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From: schultz@mmm.UUCP (John C Schultz)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: *-VME bus repeaters
Message-ID: <1524@mmm.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 25-Nov-87 22:58:18 EST
Article-I.D.: mmm.1524
Posted: Wed Nov 25 22:58:18 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 29-Nov-87 17:23:13 EST
Organization: SERC/3M, St. Paul
Lines: 35
Keywords: VME-VME bus repeaters

I have several requests for info on *-VME bus repeaters of late and will pass
along what little information I have.  Be aware that I am only in the process
of specifying one, I have no first hand experience. 

There seems to be 2 major players in the something to VME or VME to something
bus converter arena.

The first (in no particular order) is Bit 3 based in MN.

The second is Performance Technologies based in ???.

They both appear to have A24:D16 products currently available with at lesat
BIT 3 having a A32:D32 product in the first half of 1988.

I "heard" that Performance Technologies' product had some problems but that
the newer boards have been fixed.  

As far as I can determine these are all simple drop in and it works pieces
of hardware.

Bit 3 does make a PC-AT to VME and a Multibus (I I assume) to VME converter
which would be an advantage if you need to talk to several buses.

One interesting item that was not clear in Bit 3's literature was whether
all levels of VME bus interrupt were supported.

The Bit 3 product logically separates the bus so that multi-master systems
can happily proceed independently.  This is very nice in many cases such as
hanging lots of hardware off a SUN.

Hope these ramblings are of some help

John C. Schultz 

{ihnp4, rutgers, umn-cs, tundra}|mmm|schultz