The 6400 Zone - 6400 Info

I have tried a few different setups of extension to find out what increases my performance the most. Here is a list of my tests. All scores are from MacBench 4.0 with the first percentage coming from the 6400/180 test machine MacBench used. I assume you would get similar increases on other Mac OS systems too.

1. Installed OS 7.6 and the Processor performance went from 184% w/7.5.3 to 197% w/7.6

2. Installed LibMoto extension from Motorola and the floating point score went from 207% to 297%. LibMoto is available on my Updates & Upgrades page.

3. Installed 7.6.1 and then deleted the 7.6.1 system suitcase and copied back the 7.6 system suitcase from backup leaving all the 7.6.1 extensions installed and the disk performance went from 123% to 197%. By the way when I left 7.6.1 system file loaded it was running at a very slow 86%. Read Hack fix for 7.6.1 problems for more info. If you watch a lot of Quick Time movies from CD, then you better leave Speed Doublers faster disk access off as the extra caching interrups smooth playback. Its really only noticable if you increase the size of the Quick Time window. I turned SD off and increased my cache to 1024k in the memory control panel and see minimal interrupts during playback and still have good disk access. (instead of 197% I have 165%)

4. If you have the Geoport Modem, stop using it and get an external modem. I have not run any tests but you can just tell that the online speed is increased dramatically. click here for more on the 6400 and Geo Modem.

5. Get Sonnet's 512k cache or any cache for that matter. I have the 512k in mine and performance went through the roof. processor=303%, floating point=342%, and disk access=206%. Click here for more on the 512k Cache. The L2 cache will probably give you the biggest speed boost for your computer.

I have running system extensions from 7.6.1 but with the 7.6 system suitcase, OT 1.1.2, Speed Doubler 2.0.3, Ram Doubler 2.0.1, and LibMoto

UPDATE: my system now consists of Sonnets 512k L2 cache, 48M Ram, OS 8.1, LibMoto extension, , Speed Doubler 8, and Virtual Memory set to 96M. MacBench 4.0 scores are now CPU=305%, FPU=338%, and Disk=213%. You will get faster FPU with VM and RamDoubler turned off.

I got good news for all you speed freaks out there. I just saw that Sonnet Tech now makes a 1M L2 cache for the 6400. They have it listed for $199. You can reach Sonnet at 1-800-786-6260. I also found a company called ICN (Innovative Computer & Networking Inc.) that has a listing for a 275Mhz upgrade for the 6400. Most likly it is a mother board swap with a 6500's board, but who cares were it comes from as long as it works. No price is listed. ICN also has upgrades for many other Apple computers including powerbooks. You can reach ICN at 1-800-660-9876

Sun Remarketing: This is another company that sells just about any part for a MAC that you can think of. They even have mother boards for those of you wishing to move your 6400 up to a 6500. They also give deals when you trade in your old parts. Click here to visit their web site. Thanks James Dore, for this great info.

Check out my Readers Reviews page for Tom Legare's report on installing a 6500/300 mother board in his 6400.

Announcements 6.0 installing too many fonts problem: I just installed PARSONS Announcements 6.0 for the MAC and it installs 99 fonts in your fonts folder. I then was having font problems in other apps where the default font was changed. I remembered reading somewhere that the MAC can only handle so many font suitcases and any more will not be recognized. I opened my fonts folder and sure enough every font added was in its own suitcase. I duplicated one of the suitcases and renamed it Announcement fonts. I then dragged every font out of its suitcase and into the new Announcement suitcase, restarted and it worked! I know have all my fonts back and working properly. I beleive the maximum number of suitcases is 130 but don't quote me. After installing Announcements, I had 159 items in my fonts folder.

Update 1/29/1999: I just got this TIL from Apple. It states that only 128 Font suitcases can reside in the Fonts folder. But you can move suitcases into each other to reduce the showing overall number which will let you add more like what I did.

From Apples TIL file 30340, The default networking option for the Macintosh is to use the printer port for AppleTalk. In order to use the printer port for a serial device it is necessary to stop using the printer port for AppleTalk. There are two ways to accomplish this.

The first is to move AppleTalk to another port such as Ethernet (if you are connected to an Ethernet network). The second method is to make AppleTalk inactive. During the migration from Classic Networking to Open Transport, older components of the networking software have not been upgraded to fully support Open Transport. Two such components are the Chooser and the AppleTalk Switch Control Strip Module. If AppleTalk is made inactive using either the Chooser or the Control Strip then only Classic AppleTalk components are made inactive. Open Transport AppleTalk components are still active. When you attempt to use the printer port for a serial device the following error messages (or similar messages) may result.

Location Manager 2.0.1 offers a convenient way to turn AppleTalk on and off. For more information, please see the Read Me included with Location Manager 2.0.1.

