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sx32.txt
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1997-11-07
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Path: rcfnews.cs.umass.edu!barrett
From: hellers_m@istvax.ist.lu (Mike Hellers)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.reviews
Subject: REVIEW: SX32 CD32 internal expansion
Followup-To: comp.sys.amiga.hardware
Date: 19 Oct 1995 19:09:59 GMT
Organization: The Amiga Online Review Column - ed. Daniel Barrett
Lines: 196
Sender: amiga-reviews@math.uh.edu (comp.sys.amiga.reviews moderator)
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <4667q7$1f0@kernighan.cs.umass.edu>
Reply-To: hellers_m@istvax.ist.lu (Mike Hellers)
NNTP-Posting-Host: astro.cs.umass.edu
Keywords: hardware, CD32, A1200, ports, storage, commercial
Originator: barrett@astro.cs.umass.edu
PRODUCT NAME
SX32
BRIEF DESCRIPTION
An internal expansion that gives your CD32 almost all the
specifications of an A1200.
AUTHOR/COMPANY INFORMATION
Name: DCE Computer Service GmbH
Address: Kellenbergstr. 19a
D-46145 OBERHAUSEN
Germany
Telephone: ++49-208-633151
FAX: ++49-208-630496
LIST PRICE
449.- DM (without hard disk).
I paid only 333.- DM, since there had been a special offer
for "beta testers" until September 1.
SPECIAL HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS
HARDWARE
Requires a CD-32, of course. :-)
SOFTWARE
You will need AmigaDOS.
COPY PROTECTION
None, since it is only hardware.
MACHINE USED FOR TESTING
CD32
20 MB 2.5" IDE hard disk
A1010 external disk drive
AmigaDOS 3.1
CommunicatorIII
A2000 keyboard and mouse
INSTALLATION
The installation of the SX32 is very easy, but you will have to open
your CD32! You must first remove the back plate of the CD32. In a next
step you have to unscrew the screws on the bottom of it to be able to "open"
the CD32. After having done this, you can slide the SX32 onto the expansion
bus.
REVIEW
At first: I wrote this review up very quickly because there seems to
be a big demand of information on the Net concerning this brand new product.
After having seen the announcements in some German magazines, I
called DCE to get more informations about the SX32. This was 2 months ago.
Well, they said that it would be available during the first week of
September. So I ordered one and got it in the mid of September. It was
packed in a nice and colorful box which contained the SX32 itself, document
about the A1200, some sort of documentation concerning the SX32 (read more
about the docs later in the review), some screws, and the 2.5" hard disk.
The installation of the hard disk was very simple. The cable was already
connected to the SX32, so I only connected the drive and fixed it in place
with the provided screws.
The SX32 has five connectors at the back side: parallel, serial,
video, VGA and disk drive port. On the expansion itself is a socket for a
PS2 (72-pin) memory module, and the connector for the hard disk. You will
also see the two 8520 chips, which are also in sockets.
Ok, time to insert the SX32 into my CD32 and try it! I switched the
CD32 on, and only a short time later, I did have the Workbench running on
the screen. Workbench 2.0 was already installed on the drive. Everything
works fine up to today!
FLOPPY PORT
You can connect up to three drives (DF0-DF2) to this port. It is of
course the normal 23-pin AMIGA port. It is of course also possible to boot
from the drives connected to this port.
PARALLEL PORT
Standard 25-pin port. I'm using it at the moment to connect it to my
A2000 using PARNET.
SERIAL PORT
Standard 25-pin port.
VIDEO PORT
This is a standard AMIGA RGB port (23-pin). I have connected
it to my good old A1084. You may of course use it also to connect to a
Genlock.
VGA PORT
Standard VGA port (15-pin).
DOCUMENTATION
The documentation consists of 6 DIN A4 pages. Well, this isn't
very much, but it does include all the information you need to
install and use the SX32. They included the pinouts of the external ports
and some information concerning the jumper which has to be changed if
you add memory. It is only in German!
LIKES
What I most like about the SX32 is that it fits completely into the
CD32. I do have now a very small AMIGA with AGA and CD-ROM!
I tried a lot of software until today on the SX32 and had no problem
at all. As stated in some German magazines, it seems that the compatibility
is very high.
DISLIKES AND SUGGESTIONS
Well, at the moment I don't have any dislikes concerning this
product. Perhaps, they could have added a external IDE port for another
hard disk. Of course, using the SX32 makes it impossible to use an FMV (Full
Motion Video) card, but who cares, since it is nearly impossible to get such
a card. ;-)
COMPARISON TO OTHER SIMILAR PRODUCTS
The only product it can be compared with is the SX-1. Since I have
never really seen such a beast (only in photos), I can't really compare the
two products. Of course there is the big difference that the SX32 is
INTERNAL and the SX-1 EXTERNAL and, in my eyes, ugly.
BUGS
None.
VENDOR SUPPORT
They do have service hotline for the users of the SX32. I have not
had to call them to date.
WARRANTY
2 years warranty.
CONCLUSIONS
The SX32 transforms the CD32 from a "game console" to a "real
computer." It is a must for every owner of a CD32 who wants to do more with
his computer.
I would rate it 5 stars of 5.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
Copyright 1995 Mike Hellers.
---
Accepted and posted by Daniel Barrett, comp.sys.amiga.reviews moderator
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