| Multiple CPU cards in a single ECB system [message #10023] |
Tue, 19 July 2022 02:51  |
grizaptimus
Messages: 4
Registered: October 2015
|
Junior Member |
|
|
Hey everyone just a quick question, title essentially says it all. Is it possible to have multiple different CPU card in a single ECB system and switch between them like you can in the s100 world?
I am thinking of building a new system and and trying to decide witch direction to go
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Re: Multiple CPU cards in a single ECB system [message #10063 is a reply to message #10023] |
Sun, 07 August 2022 15:42  |
newjes250
Messages: 14
Registered: May 2020
|
Junior Member |
|
|
If the general question is "How do you make Multiple processors work in a common computer system"?
I built my first such system in the late 1980's/early 1990's: it was available in kit and assembled form.
The Digital Group had a design that allowed a 6800, 6502, and most popular the Z-80 processor card to be
chosen as the heart of the system. I decided on the Z-80 and purchased a mini backplane/motherboard, which
had a main card slot for Processor, Digital I/O, Video card with digital/analog Cassette interface.
Three cards was the minimal system: the common part was the Digital I/O card which connected to the keyboard
and video card/cassette interface for program storage. The design therefore meant the processor card was
designed to talk to the Digital card as it linked to rest of the system. I chose the 64 char by 16 row video,
with its improved cassette interface. Not only was the new designed card improving the cassette interface to using
digital for its frequencies, but the video was no longer 32 char by 16 row, jumping to 64 character in width,
much preferred. Software was changing from octal format to hex, which I loved.
I was fortunate to visit with the designer on a Saturday when I was passing through Denver, on my way from Tennessee
to Washington state. I had previously built a amateur radio SSTV (Slow-Scan TV) monitor, which he had offered in
schematic form only to the Ham Radio community.
The Digital Group system was the first to allow multiple processors to be plugged-in. If you need all processors to be
in the system at one time then even more flexibility (and complexability) will be needed.
|
|
|
|
RetroBrew Computers Forum
Members
Search
Help
Login
Home