For People wanting to install more PCI cards then Apple supplied us slots for: Here are a few companies that make PCI expansion chassis for MACs. They aren't cheap but I read in a news article that buying a G3 and then one of these PCI chassis for about $1000 more is cheaper then buying Apples 9600. I have web address for only 2 of the 3. I assume they will work on all PCI based MACs.

6/20/1999 PCI expansion chassi setups getting cheaper!: I found this on Accelerate Your Mac's web site. It seems the price of these things are falling. Mine was just under $800 for a refurb!

9/22/2000 T35 EasiExpansion Case for macs: I just saw an add in the latest MacConnection catalog for a PCI expansion chassis called the EasiExpansion T35. It is made by a company called Mobility. It states that the chassis works on PC's and Mac's and has a built it 2 channel IDE controller card and 2 USB ports! There are 3 open PCI slots and a few external and internal drive bays. The price is listed as $599 which is a great price for all of that! If you subtract $99 for the IDE card and $40 for the USB ports that makes the chassis worth only $450. The lowest price I have seen for these. I emailed their sales people for more info on Mac compatibility and here is the reply I got.

I store a backup of my web site on a floppy disk and I noticed that after awhile of use it takes longer and longer to mount. I also use it between OS 8.1 and 7.6.1. I used ResEdit one day to look at the invisible desktop file and found it was taking over 200k of disk space! man thats a big DT file. I reformatted the disk and then copied everything back and the DT file is only a few K now. I tried rebuilding it first with TechTool but it always stayed over 200k. Now my floppy mounts very quick. I'm wondering if going between these 2 OS's is causing any problems? I was also getting a high failure rate of my floppies that I use between the 2 OS's. Hmmmmm!

I read a letter posted on Accelerate Your Mac 4/20/98 about changing the preferred memory size of the Finder may help it run better in low memory situations and may make it faster. I tried it and I don't know about stability as I was pretty stable before but the Finder does seem more responsive. I can scroll through documents and open folders like the Preference folder a little quicker. Below is how to do it. Thanks Mike for posting such great info.

Finder Memory boost problem: A reader of mine wrote to tell me that when he tried increasing the Finders memory allocation, he started having many crashes and Type 3 errors.

The Type 3 errors he is having sounds like their the same Type 3 errors I have been getting but mine seems to have been solved by the increasing the Finders memory. Strange! He said he reinstalled his system software and everything is running smooth again. Even better then before he adds. I wonder if his Finder was corrupted before and this just brought the problem to the surface?

Increasing the Finders memory good news: Here is a letter I got from Tom Legare who has increased his Finder memory with ResEdit on OS 7.6.1 and states it made his system run faster. In Just Updated 5/11/98 another reader states having many Type 3 errors after doing this. As I stated before I had the Type 3 error BEFORE doing the Finder memory trick so I think he may have had other problems.

Like all tweaks, try it at your own risk! remember not to trash your original FINDER until your sure this tweak did not hurt your system.

This page has the definitive answer on which 6400's need EDO memory and which need regular memory. Basically they say to use EDO in any 6400 to make sure you will get the EDO benefits in case yours takes advantage of it. They do mention that 6400's are a bit snippy about RAM but I have not heard of this from anyone else. In fact I have heard of people mixing EDO and non-EDO RAM together with no side affects. EDO RAM is cheaper now and the only draw back to buying it is that it will run only as fast as the type of memory you have installed now.

8/17/98 6400 cannot use larger DIMMS than 64M DIMMS: I sent a message to MacGuru's about the possibility of using a 128M DIMM on the 6400. Here is my message with their response.

1/21/2000 Update on 128M DIMMS in a 6400: (First of all none of the following has been proven but I am posting it here incase anyone wants to try or has proof this works) I haven't heard back from the 6400 user that says he has 2 128M DIMMS in his computer but I did recieve word from Daniel who says it is possible but very unlikely! First let me say this again. IT IS POSSIBLE! It turns out that the 6400 memory controller can use 128M DIMMS but to his knowledge no vendor has made a 128M DIMM to the specs needed to work on a 6400. So they will only show half their value at 64M. Wow this was news to me. So there may be ram out there that will work? I sure hope that guy replies to me :) Thanks for the info Daniel.

Click here to read the memory document he sent me. I don't understand any of it but maybe some of you will :)

For the person who says he has 128M DIMMS working Please supply us with the following info. Thanks.

3/3/2000 128M Dimm usage update: Michael wrote to let me know that MacSolutions who once had the 128M Dimm listed for the 6400 now seems to have changed their ads :( Thanks Michael.

I suspect they did it do to increased traffic from my site and didn't want to sell a bunch of them if they won't work?

