[comp.sys.ibm.pc.misc] Expanding My SVGA Card to 512K

newsham@wiliki.eng.hawaii.edu (Timothy Newsham) (06/12/91)

My Super VGA card only has 256K RAM on it right now.  I want to get
it up to 512K so that I can take advantage of the 256 color 1024x
768 mode (I'm aware that without the extra 256K, I can only do 16
colors in 1024x768 mode, is that correct?).

My SVGA card manual specifies only that I buy DRAM chips of 80ns or
less.  There are eight empty RAM sockets on my SVGA card.

I've found vendors in Computer Shopper selling DRAM chips of the
configuration "256x4-80" for $5-$7.  Is this what I need?  If it is,
how come the people I bought my computer from want $40 to upgrade it
to 512K?  Are the local folks looking to profit that much from a
memory upgrade?

And why eight empty sockets?  I understand that "256x4-80" means 256K
on four chips at 80 nanoseconds.  If I can expand to 512K with only
four chips, why did they give me eight empty sockets?  My manual or
dealer makes or made no mention of my card being able to expand any
higher than 512K.

Someone please help clear up my confusion.

emartine@digi.lonestar.org (Edgar Martinez Martinez) (06/14/91)

 To display 256 colors at 1024x768 you need 1 Meg of memory in your video
card, not to mention a monitor that can handle that resolution. With 512K
you will only get 16 colors at 1024x768, (only 4 colors with 256k). Now, you
would think that 512K would get you 256 colors at 800x600 resolution, but
not many cards can do that. The only one I know of that'll do it is the
ATI VGAWonder+ (Check the new PC Sources magazine for info on SVGA cards).


Edgar Martinez                UTArlington Co-op program (Great!)
emartine@digi.lonestar.org    DSC Communications Corp.  Plano, TX
b645zju@utarlg.utarl.edu      University of Texas at Arlington

"Energy is energy, and you either channel it one way or the other."

                                                               Cher

hartung@crl.ucsd.edu (Jeff Hartung) (06/16/91)

In article <1991Jun14.133932.14478@digi.lonestar.org> emartine@digi.lonestar.org (Edgar Martinez Martinez) writes:
> To display 256 colors at 1024x768 you need 1 Meg of memory in your video
>card, not to mention a monitor that can handle that resolution. With 512K
>you will only get 16 colors at 1024x768, (only 4 colors with 256k). Now, you
>would think that 512K would get you 256 colors at 800x600 resolution, but
>not many cards can do that. The only one I know of that'll do it is the
>ATI VGAWonder+ (Check the new PC Sources magazine for info on SVGA cards).

Some of the El Cheapo $79 SuperVGA cards with the OAK Chipset also support
800x600 at 256 colors, but I don't know if you'd really want the cards.  A
machine we bought at work recently had one in it and I insisted that it be
replaced with a Paradise Chipset card, since the modes seemed buggy, and lots
of software sisn't support the OAK Chipset anyhow.,

Just my opinion.

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