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I recently got a pair of old Power Mac G4’s, but they did not come with RAM. I am trying to find out their memory specifications so that I can add some, but unfortunately I cannot find them.

Having little experience with Macs (or pre-built computers in general), I was a little surprised to see that they come in a fairly large number of configurations (I had thought that Apple simplified electronics by limiting the number of variations and/or that different configurations would have different model numbers). (Even these two are different from each other; they have different video-cards and motherboards, one has a modem the other doesn’t, etc.)

It looks like the G4 can have a wide variety of memory options, so I can’t figure out what kind of RAM to use.

Where can I find out the RAM support? I need to know the type (SDRAM, DD1, DDR2, etc.), the speed, and the size (both per-slot and system-total).

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2 Answers 2

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Check with Apple:

Power Mac G4: How to Differentiate Between Models

According to that, the RAM configuration is most likely one of the following:

  • PC 100 SDRAM up to 1 GB

  • PC 100 SDRAM up to 2 GB

  • PC 133 SDRAM up to 1.5 GB

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  • That looks promising, however it doesn’t account for the vast number of variations. These two in particular have EMC #’s of 1832 and 1843, but even those sub-models seem have multiple configurations. Are the four models on the Apple page generic configurations that all the other ones fall into? That is, do the limits for those four apply to all of the sub-(sub-?)models?
    – Synetech
    Aug 30, 2012 at 2:17
  • Also, it says nothing about per-slot maximums or combinations. Some can be derived to some extent, for example 2GB max divided by four slots = at least 512MB per slot, but that doesn’t mean it cannot support a 1GB stick. Worse, how do you divide 1.5GB by four slots?
    – Synetech
    Sep 1, 2012 at 20:01
  • 1.5GB = 2x 51MB2 + 2x 265MB. :) The trick is going to be finding good PC133 RAM. I don't think there was anything larger than 512MB stick made in PC100/133.
    – Ƭᴇcʜιᴇ007
    Sep 1, 2012 at 22:24
  • > 1.5GB = 2x 51MB2 + 2x 265MB. Huh? I’m trying to find out the per-slot maximums. Are you saying that the 1.5GB model’s motherboard supports upto 512MB in two of its slots and up to 256MB in the other two? I have never seen such a bizarre thing, and even if that were the case, it would be all the more necessary to find out the specs so that the right sticks are inserted in the right slots. As for sourcing, that’s what Kijiji/eBay classifieds are for.
    – Synetech
    Sep 2, 2012 at 0:01
  • You've never seen different sized RAM sticks in one computer? You mustn't have been doing this long. ;) Dual and triple channel don't apply, so in general you put the "lowest (capacity) and slowest (speed)" in slot 1 and work up.
    – Ƭᴇcʜιᴇ007
    Sep 2, 2012 at 0:24
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Try Mactracker, a Macintosh application (free to download and use) that has information about Apple products back to the Apple I from April 1976, including iPods, iPhones, iPads, desktops, and software. You'd use this to look up information, including memory specifications, for any Macintosh ever made. The desktop version runs on pretty much anything from OS 8.5 to current releases of OS X. Mactracker is also available for iOS.

Mactracker is an searchable information resource rather than a online website. It includes specific details such order/product number. Have the order number for an out-of-production Apple product (the numbers are stamped on the chassis or frame)? Mactracker will find the specifications.

In your case, Mactracker lists 20 models of Power Mac G3/G4/G5 computers. The information includes an overview, software, memory and graphics, connections (Ethernet, USB, Firewire, audio, etc.), history and links to Apple manuals.

Here, for example, is the memory information for a Power Mac G4 (AGP Graphics) model, one of several G4 models Apple sold between 1999 and 2004.

G4 Memory and Graphics

Note

Image ©2001-2016 Ian Page.

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  • So, what ram does it use? I entirely appreciate the broad, teaching a cat to fish approach, but an actual fish might stop the miaoing. It also feels vaguely adlike as written - but that's a trivial fix - write your answer around the use of a tool, rather than that this tool being the right one. For example - is this automatic, like many of the memory scanners I use on windows, or manual? Can you use a model or serial number to find what you're looking for?
    – Journeyman Geek ♦
    Jul 22, 2016 at 0:49
  • Interesting questions. I included the memory and graphics information because it shows that for the Power Mac G4, memory is 4 - PC-100 3.3v, unbuffered, 8-byte, non-parity 168-pin SDRAM. Mactracker includes details including order number (e.g. M7825LL/A, M7825LL/B) which is stamped on the cabinet, so, yes, you can search for the model number. It's a useful reference for Apple and Macintosh products, including iPod, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, etc. How much more information about Mactracker would you suggest?
    – creidhne
    Jul 22, 2016 at 1:01
  • From the linked Mactracker website: "Mactracker provides detailed information on every Apple Macintosh, iPod, iPhone, and iPad ever made, including items such as processor speed, memory, graphic cards, supported OS versions, price, storage, and expansion options. Also included is information on early Apple systems, Newton, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Apple accessories, displays, printers, scanners, Wi-Fi products, and operating systems."
    – creidhne
    Jul 22, 2016 at 1:01
  • A great answer would pretty much cover what someone who has no idea what mactracker is would do to find what he needs. I'd start with whether you need a modern OS X system, what information you'd need on the system you're looking up, how to use it, and so on.
    – Journeyman Geek ♦
    Jul 22, 2016 at 1:10

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