OWC guys - ? re: ATI Radeon 9600

[wolfcry911]

I noticed on the other Mac deal site that OWC is selling Radeon 9600 for G4s. The page states that the cards are modified for the MDDs. I was wondering what the modifications were. Is it just the removal of the 'hook' and the back end of the card? Or has the ROM been changed at all? Would a similiar 9600 card with 256MB vram work in an MDD?
TIA

[The Grim Ninja]

http://www.techseekers.net/modules.php?name=Reviews&rop=showcontent&id=71

I don't know which method they use. (Tape, cut pins, or cut traces )

I've done the modification to Radeon 9600, Radeon 9600 Pro, and two Radeon 9600 XT 128 MB cards.

I'm considering buying a Radeon 9650 256 MB card to do the hack on, someone here was interested in one.

All of my cards so far have worked with MDDs and Digital Audio G4s. (No QS to test with).

My Radeon 9600 XT cards have slightly dim video in the lower DVI port, and hotspots where if the mouse if left on, video glitches will occur. I haven't been able to figure out why yet.

[The Grim Ninja]

Oh, and there's no chance other than the two sense lines being disabled. If you do the 'tape mod' it's completely reversible. No change in ROM is required.

[wolfcry911]

I purchased a card on eBay (still in transit) that may actually be a 9650 - I don't know enough about the cards to tell them apart. The seller states they were pulled from a Mac, so I pulled the trigger. Then, after the auction, I did some research and see that this card probably won't work as is in my FW800. I don't mind the mods if it works, but I'd rather not cut off the retention tag and reduce resale value if it weren't possible. Thanks for the link GN, I have more hope that it will work now. The card I purchased has no ADC connection btw, only dual DVI (with a DVI-VGA adapter).

[The Grim Ninja]

You don't have to cut off the rear tab, but I think it's best to cut the traces on the card to be safe.

Mind if I ask what sort of deal you got on the card?

If you decide to chicken out, I'd be willing to trade you for one of the cards I have.

(Note, the 9650 was BTO, the 9600 XT came in both ADC/DVI and dual DVI, it's much more likely you are getting a 9600 XT dual DVI considering the 9650 was a rarity).

[OWC Jamie]

Hi-
We have to cut the tab off as it hits some capacitors in some systems. And we remove the traces, no tape allowed - it can come off and get stuck in the AGP slot. Not fun to remove.

[Big Daddy Cool]

Jamie–

I've had some PM contact with Larry previously about the ATI 9600 changes which make them useless in the Quicksilver G4s.

I'm all set to buy a 30 Cinema Display, but alas, no card available anymore. (I'm really bummed because at the time of the initial forum discussion, I was bidding on a proven-to work 9600 on ebay and let it slide because larry had stated that you guys were testing and he was (at the time) confident yours would work.)

Any ideas?

[wolfcry911]

GM, this is identical to the one that I got:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ATI-Radeon-9600-256M...dZViewItem

both 9600, 9650 are mentioned in the auction. Actually, its not mentioned in the linked auction, but it was in the one I won.
I would have to remove the rear tab as my machine (FW800 dual 1.25) has what I think is an AUX power slot right where this tab wants to rest.
Was the 9650 dual DVI out?

[The Grim Ninja]

Was yours sold as 128 MB VRAM or 256?

The 9650 only came in Dual DVI
The 9600 64 MB only came in ADC/DVI
The 9600 XT 128 MB came in both ADC/DVI and Dual DVI

I didn't realize that MDDs had a power connector and would require the tab removed. I guess I should look into that sometime since I sell the modified cards on ebay from time to time. Guess I'm lucky no one with a MDD FW800 has bought one yet. (Sold 3 so far).

[wolfcry911]

Grim, It was sold as 256, so I'm assuming at this point it is indeed a 9650.
I'll send you a photo of my motherboard if you're interested - I'm not positive as to what type of connector it is.

Jamie, Thanks for the information!