DIY RAM Expansion for A500/A500+: Up to 2.5 MB total RAM!

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SukkoPera

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Up for sale are some DIY kits of the Amiga 500 memory expansion designed by PeteAU.

This expansion uses RAM chips from the old SIMM memory modules used on PCs in the late '90s-early '00s, which can be found quite easily on eBay or hopefully in your attic :). Compatible chips should be all 42-pin EDO RAM chips in the SOJ package. Count carefully, because there are also 40-pin chips around, which are NOT compatible with this expansion.

The expansion supports 3 different configurations:

  • 512 KB slow or chip RAM for the A500 (depending on Agnus and mainboard revision), for 1 MB total RAM (requires a single chip)
  • 1 MB chip RAM expansion for the A500+, for 2 MB total chip RAM (requires 2 chips)
  • 512 KB chip RAM + 1/1.5 MB slow RAM for the A500 (requires a suitable Agnus, usage of a Gary Adapter and 3/4 chips), for a total of 1 MB chip + 1/1.5 MB slow RAM (1.5 MB requires Kickstart >= 1.3, 1.2 only supports 1 MB)

The expansion can also provide an RTC (Real-Time Clock), but this is optional and not required for operation.

All PCBs come as an expansion board with the Gary Adapter tacked to it (see picture below). If you need the latter, you will have to separate the boards (look around for how to cut PCBs). If you don't need it, you can just leave it there and it won't hurt.

NOTE: ALL KITS BELOW ARE SOLD OUT, PCBS ALONE ARE STILL AVAILABLE (in red)!

Kits have been grouped in order to try to accommodate all configurations:

  • PCB only (You provide all components): 4€ 3,50€
  • PCB + Base Kit (Includes mainboard connector and caps): 5€
  • Led Kit (Adds a power led, not that useful, choose among red, green, yellow, blue, white or orange): 0,50€
  • Gary Adapter Kit (Needed for 1 MB chip RAM + more than 512 KB slow RAM on A500): 7€ 6€
  • RTC Kit (Includes everything to make the RTC work EXCEPT CR2032 battery): 5€ 4€

A detailed list of what is included in every kit is available here.

All critical components come from a Reputable Source (capitalization is not casual). RTC chips are second hand "pulls" but are tested individually before shipping, so you are guaranteed to get a 100% working kit.

Note that I do not provide the actual RAM chips! You will have to find your own! I do not provide the RTC battery either (easily found in all shops for a couple bucks). Also, if you intend to use the Gary Adapter, you will need 3 wires for it, and female Dupont headers in case (male headers are included), or wires can be soldered directly to the board if you prefer.

Following is a list of chips that are confirmed working, but there are definitely many more:

  • Hynix HY5118164B
  • TI TMS418160DZ
  • TI TMS418169DZ
  • SEC KM416C1204AJ-6
  • Alliance AS4C1M16E5-60JC

Shipping is not included and will need to be agreed upon. As a rule of thumb, untracked shipping for up to two kits should be 4,50€ to Europe, 5,50€ to the US and 7,50€ to Australia. Add 6€ for tracking.

Note that the final, soldered, ready-to-use product is NOT on sale. The kit requires that you do the soldering and is not suitable for the faint-hearted, since it requires soldering a lot of surface-mount components in the 0805 package.

I intend to provide (informal) support for proper configuration of the board as time permits. I will add high-resolution images of a fully assembled board for reference.

Payment methods accepted: PayPal Family & Friends (or add commissions), Bank Transfer, Satispay (for Italian buyers)

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My Sales:


 
Last edited:
Declaring interest in 2 boards with the gary kit.

Greetings.

Valfac
 
Package for valfac sent this morning.

No reply from Retroheaven87 nor o0Nosferatu0o at the moment. Anyway I still have quite a few boards to go :).
 
No reply from Retroheaven87 nor o0Nosferatu0o yet, I guess they are no longer interested.

I think I have about 8-10 more PCBs for sale, but not as many kits, so be aware :).
 
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