Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!apple!uokmax!d.cs.okstate.edu!minich
From: minich@d.cs.okstate.edu (Robert Minich)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware
Subject: Re: RAM for a Mac + and monitor
Message-ID: <1990Sep20.223007.24779@d.cs.okstate.edu>
Date: 20 Sep 90 22:30:07 GMT
References: <15050@burdvax.PRC.Unisys.COM>
Organization: Oklahoma State University
Lines: 53

|>I am thinking of installing 4 Mb of RAM into my mac + but I have heard
|>that the power supply for the plus hasn't been updated since well before
|>the 528 was introduced resulting in an increased risk of burning out the
|>power supply.  I have already had to replace my power supply once because
|>of this burnout and I am worried that 4Mb would be too much of a strain on 
|>my current unit.  Also, I was considering a portrait monitor(with
|>accelerator card) and I am worried about the power supply still.  Does
|>anyone have a similar configuration and if you do what problems do you
|>note?  Let me know as I can get the SIMM's and the monitor relatively
|>                                                Charlie
| ------------ Clip and Save ------------ Clip and Save ------------
| 
| The power supplies on the 128K Macs were worthless; the power supplies
| on the Mac Pluses has been improved to almost marginal.  I've had a
| Mac for six years and have had the power supply replaced three times
| so far; I understand this is about average.  So go ahead and
| upgrade--you'll be glad you did, when System 7 comes out--and your
| power supply is going to burn out again, whether you upgrade or not.
| 
| For power supply burnout, you can have a brand new marginal power
| supply installed by your Apple dealer for about $145 parts, $40-80
| labor.  Or you can upgrade the power supply yourself, much more
| cheaply, and get a decent quality power supply in the bargain.  Here's

  Just to add another data point: I have an original Mac that has morphed
into a 2048KE + SCSI yet the power supply hasn't failed yet. The only
preventative action has been to install a fan inside the case (done when it
went to a Fat Mac) but it doesn't appear to do a good job of cooling. It's
just your average Radio Shack fan attatched to the inside of the case (in
"front" of the upper left vent slats) with all-purpose porpoise goop. It
doesn't really do much to blow air _out_ of the case but rather seems to
create currents inside it. I assume a MacFanny (or whatever it is that fits
into the carrying handle) would do a much better job. After attatching the
Dove upgrade, I _did_ make sure the voltage coming out of the analog stuff
was within the specified range (in the upgrade instructions.) Could this be
significant... Now remember that upgrading a Plus *REPLACES* (usually) the
SIMMs you have with ones that are likely less power hungry. Mine has
additional chips...
  Just to give a perspective of how crowded the internals are, the Dove
512->2MB upgrade is a board roughly the size of the mother board populated
with RAM chips that attatches to the mother board to make a sandwich like
arrrangement. Then you add the SCSI board which attatches in the ROM
sockets and takes up MORE space. Yet it goes on... Am I just really really 
lucky???
  If my power supply should ever die, I'd be the first to seek out a third
party kit to do it myself. But is the high failure rate of Plus analog
boards just cruddy circuit design (it must at least be partially) or lack 
of circulation in the case?
-- 
|_    /| | Robert Minich            |
|\'o.O'  | Oklahoma State University| A fanatic is one who sticks to 
|=(___)= | minich@a.cs.okstate.edu  | his guns -- whether they are 
|   U    | - Ackphtth               | loaded or not.