Thread
PowerBook 540c, PowerPC upgraded — can downgrade?
I bought a PowerBook 540c on eBay, because I wanted a 68k laptop. When it arrived, I discovered it had been upgraded to PowerPC.
I have two questions:
1. Would it be possible to downgrade this Mac by buying a 68k CPU or motherboard? (I'm not sure how much hardware the PPC upgrade changed.) There are a few of each on eBay.
2. What is the earliest OS that the PPC-upgraded PowerBook 540c could run? It's currently on 8.1 — will I run into any problems if I try installing an older system?
I have a set of original floppies that came with the 540c, which I suspect contain System 7.1. I imagine they won't work, because the CPU upgrade is newer than the floppies, correct?
I'd love to get 7.5 on there if I can.
Thanks for your help,
Amy
I have two questions:
1. Would it be possible to downgrade this Mac by buying a 68k CPU or motherboard? (I'm not sure how much hardware the PPC upgrade changed.) There are a few of each on eBay.
2. What is the earliest OS that the PPC-upgraded PowerBook 540c could run? It's currently on 8.1 — will I run into any problems if I try installing an older system?
I have a set of original floppies that came with the 540c, which I suspect contain System 7.1. I imagine they won't work, because the CPU upgrade is newer than the floppies, correct?
I'd love to get 7.5 on there if I can.
Thanks for your help,
Amy
You can downgrade it by purchasing a replacement 040 card from ebay, they are up there from time to time.
Then, you can re-sell the PPC upgrade on ebay, and it would likely go for a little bit of coin, as they are not very common.
It can run Mac OS 9 with a hack or two, BUT it would be horrifyingly slow. Not to mention RAM limitations the 5XX has.
Then, you can re-sell the PPC upgrade on ebay, and it would likely go for a little bit of coin, as they are not very common.
It can run Mac OS 9 with a hack or two, BUT it would be horrifyingly slow. Not to mention RAM limitations the 5XX has.
Something like this?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Apple-33-MHz-68LC040-CPU-for-PowerBook-520-540-/160709816022?hash=item256b0d2ed6
Regarding the OS, I want older rather than newer — 7.5 would be great
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Apple-33-MHz-68LC040-CPU-for-PowerBook-520-540-/160709816022?hash=item256b0d2ed6
Regarding the OS, I want older rather than newer — 7.5 would be great
yep. Thats the one.
Then you can re-sell the PPC upgrade if you wish, and likely make back the cost of the CPU card and the 540.
Then you can re-sell the PPC upgrade if you wish, and likely make back the cost of the CPU card and the 540.
You've got a PM.
yeah the PPC upgrade is rare and in demand. lol.
that is why the seller has 5 of them for sale. well that and the plastics of these things completely disintergrate.
I waited 2 years to find one for my PB 540c. its a massive upgrade!
that is why the seller has 5 of them for sale. well that and the plastics of these things completely disintergrate.
I waited 2 years to find one for my PB 540c. its a massive upgrade!
I didnt think the 5XX was as bad as the 1XX stuff, but I guess it is, that front piece constantly falls off.
well specifically the portable and the powerbook 100, seems to still have pretty good plastics. but starting with the Powerbook 140+ is when they get like balsa wood.
Its funny too, because the compaq LTE from the same time period as the powerbook 140+ series, all have decent plastics.
Yes that stupid front piece is always an issue.. and that stupid plastic thing above the processor is a pain in the @$Q#.. It breaks if you screw in the top screws too much.. I loved my 540c... I can't even remember when I sold it... I had gotten the Rev C PCMCIA module at the time.. Since I worked in the Apple tech room I ordered ALL the plastics for it at the time... I had boxes and boxes... I gave them away.. I bought another 540c recently to fix up and rekindle my aspiration for the 500 series.. I saved my NewerTech PPC upgrade board.. Still got it!!! In the box!!!! I found my receipt for it.. like $700.00 at the time!!! So Mike your right you don't see them that often and he's lucky his came with one.. He can get a few bucks for it!!!
I traded my 5XX PPC upgrade to Uni for all the TLC on my Classic II. Excellent trade.
I'm glad I did, since I finally got my hands on a 550c CPU daughterboard. Not too many Powerbooks here in the US that run a full '040
I'm glad I did, since I finally got my hands on a 550c CPU daughterboard. Not too many Powerbooks here in the US that run a full '040
I also bought a Powerbook 540c yesterday and I was wondering how I can find out if mine has a PPC upgrade or not, preferably without opening the machine. The only spec I see is that it has 20,480k of total memory and Mac OS 7.5.3 installed.
Hmmm. I used System Profiler, but that didn't ship until MacOS 7.6…
I can't remember this for definite, but I think there were some memory differences. Was the Modern Memory Manager PowerPC only? If so, if it's present in the memory control panel, you're on PPC. Also, I believe on PowerPC, the suggested memory allocation of apps is smaller when virtual memory is turned on, compared to when it is turned off… but I can't remember if this only applies to native apps or if it's all of them.
Sorry I can't be of more help, I'm trying to remember this stuff from years ago
Amy
P.S., here's me using my 540c to present a talk at NSScotland:
thats cool as hell.
yeah that is pretty awesome right there.
This brought to mind movie I just noticed macs in. Gremlins 2 the secretary has a mac Plus all up and running and next to it with no monitor is a Mac II series with no other parts, no keyboard , no mouse , no monitor.
The Plus seemed to get alot of love on Hollywood sets.
Amy, very awesome! I upgraded my PB to Mac OS 8.0 and looking at System Profiler I'm pretty sure I have the non-PPC: 68LC040 at 33Mhz and total memory of 20MB. I tried to write the images with RawWrite for Windows to a floppy (is there a way to write to floppy's from OS X I have a external floppy drive?), but the 540c won't accept them. It first wants to initialize the floppy and then I get a message that the floppy might be defected, which is very probable.
Another question if I may: this PB has a lot of software on it from its former user, lot of programs don't work anymore, corrupted etc. I was thinking a fresh install would get rid of all this programs but they're still there. What is the best way to get rid of them without making the PB unoperational? Would a fresh install of 8.1 do the trick?
Another question if I may: this PB has a lot of software on it from its former user, lot of programs don't work anymore, corrupted etc. I was thinking a fresh install would get rid of all this programs but they're still there. What is the best way to get rid of them without making the PB unoperational? Would a fresh install of 8.1 do the trick?
I am not sure if the original poster got a 68CL040 chip or not, but if not, I think I have one that may work, if you want.
I had both a 520c and 540c that worked, but I canabalized the 520c case to make the 540c cosmetically better. I have the 520c motherboard, processor, and Ram (the RAM and processor are still attached to the motherboard). It is listed, however as 50/25 mhz, so I assume it is slower than the 540c's stock 33mhz processor. Would such a thing even work if plugged into a 540c board?
I had both a 520c and 540c that worked, but I canabalized the 520c case to make the 540c cosmetically better. I have the 520c motherboard, processor, and Ram (the RAM and processor are still attached to the motherboard). It is listed, however as 50/25 mhz, so I assume it is slower than the 540c's stock 33mhz processor. Would such a thing even work if plugged into a 540c board?
Thanks! Will try that.
That is awesome, Amy.
Gods I love that movie. Not too many movies make fun of themselves.
If you think it's funny now, watch it with Cast & Crew commentary. They point out so many hidden jokes. One of my favorites is a U-Haul Moving and Storage... on the second floor. :lol: