Conference hydra::amiga_v1

    Re <<< Note 3295.0 by JGO::CHAPMAN >>>
    
    I've got a GVP price list dated 8/1/89.  Here are some relevant parts.
    All prices are suggested list -- your mileage will vary.  Typos are
    mine, but grammatical errors are theirs.  My general philosophy
    (subject to the constraints of one's wallet) is to DO IT RIGHT THE
    FIRST TIME!  GVP's pricing seems to reinforce that approach.
    
    IMPACT 68030 PROCESSOR ACCELERATOR BOARDS FOR THE A2000
    
    All our accelerator boards use the high performance Motorola 68030 CPU
    with on-chip instruction and data cache and memory management unit
    (MMU).  68882 FPU (floating point unit) socket provided.  68882 can be
    clocked independently of CPU.
    
    The IMPACT 68030 accelerator also has a built-in hard disk controller
    which is directly connected to the 32-bit bus for optimal hard disk
    performance.
    
    Due to the unique asynchronous design, the 68030 CPU is driven by its
    own dedicated clock oscillator allowing it to run at any speed
    completely independent of, and asynchronous to, the rest of the A2000.
    
      �	IMPACT A2000-030/16					$849
    	16 MHz 68030 processor accelerator board
    
      �	IMPACT A2000-030/25					$999
    	25 MHz 68030 processor accelerator board
    
    MOTOROLA 68882 FLOATING POINT UNITS
    
    68882 FPU factory installed option ordered at the
    the time of purchase of IMPACT A2000-030/xx
      �	68882 FPU/16MHz						$200
      �	68882 FPU/25MHz						$425
      �	68882 FPU/33MHz						$650
    
    68882 FPU upgrade unit for IMPACT A2000-030/xx
    Includes crystal oscillator and installation instructions.
      �	68882 FPU/16MHz						$299
      �	68882 FPU/25MHz						$499
      �	68882 FPU/33MHz						$750
    
    32-BIT WIDE RAM EXPANSION DAUGHTERBOARD FOR IMPACT A2000-030/XX
    
    RAM Expansion daughterboard offering up to 8MB of 32-bit wide NIBBLE
    MODE DRAM for the IMPACT A2000-030/xx.  State-of-the-art nibble mode
    DRAM design allows 68030 to accessDRAM with zero waitstates during
    BURST mode.  32-bit wide DRAM allows full DMA access by CPU.
    
      �	IMPACT A2000-030RAM/4				       $1999
    	Populated with 4MB of RAM
    
      �	IMPACT A2000-030RAM/8					CALL
    	Populated with 4MB of RAM
    
    A3000 PLUS 1 UPGRADE KITS FOR THE A2000
    
    These kits allow the A2000 to be upgraded to a 25MHz 68030 system with
    32-bit wide RAM and a hard disk offering incredible savings of "a la
    carte" pricing.  Includes 25MHz 68882 FPU.
    
      �	A3001-4MB/0					       $2999
    	25MHz 68030/68882 board with 4MB 32-bit wide RAM
    	daughterboard (no hard disk).
    
      �	A3001-4MB/40Q					       $3599
    	25MHz 68030/68882 board with 4MB 32-bit wide RAM
    	daughterboard and a 40MB Quantum hard disk offering
    	11/19ms average access time.
    
      �	A3001-4MB/80Q					       $3995
    	25MHz 68030/68882 board with 4MB 32-bit wide RAM
    	daughterboard and a 80MB Quantum hard disk offering
    	11/19ms average access time.
    
    A2500 PLUS 1 UPGRADE KITS FOR THE A2000
    
    These kits allow the A2000 to be upgraded to a 16MHz 68030 system with
    32-bit wide RAM and a hard disk offering incredible savings of "a la
    carte" pricing.  Includes 16MHz 68882 FPU.
    
      �	A2501-4MB/0					       $2699
    	16MHz 68030/68882 board with 4MB 32-bit wide RAM
    	daughterboard (no hard disk).
    
      �	A2501-4MB/40Q					       $3299
    	16MHz 68030/68882 board with 4MB 32-bit wide RAM
    	daughterboard and a 40MB Quantum hard disk offering
    	11/19ms average access time.
    
