Minimig PCB run - interest thread

[Fixer]

**double post**

[basman74]

amigadave wrote:
Has anyone calculated what all the parts to produce a completed Minimig should add up to, minus the PCB itself?

For 100 off, My guess would be like this (prices are in USD) most prices were obtained from Digikey:

Per unit cost - Minimig Rev. 1.0

FPGA:          $19.25
PIC:            $5.15
PCB:            $7.00
2 x SRAM:      $14.50
68k CPU:       $11.00
misc IC's:      $1.80
MMC slot:       $2.20
Connectors:     $5.50
Headers:        $0.50
Passive parts:  $4.00
--------------------
Bare PCB:       $7.00
--------------------
parts delivery: $3.00
--------------------
Subtotal:      $80.90
--------------------
Assembly:      $25.00(hand assembled?)
--------------------
Unit cost:    $105.90
 
Deduct $32.00 from the above to give you your answer for parts cost minus PCB and assembly.

Cheers,

Valentin

PS: Using the 'Toner transfer' method to make the PCB would prove challenging, given the presence of the PQFP

[ottomobiehl]

basman74 wrote:
This is my 1st post.  :-P

Now I have to confess that I've never owned an Amiga before (I own Z-80, 6502 and Intel-based PC's) but after reading every thread about the Minimig, I made two conclusions...

1.) Dennis is an absolute legend! From a fellow designer, a good job on the PCB artwork too!
2.) I am interested in owning a Minimig board too :crazy:


Cheers,

Valentin

Welcome to the Amiga.org, the more the merrier.  Hope you enjoy your stay. :pint:

BTW, I like your avatar, cute puppy.

[basman74]

So.. are you saying that the Minimig could well end up being your first Amiga? :-)

Yes.  8-) However, this may only be true if I don't buy (ideally) a '1200 first...

@ ottomobiehl:  Thanks!

Cheers,

Valentin

[Dr_Righteous]

Ok, let's get off the USB track of thinking here folks. For all intents and purposes MiniMig is an A500 clone. USB will not work worth a flip in this current code / CPU state, nor in the near future.

Yes, the eventual possibilities are endless, but until one of you geniuses out there figures out how to code the complete AGA chipset, FORGET USB! Besides, the only USB stack I know of for Amigas is a little hard to license right now.

From a development standpoint, it'd be far easier for expansion purposes to focus on creating an A2000 clone in ATX form. I personally think that's the direction we should be heading. Zorro II expansion, with a push towards ECS chipset compatibility, fitting in a nice ATX (not ITX) case.

Once we have Zorro II slots, there are numerous ways of applying ATAPI interfaces to the system already available from your friendly Amiga retailer.

Hang PCI for a while too. Let's simply focus on making this thing compatible with and comparable to the real thing before we go fumbling around with things that far outside of the scope of the project.

Dennis gave us A500 level, next step is A2000 level.

Meanwhile, with regard to the CURRENT design, I think the board could (and should) easily be formed to fit the ITX formfactors, just to give it something better than two sheets of Lexan for a case... And to appease all of the ITX fanatics that seem to be littering this site.

Personally, I love my big burly manly computer cases that take hand trucks to move around. But that's just me. I'd cram the thing into an old SGI Origin 2000 server if I could!  :lol:

[Mikkel]

Basman, make that 11$ for the RAM: http://www.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail?name=428-1860-ND

[yssing]

Dr_Righteous >> Actually that is true, but, once, if, the minimig progresses to the state of the A2000, it would need a little more than what the original A2000 was or had.
I do think, how ever, that a few PCI ports could do though.

[basman74]

Basman, make that 11$ for the RAM: http://www.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail?name=428-1860-ND

Mikkel,

Yes, if someone were to modify the PCB artwork (there's a patch on that board that needs rectifying if i'm not mistaken), then your suggestion would be cheaper, of course :-)

While we're considering modification of the PCB, let's also look at:

http://www.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch/dksus.dll?Detail?name=TC51WHM616AXBN70-ND

These PSRAM's would provide four times the memory density of the current setup for less than an SRAM equivalent and are 70ns rated, sufficiently fast enough for the Minimig. Not so easy to install though :-(

Cheers,

Valentin  

[bloodline]

Dr_Righteous wrote:

Yes, the eventual possibilities are endless, but until one of you geniuses out there figures out how to code the complete AGA chipset, FORGET USB! Besides, the only USB stack I know of for Amigas is a little hard to license right now.

You could just use the AROS USB Stack... In fact AROS is a better fit for minimig than AmigaOS anyway... long term.

Hang PCI for a while too. Let's simply focus on making this thing compatible with and comparable to the real thing before we go fumbling around with things that far outside of the scope of the project.

Since there are numerous opensource PCI controlers for FPGA's coupled with the fact that PCI devices are cheap, plentiful and diverse... PCI would be far more sensible than ZII. Again AROS would be able to provide PCI drivers.

[pixie]

@Dr_Righteous:

Ok, let's get off the USB track of thinking here folks. For all intents and purposes MiniMig is an A500 clone. USB will not work worth a flip in this current code / CPU state, nor in the near future.

Didn't knew my A500 had a MMC flash card! :-P

[pixie]

@bloodline:

Since there are numerous opensource PCI controlers for FPGA's coupled with the fact that PCI devices are cheap, plentiful and diverse... PCI would be far more sensible than ZII. Again AROS would be able to provide PCI drivers.

I seriously think this is out of MiniMIG's scope. What value would have a 68000 machine expandable? Expandable to do what with that raw processing power?

MiniMIG will allow to run Amiga games and probably faster in a  little case, now you start to add space, and 'functionality' based on a 68000 processor and you're stretching to far, IMO...

BTW, I hope people interested in MiniMIG also help him untie from current and future IP {bleep}-slapping through AROS kickstart replacement, this way it could be presented to the rest of the world and not just to a selected few.

[Nusim]

@Mikkel

Basman, make that 11$ for the RAM:

Yes, that's 22$ for both parts.

I found a source for the M68AW512ML70ND6 SMD TSSOP package STM Brand. However it would be a significant investment to buy these in at a reasonable pricepoint.

We might try the Cypress parts first to see if they are o.k.

Of course the advantage of supplying the ST parts means that everyone will, initially, be working from the same 'baseline' as Dennis so it's likely we will get these parts.

[persia]

No Zorro slots, it's a stupid move in the extreme, you are tied to pricey old hardware for a new machine, just put PCI slots.  

PCI = simple, available, cheap.
Zorro = Old, limited suppliers, expensive.

[persia]

YES!!!!

USB and PCI, finally reasonable priced hardware!  Use the AROS USB stack and the AROS PCI controller, it's all there, Amiga reborn for the 21st Century!

[freqmax]

I have rebuilt most of the schematic in gEDA
http://rapidshare.com/files/46334959/minimig070801.tar.bz2.html
http://geda.seul.org/

If someone feels to build on it.
Btw, By useing a 1Mx16 ram one can free RAM_SEL1 by using RAM_SEL0 as additional address pin. And one sram instead of two saves a lot of wiring.

@Dennis:
Why does the sram use /UB and /LB when data is 16-bit anyway?
It works as a "enable" for each 8-bit part from what I can see.

The 28MHz fat agnus clock is generated by DCM from the PAL clock?

[Troika]

 

The other problem is parts, some can only be purchased in large quantities. The SRAM appears to be obsolete, which is an even bigger problem.

:idea: Rochester Electronics http://www.rocelec.com/

They used to buy up new old stock of obsolete parts.  Not sure with Rohs, how their business is?  :-?