iMac G4 Dies

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svenvendetta

Tinkerer
Nov 3, 2021
39
54
18
Boston, MA
So I got an iMac G4 a few years back, cleaned it all up, maxed it out, and got ATA to SATA installed. All worked great. Used is a total of 10 hours or so and then put it on the shelf.

Recently I plugged it in and hit the power button. Nada. Came back a few days later and hit the button. Started right up! Chrisis averted right? Wrong. Tried it a few weeks later and it's dead again and staying that way. Ok something is failing and probably power related.

Hit the PMU reset button. Replaced the 3.3v with a new one (old battery was intact, no issues). Reseated all cables and and memory. Nada.

I assume I have a power supply issue and am debating pulling it for inspection but don't know when I'll have the energy for that. Just putting it out there to see if anyone had any ideas or thoughts of what to try.

As an aside, as my pile of vintage Macs that have been restored yet suddenly stop working or having issues grows bigger, I have to admit I'm getting tired of all the futzing this stuff takes to keep things operational. I would hate to see an amazing piece like this one go in the recycler but it's getting pretty tiring.