jlaiho@cc.helsinki.fi (09/19/90)
In article <13728@hydra.gatech.EDU>, gt4824a@prism.gatech.EDU (gt4824a BEKER,PAUL) writes: > Can I plug an 8-bit card (i.e. a RLL controller, or a VGA card) into > a physical 16-bit bus like those found on 2/386 machines? Will the > performance of either the card or the m'board suffer? > > Thanks! Paul Beker .. gt4824a@prism.gatech.edu NEVER even try to put an 8-bit hard-disk controller to a machine w 16-bit bus. I don't know whether or not it actually destroys something, but definitely it won't work. Display cards are okay, you can just fine put an 8-bit VGA card to AT bus. About the other card I say nothing. Juha Laiho jlaiho@cc.Helsinki.FI
pnl@hpfinote.HP.COM (Peter Lim) (09/19/90)
YES ! to the first question.
NO ! to the second question.
Regards, ## Life is fast enough as it is ........
Peter Lim. ## .... DON'T PUSH IT !! >>>-------,
########################################### :
E-mail: plim@hpsgwg.HP.COM Snail-mail: Hewlett Packard Singapore, :
Tel: (065)-279-2289 (ICDS, ICS) |
Telnet: 520-2289 1150 Depot Road, __\@/__
... also at: pnl@hpfipnl.HP.COM Singapore 0410. SPLAT !
#include <standard_disclaimer.hpp>brim@cbmvax.commodore.com (Mike Brim - Product Assurance) (09/19/90)
In article <3118.26f65e1e@cc.helsinki.fi> jlaiho@cc.helsinki.fi writes: > In article <13728@hydra.gatech.EDU>, gt4824a@prism.gatech.EDU (gt4824a BEKER,PAUL) writes: > > Can I plug an 8-bit card (i.e. a RLL controller, or a VGA card) into > > a physical 16-bit bus like those found on 2/386 machines? Will the > > performance of either the card or the m'board suffer? > > > > Thanks! Paul Beker .. gt4824a@prism.gatech.edu > > NEVER even try to put an 8-bit hard-disk controller to a machine w > 16-bit bus. I don't know whether or not it actually destroys something, > but definitely it won't work. > Why not!? I've seen it done many times. In fact many of the early AT clones used 8-bit HD controller cards in their systems. You will of course only get 8-bit performance. -- ******************************************************************************** Disclaimer: My company knows not what I say (or do). Mike Brim | Commodore Electronics Limited PC Analyst - System Evaluation Group | West Chester, PA 19380 Product Assurance | InterNet: brim@cbmvax.commodore.com ********************************************************************************
RREED%ucf1vm.cc.ucf.edu@ncsuvm.ncsu.edu (09/20/90)
In article <3118.26f65e1e@cc.helsinki.fi>, jlaiho@cc.helsinki.fi says: > >In article <13728@hydra.gatech.EDU>, gt4824a@prism.gatech.EDU (gt4824a >BEKER,PAUL) writes: >> Can I plug an 8-bit card (i.e. a RLL controller, or a VGA card) into >> a physical 16-bit bus like those found on 2/386 machines? Will the >> performance of either the card or the m'board suffer? >> >> Thanks! Paul Beker .. gt4824a@prism.gatech.edu > >NEVER even try to put an 8-bit hard-disk controller to a machine w >16-bit bus. I don't know whether or not it actually destroys something, >but definitely it won't work. > Never say never! Especially with computers. You can use an 8-bit hard drive controller card in an AT class machine *for 8-bit applications* such as DOS. But there is a little trick to doing this, you must tell the AT setup program that you don't have a hard drive installed. Then you simply boot the system, use the low-level format on the controller card and high-level format. It works with most machines. You tell the AT that you don't have a hard drive installed so the BIOS on the 8-bit controller can take over. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Reginald Reed -- Struggling Computer Science Student -- Does Bo Know Comp Sci?? BITNET=+> rreed@ucf1vm INTERNET=+> rreed@{ucflan,ucf
pnl@hpfinote.HP.COM (Peter Lim) (09/21/90)
> NEVER even try to put an 8-bit hard-disk controller to a machine w > 16-bit bus. I don't know whether or not it actually destroys something, > but definitely it won't work. > Ignore this unless you have a real lame motherboard which don't use the standard AT bus and force 16-bit operation on anything. Such best, to the best of my knowledge, doesn't exist. The AT bus is designed so that a 16 bit card will tell the motherboard that it is 16 bit. Otherwise, operation is 8 bit. So, everything should work fine. Of course, standard disclaimer applies :-). Regards, ## Life is fast enough as it is ........ Peter Lim. ## .... DON'T PUSH IT !! >>>-------, ########################################### : E-mail: plim@hpsgwg.HP.COM Snail-mail: Hewlett Packard Singapore, : Tel: (065)-279-2289 (ICDS, ICS) | Telnet: 520-2289 1150 Depot Road, __\@/__ ... also at: pnl@hpfipnl.HP.COM Singapore 0410. SPLAT ! #include <standard_disclaimer.hpp>
