Amiga 1200 Marpet Developments M1207 Questions

[RetroGR]

Hey all ,

With my new system i got a memory expansion card with 8 MB Fast Ram installed.I was wondering if there is a hack to add more memory on this card.Anyone knows something about it ?

Also is the FPU going to improve the cards performance ? No right ? so what is the reason to have one if you don't use the Amiga for rendering 3D ?

A video for example will run smother if you convert it an everything with an FPU ?

http://amiga.resource.cx/photos/marpet1208

Thanks in advance dudes

 

[ajk]

It's not possible to add more than 8MB of RAM to an A1200 without also upgrading the CPU. The processor installed on the motherboard simply does not support it.

There isn't really any reason to have a FPU if you don't use math-intensive applications. No games benefit from it. Pretty sure video decoding does not either.

 

[RetroGR]

Thx dude

So the Blizzard is the only way i see for a nice cpu and memory upgrade right ?

I saw the ACA 1220 cards also but i see they have really low flops right ?

Do 030 expansion cards with more memory exist ?at fair price i mean ?because the 400 euros cards i see make me feel weird in the stomach

 

[ajk]

Basically any accelerator card (Blizzard/GVP/Apollo/ACA/etc.) will allow a larger amount of memory. How much exactly, varies from card to card, but usually you can get at least up to 32 megs, with Blizzards up to 256 megs.

The ACA1220 is probably the cheapest option if you want a lot of RAM, but it only gives a slight speed boost otherwise. There are also other ACA models that have an 030 up to 56MHz which is already a significant speed boost.

 

[RetroGR]

Thx again dude i will do my research

 

[www_amigakit_com]

Hi

It depends what you want to do with your A1200.

If you are into WHDLoad gaming, then an ACA 1220 is usually the best option because you will need Fast memory and a low/mid-range CPU performance.

If you are looking to do more serious applications with the A1200, then an investment into a higher end 040-060 may be a better investment if you can obtain one at a competitive price.

AJK is correct, only an accelerator with full 32-bit CPU can usually address over the 8MB fast memory area.

 

[Zetr0]

Hello RetroGR,

Hey all ,

With my new system i got a memory expansion card with 8 MB Fast Ram installed.I was wondering if there is a hack to add more memory on this card.Anyone knows something about it ?

Sadly as has been pointed out the Amiga A1200 CPU (68EC020) can only address in 24bits - this is to say that it only has a 16MB Limit. On the Amiga 8MB is reserved as resource - for things like PCMCIA, IDE, Graphics, Sound, IO etc. There is a little extra-spare space (about 3.5MB), however its complicated to access without a lot of bank switching, which unfortunately your Marpet 1208 cannot do.

Also is the FPU going to improve the cards performance ? No right ? so what is the reason to have one if you don't use the Amiga for rendering 3D ?

I see a lot of people reach for the "no" option here and that is simple not true, if you are into graphics 2D and 3D rendering a 33Mhz FPU is a massive increase in performance compared to a 14Mhz 020!

Also I should mention to really improve the system as a whole and get the most out of an FPU (and CPU) I would suggest looking up HSMath Libraries - its a small investment but assuredly worth it!

Another thing that is often overlooked is file-type compression, namely jpeg, gif etc - these all benefit from an FPU.

A video for example will run smother if you convert it an everything with an FPU ?

http://amiga.resource.cx/photos/marpet1208

Thanks in advance dudes

Hmmm kinda, an FPU will help with decompression, with the likes of Mpeg1-2, however a 32bit integer engine is about the same performance on this level as the slow-part (the bit the CPU and or FPU has to wait for) is putting it to the screen (CHIP MEM contention).

All in all, more often than not FPU's are overlooked which is a shame as for low-end systems they can provide a cost effective way to achieve additional performance in productivity software as well as Workbench.

However it does all come down to pocket money and what you can get for your pennies.

Reviewing the Market today I would choose the A1220 20Mhz 020 + 128MB of RAM, sadly there is no FPU, but the enormousness of FAST RAM allows for big arrays of lookup tables (think pre-compiled FPU math) as well as a 50% Faster CPU =)

If you want a lot more power then I would humbly suggest a classic accelerator either an Apollo 040/060 or Blizzard 040/60 pending your budget.

A VERY Basic Level of Comparison

1.1 MIPS - A1200 - Stock
2.6 MIPS - A1200 + 8MB FAST RAM
3.5 MIPS - A1200 + ACA1220@20Mhz 128MB FAST
8.5 MIPS - A1200 + Apollo 030@40Mhz (FPU can be installed on this unit)
9.4 MIPS - A1200 + Blizzard 030@50Mhz (FPU can be installed on this unit)
18.2 MIPS - A1200 + Apollo / Blizzard 040@25MHz (internal FPU on CPU)
24.3 MIPS - A1200 + Apollo / Blizzard 040@33MHz (internal FPU on CPU)
34.5 MIPS - A1200 + Apollo / Blizzard 040@50MHz (internal FPU on CPU)
65.4 MIPS - A1200 + Apollo / Blizzard 060@50MHz (internal FPU on CPU)

Obviously more MIPS = Faster Performance, I should mention though that this doesn't take into account FPU output, commonly referred to as FLOPS or Floating-point Operations Per Second.

 

[RetroGR]

Great to know thanks Zetro Basically i am in to WHDLoad games but i also like to run videos , music and all kind of staff.

I am not going to use the A1200 for any 3D rendering or any demanding applications.It seems to me that the extra memory is a must.Some games fail even with the 10MB of memory that i have now like UFO.

The A1220 looks like a nice card with lots of memory and clock option.But i am sure the Apollo 030 will be a much nicer upgrade for the system.So i am between this two cards for now

I will use the system a few weeks before buying anything first.And if its only a few games that are nor running ooo well I am having the usual issues with 8MB Fast Ram and pcmcia use.Playing with the jumpers all the time is not quite enjoyable this is the main reason i am considering a faster card.

But tell me now is there anyone here that dose not want to play Doom or Quake in his Amiga....we are all sickkkkkkkkkk

 

[RetroGR]

After some digging i saw that the ACA 1220 card require timing fixes most of the times.Dose the ACA 1232 ECO030 card requires the same fixes ?Anyone knows?
Thx in advance

 

[Zetr0]

@RetroGR

Most of the time these ACA cards are okay, but some revisions of A1200 motherboard might need a small timing fix. www.Amigakit.com can help you in this regard and certainly offer this service.

I noticed that you said you were having problems with UFO (one of my favourite games) with 8MB FAST and 2MB Chip. I have to admit I am quite surprised as its only a 2MB Game - thats to say it (UFO AGA) only uses 2MB of space... maximum. I suspect that you are running the WHDLoad slave?

If so, DONT use that, in fact you can install the game to the hard disk. Not only will it load faster (as it doesn't have to emulate the FDD) but you shouldn't have any memory problems at all.

There are a couple of easy tricks to negate the manual - code begging screen - just hit me up in PM.

 

[RetroGR]

@RetroGR


If so, DONT use that, in fact you can install the game to the hard disk. Not only will it load faster (as it doesn't have to emulate the FDD) but you shouldn't have any memory problems at all.

There are a couple of easy tricks to negate the manual - code begging screen - just hit me up in PM.

Yeap that was the problem dude whdload preloads staff and needs tons of memory Thx for the information

Also i am not going for the ACA cards any more i am more likely to get an older better accelerator with some memory there are so many nice alternatives if you are persistent

Thanks again for your time dudes