      �	A2501-4MB/80Q					       $3695
    	16MHz 68030/68882 board with 4MB 32-bit wide RAM
    	daughterboard and a 80MB Quantum hard disk offering
    	11/19ms average access time.
    

    I was considering this very thing,and entered a note about it not
    long ago.(can't remember the number)What made me go for a standard
    GVP drive instead was that if you boot in 68000 mode you cannot
    see the drive.I figure if I go for it later,I'll use both drives.
    OH! when I priced drives I found that you could get a 100meg drive
    for about 100.00 over the cost of the 80meg.
    							bill

    WE HAVE A 3001 UPGRADE AT THE AUGUSTA VIDEO COMMUNICATIONS CENTER,
    IT IS VERY IMPRESSIVE AND IT SEEMS TO BE WORKING VERY WELL WITH THE 
    SOFTWARE THAT WE ARE USING.[CALIGARI-SCULPT ANIMATE 4D-PRO VIDEO GOLD
    AND ON AND ON] IT IS A GOOD INVESTMENT AND HAS NOT CAUSED ANY STRANGE
    PROBLEMS SO FAR. HOWEVER YOU CAN NOT REVERT TO THE 68000 MODE AND 
    STILL USE THE HARD DISK FOR STORAGE.( SO BE SURE OF YOUR SOFTWARE
    NEEDS OTHERWISE YOU MAY BE UPSET AT THIS ONE DISADVANTAGE...
    GAMES AND SOME STUFF WILL NOT WORK AS THEY USED TO. BUT IF YOU ARE INTO 
    RAY TRACING AND GRAPHICS GENERATION IN GENERAL YOU WILL BE VERY
    PLEASED... (JUST AN OPINION BUT BACKED BY SOME EXPERIENCE...GOOD LUCK!)  

    Thanks for the info.
    
    Is there any way of knowing what software has trouble with a 030.
    I assume most games do.
    
    Colib
    

    OK all you GVP owners, I have a question for you...

    I'm looking for a CPU upgrade for my 2000.  I had pretty much decided
    to go with an A2620, which seems to be available in the $700-$800
    range.  However, I see in the current issue of Amiga World that the
    Creative Computers ad lists the GVP 030/28MHz/4 MB at $869.  This seems
    like a good deal to me.  Their price for the same unit with a 68882
    comes in at $1499!  For the $$$, I think I can live without the floating
    point processor for a while but I assume I'll want to add one eventually.
    I see the 68882 chip (33 MHz) quoted at $350 in another ad, so my
    question is whether the installation of the 68882 chip requires more
    than a simple jumper change (e.g. new PALs?) which would have come from
    GVP?

Not knowing for sure, Bruce, I'd say for an 882, you just pop it in and
fly (probably not even a jumper to mess with).

john

    Good deals can be found on the A2630 also.  I just bought a new 4-MB
    A2630 for $1500 from Expert Services.  It does include the '82 math
    co-processor.  Both CPU and math chip are at 25Mhz.  While the GVP
    might have a slight edge on cost/performance, I prefer to go with the
    manufacturer when it seems reasonable to do so.

    Well, as they say, if it sounds too good to be true...
    
    I called Creative, they said it was a misprint.  When he tried to look
    up a correct price, it came back as "no longer available".  So it would
    appear that an 030 with 32-bit RAM can't be had for much less than
    $1500.  [sigh]
    
    Oh well, he says they do have A2620's in stock for $699 and I'll
    probably settle for one of those.

    re: .7      Do you have an address/phone for Expert Services???
    

    
    
    Expert Services
    	from the business card "Innovative Ideas for a Creative Computer"
    5912 Centennial Circle
    Florence, KY 41042
    
    (606) 371-9690
    
    
    The price I got of $1500 was during a computer show in Dayton, and I
    did talk him down a little from what he initially wanted.  But with a
    low overhead mail order sale, I think you should be able to get that
    price.  The person I dealt with is Scott Bennett, his card lists him as
    Owner/Partner.  My initial impression is that he is very knowledgable
    on the Amiga and a reasonable person to deal with.  They also sell GVP
    products, incase you wanted to check those prices also.  I don't know
    if mentioning my name would be of any help, but Scott should remember
    who I am.  He said I spent the most money with him and the Dayton
    ComputerFest (I also bought ProDraw 2.0), and he sent a free Amiga
    T-shirt.
    
