Re: ZipGS questions

[Dan Foster <usenet@evilphb.org>]

In article <ofdIc.24572$Rf.17926@edtnps84>, Wayne Stewart <waynes@telus.dotnet> wrote:
>
> You can easilt verify the speed with the ZipGS.CDev or ZipGS.Sys16.
> Neither is built-in so you'll need to install them.

Ah! I think the ground.uiowa archive's got these. (Fortunately, since
this board didn't come with anything.)

> Check the speed of the 65816 in your card. If it's an 8 mhz you can
> likely overclock it to as high as your othe components will allow.
> I'm running my ZipGSs with 8mhz 65816 at 15. If you have a 7mhz 65816
> or there's no speed marked on it then you're likely at about their
> limit.

It's not clear what the speed is (yet) -- the accelerated 816 has a -7
marking which led me to think 7 MHz, but the oscillator is 32 MHz which
would mean supporting a 8 MHz processor. Or maybe the oscillator runs at
32 MHz but processor only runs at 7?

I also note that the last entry in the csa2 accelerators FAQ mentions a
speed test utility as well. :) Don't know how I'd missed that. So
between the CDA and SpeedGS, I should be all set for determination.

Assuming that the appropriate components on the Zip is replaced with
faster and stable parts (eg 7HC00 vs 7F00, faster oscillator and SRAM,
faster processor), I have reason for hope that it may work faster.

Especially since I've got a ROM 03 GS which cleaned up much of the dirty
power issues and I have no other cards in the system (at the moment) to
cause slot power loading issues.

I'd be happy with 10 or 12 MHz, but worst case, 8 MHz is great, too.

The board is a rev 1.02 which others has accelerated successfully (for
their own rev 1.02 boards) so that's good, too.

The main issue at moment appears to be that I'm not finding a source for
the 14 MHz 816 chip in a PLCC package for under than $100 (WDC's minimum
order). It'd suck having to shell out $100 for a pile of 17 $6.18 chips;
of which I'd only ever use one.

Anybody know if WDC actually enforces that for a single chip 816
purchase or of any other sources of that chip still selling them?
Searches online yielded nothing else; the alternative vendor in the csa2
FAQ seems to have discontinued sales of that 816 chip.

-Dan