7/16/2000 Final answer on using 128M DIMMS in a 6400/6500, No go!: Michael is the first person I know of that has actually tried the 128M dimm in his 6500 and it only showed 64M worth of ram :( Thanks for the info Michael and for having the guts to try it :)

[I received the 128MB 2K refresh rated DIMM via FedEx today. The DIMM is shorter (height-wise that is) than the 64MB DIMM I already have, and the chips on the card are wider, squatty looking things, but the pins are all the same and the notches all align properly. I was a little paranoid about frying my logic board when doing this for the first time, so I took the 64MB DIMM out and put the 128MB DIMM in its place, held the reset button and put everything back together, turning on the Mac with one hand on the power plug while I held my breath. At startup, HAL 9000 always says to me "I'm completely operational, and all my circuits are functioning perfectly." Never have those words sounded more beautiful to me than they did this afternoon. Anyway, the unit started up, and remember this is a 6500 logic board, not a 6400, so I have no RAM apart from the DIMMs in the socket--that is to say if the DIMM doesn't work and it's the only one there, I won't get even a startup, but it did in fact start up and all extensions loaded. So of course the first thing I am going to do is run over to the About This Computer thing and check out how much RAM is running, and what numbers do I see? 64MB. I powered down, swapped the DIMM to another slot and held the reset button, slapped it all together again and started up, same thing with 64MB. I then replaced the old 64MB DIMM and powered up, 128MB total this time. Swapping the 64 and the 128 position gave the same results: 128MB total. Now let's take a look at the possible outcomes I had predicted:

1. The DIMM would not work at all.
2. The DIMM would work but only use half the RAM amount.
3. The DIMM would work and use all RAM present.

Since we have a clear result, and we know the DIMM is 2K refresh in and out of the pins, there are a few other factors to consider:

1. Supposedly, the ROM on the logic board won't allow the sockets to address more than 64MB each.
2. The chips on the DIMM are actually 4K arranged in such a way that the card as a whole refreshes at 2K.
3. We know that 4K DIMMs (not necessarily chips) will always halve the total RAM amount on this board.
4. These logic boards can also accept 1K refresh rated DIMMs.

Now, here are some conclusions I've drawn from the above with the single outcome I've experienced, some of which are only more hypotheses:

1. It is possible that the ROM is not allowing the socket to address more than 64MB.
2. It is possible that the 4K chips, while arranged in 2K in/out of the DIMM, are keeping the memory the CPU sees halved.
3. It is possible that a 1K refresh rated DIMM could show the entire 128MB to the CPU.(Fat chance of ever seeing a 1K refresh rated DIMM with 128MB though.) This will also only be possible if 1. Above is not the case.
4. It is possible that a 256MB 2K refresh rated DIMM would show 128MB to the CPU, and only if 1. above is not the case.(And there's a big likelihood of diddly for anybody making a 256MB 2K refresh rated DIMM just for us, also.)

So that's the news, some of it still speculative and not all of it good, but at least the DIMM works. What I paid for it is approximately what other stores have 64MB DIMMs going for, and only $20 more than their own 64MB DIMM, so I am going to run the 6500 with the thing at least over the weekend and see if I have any ill-effects. Assuming so I will return it for a 64MB DIMM, otherwise, I was going to get more RAM anyway. ~Michael]

9/22/2000 Using 128M 4k DIMMS that are cheaper then 64M 2k DIMMS on a 6400?: Michael also sent me some news on his 128M DIMM and how he saved money by purchasing more 128M DIMMS instead of 64M DIMMS. Now don't get confused by this! They are only showing 64M each as that is all the 6400/6500 memory controller can access but if it saves you money and they work then why not try?

[I have some more news that might interest you. Remember that 128MB DIMM I bought that supposedly refreshed at 2K, made from 4K chips? Well the DIMM has worked flawlessly all this time (as a 64MB DIMM). So why am I bringing this up? Well I recently visited my girlfriend's place and spent some time upgrading her 6400/180. I promised her that I would give her some additional RAM if she decided to put a G3 in her 6400 and she took me up on it, so this left me with a need for another 64MB, to fill the empty slot in mine. So I ordered more RAM for myself--and I had to stop myself halfway.

I ordered another 128MB, 4K refresh DIMM.

Why? Well the 64MB, 2K refresh DIMMs are as much as $180 these days, whereas you can visit ramseeker.com to find 128MB, 4K refresh DIMMs for all of about $80 or $90. We already know that a 128MB 2K refresh DIMM made from 4K refresh rated chips will function in the 6400 and show 1/2 the RAM amount, and we also know that 4K refresh DIMMs will also show 1/2 the RAM amount.

So if you have a 6360/6400/6500--WHY IN THE HECK would you spend twice as much for simply a 64MB 2K refresh rated DIMM when a 128MB 4K rated DIMM will do exactly the same thing?

