Article View: comp.sys.mac
Article #40565Mac memory speed confusion
From: g-verbru Rob Verbrugghe
Date: Sun, 09 Apr 1989 20:22
Date: Sun, 09 Apr 1989 20:22
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3042 bytes
Well now I'm a little confused on this whole memory speed issue. Now the
Mac +/SE runs at 8 Mhz (roughly) and requires 150 ns memory for a no wait
state operation.
The Mac II runs at 16 Mhz and requires 120 ns memory for no wait state
operation. But the 68020 takes more cyclces per memory access, so the
memory speed does not have to be doubled.
The Max IIx / SE/30 also runs at 16 Mhz and requires the same 120 ns memory
for no wait state operation. But, the 68030 is different than the '020
in the number of memory cycles required to access memory.
Somewhere in here the Apple Memory Chip vs the 68851 Virtual memory chip
figures in in the rate at which memory is accessed. I belive that the
68851 was slower than the Apple chip because it might have to do Virtual
Memory translation, and that takes time. The 68030 has some 68851
functionality built in, but since its on chip, it may not take as long
as a separate memory unit.
1/8 Mhz == 125 ns 2 cycles == 250 ns
1/16 Mhz == 62.5 ns 2 cycles == 125 ns 3 cycles == 187.5 ns
Now I see a RAM CACHE board being advertised that claims to give a
15% to 30% speed improvement to a Mac II. If there are no wait states
currently in the Mac II, and we do not adjust the speed of the processor,
then faster memory shouldn't help. Right?
Someone is confused. I suspect that it is me. Could some kind soul
set me straight on the facts here? Feel free to get technical, if I
can't figure out what you've said, I can get someone to translate.
Thanks buckets,
Rob Verbrugghe g-verbru@cs.wisc.edu {backbone}!uwvax!rocky!g-verbru
"So you think you know great, nail-biting excitement, you think you know truly
abject fear, you think you know total and complete despair, you think you know
the incredibly degenerate underside of this world we live in, and the ridicu-
lously despicable lengths that your fellow man can sink to, more rotten, more
putrid than the lowest form of fungus.... Oh. You are a sorcerer as well.
Then perhaps you do."
-- Further Conversations with Ebenezum, Volume III
"There are those who claim that magic is like the tide; that it swells and
fades over the surface of the earth, collecting in concentrated pools here and
there, almost disappearing from other spots, leaving them parched for wonder.
There are also those who believe that if you stick your fingers up your nose
and blow, it will increase your intelligence."
-- The Teachings of Ebenezum, Volume VII
Technical Details
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Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ncar!tank!uwvax!rocky.cs.wisc.edu!g-verbru From: g-verbru@rocky.cs.wisc.edu. (Rob Verbrugghe) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac Subject: Mac memory speed confusion Keywords: Memory speed, Cache memory, Wait states, Virtual Memory, Help Message-ID: <7400@spool.cs.wisc.edu> Date: 9 Apr 89 20:22:34 GMT Sender: news@spool.cs.wisc.edu Reply-To: g-verbru@rocky.cs.wisc.edu (Rob Verbrugghe) Organization: U of Wisconsin CS Dept Lines: 49