Amiga One X 1000 and Xena/Xorro

[itix]

It's possible, it would be interesting to see what uses people could find for it in a classic Amiga.
Audio applications have already been suggested, XENA could give us a 16/24 bit sound card, speech recognition perhaps, can XENA implement an Ethernet port?, how about an SD card interface, USB port, it could drive a pair of ultrasonic transducers to give us similar functionality to that MS device whose name escapes me at the moment. EDIT: Kinnect.
XENA could give us a multifunction card that could evolve as people developed the software to implement new interfaces and ideas.
Software support would evolve faster if more people were trying to use XENA.

But XENA is not that. It is just renamed XMOS chip. XMOS chip itself is capable to do many tasks and projects you suggested are more or less possible. But it would be just piece of electronics.

Instead of XMOS chip (XENA) also FPGA could be used or off the shelf network interface chips. They are relatively cheap, was it XMOS, FPGA or some other chip. But designing Amiga expansion card with any chip is expensive. You need good knowledge of Amiga hardware (which kind of knowledge is fading) and you need someone to write drivers so your favorite TCP/IP stack can use your new ethernet card.

It is also reason why there are no Xena applications for X1000. It is easier to buy supported sound card from ebay than design one yourself from the scratch including drivers and electronics work. It could be fun but those who find it fun are rare.

[A6000]

a soundcard? As I understand it XENA is a special chip to manipulate streams independent of the processor so you basically develop a program and upload it in the chip where it is executed independently and reacts on events but no interaction with the host system (if I am wrong then someone can explain it). So how do you want to program that soundcard then? In a FPGA it is different because everything is included and interacts with each other but XENA works different. You can automatically manipulate sound streams (perhaps convert them?) but it would be not a real soundcard.

Digital audio is just a stream of 1's and 0's, XENA has one third of its pins dedicated to a local bus for communicating with the system, downloading the XENA program and then transferring data and instructions as required, it could be paula's big sister., with a Retargetable audio driver, data compression/decompression optional.

[OlafS3]

Digital audio is just a stream of 1's and 0's, XENA has one third of its pins dedicated to a local bus for communicating with the system, downloading the XENA program and then transferring data and instructions as required, it could be paula's big sister., with a Retargetable audio driver, data compression/decompression optional.

I think it is more propable that this will be done in a FPGA where everything is included. I see the problem how to change it on the fly like it is done in amiga with its registers. It could be a kind of extension but you would need someone to do the card. And then you have still the problem that our platforms are not supported by XMOS

[A6000]

But XENA is not that. It is just renamed XMOS chip. XMOS chip itself is capable to do many tasks and projects you suggested are more or less possible. But it would be just piece of electronics.

Instead of XMOS chip (XENA) also FPGA could be used or off the shelf network interface chips. They are relatively cheap, was it XMOS, FPGA or some other chip. But designing Amiga expansion card with any chip is expensive. You need good knowledge of Amiga hardware (which kind of knowledge is fading) and you need someone to write drivers so your favorite TCP/IP stack can use your new ethernet card.

It is also reason why there are no Xena applications for X1000. It is easier to buy supported sound card from ebay than design one yourself from the scratch including drivers and electronics work. It could be fun but those who find it fun are rare.

I agree that there are better, easier and cheaper ways to do things, but my posts are about getting XENA to do them.
Developing expansion cards is expensive, I agree, so it makes more sense to develop a programmable, multifunction card that can change when requirements or standards change.

[wawrzon]

I agree that there are better, easier and cheaper ways to do things, but my posts are about getting XENA to do them.
Developing expansion cards is expensive, I agree, so it makes more sense to develop a programmable, multifunction card that can change when requirements or standards change.

People are doing this kind of stuff using fpga and other dedicated chips. I have never heard any amiga hardware developer to even mention xmos. Clearly if needed they woul likely build dedicated boards themselves. But why look for more complicated way with limited time and resources. Those calling for it may do some project themselves instead complaining of no time. Besides There is plenty to actually help with even if only a little instead talking of pipedreams.

[TrevorDick]

OK This is my last word on the subject.

We are in the process of producing a couple of Xorro specific boards which will be compatible with both the AmigaONE x1000 and future X-based models including the A1-X5000/20 & A1-X5000/40.

More news will be released when they are available for sale.

TrevorD

[slayer]

Nice one Trevor! :hammer:

:banana: A1-X5000/40 :drink:

[A6000]

@slayer,
If you don't mind my asking, what do you use three X1000's for?

[slayer]

I have 2 hooked up together permanently via serial cables which also allows me to run different revisions of the AmigaOS and have different types of graphics cards installed, for example one currently has the 7970 and the other a R9 280X; all for beta testing.

The 3rd is a spare, it's a long way to the UK if something goes wrong

[A6000]

OK,Thanks.

[OlafS3]

I have 2 hooked up together permanently via serial cables which also allows me to run different revisions of the AmigaOS and have different types of graphics cards installed, for example one currently has the 7970 and the other a R9 280X; all for beta testing.

The 3rd is a spare, it's a long way to the UK if something goes wrong

three X1000? Wow

[Boot_WB]

Curently, people seem to be having a hard time finding uses for the XENA that require the chip to be inside the Amiga(one) case, putting XENA plus a prototyping area on a ZORRO card is intended to encourage "inside the box" thinking.

X-Core already exist on PCI, and Amiga can be expanded with a PCI bus.
What would be the advantage in developing a Zorro based version?

It may be that classic Amigas need XENA more than the Amigaone does.

That is really confusing as I've not heard a single Amiga user crying out for the lack of a Xena slot, or even wondering if there are X-Core PCI drivers for Mediator/G-Rex.

[Boot_WB]

OK This is my last word on the subject.

We are in the process of producing a couple of Xorro specific boards which will be compatible with both the AmigaONE x1000 and future X-based models including the A1-X5000/20 & A1-X5000/40.

More news will be released when they are available for sale.

TrevorD

Interesting, I'd heard mention of a board (or riser?) which allows user access to the i/o pins for interfacing homebrew electronics etc. That should make it a little easier to use for hobbyist work.
I look forward to hearing more details.

[A6000]

Interesting, I'd heard mention of a board (or riser?) which allows user access to the i/o pins for interfacing homebrew electronics etc. That should make it a little easier to use for hobbyist work.
I look forward to hearing more details.

It is available now from Amigakit here http://amigakit.leamancomputing.com/catalog/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=43&products_id=1135

For a blank board, I think it is overpriced, but you may think differently.

[A6000]

X-Core already exist on PCI, and Amiga can be expanded with a PCI bus.
What would be the advantage in developing a Zorro based version?



That is really confusing as I've not heard a single Amiga user crying out for the lack of a Xena slot, or even wondering if there are X-Core PCI drivers for Mediator/G-Rex.

More users have Zorro slots than have PCI slots,
If the Xena chip is as useful as A-EON say it is, then why would classic users not want one in their machines also?

[amoskodare]

3) A SID chip interface. There's nothing quite like the true analogue sound of a SID chip. Emulations are good, but never the same, any more than an MP3 is the same as a good LP.

Eh wait :eek: Like a "real" SID chip so you can play music with it like chiptunes??

Uber cool music like on the C64, but only using Xena? Or do you also need Xorro and the actuall SID chip for this?

If yes on both first questions, how hard would it be to implement this?