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sstboard.txt
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1991-10-05
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What will a SST (Gadget's '30 accelerator) really cost you? Well, it all
depends. Mark Booth (Gadgets by Small) sets the record straight - Cat.
4, Topic 44, Msg. 34 - from the ST Roundtable on Genie...
In my many telephone conversations with Gadgets products owners, as
well at shows such as Glendale, I've had more than one person comment
that they would love to purchase the SST but just can't swing the
$1400 it would cost. Now, granted...if you buy a SST with a 33mhz
68030/68882 and 4 megs of 80ns fastram DIRECTLY from Gadgets then the
retail price *is* $1400.
Problem is, you don't have to go that route! You can buy the board
alone (complete with everything EXCEPT CPU, Math Chip and SIMMs) for
$599. You can then add options as you see fit at MUCH lower prices!
That is the nice thing about SST...you can expand WHAT you want WHEN
you want.
I contacted the folks at HI TECH (805-966-5454 ask for GENE) and got
the following prices on 030 and 882 parts:
20mhz 68030...........$75 33mhz 68030...........$175
20mhz 68882...........$55 33mhz 68882...........$140
50mhz 68030...........$225
50mhz 68882...........$154
Currently, THE CHIP MERCHANT (619-268-4774) is selling 80ns 1meg
SIMMs for $34 each.
Using these sources one could put together the following killer
combos:
20mhz SST with 68030 and 4 meg fastram: $810
20mhz SST, 68030, 68882, 4 meg fastram: $865
33mhz SST with 68030 and 4 meg fastram: $910
33mhz SST, 68030, 68882, 4 meg fastram: $1040
As you can see, buying and installing the parts yourself can save you
big bucks! If you want, you start off with just the SST board and a
20mhz 68030 and 4 meg fastram. You can upgrade to a 33mhz 030 at a
later date. As for the math chip....unless you use DynaCADD or want
the speed advantage of the math chip in Mac mode...don't bother. If
you don't use DynaCADD or Spectre...the math chip is just sitting
there doing nothing.
----------------
Some interesting comments by George Richardson (Merlin Group) - Cat. 4,
Topic 44, Msg. 39 & 44 - from the ST Roundtable on Genie...
Plugging a 68030 into a system designed for a 68000 is not a simple
matter. Throw in the peculiarities of the ST system and it gets even
worse. We've spent quite a bit of time & money perfecting the
interface. When compared to the price of an SST, you'll find it's
just not worth it.
At the least you'll need:
PC board design & prototype capability
PLD programming capability
A *thorough* knowledge of both 68000 & 68030 bus functionality
Documentation on the chips in the STe or failing that, a good
logic analyzer so you can watch how they fail.
Since we don't even have documentation on the chips in the ST series,
you'd better have that logic analyzer.
After you get done, you'll have duplicated a large part of our work,
and spent a large amount of time & money. It was interesting even
though I'm not sure I would have done it if I'd have known what I was
going to end up going through.
Unfortunately, no-one will be able to give you details on this, since
most companies consider details of the interface to be proprietary.
...Also, for the moment Spectre will only run from ST ram. If you
need to run Spectre with the 68030 you will either have to wait for a
new version of Spectre, or get more ST memory. If you're planning on
putting an SST into a 520, you will have to put into a larger case
anyway. You'll then have room for a memory expansion if you want it.
----------------
Question by John Brubaker - Cat. 4, Topic 44, Msg. 42 - from the ST
Roundtable on Genie...
Stace - In your opinion, how much normal ST ram is it necessary to
have if you have 4 meg. of fast ram? The reason I ask is that I just
picked up a 2nd ST (520 STFM) just for the purpose of sometime adding
a 68030 board. Since it only has 520K in it, I'm wondering if I will
also need an ST memory expansion in addition to the fast ram on the
68030 board? After using the SST for a while, how often do you need
to run in regular ram?
Answer by Mark Booth (Gadgets by Small)...
Mostly it is paint type programs (CyberPaint..etc.) that must be run
from ST ram. That and games. Otherwise, the vast majority of programs
run fine from fastram. So, to answer your question...I don't know. It
depends on which programs you use. If you have games or paint
programs that require more than 512K then you will need a memory
upgrade.