Apple AV Card
| Apple AV Card | |
|---|---|
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|
| The Power Macintosh AV Card (661-1023) in Apple's 1994 module identification manual | |
| Manufacturer | Apple Computer |
| Type | Video input and output card |
| Release date | 1994 |
| Interface | Processor-direct slot (Power Macintosh 6100, 7100, 8100); PERCH slot (Power Macintosh G3) |
| Compatible | Power Macintosh 6100/60AV, 7100/66AV and 8100/80AV; beige Power Macintosh G3 (Audio/Video I/O card) |
| Part number | 661-1023 (Power Macintosh AV Card) |
The Apple AV Card is the name Apple gave to two video input and output cards for the Power Macintosh. The first, the Power Macintosh AV Card, sits in the processor-direct slot of the 1994 Power Macintosh 6100/60AV, 7100/66AV and 8100/80AV, and gives them the video capture and television output of the Quadra 840AV and Centris 660AV.[1] The second is the optional Audio/Video I/O card for the beige Power Macintosh G3, which Apple's 1998 user update also calls the Power Macintosh AV card; the G3's standard card is the Audio I/O card, covered in the same section.[2]
Power Macintosh AV Card (1994)
[edit | edit source]The card plugs into the processor-direct slot. In the 6100/60AV it uses an angle adapter card like the NuBus adapter but without the BART chip, so the 6100/60AV cannot also have NuBus or a DOS Compatibility Card. The 7100/66AV and 8100/80AV keep their NuBus slots.[1][3] Apple bundled the card with those three models and did not sell it separately or sell the models without it.[1] Apple's service module is 661-1023.[4][5]
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Video RAM | 2 MB of 80 ns VRAM in four 0.5 MB banks, soldered |
| Video controller | CIVIC (Cyclone Integrated Video Interfaces Controller) |
| Palette and DAC | Sebastian colour palette and video DAC, dot clocks up to 100 MHz |
| Video decoder | Philips SAA7194, for NTSC, PAL and SECAM input |
| Video encoder | Mickey composite encoder, for NTSC and PAL output |
| Connectors | S-video input and output, DB-15 monitor connector, 60-pin DAV connector |
| Colour depth | Up to 24 bits for graphics and 16 bits for video, on monitors up to 21 inches |
From Apple's developer note.[1]
The VRAM can be one frame buffer for graphics alone, or two buffers, one for live video and one for graphics, which the Sebastian mixes using separate colour tables. Graphics alone run at 32 bits per pixel on the 12-inch, 13-inch and 16-inch RGB displays and on VGA and Super VGA monitors; with live video mixed in, graphics and video both run at 16 bits, except at 512 × 384 on the 12-inch RGB, where graphics stay at 32. The 19-inch and two-page RGB displays get 16-bit graphics, or 8 bits each with video, and the monochrome displays 8 bits.[1] Two adapter cables came with the AV models: one takes composite video from an RCA socket into pin 3 (luminance) of the S-video input, and the other takes composite video from pin 5 of the S-video output to an RCA plug.[1] The DAV connector carries the card's unscaled YUV video input and digital audio to a NuBus card in the 7100/66AV or 8100/80AV through a ribbon cable.[1]
For faults, Apple's video card chart applies: reseat the card, check the cables, run the video tests, then exchange the card.[4]
Power Macintosh G3 I/O cards
[edit | edit source]The beige Power Macintosh G3 desktop and minitower have no sound circuitry on the logic board. Sound, and optionally video input and output, is on an I/O card, also called a personality card, in the 182-pin PERCH slot, which does not take PCI cards.[2][6] Two cards were offered.[6]
- The Audio I/O card is the standard card. It provides 16-bit stereo sound input and output with one mini jack for sound out and one for sound in.[2] Apple's service part for the audio-only card is 661-1457.[2]
- The AV I/O card is a build-to-order option. It adds RCA audio inputs and outputs, composite and S-video input and output in NTSC, PAL and SECAM (output in NTSC and PAL), video in a 320 × 240 window scaled up to 640 × 480, and a 60-pin DAV connector for a PCI video card.[2]
Both cards carry a 112-pin modem slot. It has the same dimensions as comm slot II but is not a comm slot: only Apple's 56 kbit/s modem card works there, Ethernet cards do not, and fitting a modem disables the external modem port.[6][7] The other connectors on the cards are for a front panel module and, on the AV card, a TV/FM tuner module; neither is used in the desktop and minitower.[8]
The AV card works with the G3's built-in ATI graphics controller. Capture video on the monitor connected to the built-in port, and keep the menu bar on that monitor, or Apple Video Player reports an error. Its video output only mirrors the built-in display; an extended desktop on a television needs a third-party PCI card.[7]
Removing and testing
[edit | edit source]The I/O card stands at right angles to the logic board, under the expansion card cover next to the PCI slots. Remove the top housing, open the internal chassis, take out the two screws holding the card to the back of the chassis, and pull it straight up by its corners.[2] The G3 will start without an I/O card but does not work properly, and a badly seated card gives a range of symptoms.[2] For no sound from the speaker Apple's order is: disconnect microphones and external speakers, check the volume and mute settings, reset parameter RAM and check that the speaker is plugged into the logic board, try headphones in the external jack, then replace the Audio I/O card, the speaker and finally the logic board.[2]
