Re: Super GS

[supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer)]

Bill Heineman <burger@contrabandent.com> wrote:

>The design was using a Xylinx gate array circa 1992-1994. Nowadays the only
>hardware you would have to supply is a low-cost DSP to emulate the Ensoniq
>chip. Everything else could be emulated quickly in software using a modern
>CPU. Don't forget that the IIgs normally ran at 2.6 Mhz and CPU's today are
>going at 500Mhz to 1000 Mhz. This means running in emulation, a zipped IIgs
>is no problem.
>
>Even a low-life 66 Mhz 486 can emulate a standard IIgs.

Not with XGS.  That emulator cannot produce full normal IIGS speed
on a Pentium 200 level machine.

Truly, a 66Mhz 486 cannot emulate much of anything well.  Not
even the 8-bit Apple II or the C64 that well.  Or the Amiga or
game consoles of any era.

>The best CPU to use today would either be a StrongARM or a PowerPC. I'd shy
>away from the Intel line but there are several low-cost models you could
>use.

An AMD K6-2 450 would be a nice choice.  I see those selling
for $70 each and they can match Pentium II processors of the
equivalent Mhz providing you provide L2 cache.  The 333Mhz
model costs even less at $30.

If costs were not an option, I'd use the AMD Athlon which is
available at speeds of up to 1Ghz and I do not think anything
from Intel or Motorolla can match it, but Athlons are rather
expensive.

>On the other hand, doing a PowerPC processor board that plugs into a IIgs
>slot would be a neat trick.

I'd be more interested in a 65C816 emulator programmed into
ROM that is connected to an AMD K6-2 450 plus enough
RAM to run the 65C816 emulator all on a small card that you
plug into the IIGS' CPU socket.

Now THAT would be the ZipChip of the new millenium.