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Macintosh Performa 5420CD

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Revision as of 23:07, 23 September 2026 by Josh (talk | contribs) (Verification drive: Apple says the 5420 is a GRAPHITE-COLOURED Power Macintosh 5400/120 sold initially in Japan - the difference is the plastics, not a software bundle; 8 MB soldered not 16 MB standard; width/depth were swapped; sound input is stereo not mono; removed the unsourced 40 MHz bus figure; separated out the distinct Performa 5420/180 (603ev at 180 MHz, Japan and Australia); added CRT, video-mode, cache-DIMM and electrical specs; fixed red link to Power Macintosh 5500)
Macintosh Performa 5420CD
Performa 5400 chassis. The 5420 is the same machine in graphite-coloured plastics
Specifications
ManufacturerApple Computer, Inc.
TypeAll-in-one Personal Computer
ReleasedApril 22, 1996
DiscontinuedFebruary 1, 1997
CPUPowerPC 603e @ 120 MHz
Memory8 MB soldered on the logic board, expandable to 136 MB
Storage1.6 GB IDE hard drive, 4X CD-ROM
Display15" shadow mask CRT (640ร—480 16-bit, 832ร—624 8-bit)
Sound16-bit stereophonic input and output with SRS surround, nominally 0.5 V RMS into 39 ohms
Dimensions17.5" H ร— 16.0" W ร— 15.1" D (445 ร— 406 ร— 383 mm)
Weight47 lbs (21.3 kg)
OS / FirmwareSystem 7.5.3 โ€“ Mac OS 9.1
PredecessorPerforma 5300
SuccessorPower Macintosh 5500
CodenameAlchemy
Model no.M3046

The Macintosh Performa 5420CD is an all-in-one personal computer manufactured by Apple Computer, Inc. Apple describes it plainly: "The Performa 5420 is a graphite-colored Power Macintosh 5400/120 initially sold in Japan only. Plastic exterior parts for the Performa 5420 are in the graphite color, and all other hardware features are the same as the Power Macintosh 5400/120."[1]

Differences from the Power Macintosh 5400/120

The difference Apple documents is the colour of the plastics, not the software bundle:[1]

  • Colour: graphite-coloured exterior plastics rather than the usual beige. Replacement plastic parts for this model are ordered in graphite
  • Market: Japan initially

Every other hardware feature is that of the Power Macintosh 5400/120.

A separate model: the Performa 5420/180

Apple's manual also lists a Performa 5420/180, which is a different machine: a graphite-coloured unit sold in Japan and Australia, with a PowerPC 603ev at 180 MHz, 16 MB of RAM on the logic board, and a 1.6 GB or 2.4 GB hard drive. It is otherwise the Power Macintosh 5400/180.[1] The two should not be conflated โ€” the plain 5420 is a 120 MHz machine and the 5420/180 is not.

Architecture and Processor

The Performa 5420CD uses a PowerPC 603e processor running at 120 MHz. Apple describes the addressing as a 64-bit PowerPC bus; it publishes no bus clock figure for this machine, so none is given here.[1]

Cache Configuration

  • L1 Cache: 32 KB (16 KB instruction, 16 KB data)
  • L2 Cache: optional 256 KB, on a 160-pin DIMM card[1]

Memory and Storage

RAM Configuration

Specification Details
RAM Type 168-pin DIMM
DIMM specification JEDEC standard, 168-pin, 70 ns or faster, 2K refresh rate[1]
Motherboard RAM 8 MB soldered (the 5400/120 configuration this machine is based on)[1]
Maximum RAM 136 MB[1]
RAM Slots 2[1]
ROM 4 MB[1]
Frame buffer 1 MB of DRAM on the logic board, dedicated to video[1]

Storage Systems

  • Hard Drive: 1.2 GB or 1.6 GB IDE, as for the Power Macintosh 5400/120[1]
  • Floppy Drive: 1.4 MB Apple SuperDrive, manual insert[1]
  • CD-ROM: AppleCD 600i (4ร—) as standard on the 5400/120[1]
  • SCSI: one external DB-25 port supporting up to seven devices[1]

Display and Graphics

The built-in display is a 15-inch shadow-mask CRT with a 12.8-inch viewable image, 0.28 mm dot pitch, 66.7 Hz vertical frequency, 240 ร— 185 mm nominal active raster, 9,300 K white point and an aluminised P22-derivative phosphor.[1]

Apple's published video modes for the 5400 series:[1]

  • 640ร—480 at 16-bit colour, 60 Hz or 67 Hz
  • 800ร—600 at 16-bit colour, 60 Hz or 72 Hz
  • 832ร—624 at 8-bit colour, 75 Hz โ€” this mode does not support video input

Power

  • Line voltage: 100โ€“240 VAC; frequency: 47โ€“63 Hz; power: 125 W[1]
  • Supply rated 2.5 A maximum and 220 W maximum for all line and load conditions; surge 300 V RMS for 100 ms; peak inrush 40 A[1]

Apple publishes no per-rail voltage or tolerance for this machine. It does publish a high-voltage adjustment โ€” 29.5 V DC ยฑ 0.1 V at the cathode of D713 (Rev. A) or D703 (Rev. B), set with VR501 or VR702 โ€” which is covered on Macintosh Performa 5400 General Maintenance.[1]

General Maintenance

For detailed maintenance practices, refer to the dedicated Macintosh Performa 5400CD General Maintenance page.

Capacitor Replacement Guide

Detailed capacitor replacement guidelines can be found on the Macintosh Performa 5400CD Capacitor Replacement Guide page.

Troubleshooting

A comprehensive troubleshooting guide is available on the Macintosh Performa 5400CD Troubleshooting page.

See Also

References

  1. โ†‘ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 Apple Computer, Inc., Power Macintosh/Performa 5400 and 5500 Series Service Source, Basics → Configurations ("The Performa 5420 is a graphite-colored Power Macintosh 5400/120 initially sold in Japan only\u2026 all other hardware features are the same as the Power Macintosh 5400/120") and Specifications. Hosted on this wiki as File:Powermac.perf 5400.5500.pdf.