[machineknight]

Hi everyone.

I've been tinkering with computers really recently and started to wonder how much of my Quicksilver 2002 G4 could be modded / upgraded more. It's already gotten a new graphics card (ATI radeon 9600 256mb i think?), a new superdrive (pioneer 18x dvr-107 mebbe?), more RAM (1.25mb), and a 300gb HD on top of the original 60gb. Processor is still at 933MHz, tho. (note: i'm a total modding nub)

Here are a couple of specific Q's I am curious about: Does anyone sell motherboard upgrades to the G4's??? (Heck, to any Mac?) I know that there are CPU upgrades to dual G4's by sonnet tech and some other brands, but do I really want to spend $4-500 for it and stick with a measily 133mhz front side bus? Plus I realize that as Apple finalizes the intel transition, software won't be made for powerPCs anymore (and will only be made for intel macs). in lieu of this, i've started to wonder what I should do with my g4 after that. I'm completely in love with the case as it's unique and better looking than all PC cases out there (but not as cute as the cube), so i'd really like to do something with the interior in order to preserve the case. Any ideas?

I've tried looking on macmod, and saw how a guy had turned his g4 into an AMD running PC... and I'd love to do that except it required too much dremelling, etc. Plus flipping the mac over. Not that I mind, but.... I'd like as little modding as possible. Thus a new mobo for the quicksilver g4 would be the greatest thing for me in my current conundrum.

If anyone has any ideas or suggestions (that aren't too technical) i would greatly appreciate it! thanks.

ps - if push comes to shove, I might convert it into an expandable PC and uhhh..... find a way to run OS X on it

Quicksilver 2002 G4
933MHz/1.25GB RAM/10.4.9

20" Intel iMac
2.0GHz/1.5GB RAM/10.4.9

[Waragainstsleep]

There are no straight swaps for motherboard upgrades I'm afraid. You could in theory install one from a MDD G4 or even a G5 or Mac Pro, but you would then need to replace the PSU, CPU(s), RAM, And in some cases the HDs too. Or as you say, you can build a PC in the case. All of these require at least some cutting up of the case, some of them would require lots (doubt a G5 rig would fit, and if it did it would melt).

There are a number of PC in Mac mods about. Not all are specifically Quicksilver, but the variations in the case design from the smurf G3 to the MDD are not massive.
Hunt around at the following sites, you might find an easier way to install a PC, plus one or two other mods:

xlr8yourmac.com
macmod.com
themacaddress.com

[Waragainstsleep]

Or how about this:

When it gets too old, install a Mac Mini in the optical drive bay, then hook up some HDs for extra storage in the rest of the case. You could mount other stuff in there too if you prefer. How about one of those compact photoprinters?

[machineknight]

Originally Posted by Waragainstsleep 

Or how about this:

When it gets too old, install a Mac Mini in the optical drive bay, then hook up some HDs for extra storage in the rest of the case. You could mount other stuff in there too if you prefer. How about one of those compact photoprinters?

LMAO!!! Would a Mac Mini really fit? I know it's tiny and all and would fit rather comfortably inside the case sideways...

As for actually modding, I'm well aware that if I changed the mobo, I'd have to change everything else (including PSU...) But I never did think about checking out mods for those who had G3's or so. I will definitely have to do some more surfing. Thanks for your help!

[imitchellg5]

A mini would be really easy to fit in it. It's small. Makes sense that it would be easy.

[centerchannel68]

The only problem is the mini has a crappy graphics card. If you can deal with that, it's a great solution really... faster CPU that's cheaply available and easy to upgrade, easy to add fast hard drives and optical drives, and very compact. Plus it's cheap.

I had a heavily modded Quicksilver G4 that I ended up parting out, because I reached the limits of the platform and I needed a mac that can run some windows programs too. It was a good idea, since it was so heavily upgraded, I sold off all it's parts for about $1300 on ebay, and I still haven't sold the case/modified fans/optical drive yet. If you do sell it, part it out and sell it piece by piece. You'll make a LOT more money that way. My power supply went for about $100, same for the motherboard, and my dual 1.33ghz G4 went for over 300 bucks, with inquires coming in from all over the world.

Here's a link to the thread about my machine's evolution, and what problems I ran into with the original G4 system (namely cooling while being quiet):

http://forums.macnn.com/73/mac-modif...ht=quicksilver