the vram takes a 144-pin chip. now i have read everything i could find on this, and everything shows that it is just the same as a laptop ram chip. if i am wrong please let me know. i know apple says that you can only go to '6' full megs of vram, but this site proves that because apple says so doesn't make it absolutely so.
this is something i want to try. but before i try anything i find out as much as i can. has anyone else tried this? did your machine blow up? did your system only register 6mb?
if this works, then the g3 could be so much more than the b@d@$$ it already is.
peace and love
ande
ps: if my thinking is totally wrong on this, its not like i will be completely destroyed and go slit my wrists or anything.
Are you sayig that you can increase the Vram on the AIO by using the Vram chip from a laptop?? If so which one?? and how much of an increase??. I'd be real intrested
not the 'vram' chip from a laptop but a 'ram' chip from a laptop. they are supposed to be different but every spec i have read says they are the same. not that anyone has actually said that they are the same. no one has put the two in the same sentance. so i am thinking that the specs of the laptop 144-pin ram chip is the same as the 144-pin vram chip for the b-g3. i just want to hear from someone who definately knows what is what with these two chips.
peace and love
ande
144pin RAM will not fit in a 144pin VRAM slot. Different animals...
I have a 32MB PC-100 So-Dimmm sitting around...
Even 144-pin VRAM doesn't always work between manufacturers. I have a 4meg VRAM kicking around some where and certain video cards will see the full 4MB, some only 2MB and otehrs won't see it at all.
It's Compaq branded, and I think it came from an ATI based mobo, FWIW. I don't recall if I ever stuck it in a G3.
now id like to see this tryed out my self to see if it cant see more then the 4mb stick id love to see a 16-32mb stick work now that would be awesome
Some of your posts have quite useful information in them, but I find they're a challenge to read sometimes.
From the Applefritter 2.0 FAQ:
I know that the same VRAM Chip in the Fruit Colored iMac will work in it. Also, some of the ATI Cards used the exact VRAM Chip (Which is why apple uses it in their iMacs and Beige's.) So, theorhetically, you could find a cheap iMac (1-3rd Gen.) that has the blown PAV, and pull the board out of it, and sell the rest, while keeping the VRAM chip.
IIRC, The Blueberry iMac (Tray-load) had the 4MB VRAM Chip that would go into the Beige's. I gave it to someone that was less fortunate than me (They had a PC Riddled with virus's) so, Even though I didn't get to keep the VRAM Module, At least it was put to a better use than my own selfish Video wants....
My beige G3 aio has the 4mb vram chip installed and works fine. I would love to find a 16mb 144 pin sodimm stick to try to put in the slot. But im to afraid to fry my beige
if it is, I could go ahead and try it.
MacTrash_1 pointed out that the slots are different, you cannot put a RAM SODIMM into a VRAM SODIMM slot. Yes, the slots are keyed differently so that one can only use the proper type SODIMM in the proper slot. Plus they use completely different types of RAM.
I have never seen or heard of (ATI-style) VRAM SODIMMs larger than 4MB, but I'd welcome any news that contradicts this.
dan k
...not only that, but it's extremely unlikely the video controller is designed to address any more than 6 megs, even if you can find a matching chip. Believe me, with so many iMacs and beiges out there, if it could work, someone would have mass-produced a VRAM chip to suit.
I guess that settles that.
i am so glad this ended up this way. it was fun to read all the comments. i only posted the question because the fart hit me in the middle of the night and i couldnt stop thinking about it. but if the notches are different...could you shave a little here or there? if the gold tabs are different, then there is no hacking away that could make it work. i didnt think abouyt the video whatnots on the mobo not being able to even handle more than 6mb.
ok. i guess i wont try it.
peace and love
ande
The general reason for differing key notches usually involves different voltages, timings, ECC(or not), buffering, etc. Filing the notches to make one fit might likely fry the chip or the controller. If the controller fries: bye-bye mobo.
I wonder if someone can take the chips off a 16mb sodimm card and put them in place of the 4mb chips on the vram chip. Oh well its just a thought and prolly not even worth the trouble, that is if you could find chips that are the same speed and the right setting like non-ecc and other's.
like every one said the controller might not even see over 6mb vram. And i wonder who has even tried to mod the vram like that. It was cool tho to just to think of the posibility of going beond the onboard 6mb vram limit.
It's not the notches at the side that's different, it's the single key notch in the middle of the fingers that is in a different place.
I suspect the primary reason there were never any VRAM larger than 4mb in this package was that there was no demand. For most people that weren't into gaming, adding the 4mb VRAM didn't provide any performance increase at the resolutions and OS they used. If you were into gaming, you wouldn't waste your money on the VRAM, you'd buy a video card that offered a real performance increase.
Wayne
VRAM and DRAM chips are completely different and not interchangable. There is no hope of success putting DRAM chips on a VRAM board.
The GPU is capable of using at least 8MBs of VRAM (maybe 16MBs?) However, the implimentation on the G3 MLB almost certainly cannot use more than the usual 6MB.
Just buy an old 16MB Rage 128 PCI card, they cost what? all of maybe $5 or $10?!!? The performance will blow away that old Rage Pro anyhow.
dan k
i dont need an ati 128 rage card...i have an ati9200 card with 128mb. i dont actually need the vram at all, i just had a thought. a 'what-if?'. it would have been cool though.
peace and love
ande