usenet@mcdchg.UUCP (10/02/87)
CELERITY ANNOUNCES THE FIRST CONFIGURABLE
VECTOR/SCALAR SUPERCOMPUTER FOR DEPARTMENTAL USE
SAN DIEGO, CA, September 18, 1987 -- Celerity, manufacturer
and distributor of Unixr-based computer systems for the en-
gineering and scientific environments, today unveiled its
next generation product, the Celerity 6000--a 64-bit depart-
mental supercomputer that is optimized for scalar operations
with enhanced performance through integrated vector capabil-
ities.
The Celerity 6000 is the first system to architecturally
recognize high performance scalar processing as a require-
ment for sustained high performance vector processing. The
fully configured system yields an integer instruction rate
of 160 MIPS or 60 million Whetstones. Fully configured with
vector capabilities, the peak vector instruction rate of the
Celerity 6000 is 160 MFLOPS; the 1000 x 1000 matrix Linpack
benchmark suite yields a continuous 60 MFLOPS for one single
scalar/vector pair.
"One very unique feature of the Celerity 6000 is its very
long vector registers. They hold 1024 elements, compared to
64 in the Cray. This allows the 6000 to handle very large
math problems with ease, producing real results faster than
any other near-supercomputer on the market today," says
Robert P. Ollerton, Director of Product Marketing.
The vector coprocessor is modeled after the Cray X-MP archi-
tecture including stride and scatter/gather addressing.
Similarities between Celerity's vector coprocessor and the
Cray vector architecture allow a natural transition of Cray
optimized code to the Celerity 6000.
For departments that utilize vector capabilities, the Celer-
ity 6000 delivers immediate optimization of FORTRAN programs
through the Celerity 6000's vectorizing FORTRAN preproces-
sor. The FORTRAN preprocessor takes industry standard FOR-
TRAN code and automatically generates code containing direc-
tives for the Celerity vector coprocessor. Areas of optimi-
zation are isolated and made available for vectorization.
The resulting code is compiled producing object code which
takes full advantage of the Celerity vector coprocessor.
Departments that utilize only limited or no vector process-
ing will also gain higher performance levels through the
Celerity 6000's architecture because of its superior scalar
processing abilities. Recognizing the varied computing re-
quirements of technical departments, the architects designed
the Celerity 6000 to allow custom configuration of the pro-
cessing capabilities of each system. Configurable with up
to four processors, the scalar/vector combination is select-
ed by customers, based entirely upon their specific comput-
ing requirements.
"The Celerity 6000 provides high performance for both scalar
and vector programs. Our unique system allows customers to
choose the amount of scalar and/or vector power needed to
process their applications at the optimal level," says Jim
Stafford, Vice President of Marketing & Sales. "No other
vendor can make that statement."
Celerity's new system is finely tuned for multi-tasking,
multi-user workloads. Designed to handle 512 interactive
users, the new system boasts a cycle time of 25 nanoseconds.
In addition, all Celerity systems are object code compati-
ble. Both the new Celerity 6000 series and the proven C1200
supermini series have the same operating system, 4.3 BSD
with System V Interface Definition, and the same commitment
to connectivity with communication capabilities such as DEC-
net, X.25, HASP and SNA.
The Celerity 6000 is a balanced system designed for
compute-intensive loads. Increased computational speed is
achieved on the new system through its RISC architecture,
integrated with powerful floating-point capabilities. Large
register structures facilitate rapid program execution.
Large amounts of memory improve system performance and
enhance large program support. The high performance
input/output subsystem with up to 11 parallel I/O channels
increases overall system throughput by allowing quick access
to data.
"Every aspect of the Celerity 6000 has been optimized for
the needs of a dynamic multi-user environment--scalar, vec-
tor, process and memory mangement, input/output---have all
been carefully scaled to each other to deliver the highest
possible speed without system bottlenecks," says Ollerton.
The architecture of the Celerity 6000 minimizes the need for
expensive, centralized support facilities and staff, making
it available for departmental use. Celerity's near-
supercomputer has the environmental requirements of a super-
mini. The totally dedicated climate control system, typi-
cally required for other supercomputers, is not needed for
the Celerity 6000. Even space requirements are minimized
through the system's small footprint and efficient board
layout. For example, the Celerity 6000 contains 1024 mil-
lion bytes of real system memory in less than two cubic
feet.
To ensure maximum system up-time, serviceability and overall
performance without the expensive maintenance and operating
staff of a supercomputer, the Celerity 6000 is equipped with
an independent Extended Service Processor (ESP). The ESP is
a customized, UNIX-based computer that allows Celerity Ser-
vice Centers to graphically monitor the system's perfor-
mance, diagnose problems and provide immediate technical as-
sistance to remote locations, usually before the user real-
izes there is an irregularity.
Starting as low as $235,000 for a basic system, typical
Celerity 6000 configurations range from $250,000 to $1.2
million. For example, the list price of a system including
one scalar processor, 32MB of 2-way interleaved memory,
690MB of disk, tape drive, ESP console, and the Unix operat-
ing system is $250,000. A larger system configuration con-
sisting of two vector/scalar pairs, 128MB of 8-way inter-
leaved memory, 690MB of disk, 6250GCR tape, ESP console and
the Unix operating system has a list price of $632,000.
"The Celerity 6000 provides the balanced performance, relia-
bility, flexibility and price tag necessary for departmental
supercomputing," says Celerity President, Steve Vallender.
"It is not only a fast, truly balanced system, but it is en-
gineered with the same adherence to quality on which our
current family of superminicomputers was founded."
Celerity's current line of superminicomputers provides ad-
vanced design and analysis capabilities for many technical
environments including animation, automotive, aerospace and
scientific research. The company has installed its line of
superminicomputers in major corporations, research centers
and universities throughout the United States, Canada, Eu-
rope and Asia. Customers include General Motors, Ford, Exx-
on, Westinghouse, Martin Marietta and NBC.
Celerity will begin shipments of the new system in November
of 1987. The Celerity 6000 will be marketed and serviced
through existing U.S. offices and international distributors
located in France, Japan, Germany and Belgium.
# # #
rUNIX is a registered trademark of AT&T Bell Laboratories.
Cray-1 and Cray X-MP are registered trademarks of Cray Research, Inc.
DECnet is a trademark of Digital Equipment Corporation.
SNA is a trademark of International Business Corporation.
For further information, contact:
Robert P. Ollerton Jacqueline Townsend
Director, Product Marketing Manager, Marketing Communications
Celerity Celerity
phone: (619) 271-9940
fax: (619) 549-4668