pmwenzel@noggin.gg.caltech.edu (Pete Wenzel) (09/21/90)
>In article <3118.26f65e1e@cc.helsinki.fi> jlaiho@cc.helsinki.fi writes: >> >> NEVER even try to put an 8-bit hard-disk controller to a machine w >> 16-bit bus. I don't know whether or not it actually destroys something, >> but definitely it won't work. >> I read in a PC/Computing article that most 386 BIOS don't support 8-bit disk controllers, but didn't know whether to believe it or not. What about a (Plus Development) HardCard? I have one in an XT-clone and wish to use it in a 386SX. Is there any hope? ____ ____ _/ \ Pete Wenzel - Caltech Computer Graphics Group / \_ / _ \__ ___ pmwenzel@egg.gg.caltech.edu ________/ _ \ | | \ ---\_/---\ home (818) 577-9005 /--------- / | | | |_/ ----------\-^-^\ offc (818) 356-6790 /^-^-^-/---------- \_| | \_ /===============/ FAX (818) 793-9544 \=================\ _/ \____/ Mail Code 256-80, Pasadena, CA 91125 \____/
bobd@right.ircc.ohio-state.edu (Bob DeBula) (09/21/90)
In article <pmwenzel.653861299@noggin> pmwenzel@noggin.gg.caltech.edu (Pete Wenzel) writes: >I read in a PC/Computing article that most 386 BIOS don't support 8-bit >disk controllers, but didn't know whether to believe it or not. What about >a (Plus Development) HardCard? I have one in an XT-clone and wish to use >it in a 386SX. Is there any hope? I can't speak for any other systems, but I personally am keying this on an AT&T 6386 (16Mhz 386; the older Olivetti produced machine) which has a Plus 20Mb hardcard installed as the second drive (the primary drive is a 103Mb Fujitsu 2245E ESDI drive with a WD1007-WA2 controller). The built in floppy controller on the motherboard has caused problems, but I haven't had any trouble with the hardcard to speak of. Some of the older Hardcards needed a firmware upgrade (EPROM) to function with the AT bus, but as far as I know that's the only problem (I *think* I still have an upgrade kit laying around here somewhere that I didn't need for my drive). Back to the original post topic: Other than for performance reasons, I can't imagine why you couldn't use an 8-bit HD controller in a 16-bit slot (I have used 8-bit cards of various sorts in 16-bit slots on both the AT&T 6386 & on an IBM PC/XT-286, though I don't remember using an 8-bit disk controller for any reason). Aren't the SCSI host adaptors being sold by Seagate all 8-bit? I haven't heard of any warnings not to use them in AT bus slots...... -- ========================================================================== Bob DeBula | Internet: bobd@hpuxa.ircc.ohio-state.edu The Ohio State University | Disclaimer: These are my views, not the U's Davros sez: When my Daleks compute they use X-TER-MI-NALS!
jlaiho@cc.helsinki.fi (09/22/90)
In article <90262.150845RREED@ucf1vm.cc.ucf.edu>, RREED%ucf1vm.cc.ucf.edu@ncsuvm.ncsu.edu writes: > In article <3118.26f65e1e@cc.helsinki.fi>, jlaiho@cc.helsinki.fi says: >> >>NEVER even try to put an 8-bit hard-disk controller to a machine w >>16-bit bus. I don't know whether or not it actually destroys something, >>but definitely it won't work. >> > Never say never! Especially with computers. You can use an 8-bit hard <<actual trick deleted>> So, I blew that one, as a few others stated to me via mail. Thank you all for correcting, and thank YOU for telling me the trick. Juha Laiho jlaiho@cc.Helsinki.FI
davidsen@sixhub.UUCP (Wm E. Davidsen Jr) (09/23/90)
In article <3118.26f65e1e@cc.helsinki.fi> jlaiho@cc.helsinki.fi writes: | NEVER even try to put an 8-bit hard-disk controller to a machine w | 16-bit bus. I don't know whether or not it actually destroys something, | but definitely it won't work. The first part of a 16bit AT bus is the old XT bus. I have run a number of AT's with XT disk controllers. Whatever gave you the idea that there was a problem. And I run several systems with 8 bit serial boards in 16 bit slots. I'm told that it works even on the EISA bus, because one of the guys at work has an 8 bit ethernet board in his 486EISA until the new card comes in. -- bill davidsen - davidsen@sixhub.uucp (uunet!crdgw1!sixhub!davidsen) sysop *IX BBS and Public Access UNIX moderator of comp.binaries.ibm.pc and 80386 mailing list "Stupidity, like virtue, is its own reward" -me