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Video input | Composite or S-video; NTSC, PAL, SECAM; 0.7 to 1.4 Vpp (1.0 typical), 75 Ω terminated |
| Video output | Composite and S-video; NTSC and PAL; 512 × 384 to 832 × 624; 1.0 Vpp ±5 % into 75 Ω (S-video chroma 0.7 Vpp) |
| RCA audio input | Over 80 kΩ, 1 Vrms maximum (preamplifier off); over 5 kΩ, 62 mVrms (preamplifier on) |
| RCA audio output | 400 Ω, 1 Vrms maximum |
| Audio performance | 85 dB signal-to-noise (unweighted); 0.05 % THD; 20 Hz to 20 kHz at 44.1 kHz |
From Apple's user update for the card.[2]
Related pages
[edit | edit source]- Power Macintosh 6100
- Power Macintosh 7100
- Power Macintosh 8100
- Power Macintosh G3 (Beige)
- Apple DOS Compatibility Card
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Apple Computer, Power Macintosh Computers developer note (1994), hosted as File:Power Macintosh Computers Developer Note (1994).pdf (see Power Macintosh Computers Developer Note). Chapter 1, Models and Configurations and Apple Expansion Cards, pp. 5-7 (AV models; the AV card adding 2 MB of VRAM and the video features of the Quadra 840AV and Centris 660AV; S-video connectors and DB-15 monitor connector; composite adapter cables; cards bundled and not sold separately); I/O Accessories p. 8; Functional Units, AV Card pp. 18-19 (CIVIC, Sebastian, SAA7194, Mickey); Chapter 3, AV Card pp. 41-45 (PDS slot; angle adapter in the 6100/60AV; DAV connector; adapter cables; pseudo-slot $E; block diagram; four 0.5 MB banks of 80 ns VRAM; colour depth table).
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 Apple Computer, Power Macintosh G3 Desktop Service Source (covers the desktop and minitower), hosted as File:Power Macintosh G3 Desktop and Minitower Service Source.pdf (see Power Macintosh G3 Desktop and Minitower Service Source). Basics: I/O Card; Sound pp. 51-55; Video Input and Output pp. 56-57; The DAV Connector p. 58. Specifications, I/O Cards p. 9. Take Apart, I/O Card pp. 78-79. Troubleshooting, New Components Theory of Operation/I/O Cards p. 6; Symptom Charts/Miscellaneous p. 37 ("No sound from speaker"). Appended user update 033-1009, "About Your Optional Power Macintosh Audio/Video Card" (April 1998), pp. 1-11, including the AV card specifications on p. 11. Exploded view: I/O card (audio only) 661-1457.
- ↑ Apple Computer, Power Macintosh 6100 Series Service Source, hosted as File:Powermac_6100_series.pdf (see Power Macintosh 6100/ WS 6150 Service Source), Upgrades, DOS Compatibility Upgrade p. 13: the 6100/60AV has an AV card in the PDS slot and cannot take the DOS Compatibility card.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Apple Computer, Macintosh Displays and Video Cards service guide, September 1996, hosted as File:Apple Macintosh Displays and Video Cards Service Guide (September 1996).pdf (described at Apple Macintosh Displays and Video Cards Service Guide (1996)). Line drawing "PDS, Power Macintosh AV Card" p. 324; parts list p. 325, module 661-1023; troubleshooting chart p. 327.
- ↑ Apple Computer, Module Identification, part number 072-8124, June 1994, hosted as File:Apple Service Module Identification Manual (June 1994).pdf, p. 4.8.4 (PDF page 272): "Power Macintosh AV Card", Apple P/N 661-1023, page dated March 1994.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Apple Computer, "Power Macintosh G3: Ethernet/Comm Slot Support", Knowledge Base article TA21819, in the archive.org collection APPLE_TIL_ARTICLES (retrieved 2026-10-04), file TA20315-TA29994.pdf. Source for: the personality card architecture and PERCH slot; two personality cards, each with sound and a modem slot, the A/V card adding video in and out; the PERCH slot not being a comm slot; the card's modem slot taking only Comm Slot II-capable modems, not Ethernet cards; the external modem port disabled when an internal modem is fitted.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Apple Computer, "Power Macintosh G3: Does Not Have a Comm Slot" (TA21764), "Power Macintosh G3: Error in Apple Video Player on Second Monitor" (TA21766) and "Power Macintosh G3: A/V Personality Card Only Support Video Mirroring" (TA21767), Knowledge Base articles, APPLE_TIL_ARTICLES collection, file TA20315-TA29994.pdf. Source for: the personality card's modem slot taking only Apple's 56 kbit/s modem card; the A/V card working with the on-board ATI 3D RAGE II+DVD controller, so video must be captured on the monitor on the built-in port; video mirroring only, at 2 MB of SGRAM or more.
- ↑ Apple Computer, "Power Macintosh G3: Audio and Audio/Video Card Internal Connectors", Knowledge Base article TA21812, APPLE_TIL_ARTICLES collection, file TA20315-TA29994.pdf. Source for: the Audio card's J8 (front control panel module, unused in the desktop and minitower) and J10 (internal modem, Apple/GV 56K Flex the only qualified modem); the Audio/Video card's J2 (DAV), J4 (front panel), J6 (TV/FM tuner module, unused in the desktop and minitower) and J7 (modem).