, Id be divorced faster than you can say "I told ya so". Then again, you cant hang a synth on the wall like a deliciously sexy vintage/reissue Fender bass hangs on the wall. Anyhow, I've been responding to this thread on my new PMG5. Such a cool box

I need to dive into and get these audio interfaces set up. Using some vintage Buhl headphones at the moment.
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It's a mighty job to repaste the G5s (at least compared to a Power Mac G4!). It took me hours to strip, clean and re-paste three of them.

Yeah no joke. The A1047 was a breeze (aside from that annoying plastic warranty pin) but the A1177 was a real PITA to do. Firstly, the amount of screws was just stupid. In addition to that, the #15 hex screws that go through the heatsink, well I quickly found out I did not have a screwdriver long enough for this task. Figured out a solution but man, I'm ordering a set of extra long hex screwdrivers.

If you're looking for a further speed bump, it's simple to replace the 2.0Ghz CPU with a 2.3Ghz. It just drops straight in and also boosts the bus speed up to 1.15Ghz, no changes to cooling required.

This is my plan. a dual core 2.3 air cooled CPU & off the 2.0 on ebay. Not before I get a few die shots for lightbulb fun first though.

Also, with your A1047, did you test the PSU voltage pinouts? Check "Power Supply Verification" on Pages 178-182 here: http://tim.id.au/laptops/apple/powermac/powermac_g5.pdf

Yanno, I haven't yet. Sounds like a good week end project & one I should do before dropping cash on a new PSU.

 

[Dronecatcher]

considered the Jupiter-80, having played around with one.

Bear in mind it's a virtual analogue synth (ie uses modelled samples) - hence it's steep, yet lesser price than a genuine analog synth.
In the UK a reasonable condition Jupiter 8 goes for £5000 plus - in fact all vintage synths are premium priced, it's cheaper to buy a new generation analogue - though they do lack the authentic charm and seem loaded with superfluous icky contemporary "features."

An affordable entry level synth is the Korg Monologue to satifisy the need of gritty and squelchy sounds but if you can forego the cool factor and ignore the insults from hipsters (plus save a couple of grand too) go soft

I've owned a few analogues in the past and the sound of a decent soft synth is more than comparable, you just need a decent MIDI controller with lots of mapped knobs to twiddle...and they look great on your Apple Cinema screen

 

[swamprock]

Bear in mind it's a virtual analogue synth (ie uses modelled samples) - hence it's steep, yet lesser price than a genuine analog synth.
In the UK a reasonable condition Jupiter 8 goes for £5000 plus - in fact all vintage synths are premium priced, it's cheaper to buy a new generation analogue - though they do lack the authentic charm and seem loaded with superfluous icky contemporary "features."

An affordable entry level synth is the Korg Monologue to satifisy the need of gritty and squelchy sounds but if you can forego the cool factor and ignore the insults from hipsters (plus save a couple of grand too) go soft

I've owned a few analogues in the past and the sound of a decent soft synth is more than comparable, you just need a decent MIDI controller with lots of mapped knobs to twiddle...and they look great on your Apple Cinema screen

View attachment 747133

Thanks for the info. I've got Moog Modulator running in Windows XP on VPC 7 on my G5 and have been playing with that for a while now. There's a lot to learn, as I've only casually messed with an actual Moog, but I found some old documentation about some of the patches that one can create by moving the cables around and messing with the myriad of knobs. A Moog (simulator) is probably the best education in synth science that one could ever ask for! I desire a Moog more than a Jupiter, but I'd rather drop 5k on the latter than 20k on the former