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64 Chapter 3 Working Inside Your Computer
Installing a PCI Expansion Card or Replacing
the AGP Card
You can expand the capabilities of your Power Mac G5 by installing cards in its
expansion slots. Your Power Mac G5 has four expansion card slots, three of which
accommodate Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) cards and one that accepts an
advanced graphics port (AGP) card.
AGP cards and PCI cards have different connectors, so you cannot insert a PCI card into
the AGP slot.
About AGP Cards
Your AGP card, installed in slot 1, contains the graphics processor unit (GPU) and
provides the computer’s display ports. Slot 1 is designed specifically to accept AGP
cards. This 533-megahertz (MHz) slot accommodates 1.5-volt (V) AGP cards (see the
illustration on page 67).
You can replace the card that came with the computer with an AGP 8X or AGP 8X Pro
card. A replacement AGP card must have driver software compatible with Mac OS X.
About PCI Expansion Cards
Your Macintosh has three expansion slots, labeled 2, 3, and 4, which can accommodate
expansion cards up to 12 inches long. Depending upon the model of your Power Mac
G5, you can install either PCI or PCI-X cards.
Maximum power consumption for all four expansion slots (the three PCI expansion
cards and the AGP card) should not exceed 90 watts (W).
Card type supported Slot Card speed
PCI
1
slots 2, 3, and 4 64-bit, 33 MHz
PCI-X slots 2 and 3 64-bit, 100 MHz
PCI-X slot 4 64-bit, 133 MHz
1
The PCI slots can accommodate mixed-voltage (5.0 V, 12 V, or 3.3 V) cards, but only at 3.3 V signaling, with 32-bit or
64-bit data widths and a 33 MHz frequency. You can add a 66 MHz card to a 33 MHz PCI slot if the card can operate
at the lower 33 MHz rate.
Warning: Do not use PCI cards that function only at 66 MHz in the 33 MHz PCI slots.
Damage to your equipment could result. If you have a 66 MHz PCI card, check with
the card’s manufacturer to see if it also works at 33 MHz.
LL3218Q87.book Page 64 Wednesday, March 16, 2005 6:28 PM