Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.hardware
Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!metahawk
From: metahawk@itsgw.rpi.edu (Wayne G Rigby)
Subject: Re: A3000 Questions?
Message-ID: <z-9gp7j@rpi.edu>
Sender: Wayne Rigby
Nntp-Posting-Host: jec414.its.rpi.edu
Organization: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy NY
References: <1991May8.185513.14126@clark.edu>
Date: 9 May 91 07:01:19 GMT
Lines: 56

In article <1991May8.185513.14126@clark.edu> danr@clark.edu (Dan Reuther) writes:
>   I am thinking of using the Power Up program and upgrading my A2000 to 
>an A3000.  I have several questions that I would like answered to help me
>make my decision.  
>
>    1.   I know that the A3000 will support the 68040 but am I correct in
>       saying that the A2000 will not support the chip?

I'm not quite sure what you mean by support (the A3000's 32 bit architecture
makes it much easier to interface to the 68040 than the A2000's 16 bit bus).
There are 68040 accelerator boards being designed for the A2000 series.

>    2.   The 3000 has its hard disk controller on the motherboard, not in
>       an expansion slot, right?  Can you add other hard drives to this 
>       controller or do you have to get a new controller and take up an  
>       expansion slot?

Yes, the disk controller is on the motherboard, and all you need to do to
add other drives is to by a SCSI hard drive and plug it into the SCSI
port on the 3000.  Of course, if you want to, you canbuy a controller and
plug it into a slot, but a SCSI drive is cheaper.

>    3.   The 3000 has fewer expansion slots than the 2000 but it has two
>       of the main things expansion slots are used for on the motherboard
>      (up to 18meg, hard disk controller) so even though it has fewer slots
>      it is equally if not more expandible than the 2000?

Almost.  Considering you can get a card for the 2000 that contains a hard
drive controller, a hard drive, and 8 megs of RAM, only one slot is taken
up to get these capabilities.  The 3000 has 4 Zorro III slots, with one
inline with the video slot and two inline with the IBM slots.  The
2000 has 5 Zorro II slots, 2 IBM slots, with two of the Zorro slots inline
with two more IBM slots, and there's a seperate video slot.  With only
one slot taken up with the drive/controller/RAM card, the 2000 still
has 2 more IBM slots and a seperate video slot, which allows more
flexibility.  Of course the inline video slot of the 3000 series could
mean some interesting peripherals in the future.
 
>   Now for some questions about my 2000.

Can't help you here.    

>                            Thanks for the help,
>
>                                a very confused Amiga person
>                                    Dan Reuther.
>
>danr@clark.edu
> 
>       

                                   Wayne Rigby
                                   Computer and Systems Engineer (in training)
                                   Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
                                   metahawk@rpi.edu

