PowerMacG5 Mid-2004

A member of the first Mac series to utilize the 90 nm 64-bit PowerPC 970fx (G5) processor, the Apple Power Macintosh G5/2.5 DP (PCI-X) shared this distinction with the Power Macintosh G5/1.8 DP (PCI) and the Power Macintosh G5 2.0 DP (PCI-X 2). This advanced processor was notable for its reduced power draw and lower heat output compared to previous chips.\n\nThe Power Macintosh G5/2.5 DP (PCI-X) was driven by dual 2.5 GHz PowerPC 970fx (G5) processors, each paired with an optimized AltiVec \"Velocity Engine\" vector processing unit and a 512k level 2 on-chip cache. It was configured from the factory with 512 MB of 400 MHz PC3200 DDR SDRAM, a 160.0 GB Serial ATA hard drive (7200 RPM), an 8X \"SuperDrive\" (DVD-R/CD-RW), and an ATI Radeon 9600 XT (AGP 8X Pro) graphics card with 128 MB of DDR SDRAM. Its array of connections included USB 2.0, FireWire \"400\" and \"800\", ADC, and DVI ports, as well as optical digital audio in/out. It also supported AirPort Extreme (802.11g) and Bluetooth 1.1. This model, along with the mid-range 2.0 DP model, featured high-speed PCI-X slots.\n\nWhile it used the same acclaimed \"anodized aluminum alloy\" case as its predecessors, complete with a removable side panel for easy access and a four-zone, nine-fan cooling architecture, this model introduced a significant innovation: a liquid cooling system. This system replaced the conventional heat sink to more effectively manage the thermal output of the high-speed processors. Custom configurations were also offered.

The dual 2.5 GHz Power Mac G5 from mid-2004 was marketed as a performance champion, demonstrating nearly double the speed of competing Pentium 4 systems in professional applications like Photoshop. A landmark feature was the introduction of a standard liquid cooling system (LCS), a first for a major PC manufacturer, to tame the heat from its powerful dual processors. This innovation allowed it to reach higher clock speeds than would have been possible with air cooling alone. However, this early implementation of liquid cooling became its most notorious weakness. Over time, these systems became prone to coolant leakage, which could cause catastrophic damage to the logic board, power supply, and other internal components. While its performance was undeniably impressive for its era, the significant risk of an eventual cooling system failure has made this specific model one to be approached with caution in the used market, often being recommended only if the original LCS has been replaced or professionally serviced.