Something to think about. My second 128MB DIMM is happily functioning and saving me a little money as well. :)

The RAM that is cheaper, is the 128MB 4k 168-pin DIMMs, identical in every way to what the 6400 needs except it's not 2k refresh. The 2k refresh 128MB DIMMs are almost as expensive as the 4k 64MB DIMMs, so this leads me to believe that it is just more expensive to make the bigger, faster refresh DIMMs for the few Macs that require them.(Like ours.) But then there are also more people with the 7200-9600 type Macs.Regards,
~Michael]

This is a try at your own risk thing. Michael states it works fine but I just thought I would warn people that this is not in any way a supported mod! If you try then please let me know. Thanks

11/18/2000 Final, final update on 128M DIMMS in a 6400/6500, NO GO!: Daniel wrote before with some specs on how a 128M DIMM would need to be made for it to work on a 6400 with the full memory available. Last update I posted info from someone claiming to be using 2 128M cards in their 6400 but the person never wrote back? Well Daniel did some checking and found that there aren't any chips made by them with the correct configuration we need :( Thanks Daniel.

[I saw the info on your web site recently about someone speaking he had broken the 136 Mb barrier.

I sent you some message about the 128Mb limit of the 6400 a few months ago. Maybe you remember my Word doc at this time.

I checked memory spec on the Advantage memory site. I compared the specs with my own information (the word document that I have sent to you), and obviously there is no memory with the good organization type. We need a chips type organized in 4X4, 2X8, or 1X16 addressing scheme. Unfortunately, it doesn't exist for a 128Mb DIMMs. Look in the sixth column in the advantage's web site and you will finally find why we can't add more memory to this machine.

Higher density memories implicates to manage more bits with a higher bits count in the memory scheme. It's a little more technical in reality. Anyway a 128Mb Dimm with the right specs doesn't exist, had never existed and will never exists. Looking in the table on the web page will give you an idea.

So unless Sonnet or Newer give us an G3 upgrade with memory on it or a special type of switching memory, we are stuck with 136 Mb :(

Thanks!
Daniel]

10/5/2001 Apple TIL on EDO and FPM memory and which Macs can use them: Here is a TIL I copied from Apples web site that has very good explanations of each type of RAM and what makes each better then the last.

I am not sure about other IDE based Macs but I just want to yet you know that the 6400/6500 families do have internal SCSI termination so no need to worry about that :)

I received this letter from Dan Sanfilippo who was answering a question I left on Apples 6400 forums. I had asked if there was a way to quiet down the startup chime.

I currently use an Apple script that sets the volume to 1 after startup. I'm going to try it in the ShutDown items folder and see if it works. I had tried this before but it was set to zero which Dan says the 6400 ROM ignores. I'll let you know if it works.

Update: The Apple Script works! I can have my volume at max and if I shutdown or just restart the volume is set to 1 when finished booting and the startup chime is much quieter. Well, we might not be able to shut off the chime (unless you plug in headphones) but we don't have to wake up the neighborhood any more :) Click here to download my Apple Script (it has been stuffed). place it in your ShutDown items folder in the system folder and thats it.

8/31/98 Another loud startup chimes solution: I got this letter from Rick who had this problem but with a different cause. Here's his letter below. Thanks Rick.

It's pretty much the same problem where the volume is being left up high on shutdown so that on the next startup, its really loud! If you're having this problem then look for all control panels or extensions that might keep the volume set high while your using your 6400. The Apple Script I've listed in Just Updates 8/27/98 should fix all problems as it will turn the volume down just before shuting off the computer. The only case inwhich it will not work is if you crash and the volume was set high. I see no fix for this.

The 6400's fan is designed to speed up or down depending on how hot the computer is. If the computer gets real hot, the fan will start to oscillate up and down which can be very annoying at times. Some people found a lot of dust in the power supply which makes The power supply hotter which speeds up the fan. Blowing out this dust should fix this problem. Another possible cause is the location of your computer. Make sure its not sitting on a rug and that its not in a little cubbyhole like on a computer desk made for tower cases. I had my 6400 in the open cubbyhole that is right next to where your feet go and being in this enclosure (only the front is open) really heats things up. Give your Mac good ventilation and see if the fan still speeds up.

replacing the fan means replacing the power supply which is expensive!

6/5/1999 Rick send some info on why the power supply fan may wind up like a turbo jet. Thanks Rick

8/14/1999 Loud power supply got you down?: Rodney has been having a serious issue with his power supply where the fan would spin up and down making an anoyingly loud sound. Trust me I have this smae problem and it sounds like a turbo jet taking off :) Anyway he found that by removing the power supply and using a can of compressed air to blow off the dust fixed it! I just tried myself last night and so far mine is quieter too but not as quiet as his sounds. I didn't have much dust at all so my supply may be just going bad? I will have instructions on doing this as soon as my pictures develop. Thanks Rodney.

4/14/2000 More on cooling the 6400: Tim wrote me with some possible helpful tips on cooling your 6400 for the summer heat if you live in places like us (Arizona) and can't afford a $300+ airconditioning bill :) Some of these tips seem a little far fetched but they can't hurt to try. Thanks Tim. Just cleaning the dust out of your system as Tim mentions will really help a lot!

