SE/30 PDS Adapter Epic Blunder

[Fizzbinn]

Wow. Just wow...   

 

[joethezombie]

It took some haggling, but I got a decent deal.  Legs look to be solder-free, even under magnification.  But nearly every one has some kind of bent portion.  If I were at the races, I'd bet on the trays being dropped.

 

[trag]

It took some haggling, but I got a decent deal.  Legs look to be solder-free, even under magnification.  But nearly every one has some kind of bent portion.  If I were at the races, I'd bet on the trays being dropped.

That is fantastic news!   How many chjps in a tray?

Guacamole.

So how long until you guys are producing new ones?    I have 800 IS61C632 (32K X 32 SRAM) that could be used for cache, if that helps...

 

[Bolle]

So how long until you guys are producing new ones?    I have 800 IS61C632 (32K X 32 SRAM)

That will take some more time I guess.

There are still three GALs on the ASIC Turbo that need examination too before such a thing could happen.

32K*32 would be a waste if we want to stick to the original 128K of cache. Mouser still stocks 32K*8 so the SRAM would not be a real issue... The Tag-SRAM however would be.

I have got a roll of AT7174 but not sure where to go when that’s empty.

Working on 030 accelerators right now that will need those.

At first we‘re going to see if the chips are legit and working at all and get @JDW‘s Turbo fixed if they are.

 

[trag]

32K*32 would be a waste if we want to stick to the original 128K of cache. Mouser still stocks 32K*8 so the SRAM would not be a real issue... The Tag-SRAM however would be.

32K X 32 is 128K of cache....  It's all on one chip, instead of spread over four.   However, buying 32K X 8 chips that match the JEDEC standard of the original chips avoids any re-engineering.

Tag-SRAM is an SRAM with comparators on board.  It shouldn't be too difficult to create a replacement if you run out of existing parts.  The challenge is making the new arrangement fast enough. 

 

[Bolle]

2K X 32 is 128K of cache....

heh, you’re right. Shouldn’t answer any threads before the first morning coffee.

Making a fast enough replacement for the comparators isn’t too hard if you have enough I/O on whatever CPLD you are using.

 

[JDW]

Sorry for my late reply, but I'm not getting email updates from this forum for some reason, and no, it's not my SPAM filter either.  I simply came here today to see if @joethezombie had any success, and WOW!  You are THE MAN, Joe!  Did you have to dig those out of their trash bin?  :lol:  Regardless, the fact they are in your hands is simply outstanding!

What's the next step in getting some chips to @Bolle?  Assuming my poor accelerator board is only afflicted in that one area, it would be a good test to see if those chips are in working order.

 

[joethezombie]

A good portion of the chips will be sent to @Bolle, and I'll maintain a healthy supply for the Americas for users in need of repairs, or perhaps future products.  I should be able to get the package shipped out tomorrow.  Here's to hoping they're the real deal!

 

[JDW]

A good portion of the chips will be sent to @Bolle, and I'll maintain a healthy supply for the Americas for users in need of repairs, or perhaps future products.  I should be able to get the package shipped out tomorrow.  Here's to hoping they're the real deal!

That's great, Joe.  I look forward to hearing the findings of @Bolle after he receives his batch.

 

[techknight]

Not sure of the feasibility, but it may be worth taking a few of those more badly damaged ones, and sending them to a Chinese reverse engineering house to see if the chips can be reverse engineered and the logic put into an FPGA or something. 

 

[CC_333]

Not sure of the feasibility, but it may be worth taking a few of those more badly damaged ones, and sending them to a Chinese reverse engineering house to see if the chips can be reverse engineered and the logic put into an FPGA or something. 

That's a fantastic idea!

This could, in time, allow for clones of the Turbo040 to be developed, yes?

c

 

[JDW]

@Bolle I just wanted to follow-up to confirm if you've received your batch of chips yet from @joethezombie?

It's not a problem if you've been busy.  Just curious what you found.

 

[Bolle]

They're on the way (again)

There was an issue with packaging and they got returned to joe. He said he was going to send them again.

 

[joethezombie]

Yeah, they were returned due to the packaging being not large enough for a specific label on one dimension.  I found it rather peculiar.  But then again, I just received a package from Italy, and the sender had to scans of their photo ID, customs forms, and all manner of other paperwork.  The paperwork was thicker than the parts!

Anyway, I know it's not what you want to hear, but I haven't yet got them back out.  I'll double my efforts to get them out tomorrow!

 

[techknight]

Thats.... Stupid. usually its the other way around. your package is larger/heavier than the label. 

Thats odd... 

 

[JDW]

Yeah, they were returned due to the packaging being not large enough for a specific label on one dimension.

I've shipped a lot of int'l packages during my 25 years in Japan, so you have me very curious as to what label it was they complained about.

BTW, I never get any email notifications of replies to this thread, despite the "Notify me of replies" switch below my reply being green and check-marked.  Am I the only one who has to manually visit this thread every day to see if somebody replied?

 

[CC_333]

BTW, I never get any email notifications of replies to this thread, despite the "Notify me of replies" switch below my reply being green and check-marked.  Am I the only one who has to manually visit this thread every day to see if somebody replied?

No. This is a known issue with the forum software (something about the email server's spam filter not being tuned properly or something).  The admins are aware of the problem and are slowly working on a fix.

c

 

[JDW]

The admins are aware of the problem and are slowly working on a fix.

xx(

That keyword "slowly" indicates "no fix in sight."  

Is there a forum thread on the topic where we can contribute to accelerating the pace of that much needed fix?

 

[CC_333]

That keyword "slowly" indicates "no fix in sight."  

Probably *sigh*

Is there a forum thread on the topic where we can contribute to accelerating the pace of that much needed fix?

I don't know. I guess you could try PMing the admins?

c

 

[JDW]

@Bolle @joethezombie

It's been almost a month since I last followed-up on this thread. Was the shipping "label" issue resolved?