Mac OS 9 Lives

Classic Mac OS Hardware => Video Cards, Monitors & Displays => Topic started by: supernova777 on January 18, 2014, 08:58:38 AM

Title: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 18, 2014, 08:58:38 AM
ill start out by pointing all to this thread:
http://www.jcsenterprises.com/Japamacs_Page/Blog/8923D90A-7AD8-41F1-BD1A-FEA5E1780B95.html

my fave so far has been the radeon 8500 due to its great drivers..
+ great performance! i have tried a few other nvidia cards (mostly OEM versions tho)

i think the best nvidia geforce card is the Geforce4 Ti 4600?

heres a comparison between the radeon 8500 + the Geforce 4Ti

http://www.gpureview.com/show_cards.php?card1=138&card2=22

and another comparison between the radeon 8500, this time
with the Geforce4 TI 4600

(http://www.macos9lives.com/downloads/_img/4600vs8500.GIF)
http://www.gpureview.com/show_cards.php?card1=135&card2=22

so the GF4TI comes out a bit on top but i think the price would be alot more then the radeon 8500

why i personally like the 8500 is also to do with the DVI/VGA dual monitor support ports.. which come in handy over the ADC ports of some of the
nvidia cards!

(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/NVIDIA_GeForce4_Ti_4600_Mac.jpg)
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on January 18, 2014, 10:02:28 AM
I have the Radeon 8500, the Radeon 9000PRO and the GF4 Ti4600. The Radeon 8500 and the 9000PRO perform very similar each other, but the Ti4600 surpass both in around 50% in 2D and 100% 3D in Mac Os 9. This is something you can't be easily forgotten.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 18, 2014, 11:29:07 AM
the geforce4 ti 4800, does it even work in os9?

yeah i heard the 4600 is the best for these systems but, in everyday use.. is it really that much quicker for normal 2d use?
web browsing that much quicker? graphics updating within applications?
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on January 18, 2014, 12:26:44 PM
the geforce4 ti 4800, does it even work in os9?
No, as far as I know. Besides this, the ti4800 only improvement  over the ti4600 is the AGP8x support I think...
Quote
yeah i heard the 4600 is the best for these systems but, in everyday use.. is it really that much quicker for normal 2d use?
web browsing that much quicker? graphics updating within applications?
Yes, improves 50% ALL QuickDraw task. This 50% can be measured in a graphic intensive application and in all kind of redraws and page scrolls (Cubase and others included...). Of course don't improve CPU intensive task, like audio compression and so... :)
This card and a SSD can improve any G4 in a very significant way.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 21, 2014, 10:02:04 AM
this card.. the 4600 ti..
does anyone know if u can re-flash a pc version to a mac version?

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.X4600+ti+agp&_nkw=4600+ti+agp&_sacat=0&_from=R40

here u can see a bunch of cards that do not say they are mac versions
and they are not as long aswell..

u can also see that the mac card goes for way too much 179$? pfftt
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on January 21, 2014, 12:06:51 PM
this card.. the 4600 ti..
does anyone know if u can re-flash a pc version to a mac version?

Yes, but the ti4600 require an extra hardware modification.

http://www.cybercoment.com/macgeforce.htm
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 22, 2014, 03:00:53 AM
i was just about to modify my Geforce FX 5200 OEM from my powermac g5 that is sitting on a shelf.. to put into my sawtooth,
(http://images.anandtech.com/old/motherboards/roundups/012000/i820/agpcon.gif)

but now i realize this is AGP 4x (1.5v) compatible only (*AFTER* modifying + cutting some pcb to make it fit + cut pin 3+11) and will work in DA or Quicksilver/MDD macs only (4x+)
and the sawtooth needs AGP 2x (3.3v) compatible card

kind of sucks because i have the ATI 9600XT + the Geforce FX 5200..
and they are both basically useless to me, i guess i should just sell on ebay or something rather then throw them out like i usually would:)

i think the 9600XT is alot better then the FX 5200.. but both cards dont work in os9 or the g4 sawtooth.. sucks!!!
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 24, 2014, 03:39:47 AM
http://themacelite.wikispaces.com/AGP+Graphics+Card+Compatibility+Chart

heres a chart of graphic card compatibilty
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 27, 2014, 08:02:07 AM
(http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/OTYwWDEyODA=/z/yGQAAMXQHPFRimuA/$(KGrHqVHJEIFE3mrpL0fBRimu!1!Y!~~60_57.JPG)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Leadtek-WinFast-A250-Ultra-TD-nVidia-GeForce4-Ti4600-128MB-DDR-Video-Card-AS-IS-/330920272275?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item4d0c62a193
(http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MzM1WDU5Nw==/z/SHUAAOxyiOxR0YV~/$T2eC16Z,!zUE9s38+EDhBR0YV+Cu3Q~~60_3.JPG)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/nVidia-PNY-GeForce4-Ti-4600-Video-Graphics-Card-128MB-Dell-4N458-04N458-/171068254122?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item27d47667aa

do u think there would be any chance of flashing a pc agp card?