    So far I am very pleased with the performance of the A2630,
    installation was no problem, and I consider myself a very satisfied
    customer.
                           

    Well, my A2620 board arrived, yea!  But, there's absolutely *NO*
    documentation with it.  (I assume there should be something, right?)
    My system refuses to run at all (blank screen, no screen color changes,
    nothing) with this board plugged in.  Have I missed some jumper setup,
    or is my board DOA?  *Bummer*

Did you find the problem?  The "main" jumper settings are to set 2M/4M or to
set 80ns/100ns memory.  I have my documentation around somewhere, if you still
need it.

Steve

    John Guineau provided me with enough information to convince myself
    that the board was really dead.  I sent it back for exchange/repair.

    Thanks to all who offered assistance...

    Hi,
    	I am looking into buying an accelerator card for my A2000.
    So far, my choice is between the GVP A3001 @28 Mhz or 33 Mhz or
    the A2630.
    
    Can anyone who have one of these boards please give me some help
    to make a choice.
    
    Thank You
    Hubert.
    
    

re             <<< Note 3295.14 by MQOFS::LECOMPTE "Hubert Lecompte" >>>
>                              -< A3001 vs A2630 >-

>    Hi,
>    	I am looking into buying an accelerator card for my A2000.
>    So far, my choice is between the GVP A3001 @28 Mhz or 33 Mhz or
>    the A2630.

	I can't help you directly with your question, though I've been 
pondering the same upgrade myself  - -  these things usually take me  
"QUITE A WHILE".  Here's a couple of observations, FWIW, etc.

	i)	The 68040 boards are "rumored"; some rumors say they're 
		already in the hands of testers.

	ii)	Until fairly recently the GVP ad showed ROM sockets 
where auto-boot ROMs could be replaced for future Unix.  The ads no
longer point to those sockets with any claim re Unix, but the fine
print footnote still acknowledges that Unix is a Trademark of AT&T. 
This seems a little odd, since the Unix word appears nowhere else in 
the ad.  My guess is that CBM Unix has been discovered to not run on
the GVP card, I have no data to support this guess, its pure
speculation. 

	iii)	There are now some A3000 Unix packages  - -  are any 
A2x00 packages planned ?   Some folks hope so, you or I might not, 
either way such a product could affect the street prices of
accelerator cards tomorrow {up or down according to the level of 
compatibility and cost of migration paths}.

	I think its worth waiting at least 3 months to see what 
happens to the price of '030 cards.....   and to enjoy the summer (-:

	Reg

    I have had my 28Mhz A3001 for about 3 months now and am extremely happy
    with it.  I haven't had any software incompatibilities, it can be
    upgraded to 8mb memory unlike the A2630, and most of the "benchmarks"
    rate it significantly faster than the A2630.  UNIX may be an issue
    although given the number of GVP accelerators out there I assume some
    support will be available eventually.  I WOULD like the boot options of
    the A2630 but I installed a switch on the jumper that
    GVP provides to disable the '030 and flick it when I want to play games. 
    (after powering down, to be safe)
    
    If you do choose GVP I suggest you purchase the 33Mhz model because
    with the latest revision of the accelerator, the 28Mhz model uses
    different speed ram than the 33Mhz or 50Mhz boards.  Upgrading to a
    higher speed will probably entail trading in the slower board.
    
    mark

re: Note 3295.15 
ULTRA::BURGESS 

>	ii)	Until fairly recently the GVP ad showed ROM sockets 
>where auto-boot ROMs could be replaced for future Unix.  The ads no
>longer point to those sockets with any claim re Unix, but the fine
>print footnote still acknowledges that Unix is a Trademark of AT&T. 
>This seems a little odd, since the Unix word appears nowhere else in 
>the ad.  My guess is that CBM Unix has been discovered to not run on
>the GVP card, I have no data to support this guess, its pure
>speculation. 

	This is not the case.  According to one of the GVP engineers
	(to whom I spoke at a Commodore show), AmigaUnix has been
	running on their accelerators.

	~art