[comp.sys.mac.hardware] LaserWriter LS memory upgrade

guelzow@ccu.umanitoba.ca (Andreas J. Guelzow) (06/25/91)

The LaserWriter LS manual indicates that its memory can be upgraded to
1 Meg (from 512 K). Does anybody know how this can be done without
bringing the printer to an "auth. apple dealer". What kind of SIMMs
are needed (I am hoping that the answer is: any of those old 256K
Simms people have left over after upgrading their Mac Memory.)


-- 
Andreas J. Guelzow                       <guelzow@ccu.umanitoba.ca>
Department of Mathematics & Astronomy        University of Manitoba 

steveh@tasman.cc.utas.edu.au (Steven Howell) (06/25/91)

	To upgrade a laserwrite LS from 512k to 1meg, simply plug into the 
spare DIP sockets 2x 44256 memory chips. these chips are the run of the mill
256k x4 bits memories.

Once installed in their sockets, move the memory jumper select from .5M to 1M.


and this would have upgraded the laserwriter to 1 meg... quite cheap actually.

but make sure;
the power is off
you are using anti-static procedures
the chips are installed with all pins into their respective sockets
and their orientation is correct (notch to notch)


you can fin these chips from virtually any electronic computer shop.
they are used in the mac classic memory board, IBM vga cards etc..

steve h

steveh@tasman.cc.utas.edu.au (Steven Howell) (06/25/91)

steveh@tasman.cc.utas.edu.au (Steven Howell) writes:




>	To upgrade a laserwrite LS from 512k to 1meg, simply plug into the 
>spare DIP sockets 2x 44256 memory chips. these chips are the run of the mill
		   ^
		   ^
		   ^
		   ^

arghhh!




ITS NOT 2x 44256, i meant to say 4x 44256, also its best to use 80ns memories,
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

userMLAB@mts.ucs.UAlberta.CA (Bob Bolt) (06/26/91)

In article <steveh.677842539@tasman>, steveh@tasman.cc.utas.edu.au (Steven Howell) writes:
>        To upgrade a laserwrite LS from 512k to 1meg, simply plug into the 
>spare DIP sockets 2x 44256 memory chips. these chips are the run of the mill
>256k x4 bits memories.
What will be gained by upgrading the memory of this printer. Will
it increase printing speed? image quality? image size? If anyone
has the answer, please spread the word. I have this printer and
it is a tad slow. Hopefully, a memory upgrade will speed it up
a little.
 
Bob

ejb@think.com (Erik Bailey) (06/27/91)

In article <RN.1349@mts.ucs.UAlberta.CA> userMLAB@mts.ucs.UAlberta.CA (Bob Bolt) writes:
>In article <steveh.677842539@tasman>, steveh@tasman.cc.utas.edu.au (Steven Howell) writes:
>>        To upgrade a laserwrite LS from 512k to 1meg, simply plug into the 
>>spare DIP sockets 2x 44256 memory chips. these chips are the run of the mill
>>256k x4 bits memories.
>What will be gained by upgrading the memory of this printer. Will
>it increase printing speed? image quality? image size? If anyone
>has the answer, please spread the word. I have this printer and
>it is a tad slow. Hopefully, a memory upgrade will speed it up
>a little.
> 
>Bob

So far as I know, adding memory to a LW LS will do absolutely nothing,
unless you have a page that is just so unbelievable, amazingly, intricately
complex that the built-in image compression algorithms fail to reduce it to
512K (what is in the printer).  I have yet to see this happen.

BTW -- the printer itself is quite quick for a 4ppm machine.  Remember that
it does its imaging ON THE HOST COMPUTER, not in the printer, so a Mac IIfx
will print faster than a Mac Plus.

--Erik

--
      Erik Bailey       | 7 Oak Knoll         | Thinking Machines Corp.
      ejb@think.com     | Arlington, MA 02174 | 245 First St.
      harvard!think!ejb | (617) 643-0732      | Cambridge, MA  02142
          /earth is 98% full. Please remove any excess inhabitants.

rdw89@ecs.soton.ac.uk (Williams RD) (06/27/91)

In <1991Jun26.192636.629@Think.COM> ejb@think.com (Erik Bailey) writes:

>So far as I know, adding memory to a LW LS will do absolutely nothing,
>unless you have a page that is just so unbelievable, amazingly, intricately
>complex that the built-in image compression algorithms fail to reduce it to
>512K (what is in the printer).  I have yet to see this happen.

Well, I know someone who has had 'out of memory' type problems with
the LS, and he's only been using it for a month!

Is there an 'official' Apple upgrade for the LS memory though?

______________________________________________________________________________

Richard Williams,                                  |
Department of Electronics and Computer Science,    |
Southampton University,                            |  EMAIL ADDRESS:
Highfield,                                         |  rdw89@ecs.soton.ac.uk
Southampton.                                       |
______________________________________________________________________________