as u can see the prices are clearly alot lower..
and after reviewing the info you say 50% gain is alot.. it does have a faster memory  + core clocks
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 29, 2014, 06:42:25 AM
for g3 + g4 yikes users
any users of a geforce 6200 pci out there?
i looked up the specs and its quite comparble to a geforce ti 4400 or radeon 8500.
but in pci format..
i think the geforce 6200 pci might be a little better then the radeon 9200 pci?
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: Graveyard on January 29, 2014, 10:30:04 PM
I've had the leadtek card in your photo a while ago. I gave it to a friend of mine to use it in a "retro beast" as he calls it. I wanted to flash it for my QS Dual 800 but since i still have 2 ADC displays left, i gave up on the idea. Instead i replaced the GF2 the G4 originally came with, with a Radeon 7500. Now i can use my ForMac Gallery 21" ADC display, and get some good performance in games. I can even play UT 2004 on it, at a low resolution, but with maxed out details.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 29, 2014, 10:50:46 PM
i keep reading the radeon 9800 + Geforce 6800 cards work aswell in os9 but without official drivers + "hardware acceleration"
japamac swears that the performance these cards provide makes up for lack of proper accelleration anyway
and says these cards will give max performance to those dual booting os9 + osx
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on January 30, 2014, 10:43:29 AM
and says these cards will give max performance to those dual booting os9 + osx
I wish to see some speed test of both video cards under mac Os 9 without official drivers + "hardware acceleration".
Maybe I'm wrong but I'll very surprised if some of them have better speed than Ati Rage 128.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 30, 2014, 10:53:36 AM
i think i read this japamac guy saying this on the apple discussion forums
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: Protools5LEGuy on January 30, 2014, 10:56:58 AM
and says these cards will give max performance to those dual booting os9 + osx
I wish to see some speed test of both video cards under mac Os 9 without official drivers + "hardware acceleration".
Maybe I'm wrong but I'll very surprised if some of them have better speed than Ati Rage 128.
Rage 128 HAS hardware acceleration and Mpeg decoder on some models
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on January 30, 2014, 12:01:03 PM
Rage 128 HAS hardware acceleration and Mpeg decoder on some models
Yes, I know.
But what's the point on using those 9800 & Geforce 6800 cards, if −as I think− they don't performs better than a very basic Rage 128 in Mac Os 9?
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 30, 2014, 01:37:06 PM
i understand what you are saying mactron.. and it was my doubt/concern aswell...
but the only way to know is to boot up to os9 with radeon 9800 pro or geforce 6800 GT
i had read that with radeon 9800 u cant even change the graphics properly (resolution)
and that it coems up with whatever u had it set at last with a proper supported card
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: Protools5LEGuy on January 31, 2014, 02:27:12 PM
But what's the point on using those 9800 & Geforce 6800 cards, if −as I think− they don't performs better than a very basic Rage 128 in Mac Os 9?
The only point is dual boot on X. If you are a PURE OS9 player, better a 3Dfx for games or a Promax DH for image accuracy.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on January 31, 2014, 04:16:30 PM
The only point is dual boot on X.
Os X? OK, Sorry, but that isn't my war :)
Quote
If you are a PURE OS9 player, better a 3Dfx for games or a Promax DH for image accuracy.

I think the 3Dfx is way slower than a Ti4600, but the Promax DH can be faster than a Ti 4600 on Mac Os 9? just curious.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: Protools5LEGuy on January 31, 2014, 06:11:52 PM
Faster? I will try when I receive my MDD 866 w PROMAX  DH.    :D
The topic is called Best not fastest  :P
Image accuracy is something closest to best than fastest. I think.
There were (at least on PC) some well optimized games that run faster on 3dfx than nvidia. I remember Dungeon Keeper 2 as one of them.
Voodoo 3000 or 4500 was easily flashed to mac on the day.

