RainbowRAM Adds a Splash of Color to Vintage Macintosh Computer Logic Boards

When Apple Computer Inc. started selling computers, they had an uncommon feature for the time. The computers could display color in their video output! Apple highlighted this cutting-edge capability with a logo featuring a six-color rainbow design. In honor of that early logo and its origin, Antonie Bercovici created multi-color 68-pin VRAM modules called RainbowRAM for vintage Macintosh computers.

RainbowRAM is a six-pack of 68-pin single-inline memory modules (SIMMs) containing 256 kilobytes of memory. The four-layer gold-plated PCBs designed by Bercovici come in six colors: green, yellow, orange, red, purple, and blue. The DRAM chips on the modules are from new old-stock. Two latency options, 80 nanosecond and 100 nanosecond accommodate a wide range of 68K Macintosh computers.

The description "68K Macintosh" comes from the computer's processor. When Apple Computer designed the Macintosh computer line, they chose the Motorola 68000 microprocessor. This processor is also known as simply "68K," and Macintosh computers with a chip in this family are called a 68K Macintosh. The name helps differentiate from PowerPC, Intel, and M1-based machines.

Not all vintage Macintosh computers can benefit from RainbowRAM. Most importantly, the computer must have VRAM SIMM sockets. Newer machines, such as late model Quadra and Power Macintosh, expect the faster 80 nanosecond DRAM. (There is little or no benefit to using 80 nanosecond SIMMs in a machine designed for 100 nanosecond.) Check this compatibility chart to see which modules could benefit from adding VRAM.

Adding VRAM with RainbowRAM enables higher resolution modes and allows for more colors across those resolutions. Anyone familiar with System 6 or System 7 remembers switching between 256, Thousands, and Millions of colors in the Monitors Control Panel!

On the Siliconinsiders Tindie store, Bercovici sells the six-pack RainbowRAM for $109. The modules ship from France with standard shipping charges included in the price.