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Sam Venning · Feb 26, 2004, 06:03 AM

Today I tried to get a PCI graphics card to add a second display to a PowerMac G4. It is impossible to get a PCI graphics card for the Mac from Radeon or Nvidia!

The maximum number of displays I can connect is therefore two... both running off the AGP card provided (one using the DVI connector and the other using the Apple Dispay Connector ADC).

And to drive a non-Apple display I need a ADC converter!

Eeeek! If I can't easily add a second (or third) DVI or VGA screen what can I do? Buy a PC?... there are so many high performance PC PCI graphics cards available (just look at the ATI web site).

Why is it so hard to get a PCI card for Macs?

mike one · Feb 26, 2004, 08:38 AM

Originally posted by Sam Venning:
Today I tried to get a PCI graphics card to add a second display to a PowerMac G4. It is impossible to get a PCI graphics card for the Mac from Radeon or Nvidia!

The maximum number of displays I can connect is therefore two... both running off the AGP card provided (one using the DVI connector and the other using the Apple Dispay Connector ADC).

And to drive a non-Apple display I need a ADC converter!

Eeeek! If I can't easily add a second (or third) DVI or VGA screen what can I do? Buy a PC?... there are so many high performance PC PCI graphics cards available (just look at the ATI web site).

Why is it so hard to get a PCI card for Macs?

try this:
http://www.barefeats.com/gr7000.html
http://buy.ati.com/shopati/product.a...c=&country=USA

osxisfun · Feb 26, 2004, 12:00 PM

i don't know if the 7000 is the latest one but mike is right. ATI has a PCI board that will allow (using the dual head built in) to get 3 screens on a gX.

ATI announced the new board at Jan Macworld. I thought it was going to be called the 7500 but it may be the 7000. the ATI site is about as informative as a monkey's butt.

(edit i justed look at the bare feats review looks like its old so i bet there is a newer card from ati)

tooki · Feb 26, 2004, 01:37 PM

The 7000 is the last PCI card ATI has made for the Mac.

That said, it's not a bad card by any means.

tooki

P.S. ADC to DVI and ADC to VGA adapters, because they are simple plug adapters, nothing more, are cheap and effective. Not some horrible defect as you seem to think.

mike one · Feb 26, 2004, 07:33 PM

also, the mac 7000 pci card will power two displays independently, one off the dvi and one separate one off the vga, in extended desktop mode.
i had this card for a bit, the manual said this was a feature. neer tried it. didn't have a dvi monitor.

i didn't read all your adapter whoas too carefully but this card may solve them.

Cadaver · Feb 26, 2004, 08:25 PM

Add a PCI Radeon 7000 and the G5 (and many G4s with dual-head capable AGP cards) will happily run 4 monitors.
Add two PCI Radeon 7000s and you can run 6 monitors on your G5... etc.

G4ME · Feb 26, 2004, 09:08 PM

SO DOES THAT MEAN I COULD HAVE 8 MONITORS?

OMG!!!

Sam Venning · Feb 26, 2004, 11:58 PM

It is really hard to find a Radeon 7000 (PCI version, not AGP version). They aren't being made any more... only way is to pick one up on ebay. There aren't any on ebay.com.au

These are going to become valuable items. I wish Nvidia or ATI would start making PCI graphics cards for the Mac again. This is amazing! I don't know why more Mac users aren't making noise about this.

Yodas Scrotum · Feb 27, 2004, 12:59 AM

Originally posted by G4ME:
SO DOES THAT MEAN I COULD HAVE 8 MONITORS?

OMG!!!

What mac had 8 PCI slots? You could not do it unless you had one of those PCI breakout cases that let you add more slots. Even then it's doubtful. And messy.

Cadaver · Feb 27, 2004, 09:19 AM

Originally posted by Yodas Scrotum:
What mac had 8 PCI slots? You could not do it unless you had one of those PCI breakout cases that let you add more slots. Even then it's doubtful. And messy.

8 slots?
The Radeon 7000 PCI supports two displays per card.
Most newer Apple AGP cards support two displays.

(1 AGP slot + 3 PCI slots) x 2 displays per card = 8 displays

10 displays if you have a Mac with an AGP slot and 4 PCI slots (MDD G4s, I think).

sniffer · Feb 27, 2004, 10:07 AM

Crazy! I would love to see a setup like that!

osxisfun · Feb 27, 2004, 11:41 AM

These are going to become valuable items. I wish Nvidia or ATI would start making PCI graphics cards for the Mac again. This is amazing! I don't know why more Mac users aren't making noise ab

I swear on a stack of donuts, ati announced a new PCI based mac card at macworld. only problem is i can't find info on it. it may have only been hinted to but i really thought i heard something. i don't think i was drunk at the time. ?! i could not have been the only one that heard this?

anyone?

djohnson · Feb 27, 2004, 01:07 PM

PCI Express is the future of video. It will take the place of AGP and PCI. Watch for it in the coming year or so.

Cadaver · Feb 27, 2004, 06:44 PM

Originally posted by osxisfun:
I wish Nvidia or ATI would start making PCI graphics cards for the Mac again. This is amazing!

ATI still produces the PCI 7000. You may not be able to find them easily in stores, but they can be ordered from ATI and other online shops.

reader50 · Mar 8, 2004, 08:23 PM

At MacWorld, ATi demonstrated a Radeon 9000 in PCI running on a B&W PowerMac. Scroll down the page past the 9800 details.

osxisfun · Mar 8, 2004, 09:17 PM

THANK YOU Reader50! Its been bugging me for months what the model number was. It was really bugging me.

osxisfun · Mar 8, 2004, 09:21 PM

Hey wait.

ati's site is saying this is a AGP card.

Hmmm...

http://www.ati.com/products/radeon90...ome/specs.html

I guess what they are saying is that they will be releasing a PCI version of the above.

can't wait.

adding a third cinema display sounds might tempting...

superlarry · Mar 8, 2004, 11:19 PM

for what it's worth:
the Apple Macintosh II, premiered in 1987 at a whopping 16 MHz, had built-in graphics and 6 NuBus slots. you could put in 6 NuBus graphics cards to drive 7 monitors. Yes, System 6 could arrange them in various configurations just as OSX can now (I don't know about mirroring, though).