For OS9 DieHard users the BEST Graphics card should be an OS9 only card for not having the temptation to boot X. I feel 3dfx and PROMAX DH are good examples.  ::)
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on January 31, 2014, 06:26:45 PM
best is best.. speed is part of being the best..

the geforce 6800 GT & Radeon 9800 pro are much improved in capability (memory thruput, graphics core clock mhz)
over the Geforce4 ti 4600 & Radeon 8500.... (last officially supported with real official drievrs)
i was bringing this up for discussion to see if others who have used these cards successffully could confirm if they do work or not
in mac os 9, as i had read in one place only that it was possible
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on January 31, 2014, 06:47:18 PM
... for not having the temptation to boot X...

Nobody's point about Os X is discussed around here.

Faster? I will try when I receive my MDD 866 w PROMAX  DH.    :D
Please, don't forget to tell us about this card −as soon as you have it− I'm really interested.
If it is for Mac Os 9 of course.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: Syntho on February 11, 2014, 02:12:18 AM
I'm in a predicament. I use video cards with 2x DVI connectors on them so I can have a dual monitor setup. The stock cards that come with the G4s usually have 1 DVI and a VGA port.

The problem with that is I won't be able to get 2x 1920X1080 monitors like usual. One of the monitors would be downgraded to analog and a smaller, squarish aspect ratio.

This means I've got to find a card that has dual DVI connectors and has drivers for OS9 Does anyone know of a card like that off the top of their head?
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on February 11, 2014, 02:20:42 AM
I'm in a predicament. I use video cards with 2x DVI connectors on them so I can have a dual monitor setup. The stock cards that come with the G4s usually have 1 DVI and a VGA port.

The problem with that is I won't be able to get 2x 1920X1080 monitors like usual. One of the monitors would be downgraded to analog and a smaller, squarish aspect ratio.

This means I've got to find a card that has dual DVI connectors and has drivers for OS9 Does anyone know of a card like that off the top of their head?

if you really need digital  -- your going to want to get a card with DVI/ADC and a converter like this:
(http://www.gefen.com/images/AC-DVI.jpg)
http://www.gefen.com/kvm/dproduct.jsp?prod_id=1198

but ive used VGA->DVI adapters + they seemed to work just fine

as far as real dual dvi cards go.. i think the radeon 9600 was the first to use this? and its not an os9 accellerated card
but may work ok?
(http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/6y0AAMXQqfZRpSL2/$T2eC16dHJF4FFk+74)WNBRpSL1vqkQ~~60_57.JPG)

then u can support 2x DVI connections.
just make sure that its the right DVI (dual link vs single link etc) ive had the problem of a dvi cord not fitting the dvi port before!

(http://attachments.techguy.org/attachments/102657d1176050507/dvicon.gif)
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: Syntho on February 11, 2014, 02:41:20 AM
Will the ADC to DVI adapter work just like a normal DVI connector? Those VGA to DVI adapters I tried seemed to downgrade the quality.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: Syntho on February 11, 2014, 03:09:33 AM
I just read some reviews on Amazon and they said it works perfectly for a dual monitor setup.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000067RLH/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on February 11, 2014, 03:20:12 AM
yeah id say u are in the clear.. buy one of those adapters from ebay;)
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on February 11, 2014, 08:19:00 AM
The stock cards that come with the G4s usually have 1 DVI and a VGA port.
No, this only happened in the first G4 models (Yikes & Sawtooth), the more usually video card connectors are ADC and DVI.
Quote
I'm in a predicament. I use video cards with 2x DVI connectors on them so I can have a dual monitor setup.
I use to have dual monitors setup too.

Just for the record, with two monitors the video card performance usually decrease in a half.

And as a curiosity, you can connect a Mac Os 9  video card with DVI output to a HDMI monitor with a cheap DVI to HDMI adapter, but without audio of course.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on February 12, 2014, 11:57:05 AM
there are some cards that would work if you are brave enough to try to flash a card yourself
although u would need a pc with an agp port (4x or 8x) to do this

(http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/TXcAAOxyUrZS4bFD/$_57.JPG)
(http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNjAw/z/Tg4AAOxyRhBS4bFZ/$_57.JPG)

this may be one of the best cards u can put in a g4

check my other post:
http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php?topic=638.msg1931#msg1931

but checking more closely here: http://www.jcsenterprises.com/Japamacs_Page/Blog/4B4B7BA2-7ABB-47F1-87AC-B03D37942BEE.html
Quote
"Not all cards may be used in MDD models. The geforce 6200 and all Geforce 6800 models are INCOMPATIBLE with the MDD" --japamac
so this 6600 geforce is for quicksilver/gigabit/digital audio/sawtooths only

Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on February 19, 2014, 11:08:27 AM
(https://www1.sapphiretech.com/rs/gallery/img/28/media_168.jpg)
does anyone know if the 9250 is supported by the last os9 drivers?
i would think it would see it as a 9200 ?
but i could be wrong?
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: Syntho on May 06, 2014, 09:10:43 PM
I bought a Ti4600 and it seems there are some problems with it. I often get 'tracers' like in old Windows machines and soon after that the entire screen is so whack that I can't see anything. Plus I get random freezing and that may be a part of it. I also test with the diagnostics CD and sometimes the video card passes, sometimes it fails.