[Hi Tom,
Just thought I would send in some information that I have come across with my own system. You may have already covered some of this stuff already, but I thought it might be worth sending you just in case. First of all, I am running a Performa 6400/180 with a Sonnet L2 G3 accelerator card, and Mac OS 8.6. The last couple of summers I have noticed that my system would bog down and make some high pitched whining noises when the temperatures began increasing. At first I thought it was the fan in my Lacie external hard drive. So I took it apart and lubricated the fan spindle with some Remington gun oil (with Teflon in it). That worked great for the fan, but did not solve original problem.

Next, I took out the motherboard from the tower and noticed quite a bit of dust that had accumulated in the unit. After a thorough cleaning of the inside of the tower, I made a pretty neat discovery. Underneath the motherboard is a metal perforated plate that the air is drawn in from outside the tower and used to cool off the motherboard & CPU. This screen was 100% clogged with dust particles. Just by blowing it off, from the inside out, I was able to clear out all the holes (didn't even need compressed air). When I put the unit back together, it not only fixed the whining noise, but cooled the system temp down dramatically.

Then I was wondering how I could set up the layout of my system to minimize this dust from clogging the screen so quickly, and prevent me from having to take it apart and clean it too frequently. When someone moves the tower from its original place after a while, they will notice a thick layer of dust underneath it. I think that this heavy accumulation sucks clots of dust into the screen, instead of just particles, which clogs it very quickly and cuts of the air circulation. So I used a kitchen towel to lay under the tower. This has the effect of trapping much of the dust before it gets drawn into the tower. Then all one has to do is periodically shake the towel out.

I have also noticed that moving the tower itself to a more open space, as opposed to a closed-in shelf or something, doesn't constrict the air flow to the system as much. Also, I have moved all peripheral devices away from the tower itself, to prevent them from warming the air that the system draws in.

Finally, as the temperature warms up in the room (during those hot summer months), it is a problem to keep the system cool if all it is doing is drawing warm (or hot) air into the system. What I did was take a ceramic coffee mug, filled it with ice, and placed it next to side of the tower that the vent screen is closest to. They system then draws this cooler air in from the mug. I know it sounds kind of cheesy, but I think it works very well. Even better, a frozen ice pack would work. The towel absorbs any condensation from the mug too.

The reason I think this works is because I use Virtual PC 3.0 with Windows 95 (an outstanding cross-platform application that is perfect for having the best of both computer worlds). On it I sometimes play a game called Bard's Tale. The other night, I noticed that after about an hour, the game would freeze periodically for about 5 seconds, while processing the commands. I determined that it wasn't the application, because when I would switch over to the Macintosh finder, the same thing would happen. Even after minimizing the extension, it would still have the same problem, meaning it was the CPU that was hanging up. If I shut the system down and let it cool for about half and hour then reboot, it would work just fine for another hour. Yet, after I used the cooler air set-up with the ice, I was able to fix the problem.

Anyway, I hope this letter hasn't been too long. These are just some personal observations that I have made as a die-hard Mac user. They may or may not work for all, but maybe they will help stimulate some thoughts in other users, for cheap fixes to these problems. They are certainly cheaper than a CPU fan and those not too confident about messing with their motherboard. Let me know what you think.
Tim]

11/3/2000 6500 CPU fan whining: Jay sent me a letter saying he swapped out his power supply fan to stop a whining noise he heard but it still continued. Turned out to be the little CPU fan on the 6500's CPU heatsink. Thanks Jay

[Hi Tom,
Thanks for the reference to your great site. I changed my cooling fan on my power supply only to realize it's the fan on my CPU that's making noise. I have a 6500/250. Do you know of any suppliers where I can get this item? I couldn't even open my system until I found your great instructions.
Thank again,
Jay]

I suggest he try a local electronic store or Radio Shack to get a fan replacement. I'm pretty sure its a standard size fan as I was able to get a fan that fit perfect in my 6400 heat sink when I was clocking my CPU from a local electronic store. Also if you remove the fan you might try blasting compressed air in the fan motor area to try and clean it out. If that doesn't work then try a dab of 3in1 oil or a small shot of WD40. This may damage the fan if it gets to wet though so try at your own risk. www.sunrem.com is a good source of Mac parts and they should carry the fan if you cannot find them anywhere else.

12/15/2000 6500 mod to quiet the power supply fan: Accelerate Your Mac posted some info on how to quiet the fan of a G3/G4 system. One of his readers sent info on using a similar procedure on a 6500! Here is a link to the article. Basically he just put a little bit of rubber in between the power supply and the mounting points to cushion the supply so it would not rattle the entire case so much. Let me know if any of you try this with success. Thanks

1/26/2001 6500's CPU fan can rev and make loud noises just like the power supply fan!: I have had 2 readers tell me that they heard a loud revving noise coming from their 6500's but it was not the power supply fan. It turned out to be a bad CPU fan. Replacing the fan fixed the problem. Thanks guys. Here is Chris's message with info on where to get a replacement. Thanks.

