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I've been working on PC's for my entire life, and have acquired an old Power Mac G4 tower with a 450 MHz processor. I would like to get this somewhere near the 1 GHz range and don't mind the $50-70 price-tag to do it.

 

What I DO mind is buying an item on ebay, waiting a week, installing it and having it not work.

 

So, the question is:

 

What do I have to bear in mind when buying a CPU for a Power Mac G4 (450 MHz & uses PC-100 Ram)?

 

Is it like a pc? Do I just ensure the form factor is the same or are there more details to watch out for?

 

Thank you in advance! I'd Love to get this thing going!

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Well, by the sounds of it, you have what's known as a G4 Sawtooth. It should have an AGP slot for a video card, if not then it's a completely different machine.

So i am going to go out on a limb here and think it has an AGP mac.

As for memory, you can install 4 sticks of 512 MB PC-133 ram max. It will also take PC-100, but those are more expensive.

As for the processor, i myself would buy one from eBay, but if you want the easy route, i would suggest OWC because they are new and they have a warranty.

They also have a refurbished area too but at least they know they work.

You can install anywhere from what you have to a single 2 GHz cpu. If your machine has the right instruction set (UNI-N 7), you can have a max of a dual 1.8 Ghz cpu in there.

Also, this video here will show you how to take out the old cpu and put in a new one.

First off, download Mactracker. It's your best friend in times like this, because it will immediately identify the Mac you're on (i.e. mine is a G4 digital audio).

 

Once you get that, go to Macsales.com, which will ask you a couple of questions on the model of your Mac (which you now have). Then you'll see all sorts of wonderful stuff.

First off, download Mactracker. It's your best friend in times like this, because it will immediately identify the Mac you're on (i.e. mine is a G4 digital audio).

Mactracker is a good program, but i was going by the info he or she gave. Since the only 450 MHz model that came out as a "single cpu" was the Sawtooth. Originally the Gigabit Ethernet came out with a dual 450 MHz even though it can handle a single 450 too.

Mactracker is a good program, but i was going by the info he or she gave. Since the only 450 MHz model that came out as a "single cpu" was the Sawtooth. Originally the Gigabit Ethernet came out with a dual 450 MHz even though it can handle a single 450 too.

 

This is true. The only other Power Mac I saw in Mactracker was the cube, and I think that would have been a dead giveaway if we were dealing with a cube. The processor in the cubes can be upgraded also.

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