personal computer by Apple

Six months after moving from 16 MHz to 25 MHz with the IIci , Apple introduced the “wicked fast” 40 MHz IIfx. This was the Mac of choice for graphic designers, offering nearly three times the performance of the IIx – thanks to a lightning fast CPU, a new type of RAM, and special SCSI DMA and I/O chips which relieved the CPU of much of its burden. A built-in 32 KB static RAM cache also helps boost performance.

The IIfx was built on a 40 MHz motherboard and had the fastest clocked CPU that Apple used until the Quadra 840av of 1993. NuBus cards still ran on a 10 MHz bus, which is one reason Apple announced its first accelerated video card, the 8•24GC , along with the IIfx. Regular video cards were simply overshadowed by the rest of the system.

With a nod to it’s Apple II ancestors, the IIfx had two 6502 CPUs to manage the floppy drive(s), ADB port, and serial ports (see Technote HW 09 for more details). Unlike the 1 MHz Apple II computers, these CPUs ran at 10 MHz.

Specs (via Low End Mac)

• Cpu: 40 MHz 68030
• Fpu: 40 MHz 68882 FPU
• Bus: 40 MHz – fastest until Quadra 840av
• Ram: 4 MB, expandable to 128 MB using both 4-SIMM banks of 80ns 64-pin memory; can use 1 MB, 4 MB, 8 MB, and 16 MB SIMMs (the IIfx was the only Mac to use 64-pin SIMMs)
• Rom: 512 KB
• L2 Cache: 32 KB
• Hard Drive: 40, 80, or 160 MB SCSI
• Floppy Drive: 1.4 MB double-sided
• Video: requires video card – see our NuBus Video Card Guide for more information.
• Addressing: 24-bit or 32-bit
• Gestalt Id: 13
• Code Names: F-16, F-19, Stealth, Blackbird, Zone 5, Four Square, IIxi, Weed Whacker
• Adb Ports: 2
• Pram Battery: 3.6V half-AA
• Weight: 24 lb.
• Serial Ports: 2 DIN-8 RS-422 ports on back of computer
• Scsi Ports: DB-25 connector on back of computer
• Sound: 8-bit stereo
• Nubus Slots: 6
• Power Supply: 230W
• See: Online resources and links for the Mac IIfx