iMAC G4 with 100W RX6600 Graphics card

[cjx1982]

When I saw Apple's iMac G4 in 2003, I couldn't afford the iMac.

Then around 2010 I saw various modifications to the imac G4 and cube. I'd like to make one myself.

Finally I bought a used iMac G4 in 2021, however more than 2 years have passed, The iMac G4 is still a bunch of parts lying in the corner.
Now Apple has turned its own chips, hackintosh may die out in a few years.
So I started this renovation project, which took 2 months and was recently completed.

configuration:
CPU： i9-10900T es
GPU: Asrock RX6600 CLD (DIY modified 17cm ITX short card)
Motherboard: C246 chipset (SYVVZ P310S)
Display: LQ170R1JX41 4k@60HZ
Memory: 16G
Hard disk: 512 GB SSD + 2TB SSD + 2 T HDD
Wireless network card: Apple BCM943602CS + interposer board
System: MacOS Venture + Windows 11

P310S has an STX motherboard with PCIE3.0X16 graphics card slot

finished product

The system can be turned on by touch (long press) or by touch to open and close the optical drive door (click)

Process diagram

Remove the panel and control board of the portable screen,
Packed into iMac,

rewiring,
Sanding and refurbished panel housings

DIY modifiedASRock RX6600 CLD, 17cm short card, and solder two routes from the power supply interface pin, and change the XT30 interface to connect to the external power supply

Cut and polish the metal case to make room for the motherboard and power supply

Drill a hole to connect the logo, and use the metal logo as touch button

Motherboard wiring: connect the power supply line from the DC interface pin (xt30 connector); Two wires are soldered from the boot button pin and connected to the Arduino to control the switch computer

AS-180W 19v gallium nitride power supply to power the host, 12V16.5A LLC power board to power the graphics card

Arduino system:
Input pins
1. The contact control module is wired to the shell logo as touch switch,
2. Connect the fan （5V line） to determine the power on and off status.

Output pins
3. One output is connected to the transistor switch control switch computer,
4. One output controls the servo to open and close the optical drive door.

The original optical drive cage was modified to install the fixed motherboard and video card

In the end, they were all stuffed into the casing and finished working
Approximate layout

Put the motherboard first

Fix the bracket

Put the graphics card

add power supply AS-180W

The servo opens and closes the optical drive door by pulling the fishing line

Although this modified graphics card is said to be ugly,
But this location is perfect for placing servos, which could be fixed by plastic steel clay

4 holes are punched in the door to secure the docking station and fishing line

A docking station is fixed on the warehouse door as a front interface

extension cable interfaces at the rear of the base are fixed with plastic steel mud

Close the base

For the video, see Bilibili and youtube

imac g4 mod 小钢炮(伪) 介绍_哔哩哔哩_bilibili

 

[Axelerator]

That's awesome!! Great work

 

[craighazan]

Such a good project!, great job on squeezing in the 6600, how does it connect to the motherboard?.

 

[cjx1982]

Such a good project!, great job on squeezing in the 6600, how does it connect to the motherboard?.

The STX motherboard of the P310S has a PCIE 3.0X16 slot, and the graphics card is connected by an extension cable, placed back to back.