[Thomas-
I changed the little fan on the CPU and she sounds like a purring kitten. Let me tell you that little sucker is loud when it goes bad. Below is the e-mail I received from the outfit in CA that has the fan in case you feel like posting the info on your site. I just spliced the wires myself. Thanks for the help.
Chris
----------
From: Robert Stokes <rstokes@macparts.com>

I do have the fan ......what I waiting for is the two pin connector that goes on the end of the fan wires. The last batch that I received didn't come with that connector but if you want the fan and can use the old connectors then the fan is $15.00 plus the postage and tax if your located in calif. Part number is 922-3859

Address is :
Design Services
737 Hamann Dr.
San Jose, Ca. 95117

408-984-3599 -- Voice ( 9am - 5:30 pm pacific mon- fri)
408-246-8809 -- fax

Thanks ........... Robert]

4/7/2001 Loud fan noise from a 6500: Linda was having an issue where her 6500 had a very loud fan noise. It to turned out to be the little CPU fan on the mother board. Thanks Linda.

[I solved my own problem, as is evidenced by the fact that I am posting this message using my QUIET 6500.

The Radio Shack catalog # for the micro fan is: 273-240. It costs $9.99 and is available on-line, in stores, and by calling 1-800-THE-SHACK.

I also purchased a small tube of heat sink grease. The catalog # for that item is: 276-1372, and it cost $1.99.

It was easy. The only semi-difficult part for me was wiring the new cord to the old plug, due to my very poor vision. With patience, I was able to do even that. And it all runs great now.]

4/21/2001 More 6500 CPU fan info: Greg sends more info on replacing the CPU fan in your 6500. Thanks Greg.

[Greetings:
I recently started using a Power Mac 6500 (up from an 8100/80AV). Mine had the same problem with a very noisy CPU cooling fan that the Linda mentioned on your site had. The noise was so bad that at first I thought the hard drive was failing. After doing a bit of research, I would not recommend that people go out and buy the Radio Shack fan that she mentioned.

The original fan in my 6500 is an Elina fan, Model KDA120410HB8P. Here's where its specs differ with those of the Radio Shack 273-0240 fan that Linda bought:

	OEM	Radio Shack
Current	60 mA	80 mA
Max Air Flow	6.9 CFM	5.3 CFM
Noise	25.5 dB	30 dB
RPM	7300	not listed

In short, it uses more juice, which is probably not a problem, but pumps less air and makes more noise. (The OEM fan specs were listed at www.russellind.com/Conco/indek/fans/k/kd4020.htm). It might not matter over the short run, but can't be good for the 603e's health over the long haul.

I called around the Boston area and got a price of about $30 for the Apple part, but was able to order the OEM fan for $10 + shipping from a nice woman named Marin at Heiland Electronics 800-400-7041. Any dealer of Indek/Elina fans should be able to order one.

In the meantime, I cleaned the fan very well, and the noise level dropped an awful lot. I may not even install the new fan when it arrives. The Radio Shack heat sink grease worked fine.

Thanks for making the site. It's got tons of useful info.
Greg]

I don't think the Radio Shack fan will cause any long term affects but getting the OEM style fan will be a little quieter which is the final out come you are looking for :)

9/2/2001 6400/6500 owners better start watching those wattage requirements!: Ralph sent me some power consumption info from his 6500 which was spinning its fan very fast after he added a SCSI HD. It seems he is pushing his power supply to far and I bet many other users are as well! I think I did it when I installed a PC compatibility card that shot my fan up to full speed as soon as the PC card was activated. Thanks Ralph.

[Hi Tom, I went through my PM6500 manual and the power consumption is listed at 140watts. It states the maximum continuous DC output is 98 watts, with a max 12 volt of 4 amps and 3.3 volts of 5 amps with the max 5 volt and 3.3 volt combined not to exceed 10.7 amps.

It also states a 300Mhz PPC processor with hard drive, modem, L2 module and CD-ROM pulls 47 watts input. If I proportion it to figure the power supply output that is about 33 watts output from the supply.

The Apple video board draws 4 watts. The Tango card draws, assume its 15 watt max. The ATI with TV draws assume its 15 watt max. The stock Apple drive pulled 3.25 watts and the Seagate ATA HD pulls 9.6 watts, a 6.35 watt increase. The SCSI Quantum pulls 14.4 watts at 12 volts but is probably a little less. If we assume the G3 pulls 4 to 6 watts over the L2 alone.

