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Craigslist find - Macintosh Performa 630CD

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First post, by oeuvre

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Came with monitor, 2 mice, 2 keyboards, complete system, and a bunch of software in boxes. Mostly old games and some autocad program. Actually, this is the first retro mac I’ve owned.

Slew of pictures https://imgur.com/a/lLStQ

Macintosh Performa 630CD with 8MB RAM, 250MB HD, 540MB LaCie external SCSI drive as well. Overall, pretty cool score. I want to replace the top cover, do a RAM upgrade and add networking.

HP Z420 Workstation Intel Xeon E5-1620, 32GB, RADEON HD7850 2GB, SSD + HD, XP/7
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Reply 1 of 26, by sirlemonhead

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That's cool, I think we had these at school 😀

I'm not an Apple person at all but kinda tempted to pick one of these up based on your post about this in the recently bought hardware thread.

From what I can tell from googling, I'd want to make sure I get a keyboard and mouse with it, but that I can hook the machine itself up to a standard VGA monitor?

Reply 2 of 26, by oeuvre

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I think you need an adapter to connect old Macs to VGA monitors but I'm not sure. Some older CRTs have support for both VGA and old Macs like my NEC Multisync XP17. Glad you liked the build; any updates will be posted here!

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Reply 3 of 26, by squiggly

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oeuvre wrote:

I think you need an adapter to connect old Macs to VGA monitors but I'm not sure. Some older CRTs have support for both VGA and old Macs like my NEC Multisync XP17. Glad you liked the build; any updates will be posted here!

You mean like this? jLn1Zt5r.jpg

And yes, it works very well on a 15" LCD.

Reply 4 of 26, by oeuvre

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It looks like this

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Reply 5 of 26, by LHN91

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My Apple Multiple Scan 15 came with a DB15 to VGA cable much like the one squiggly showed.... because the monitor is actually a standard 1024x768 monitor, essentially.

Reply 6 of 26, by KCompRoom2000

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oeuvre wrote:

It looks like this

I was about to post about the DB15 to VGA adapter trick, until I saw that you knew about it. 😀

What a neat little machine you got here, I have a Performa 6200CD which is basically the PowerPC counterpart of your 630CD. Mine came with 24MB of RAM which got upgraded to 48MB. As for networking, there are ethernet modules that plug into the PDS slot of the motherboard which I happen to have installed on my Performa, I wouldn't expect much for internet because the latest browser that runs on 68k Mac OS is Netscape 4.08 which is nearly 20 years old at this point so it's really only usable on basic HTML sites.

I hear the Rayovac 4.5V CMOS battery can be replaced by a 3xAAA battery holder, I know this mod works on 386/486-era PCs that used those batteries so I wonder if the same trick works on these old Macs.

Reply 7 of 26, by oeuvre

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Think that trick does work on older Macs. Thanks!

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Reply 8 of 26, by sirlemonhead

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Is a 6200/6300 better than a 630?

In terms of performance I guess - dunno what I'd even do with one of these machines but I'm tempted to tinker with one all the same!

Reply 9 of 26, by luckybob

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The actual replacement batteries are cheap. *edit* I'd look for a 3x AA battery holder with a 4x1 header.
I have one of those Multi sync that oeuvre mentioned. They work perfectly.

Last edited by luckybob on 2017-12-09, 04:03. Edited 1 time in total.

It is a mistake to think you can solve any major problems just with potatoes.

Reply 10 of 26, by LHN91

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luckybob wrote:

The actual replacement batteries are cheap. https://www.ebay.com/itm/131938704910 They get cheaper, the more you get at once.

I have one of those Multi sync that oeuvre mentioned. They work perfectly.

Actually, on the 630 series it doesn't use the cheap 1/2AA PRAM batteries like the rest of the Mac line.

It uses a 4.5v Alkaline pack, originally from Rayovac - one of these: https://www.parts-express.com/840-45v-alkalin … y-pack--141-093

Reply 11 of 26, by luckybob

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oh yea, your right.

MY BAD.

It is a mistake to think you can solve any major problems just with potatoes.

Reply 12 of 26, by LHN91

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sirlemonhead wrote:

Is a 6200/6300 better than a 630?

In terms of performance I guess - dunno what I'd even do with one of these machines but I'm tempted to tinker with one all the same!

The 6200/6300 were the PowerPC based replacements for the 630 line. 75/100/120 mhz PowerPC 603 or 603e in the 6200/6300, 33 mhz 68040 or 68LC040 on the 630 units

Reply 13 of 26, by oeuvre

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Found some software, games, and drivers for the PDS ethernet card I ordered. Copied the driver + FTP utility oeuvre to the Performa via floppy and then I can FTP all the other stuff once I get the network card. https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Apple-Computer-M … ma/272846522387

HP Z420 Workstation Intel Xeon E5-1620, 32GB, RADEON HD7850 2GB, SSD + HD, XP/7
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Reply 14 of 26, by oeuvre

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Got the Farallon PDS ethernet card so now my Performa 630CD is on the internet! https://imgur.com/a/W7Glp

HP Z420 Workstation Intel Xeon E5-1620, 32GB, RADEON HD7850 2GB, SSD + HD, XP/7
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Reply 15 of 26, by SW-SSG

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Neat. Now just load Kid Pix 2 on, for maximum nostalgia.

Reply 16 of 26, by oeuvre

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RAM now up to 36MB (32MB + 4MB onboard)

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Reply 17 of 26, by luckybob

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oh thank god.

*heavy sigh of relief*

I bet she runs quick now!

It is a mistake to think you can solve any major problems just with potatoes.

Reply 18 of 26, by oeuvre

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Definitely runs much smoother!

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Reply 19 of 26, by oeuvre

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finally has a nice top cover now!

HP Z420 Workstation Intel Xeon E5-1620, 32GB, RADEON HD7850 2GB, SSD + HD, XP/7
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