A MacIntel Core2Duo, 1,5TB Tower at 1400 euros !

Despite the attractive title and although it is still 1 April, it will not be tomorrow that Apple releases a type of mini-tower, at a floor price. Like PC towers, Mac users are looking for machines that are scalable and inexpensive. The dream can become reality for most of us handymen. In fact, a faithful member of our forums, Grincheux, not to point him out, has implemented such a project much appreciated on MacBidouille.
His project is to transplant a Intel Mac mini into the tower of power - a PowerMac G4. Close to a Mac tower, it remains an Apple design to the end�

The ultimate aim of Grincheux is to get a machine with a large amount of storage space. And he managed to install 7 SATA hard drives!

Two FireWire hard drives via the provided bridge; another hard drive on the original SATA channel of the Mac mini, and no less than 4 remaining disks via a high performance "connector". The trick is to use the mini PCI Express port of the Mac mini, which originally used to connect the Airport card. Of course it's not as simple as that, a PCI Express card cannot just be added directly into the appropriate port of the Mac mini. Grincheux found a mini-PCI to PCIe adapter to insert the PCI Express SATA card. Finally in order to connect 4 hard drives, the card connected to a a 4-port SATA replicator.


The total project cost is estimated at 1400 euro. The pieces are the most expensive: the MiniPCIe-> PCIe adapter (115 �) and the SATA card coupled with the multiplier ports (120 �). The mini PCIe to PCIe adapter is available on the website DHS Tools (order by e-mail).
We give you the pleasure of discovering the rest of the assembly on the site he created for the occasion: PowerMac mini .