So with only ATA drive upgrade we are up to 33 + 6.35 or 39.35 watts than add the G3 over the L2 alone at another 6 watts we are up to 45.35. Add the SCSI HD we are up to 59.75watts and if each PCI card is drawing its max of 15 watts we are up to 89.75 watts. Add the apple video board of 4 watts we are up to 93.75 watts. I have added the pentium fan over the sonnet card at 2 watts and the extra case exhaust fan at 2 watts and we are up to 97.75 watts.

So if I added the max power draws, we are up to the max the PM6500 power supply can handle. I can reduce the fans I guess by replacing the stock 0.7 amp fan with another socket 7 pentium fan reducing the consumption by 6.4 watts. That might be enough to get things under control. The 12 volt current draw is probably the most important being so close to its spec. limit. The only thing I can reduce is changing the stock PPC fan to a slower socket 7 pentium fan knocking off 6 watts from the 12 volt draw.

I was using the max watt numbers listed on the HD cases. For some reason the SCSI Seagate draws 4.5 watts at 5 volts and 14.4 watts at 12 volts. Must be a wasteful voltage devider circuit in it. The Quantum ATA draws 3.5 watts at 5 volts and 9.6 watts at 12 volts. I am assuming the PM is putting out 12 volts to the drives. These drives are rated at a max temp of 60 deg C BTW.

So I am at the wattage limit or within 10 to 20 watts of it. Oops I upgraded it too much!
Ralph.]

SCSI HD's typically spin at higher RPM's then IDE drives. This is of course changing now but this could be why his SCSI drive pulls more watts then the IDE drive? It might be time to find away to install another power supply? I know it would not be hard at all to use another cheap PC power supply externally to run drives only, which could be enough to reduce the demand on the stock power supply. It just won't look pretty :(

9/14/2001 Using dual power supplies to alleviate drain on main supply: Rick reminded me about the dual power supply setup his 6400 has, which he built to help spread the power demands across 2 power supplies. He did this so the stock power supply would not spin its fan up to much. Thanks Rick. Click here for more info and some nice pictures of the setup.

12/22/2001 6500 CPU fan removal instructions: Torsten was kind enough to send me some pictures of his 6500's CPU fan while he swapped it out for a new fan. Thanks Torsten. As promised, the new improved 6500 CPU fan removal page is complete :) Below is info he sent me on the fan he purchased. Thanks again Torsten.

[Hey
OK, I found me a new fan for my 6500 and added a fan to my 6100 too :)

here it is:
Papst vifte, 6m3/time, 19 dB(A) (40x40x10mm)
412FM - m/3-pins molexkontakt 20-49 NOK 178.00

I bought them on a norwegian pc mod web shop for $19.92 (178 NOK) each. There were 3 different types, 19 dBa, 26 dBa and 29 dBa. I chose the 19 dBa fan witch is the most quite. and after I installed the fan I could almost not hear it, great :)

the connector is a 3 pin not a 2 pin, but it fits perfect on the 2 pin connector. See the pictures

for more info go here: http://www.microplex.no (under "vifter" and specially http://www.microplex.no/rubweb/varer.asp?UGID=5815&GID=5800?id=61&level=1&tr ee=11&expanded=61

Torsten]

The "6m3/time" stands for an air flow of 6 cubic meters per hour. If anyone would care to convert this to cubic feet per minute (CFM), I would greatly appreciate that :) {I Already got it. See below. Thanks - Tom} Then it could be compared to the CFM readings I have posted on other replacement fans linked here (you need to scroll down a bit to get to the CPU fan section)

UPDATE: Several of my visitors have converted the above for me. Thank you very much! I am posting Scotts answer only because he gave me exact proof to back it up :) Thanks Scott

[Tom,
I think I can help you on this one.
OK:

First (6 m3 / hr) X (1 hr / 3600 sec) = 0.00016666667 m3 / sec

According to the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics 74th Edition p.1-28, "To convert ft3/min to m3/sec multiply by .0004719474" So to go the opposite way (m3/sec to ft3/min) multiply by 2118.88

0.00016666667 m3 / sec X 2118.88 = 3.5315 ft3/min = 3.5315 CFM

6 m3 / hr = 3.5315 CFM
8 m3 / hr = 4.7086 CFM
9 m3 / hr = 5.2972 CFM

Isn't math fun!!!
Scott]

The 8m3/hr and 9m3/hr are just for reference. The result for the 6m3/hr is the one for the fan mentioned above.

Keith also just sent me his info on replacing both the CPU fan and the power supply fan. Thanks Keith.

[I had a noisy fan on a 6500. Thought it was the power supply fan, but after replacing that I realized it was the CPU fan. (Tip-troubleshoot by pulling out board & disconnecting CPU fan first & see if noise goes away on next power-up)

I found a replacement for the CPU fan from Radio Shack (part#273-240) for $10 (spec: 40mm Brushless 12VDC MicroFan) - Use original screws to mount...fan has no connector, I cut & soldered the original connector to the new fan wires. Add some heat sink compound (part#276-1372) to the heat sink for best thermal transfer.

