PowerLogix and Other World Computing (OWC) today announced the PowerForce 750GX G3 processor upgrade for original PCI-based Apple Power Macintosh computers. It is immediately available for $239.99 through OWC, the exclusive distributor of PowerLogix products.
The 1.0GHz PCI 750GX is the latest addition to the award-winning PowerForce G3 processor line and the fastest upgrade option ever produced for legacy PCI Power Mac models. It operates at 1GHz and includes 1.0MB of L2 cache, also running at 1GHz. The PowerForce 750GX utilizes the 20x bus multiplier of the IBM PowerPC 750GX processor to allow older PCI-based Power Macs to reach 1GHz speeds.
“The PowerForce 750GX allows older Power Macs to operate at modern CPU (central processing unit) speeds, extending the life of these machines at minimal expense,” said Larry O’Connor, president of OWC in the press release. “And not only can users of the original PCI-based Macs now work faster and more effectively than ever, since the card is compatible with Mac OS 8.6 and higher, they’ll also have the added benefit of using the operating system of their choice. This includes Mac OS X, which is simply phenomenal, especially when used with OWC’s XPostFacto.”
A descendent of the original PowerForce G3 (which was previously given the honor of “Editor’s Choice” by Macworld Magazine), the PowerForce 750GX is compatible with the 7300, 7500, 7600, 8500, 8600, 9500 and 9600 models from Apple Computer. It is also compatible with select Power Computing and Umax clones.
Additional features of the PowerForce 750GX include a built-in fan sink to provide necessary CPU cooling, fail-safe protection circuitry (in case the card is not fully plugged into the motherboard CPU slot), CPU Director software for adjusting speeds on the fly and compatibility with add-on PCI cards.
For more information, visit http://www.macsales.com/750GX
Does anyone out there still feel that putting ANY money into these old machines is worth it any more. A couple years ago, sure, but now…
no, I don’t think that would be worth the TIME of putting it in and getting it going again with the new update, mu=ch less the cost!
crimeny … live and let die.
I agree ‘not you’, it just isn’t worth it. A 1 GHz G3 upgrade chip costs half the price of the rumored headless Mac running on a G4.
Disposable culture has its downsides.
It may still make sense for those people who still run their 9500/9600 machines with all the PCI slots crammed with audio/video cards, or where the Mac is part of a very expensive scientific equipment. Takes a full three minutes to boot them, but if you are depending on legacy software, the option to run it @1 GHz may be tempting to some.
The one thing that worries me is that the card comes from PL, they have had a lousy record in the last years (DOA upgrade cards, sudden death after a few months, eternities for replacements, etc.).
Besides the cost of the accelerator, one must factor in the cost of memory. Does it use the old? As I remember, the HD capacity on my 7600 was small. So a new drive would be required. Is it worth it?
Yeah, hagar57, you’re right. There will always be some in the boat where it actually makes sense to keep these machines current, but at what point is it worth it to the manufacturer to keep turning out cards. I suppose the mfg knows their numbers well enough to know if it’s worth it for them. Maybe there wasn’t much design involved, like if it was only a matter of slapping a different processor on an existing card. I can’t imagine going much faster than 1GHz for a G3, though.
Also, why not bump a G4 card instead? They’ve been making those upgrades for years too. Just curious.
Wow, I didn’t think anybody would come out with upgrades for macs that old. My G4 tower has already reached the 5 year point. I guess if you have the right situation it is worth it. When I was in college (1992-97) the school had Apple 2’s working with instruments in the science labs yet. My ex-employer is probally using all their 9600’s yet, they had RAID’s set up on them, so $250 is not that much since they have probally ten grand invested in those machines aready.
First of all… while it is desirable to be in a situation where one is able to buy the latest / greatest fully loaded G5, sometimes, this isnt always possible…
I have a few 8600’s around the house, and a couple are on my network… These are still running OS 9.1, and still being very productive !!
Yes, I love Panther, and all the benefits therein… but, I still would love to upgrade the processor in at least one of the beige boxes..
However, when I do… I plan to go with a Sonnet G4 card for two reasons:
I’ve purchased Sonnet upgrade cards before, and I like the way they stand behind their products… never had a problem with them..
Also… just for the heck of it… when I do install the G4… I think it will handle Panther far better than the G3 would … The 1ghz speed on a G3 doesnt entice me as much as a G4 would at that speed !
I have enuff Ram in these machines to handle it, anyhoo
After all the good years my 8600s have given me… it would be nice to do something nice for them
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Besides … I just couldnt even consider committing these great old machines to the dumpster !!
oh, and just thought I’d mention .. Ryan Rumpel is somewhat of a hero to some of the Mac Community !!
I have all ready invested a lot in my old (1999) B&W, 2 ATA Maxator 133 7200 rpm 30 Gig. drives thru a SIIG controller card, ATI Radeon video card, Orange micro SCSI card, 10 Gig. 10000 rpm Fuji SCSI drive. 1 Gig of ram, OWC 500 meg. G4 cpu, DVD/CD internal player, TDK 48x24x48 CD ext. burner, CanoScan flat bed scanner. and lots of software. However newer software and games that won’t run on my system increase every day. I love my old B&W, and it acts like it will live for ever, but just like my 8100 Radius (that now lives as a G3 upgrade) software will get harder and harder to come by. AS soon as my VA disability is increased in another month (Nam vet), it will be retired and replaced with a 1.8 single cpu G5 tower. I have really checked into upgrading the B&W and it’s just not realistic to do.
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My 8500/120 is probably getting on for 9 years old. It’s amazing I still have upgrade options.
However, one possibly needs RAM as well. Nice to see that’s come down to a reasonable level compared to where it was.
But, does the original OS X Server run with one of these cards installed?
I’d like to see a site where all sorts of upgraded old systems are put through their paces so you can compare the performance against the latest full spec retail G4 systems.
My Gigabit Ethernet DP450 (1.25GB RAM, Readon 9000 Pro) at home runs circles around the brand new Dell 3.8GHz systems at work which have almost twice the memory and more than double the ATA throughput. I’d love to be able to see how fast system like mine could run with various CPU and ATA/SATA controller upgrades.
As it stands now, I’m sure there’s another few years minimum with the current DPs before an CPU upgrade will be desireable.
“…….But, does the original OS X Server run with one of these cards installed?…..”
hmmmm maybe… think that would be a toss up….
I know someone running Puma on an 8600 / 250
(not very fast, tho) with the help of XPostFacto…
I would think using an upgrade card such as the one described in this article. you should be able to run Puma (or maybe even ) Jaguar Server…
The bottleneck would be your bus speed ..
Hope you have those Ram Slots full of 128’s tho
Thanks mac dood.
I only have 112Mb RAM 🙁
There’s probably no point in an upgrade. I also have a PM G4/450 I’d update before the 8500 anyway.
yeah… 112 Mgs of Ram wouldnt be enuff to run Puma, I wouldnt think… but you can get 128 mg sticks for that machine for about $25 each (ballpark) ….
With two, …plus … what you already have
You might be able to do it….
Even if you just use the 8500 for a file server, it might be worth looking into..