evans@mhuxt.UUCP (crandall) (09/13/85)
Here are the results of the Megabyte Mac poll. I've had numerous requests to post this so here it goes... Subject: large memory Macs My Mac has the Levco 2 megabyte upgrade, which cost $900 to install on a 512K machine. The memory is linear and continuous -- by changing a single constant in my MacScheme (Lisp) init file I can run very large programs in a 1.8 megabyte heap (this is the MacScheme heap, which is distinct from the various Macintosh heaps). There have been no power supply problems since the upgrade was installed in mid-July. The piezoelectric fan that comes with the upgrade sounds like a very mild case of power supply hum and it makes the machine run cooler than it did before the upgrade. Peace, William Clinger From: ihnp4!ucbvax!ucdavis!deneb!cclynn001 (Chris Borton) I don't personally have an upgrade, but know a lot of people here in Davis that got the Bek-Tech upgrade. We banded together as a user group for 15 upgrades and got a price of $400 w/o ROMs, which were ~$70. Most people are happy with them, but one I talked to said the software to run it is written terribly in that it works fine, but if you want to go to continuous afterward you have to redo all your System files. I'm also sure that Apple won't support anything of the sort in their ROM upgrades. I had my mac upped to 512K at Levco (at the actual place in San Diego) and I was impressed by their operation. I've heard only good things about the MonsterMac, and I like the idea of available PROM sockets and bus access. The ROM's for Levco don't interfere with Apple's and improve things a bit, like ejecting BOTH disks on MouseDown startup. They also put in a piezo fan that is silent (vibrating membrane) and does the job. Their modification does not reguire any disk software (it's in their PROMs) and every- thing is socketed. They also guarantee that they will support it, no matter how Apple does their ROM upgrade. I hope this helps you somewhat. I'll be interested in hearing other people's responses. The prices I see now are $400-$500 for Bek-Tech, ~$500 for just the MonsterMac board (put in your own $2.95 256K chips). I also know a company in the Bay Area that is supposedly doing 1.5M ups for ~$450-600, but I have yet to see one. Good luck! Chris Borton ...ucbvax!ucdavis!deneb!cclynn-001 P.S. Levco is supposedly devoping a hard disk controller to work off their bu port. I'm going to call them and try to verify this. From: ihnp4!amdahl!sjl (Steve Langdon) Subject: Re: Megabyte memory expansion poll News-Path: hplabs!tektronix!zehntel!vlsvax1!qantel!ihnp4!mhuxt!evans References: <1145@mhuxt.UUCP> I had my Mac upgraded to 2 Meg about 6 weeks ago. A company called CJS Systems in Berkley did the upgrade using the Levco board and fan. The cost was $895. The Levco board gives you contiguous memory in much the same way as the Becktech board with the special ROM. I am very happy with the system. My normal operating environment is to set up a 1.2 Meg Ramdisk using the Assimilation Process Ramdisk software which was included in the upgrade price. This gives me enough space to run two 128K and two 256K partitions under Switcher 4.3. I have found very few programs that object to the extra memory. The best fix for those that do is to run them under the Switcher with a partition of <= 512K. I have all of the Microsoft packages (except Basic), MacDraw, MacProject and a few other things. One major piece of software I just tried was the newest version of Mac C from Consulair. Mac C 4.0 and the new Consulair linker are a substantial improvement to an already good product. It runs very well in the 2 Meg system. If you have any specific questions feel free to send me some mail. Steve Langdon ...!{ihnp4,cbosgd,hplabs,sun}!amdahl!sjl +1 408 746 6970 From: ihnp4!vlsvax1!zehntel!tektronix!tekchips!messick Subject: Re: Megabyte memory expansion poll Newsgroups: net.micro.mac In-Reply-To: <1145@mhuxt.UUCP> Organization: Tektronix, Inc., Beaverton, OR. In article <1145@mhuxt.UUCP> you write: >I would be interested in comments from people who have a Mac that is >larger than 1Meg. Specifically > > - Who did it? Radix, Intl. installed a modification designed by Levco, Inc. of San Diego. Unfortunately, their address is at home -- if you need it send me a note. > - What did it cost? $900 > - How big is it? 2 megabytes (they installed 1.5M) > - Do you have a "continuous memory" ROM? I don't know what you mean. My RAM address space is continuous I believe, but all data stored in it goes away when I power my Mac down. > - Did you have any power supply problems? If so was your Mac an > early version. No. Levco supplies a piezoelectric fan to be installed with their 2M upgrade. I have to listen hard to detect the fan when using my Mac. In all honesty I must report that right now my Mac is being checked: it recently has been booting as a 1M Mac (instead of 2M). Aside from that, I've had no problems. --steve From: ihnp4!seismo!rochester!ccice5!dwf (Douglas W. Forehand) Subject: Re: Megabyte memory expansion poll Newsgroups: net.micro.mac In-Reply-To: <1145@mhuxt.UUCP> Organization: CCI, Central Engineering, Rochester, NY In article <1145@mhuxt.UUCP> you write: >I would be interested in comments from people who have a Mac that is >larger than 1Meg. Specifically > > - Who did it? I upgraded mine using the Levco 2Meg Kit ( I'm the Rochester area distributor for Levco :-) ) > > - What did it cost? The retail from Levco for the 2Meg kit is $800. That includes the MonsterMac board with 1.5Meg of ram (you must already be fat), piezo electric fan, and very complete installation guide. For my net buddies who do not have access to a local distributor I may be able to offer a special price. Smaller sizes can be had in 512k increments. Nifty tiny P.C. board based 128k to 512k upgrades are also available for approx. $300. If you want the Monster installation done for you it will run you an additional $100 plus shipping and handling of your Mac. > > - How big is it? It covers approx. 2/3's of the mac board. > > - Do you have a "continuous memory" ROM? Yes, and Levco has no copywrite problems with their ROM's, however this is not the case with Bech Tech. By the way Apple has tested the MonsterMac board with the new ROM's and said it works fine. > > - Did you have any power supply problems? If so was your Mac an > early version. No problems. On a related issue my MonsterMac does not feel any warmer than it did when it was merely fat. > Comments: I am extremely pleased with my setup. Typically I run a 1Meg ramdisk (RamStart) with 1Meg of heap. How does runing ANY of your favorite compliers out of ramdisk sound. Or perhaps Jazz on ramdisk with no need for an external drive ( my favorite ). Not to mention a Monster System file with more fonts and D.A.'s than you Know what to do with. The list goes on .... Then you may ask : but Doug what do I do about a hard disk ?". Well Carol show the people whats behind door number 2.... yes its an st-506 hard disk contoller board that fits neatly onto the Monster boards' option connector. Levco demonstrated a proto-type system at the Macworld expo . I was impressed . The system setup will consist of the controller board inside the mac and the drive(s) ( yes that's drives , up to four can be connected) outside the mac along with a power supply. The cables were routed through the security cable slot in the back of the mac. My only disapointment is that it won't be available till the end of the year, pricing is yet to be anounced. Test runs show that it is faster than Hyper-driver which is no suprise when you consider that you are not limited to using a 3.5" winney with 85 ms access time. If you have the $dollars you have your choice of several 5.25" drives that have access times of 30ms or less. Doug Forehand ATT: (716)482-5000 x2521 E mail: seismo!rochester!ccice5!dwf US mail: 97 Humboldt st. ; Rochester N.Y. 14609