Hi everyone, newbie here :)

[tonto2k]

Hi,

I am new to amiga's. I couldn't afford one back in the day, but now the hardware is a bit cheaper(or is it?) I thought I would get into the scene.

I am the proud owner of a 500 with 512k expansion from a car boot sale. A 600 standard and I recently bought a gvp impact series II off a good old boy called Matt. I have a 540 mb quantum fireball scsi drive in it and a load of old sims off ebay for it. I also have the gvp 286 expansion plug in for the expansion slot thing(lucky me?) The 286 came with the 600 for some reason even tho it only works with the 500 !

Anyone any experience with these gvp impact series II hd+ and installing ram on them?

thanks in advance guys.
tonto.

[Martyn]

Welcome tonto.

I recently bought a gvp impact series II off a good old boy called Matt. I have a 540 mb quantum fireball scsi drive in it and a load of old sims off ebay for it.

Anyone any experience with these gvp impact series II hd+ and installing ram on them?

You've bought a Impact Series II for the 500?  I thought it was an A2000 card? And the A500 version was the
Impact 500?

Also, if it's a Impact Series II 2000-HC rather than a Impact Series II 2000-HC+8 you can't fit ram anyway.

But that's beside the point.  What have you got?

Cheers,
Martyn.

p.s.  If you've got 'a load' (i.e. more than you need) of GVP simms (they use their own propriety simms), then I'd buy some off you.

p.p.s  I haven't confused you, have I?!

[LP]

hey tonto2k

Welcome to the AO forums...

Hope you'll enjoy it here

as for the gvp i don't know much of how it works..

but you could try your luck on
 Amiga-Hardware.com

[tonto2k]

Hi,

Yes it's a gvp impact series II a500 HD+ (not hd+8), it takes 30 pin simms but the guy I bought it off said it would just take standard 30 pin simms. So I bought 29 normal pieces off ebay for £4 and I intend to stick them in.

The maximum ram it will take is 8mb and thats with just two out of four slots filled, it requires two 4mx8 simms to utilise the full 8megs :-? I thought 4mx8 would equal 32mb? Or am I barking up completly the wrong tree ?

Heres a photo of it:

http://amiga.resource.cx/photos/photo.pl?id=impact500mk2


Also, could I swap the 68000 processor out my a500 for a 68030 just like you would in a pc? or is a expansion adapter thingie neccessary?

cheers,
tonto.

[Karlos]

@tonto2k

'lo :-)

To upgrade the CPU of an A500, you generally need an expansion card. The A500/500+/600 weren't really designed with drop in CPU replacement expansion.

Come to think of it, was any amiga (at socket level, I mean)?

Anyhow, you can get a 14MHz 68000/68010 as a sort of drop in.

Alternatively, there were a range of CPU expansion cards for the A500. Most sit in the old CPU socket AFAIR and provide things like 68030/FPU support and fast ram using normal SIMMs. I can also remember one or two that plugged on the side. The GVP 530? Not sure, its going back a bit!

There was even a 33MHz 68040 card for the A500. I recall reading a review back in, ooh, 1993 or so in Amiga Shopper magazine. That was *serious* horsepower back then. Can't remember who made it though. It came with 2.05 Kickstart roms on board (since 1.3 wasnt 68040 friendly).

[PMC]

tonto2k wrote:

The maximum ram it will take is 8mb and thats with just two out of four slots filled, it requires two 4mx8 simms to utilise the full 8megs :-? I thought 4mx8 would equal 32mb? Or am I barking up completly the wrong tree ?

Also, could I swap the 68000 processor out my a500 for a 68030 just like you would in a pc? or is a expansion adapter thingie neccessary?

cheers,
tonto.

Hi, and welcome to A.org!

I don't think you'll be able to access 32Mb in the GVP as the 68000 CPU can only address 10Mb (AFAIK), so that is the maximum you'll be able to use unless you swap the CPU

There is an expansion thingy for adding a 68030.  It comes in two flavours - it's been years since I've seen one but I'm sure GVP did a CPU expansion that fitted into the external side car hard drive unit, and the most popular choice is a fit in replacement daughterboard that plugs into the CPU socket.  Simply swapping the CPU won't work as the 68000 and 68030 are different shapes :-D

Try either www.eyetech.co.uk or www.powerc.co.uk and see what they have in stock.

[sumner7]

@martyn

Who's that in your avatar???

[Lemmink]

The maximum ram it will take is 8mb and thats with just two out of four slots filled, it requires two 4mx8 simms to utilise the full 8megs I thought 4mx8 would equal 32mb? Or am I barking up completly the wrong tree ?

Those figures say something about the bit arangement of the used chips (we remember 8bit = 1 byte) so those 4mx8 would be 4MB Modules as opposed to 1mx8 wich would be 1 MB modules. You allways have to use pairs of those 8bit RAM modules, as the RAM-expansion on the GVP (and on the ZII Bus in general) is 16bit. So you could either use four 1MB Modules for a total of 4MB or two 4MB modules for the maximum adressable 8MB. I belive you have to tell the board by a jumper what kind of modules you installed.

As for acceleratorboards: decent ones are hard to find these days and if, they are quite expensive. Especially the mentioned GVP530,the best card for the A500 ever build (apart from the 040card from ProgressivePeripherals with a hand full of in existence) can easyly go above 100 EUR.

For a good overview of A500 accelerators look here

http://www.amiga-hardware.com/a500accel.html

Or in general have a look at the BigBoook here

http://www.amiga-hardware.com/

[Martyn]

sumner7 wrote:
@martyn

Who's that in your avatar???

That's my girlfriend, Hannah.

I've been thing of changing it actually 'cos I keep getting asked about it.  And also, she'd have my balls if she knew I was using a pic of her!

[MAD]

Hoya!

Wow, she is gorgeous!

Who said computers users were dandruffed monsters? ;-)

/me dccs Hanna a bouquet of flowers...

Be funky

M A D

[Martyn]

@MAD

Wow, she is gorgeous!

/me dccs Hanna a bouquet of flowers...

"Back off man!  ...I'm a scientist!"

[MAD]

Hoya!

Erk!

/me is afraid of receiving an explosive enema!

Be funky

M A D

[sumner7]

Martyn wrote:

sumner7 wrote:
@martyn

Who's that in your avatar???

That's my girlfriend, Hannah.

I've been thing of changing it actually 'cos I keep getting asked about it.  And also, she'd have my balls if she knew I was using a pic of her!

You lucky thing! She's well nice! ;-)

[lempkee]

LOL @ Martyn!

anyway she is very nice indeed but i have a red hair'd one myself and i wouldnt trade her for anything so :-)