Power Macintosh 6500

The 6500 replaces the Power Macintosh 6400 and is the last model of the "6000" series Macintosh computers. The 6500 was offered in speeds between 225-300MHz using the PowerPC 603e processor.

General Information

Introduced in February 1997, the Power Macintosh 6500 replaced the earlier Power Macintosh 6400. It was powered by either a 225 or 250MHz PowerPC 603e, and included an internal Iomega Zip drive. All other specs are the same as the Power Macintosh 5500. The 225MHz configuration didn't include the video input/output circuitry and sold for $1,799. The 250MHz model sold for $2,099. A 300MHz model was announced in the spring (along with a 275MHz model) and was the first computer, Mac or PC, to break the 300MHz clock speed barrier.

The Apple Power Macintosh 6500 is the most powerful, expandable, and feature-rich Macintosh computer designed specifically for home, small business, and creative applications. The blazing speed of the PowerPC processor--combined with hardware acceleration of graphics and video--enables users to accomplish tasks previously possible only on expensive professional workstations.

Whether you are videoconferencing over the Internet, playing the hottest game titles, creating a video with a soundtrack you composed, or browsing the World Wide Web, the Power Macintosh 6500 will make your experience easy, snappy, and fun.

Breakthrough performance starts with being the world's first personal computer to run at up to 300 megahertz. Each model then adds at least 256K of level 2 cache, 32 megabytes of RAM, a 3-gigabyte hard disk drive, and a 12x-speed (maximum) CD-ROM drive. Some models even feature a built-in Zip drive for backing up or transporting your data on pocket-sized 100-megabyte disks. A built-in 33.6 or 56-kilobit-per-second modem makes exchanging e-mail, faxes, or voice mail, as well as "surfing" the Internet, a snap.

But Apple engineers didn't stop there: They tuned the entire system to handle the rich media types common on today's Internet and CD-ROMs, without sacrificing "rock-solid" stability and ease of use.

The advanced video/graphics subsystem speeds manipulation of complex 2-D documents through QuickDraw acceleration; enables immersive 3-D games and interactive 3-D modeling with QuickDraw 3D acceleration; and delivers full-screen, full-motion movie playback through QuickTime and MPEG acceleration.

Throw in awesome CD-quality audio from the integrated subwoofer and 24-bit color support on displays up to 17 inches, and you're ready to do virtually anything you want to do with a computer.

And to get you started, each model comes bundled with valuable software. The Home Editions include more than two dozen software titles carefully selected for family and home use. The Small Business Edition offers applications tailored to the needs of those running a small or home-based business. The Creative Studio includes award-winning hardware and software for creating, editing, and publishing your own videos, music, art, 3-D models and animations, photos, and web sites.

And when it comes time to expand your system, you can do so with a variety of Apple or third-party options easily installed into the mini-tower enclosure.

CPU

• PowerPC 603e processor running at 225, 250, 275, or 300 MHz (with 32K internal cache)
• 32 integer registers and 32 floating-point registers
• 256K or 512K level 2 cache

Memory

The RAM expansion slots accept the 8-byte DIMM (dual inline memory module). As its name implies, the 8-byte DIMM has a 64-bit-wide data bus. The DIMM slot accommodates 168-pin 5-volt fast-paged and EDO DRAM DIMMs.

• Comes with 32MB, 48MB, or 64MB of EDO RAM
• Supports up to 128MB via 2 DIMM slots
• Uses 168-pin, noncomposite, 60-nanosecond or faster EDO DIMMs (1K or 2K refresh, 5 volt)

Video

ATI 3D Rage II 64-bit multimedia and graphics accelerator chip for faster, smoother video capture; acceleration of QuickDraw (2-D) and QuickDraw 3D graphics and QuickTime and MPEG-1 movie playback.

• 2MB of SGRAM video memory
• 24-bit color for display of up to 16 million colors at resolutions up to 800 by 600 pixels on monitors up to 17 inches (diagonal measurement)
• 16-bit color for display of up to 32,768 colors at resolutions up to 1,152 by 870 pixels on monitors up to 21 inches (diagonal measurement)

Cache

The main logic board has a slot for a second-level (L2) cache on a DIMM. The L2 cache DIMM contains the cache controller, tag, and data store memory. It is a lookaside cache, which is connected to the PowerPC 50 MHz processor bus.

PCI

The main logic board uses the industry-standard peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus for an I/O expansion bus. The PCI bus is a 32-bit multiplexed address and data bus. The PCI expansion slot has a 33.33 MHz system clock. PCI I/O expansion cards are mounted horizontally in a 90-degree straight-through adapter board, which is installed in the PCI expansion slot on the main logic board. A total of 15 watts of power is provided for each of the PCI expansion slots. Both 5 volts and 3.3 volts are supplied; the total power consumed by both voltages must not exceed the 15-watt maximum. The main logic board requires that PCI cards use the 5-volts signaling standard described in the PCI Local Bus Specification, Revision 2.0.

Notes

QuickDraw 3D Acceleration and Video Memory

The logic board provides 2 MB of video memory for support of display modes up to 1152 by 870 at 16 bits of resolution. The largest supported display size is useful for standard 2D applications. For 3D applications, the 2 MB of video memory space is used differently, which restricts the useful display size and supported bit depth. For example, QuickDraw 3D utilizes double buffering if the hardware supports it. Double buffering immediately reduces the available video memory for application use. In addition, 3D applications that use a Z buffer for hidden texture removal have even less space available for caching textures to increase graphics rendering speed. To get the most performance out of 3D applications in the 2 MB of video memory, the display mode size should be reduced. A 512-by-384 display mode is provided specifically for increasing the available memory space for texture caching to improve 3D graphics rendering speed.

Gallery

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Documentation

• Performa/Power Macintosh 6400 and 6500 Service Source

See Also

• Apple Computer

The Power Macintosh Series from Apple Computer

Power Macintosh 4400 -- Power Macintosh 5200 -- Power Macintosh 5260 -- Power Macintosh 5300 -- Power Macintosh 5400 -- Power Macintosh 5500 -- Power Macintosh 6100 -- Power Macintosh 6200 -- Power Macintosh 6300 -- Power Macintosh 6360 -- Power Macintosh 6400 -- Power Macintosh 6500 -- Power Macintosh 7100 -- Power Macintosh 7200 -- Power Macintosh 7300 -- Power Macintosh 7500 -- Power Macintosh 7600 -- Power Macintosh 8100 -- Power Macintosh 8500 -- Power Macintosh 8600 -- Power Macintosh 9500 -- Power Macintosh 9600 -- Power Macintosh G3

Peripheral Component Interconnect