Subject: Re: 3000/300 : SCSI speed & RAM questions
To: Marcus Frey <marcus.frey@temic.com>
From: Jon Lindgren <jlindgren@espus.com>
List: port-alpha
Date: 02/01/2000 06:23:11
On Tue, 1 Feb 2000, Marcus Frey wrote:

> > 2) RAM: according to the manual, the Decstation accept only
> > ECC RAM; is there any way to use non-ecc SIMM ??
> 
> The DEC3000-300 accepts PS/2-SIMMs with parity only. You can use pairs of
> 8MB or 32MB modules. The usual PS/2-SIMMs for PCs have no parity bit and
> can't be used in the DEC3000. The memory check at startup recognizes modules
> without parity, but if you do a TEST MEM you will see the truth :-)
> 
> My DEC3000-300XL was not too picky about memory modules, single-sided 70ns
> 8MB modules with parity ripped from an old 486-PC work perfectly. It even
> accepted modules of different brands within one bank.

I seem to remember someone pointing out to me that standard 32mb parity
modules won't work; supposedly DEC had a resistor on the 32mb simms which
allowed the 3000's to figure out which simms are 8 and which are 32...

I've never tried it, though.  I think nmanisca@vt.edu had tried a standard
32mb simm on his new 3000 without luck, so YMMV WTR simms, qed :-)

 -Jon
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