Re: also found...
"Terry Yager" wrote:
>> I've got a 386 16Mhz based Desktop here
>> with Maths Co-processor, but I'm not sure
>> if I need it or what. The second problem
>> is this machine (is a DEC Workstation 316SX
>> & is VERY fussy about what hardware it likes),
>> still it has a slot for the Maths Co-Processor.
> ...The chips I have probably won't help you
> anyways. Your DEC workstation 316SX is
> most likely an SX processor, right?
Yes it is a SX processor. Sorry, I thought you
mean't they were SX chips (when you called
them pre-DX chips). In that case it won't work.
My DEC Workstation looks to have a special
CPU in itself, when I originally got that machine
it was so odd it had a special floppy disk drive
of it's own (which I stuffed up). I kept it in case
I could get it working with some standard
hardware, which I managed to do (so in a sense
I've stopped playing around with it, in case I
muck it up again).
> The chips I have would be considered DX
> chips, except they were made before Intel
> started calling them that. (The original '386s
> were just called 80386, until the '386SX
> came along, then they started to call 'em
> '386DX to distinguish between the two types
> of chip).
Oh okay, I was familiar with these chips which
didn't have the DX on them (just 386-16Mhz &
386-20Mhz I believe they made), I didn't
realise they were the equivalent of the later
DX chips.
> The DX chip is a 32-bit processor with a
> 32-bit wide I/O path, where the SX is a
> scaled down (cheaper) version with only
> a 16-bit data path.
Yes, I knew that.
> The two are not generally interchangable,
> although I have seen boards with the SX
> soldered-in on the board, and an extra
> socket for upgrading to a DX type.
I've got a computer like that, it's a 386 DX
I think running at 40Mhz. The CPU is
soldered onto the board. On the processor
they went to the trouble of stamping a
Windows 3.1 on it! ;-)
Cheers,
CP/M User.