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Author Topic: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?  (Read 6555 times)

macStuff

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adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« on: November 17, 2018, 05:25:49 PM »

the mac mini has a modem right? is there any way to attach a stealth port to it? has anyone done this?
everymac site says: " A modem was not provided, but an internal modem still could be added for US$29. " i dont really understand that?
what good is a modem without a telephone line plugged into it :) lol .. mactron will pop in now and make fun of everymac.com some more heh
 "The Mac mini G4/1.5 lacked the internal modem by default" 

i think the 1.25 ghz models were the only models that had the telephone modem port on the back panel?
but the other higher mhz models, including the 1.5 ghz models didnt have any telephone port at all?
can anyone confirm this? what good is a modem internally without a phone line port to plug it in tho? im confused ;0

just lookin at this now because im on the phone with a friend who was talkin about using a Xserve to add a stealth port to one..
just to get his mac up off the floor + in the rack to clear up space.. his idea not mine. i never thought of that..
anyway yea i did see a post by macOsPlus tthat spoke of the DB9 serial port being able to be used with the stealth port driver..
news to me.  (see this think classic thread: https://www.thinkclassic.org/viewtopic.php?id=1040 )
Quote
One thing that had been nagging in my mind for a while was whether or not the (X-Serve's) built-in DB9 serial terminal/server management port was openly accessible in the typical manner of standard Mac serial ports under OS 9, since it would never appear as a device.  On a hunch I installed the driver extension file for the Stealth Serial Port to see if the Xserve's built-in port used the debug port trick in the same manner as the Stealth.  Well it turns out it actually does!!! http://macos9lives.com/smforum/index.php/topic,3902.0.html

anyway has anyone rigged up a mac mini to a serial port?
my friends asking me how he can keep his oldschool serial mac gear + clear out his studio (which is cramped for space)
he mentioned the XSERVE i mentioned the mac MINI! telling him its basically an MDD in a small box without the weight + without the noise..
which would be PERFECT for "just MIDI" if it could interface DIRECTLY with a stealth port somehow... 

is there a serial port in the mac mini?
anyway to get the mac mini retrofitted to a stealth port?
does anyone have images of the modem connector port?
« Last Edit: November 18, 2018, 06:07:05 AM by macStuff »
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Daniel

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Re: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« Reply #1 on: November 17, 2018, 07:47:34 PM »

I tried to figure out if that was possible back when I first got my mini.

I don't remember the details, but I think it uses a different size connector or something (and that connector might not output serial). I think I searched for mini modem replacement photos and counted the number of pins to figure out what connector type it was. It's been so long I'm not sure of anything about it anymore.
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macStuff

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Re: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« Reply #2 on: November 18, 2018, 05:23:47 AM »

It's been so long I'm not sure of anything about it anymore.

lol i can definately relate there..  brain cells come + go ! lol  ;D

i found this image of the RJ-11 connector to attach the phone cable to the modem?
http://www.usedmac.com/products/922-6694-mac-mini-g4-rj-11-logic-to-modem-cable


found some images of the logic board.. yea the connector looks to be slightly modified + "mini-ized"
maybe we could talk to Alex hixon http://alexhixon.com/projects/jamport/
perhaps he could make a stealth port that can work on the mac mini?
because it looks like every mac mini g4 has this spot reserved for the rj-11 connector that could be
retro-fited for the serial port connector!!! i would be pretty turned on to see a mac serial port rigged there!
but this would be an amazing development! breathing life back into the mac mini g4
one last final frontier... this is making me think of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek_Generations lol :)

« Last Edit: November 18, 2018, 06:09:26 AM by macStuff »
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macStuff

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Re: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« Reply #3 on: November 18, 2018, 06:11:11 AM »

looks very similar the connector? but is it the same? and will a jamport or stealth physically fit inside ?
would it be possible to create an adaptor of some sort to allow the stealth port connnector to interface with the mac mini g4 modem port connector?
« Last Edit: November 18, 2018, 06:35:09 AM by macStuff »
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Daniel

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Re: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« Reply #4 on: November 18, 2018, 07:20:33 AM »

A closeup of the logic board (https://www.mini-itx.com/news/13909018/, found through google) reveals that the modem port has 2x15 pins. According to the Jamport development page (http://alexhixon.com/projects/jamport/development.html#modem-connectors) this corresponds with either the MicroDash connector which has serial, or the Q52 connector which doesn't.

I'm not sure which one it is.
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macStuff

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Re: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« Reply #5 on: November 18, 2018, 08:12:59 AM »


heres the pinout for microdash.. from hixons site
all the serial connections seem to be on the first 16 pins
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hageir

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Re: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« Reply #6 on: April 06, 2020, 10:58:17 AM »

a note to the future:
I was glancing over the “PowerBook G4 Developer Notes”
and it mentioned that the Modem is connected to USB and is shared (?) with the USB
and forms a Virtual Serial Port.

So definitely some of the later G4 machines have a pseudo Modem port (something to do with digital phone calls)

That’s all.

I don’t know about the debug port, there is little information on it.
It’s probably more direct; real Serial?

Hers the document in question
https://archive.org/stream/manual-apple-devnotes-pbg4/PowerBookG4_djvu.txt
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part12studios

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Re: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« Reply #7 on: April 13, 2020, 06:22:42 AM »

yea just be sure if you get a keyspan single serial device, while it may fit and even work, it may not physically fit in the casing..  i had a G4 quicksilver that i tried to install a 1999 keyspan serial.. the socket was the same, but there was physical casing differences that made getting it to install impossible.   So it might still work technically, but be sure you can return it to the seller on the chance it won't fit.   

Although if the physical modem port is different then this is moot, but i wasn't 100% sure skimming the prior posts.  good luck!
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rvense

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Re: adding serial port RS-422 to the mac mini G4 - is it possible?
« Reply #8 on: April 23, 2020, 10:48:31 AM »

I'm quite sure I had a Stealth serial port working in both my lamp iMac G4 and my Powerbook Lombard, but as far as I remember neither could be reassembled when it was in.
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