I'm just going to have to downgrade my card since I can't spend another $100 on the card. I need a card with two DVI ports or at least 1 DVI and 1 ADC. Is the GeForce 4 MX 64mb the best card with these ports other than the Ti4600? I need it to be an nVidia card since I had no luck with the resolution settings on a Radeon.

I wonder if I will see much of a downgrade in performance...
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on May 07, 2014, 08:57:52 AM
... I get random freezing and that may be a part of it. I also test with the diagnostics CD and sometimes the video card passes, sometimes it fails.
May be your card have temperature problems. Check if the fan is working properly.
My Ti4600 had come with a extra cooling kit.
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on November 18, 2014, 11:31:43 AM
do we have anyone that has successfully modded a pc ti4600 for use in a mac?
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: MacTron on November 18, 2014, 01:42:40 PM
do we have anyone that has successfully modded a pc ti4600 for use in a mac?

You have a lot of info about this. It will be a good idea if you start a thread specifically for this topic. You can start posting about this graphic card and about the more similar PC models you have found ...
The main points are the GPU and the VRAM, IMHO.

Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on November 22, 2014, 12:56:15 PM
i dont know how its done i just know that it can be done as there is a guy from hong kong selling modified shorter pc length cards on ebay atm
Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: supernova777 on November 28, 2014, 05:58:52 AM
(http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=557.0;attach=1483;image)
this is the guy selling modified ti4600's  (http://www.ebay.ca/itm/nVidia-Geforce-4-Ti-4600-128mb-AGP-Video-Card-For-Apple-PowerMac-G4-DVI-VGA/251700638288?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140620075055%26meid%3D8287dbc7eef5464fa6134b3066f91aef%26pid%3D100011%26prg%3D20140620075055%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D140754164689) so if he can do it.. then we should figure out how its done. becuase u can get these cards unmod' for alot less


(http://forum.hkbt.org/attachments/month_1102/1102251907624f05a5c26e29ca.jpg)
Quote
Model:    nVidia Geforce 4 Ti4600
VRAM :    128MB 256-bit GDDR
Pixel pipeline    8
Slot Compatibility :    AGP 2x4x8x
ROM (Firmware) vevision:    v1105
Memory Clock :    325MHz (650MHz)
GPU Clock:    300MHz
Compatibility :    PPC PowerMac G4 AGP Model (*except AGP Graphics Rev.1 & G4 Cube)

OS Compatibility :    OS 9.22 , OSX 10.1 Puma to 10.5.8 Leopard

Connectors :    1x Single-Link DVI Port , 1x VGA Port

Display Modes :    DVI, VGA , DVI +VGA **Extended Desktop, Mirrored Display (2 Display Simultaneously)
Maximum Analog Resolution :    2048 x 1536 @ 85hz
Maximum DVI Resolution :    Single-Link DVI Port - 1920 x 1200 @ 60Hz (up to 23" Apple Cinema HD Display)

Condition :    Slightly Used * Excellent Working Condition

Package Includes:    

1x Video Card
Remark:    


100% Guaranteed Good Condition, Modified Card Compatible with PPC PowerMac G4 AGP Tower.

*True Quartz Extreme , Core Image & Core Animation (10.5 Leopard) Supported & Compatible.


Title: Re: Best Graphics Card for OS9
Post by: geforceg4 on October 28, 2016, 05:17:00 PM
I'm in a predicament. I use video cards with 2x DVI connectors on them so I can have a dual monitor setup. The stock cards that come with the G4s usually have 1 DVI and a VGA port.

The problem with that is I won't be able to get 2x 1920X1080 monitors like usual. One of the monitors would be downgraded to analog and a smaller, squarish aspect ratio.

This means I've got to find a card that has dual DVI connectors and has drivers for OS9 Does anyone know of a card like that off the top of their head?


isnt this backwards? isnt it the Analog VGA connector that provides a high-res connection? and the digial DVI connection that offers a lower Resolution? pretty sure that back in the day with my sawtooth, the vga connection on that card would be able to do 1680x1050 but the digital would not??? maybe im not remembering correctly..