Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!wuarchive!udel!sbcs!ameristar!rick
From: rick@ameristar (Rick Spanbauer)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: Amiga DSP Boards.
Message-ID: <1990Nov21.013237.4623@ameristar>
Date: 21 Nov 90 01:32:37 GMT
References: <944.27477729@weyr.FIDONET.ORG> <1990Nov20.161034.25281@sisd.kodak.com>
Organization: Ameristar Technology, Inc
Lines: 31

In article <1990Nov20.161034.25281@sisd.kodak.com> jeh@sisd.kodak.com (Ed Hanway) writes:
>DSPs won't catch on until someone develops an application for them.
>A DSP+ADC+DAC combination, with the proper software, should have many,
>many applications in music, and would probably sell Amigas just like the
>MIDI port sold Atari STs.  The problem is that at this point, I don't know
>of any software being delivered with DSPs, either for the Amiga or any
>other platform, other than "developer's toolkits."

In my opinion, DSP is an area where CBM needs to dive in and set a few 
standards, probably by producing a piece of hardware.  As things stand 
there are too many degrees of freedom standing in the way of a defacto 
standard:

	* Which DSP?  The major players (AT&T, Motorola, TI, Analog Devices)
		      all have differing word lengths, instruction sets,
		      architectures, chip resources, etc.

	o Standard I/O resources?  Should the board have 14, 16, or 18 bit
		      a/d, d/a?  What sampling rate (variable)?  What
		      pre/post filtering?  A telephone interface for modems?

	o IPC model?  Shared memory?  Mailboxes?  Serial interface?

	o Memory available?

It is easy to conjure up a whole slew of applications, eg fax/data modems, 
voice response systems, music IF a standard, low cost board was produced by 
CBM.  Until this happens, DSP will remain a niche market.

					Rick Spanbauer
					Ameristar