I also found a replacement power supply fan at CompUSA. SKU#280286 $10 (3 pin 3.625" 12VDC Ball Bearing Fan). The third (blue) wire is not used. I was able to use the supplied connector & plugged onto the board, leaving the connector overhanging (not connected) at the blue wire. It does not lock the connector as tightly, so I secured it with a cable tie to the adjacent connector.]

2/9/2002 Another 6500 CPU fan upgrade story: Jim found another source for the 6500's stock CPU fan. His info is below. Thanks Jim

[Okay... I finally got around to putting the new fan in my friends 6500 last night. Boy-o-boy what a difference. She can now have the telly on while working or talk on the phone. Her headaches will probably disappear too.

Here is the info on ordering the fan directly from the original manufacturer:

Indek/Elina : (408) 522-1515 Model KDA120410HB8P $10 + $5 S&H

When I ordered, the lady who answered the phone said they had only 5 in stock. I neglected to ask when more would show up.

This is the correct OEM fan with the same great bang for the buck (actually CFM per mA) as the original, unlike the PAPST or Radio Shack replacements.

The fan arrived from Indek in less than a week. It did not have the power connector: just bare tinned leads about 8" long.

A little soldering, heat shrink tubing and electrical tape and the fan was ready for show time. (The use of both heat shrink tubing and electrical tape is not a sign of how careful I felt I needed to be. It is an indication that I had the tubing I threaded onto the leads too close to the soldering iron. Now there's nice thick insulation over about 3/4" of each lead....)

While holding both fans in my hand, I began spinning each with a flick of my finger. The original has a wobble I could actually feel, but the new one was as smooth as silk.

One difference between the original fan and the replacement - the mounting holes of the original have countersinks for the flat-head mounting screws and the ones on the new fan do not. Luckily, the two nylon mounting screws were long enough to catch firmly on the heat sink. Someday, I will get a pair of screws that are 1/8" longer and make sure the fan stays put.

I put the two PCI cards back in (Keyspan USB & Netopia 10/100 Base-T NIC for her cable modem) and buttoned it all back up. I pushed the power key and was greeted by the muffled "whoom" startup tone from the subwoofer, but no howl from inside.

I then updated her System from 8.6 to 9.1 and presto - the lockup she had every few minutes was gone. It seems to take a little longer for the 6500/300 to start up, but is otherwise just as responsive.
Jim]

7/20/2003 Better dust out that power supply or else!: Dave made a startling discovery recently. Dust can really build up in the power supply if not cleaned out occasionally. He sent me a link to his site showing what a really, really dusty power supply looks like. He let me repost it here on my site so I can always have it available. Thanks Dave!

Here's a bit of unknown info to me from Apple TIL 30725. Apple says that if you don't have a printer or Fax selected in the Chooser you might get some of the following problems.

If you don't own a printer then just select Fax from the chooser. Your fax sender extension will have to be in the Extensions folder so you can pick it.

Farallon is shipping "the first and only 10/100 Fast Ethernet solution for Mac's equipped with Comm Slot II. This new 10/100 Fast Ethernet card works in Macintosh models with Comm Slot II such as Power Macintosh 4400, 6400, 6500, 7220 and 20th Anniversary Macintosh; Performa 6400, 6410, and 6420."

The part number is YPN998 Fast EtherTX 10/100 Comm Slot II Card with a US Estimated Street Price of $76.00

I found this on MacInTouch 12/2/98 which explains how any sony remote control could interfere with your 6500. Click here for the complete article plus updates. The full article does mention the 6400 exhibits the problem but much less noticeable. Let me know if your 6400 has this problem and doing the below remedy solves it. I don't have the Apple Video system extension installed because I don't have Apples video card so this may be another way to prevent the problem. I think that the extension enables the IR receiver but don't quote me until I have more info :)

Duane sent me these TIL articles on the affects of using multiple monitors on the 6400. I think I posted similar info before but never the actual TIL articles. Thanks Duane.

8/18/2001 Dual video cards possible in the 6400?: Joshuha notes that he was able to run 2 ATI PCI video cards in his 6400 as long as the stock port was not in use but to be warned that 2 highend video cards will fry your system! Thanks Joshuha.

Dave wrote me with a problem he had installing a new 8G IDE HD in his 6400. When he booted the system just hanged. Here is a fix he found on Apples 6400 Forums. Thanks Dave.

I found this topic on Mike Breeden's Accelerate Your Mac web site. One person thinks that all the HD issues the 6400 has been having are created by using Drive Setup (Apples disk formatting utility). Personally I never had an issue with Drive Setup. Click here to read all the info I gathered from his web site. Thanks Mike.

To date Yann is the only person to tell me he has a Voodoo3 running on a 6400/G3 but with a French version of OS 8.6. He told me that he dose get some crashes during games ocassionally and found a way to get control back without rebooting most of the time. Thanks Yann.