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From: hh2@prism.gatech.EDU (HAAS)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.ps2.hardware
Subject: Re: Soundblaster for MCA
Keywords: Sound, MCA
Message-ID: <24379@hydra.gatech.EDU>
Date: 15 Mar 91 01:27:47 GMT
References: <1991Mar14.155003.4119@convex.com>
Distribution: usa
Organization: Georgia Tech Research Institute
Lines: 52

In article <1991Mar14.155003.4119@convex.com> friedber@convex.com (Don Friedberg) writes:
>I just talked to the people at Brown Waugh publishing (the people who 
>advertise the Soundblaster) abouth the Microchannel version and they 
>gave me the following information:
>
>1) It will be available at the end of this month.

Yeah! About &^%() time . . . . 

>2) Because of the smaller card size (their words) it will not have the built-
>   in amplifier or the CMS sockets.

No problem there . . . 
>
>3) It will retail in the neighborhood of $349.95.  (I am not exactly sure
>   of this price since I was so in shock when I heard the first number was a 3
>   that I may have mixed up the rest of the digits slightly).
>Does anyone else think that charging more for a card that has less function
>is crazy?

Ouch. Oh well.

Yes, I think it's crazy. The most an MCA adapter should cost over an AT
bus card is $40.00.  There are QUITE A LOT of MCA interface chips that make
it an absolute SNAP to build cards for the MCA bus. The addition of a couple
of interface chips (which actually ease the design process) should easily
offset the cost of an on-board amp; The boards SHOULD cost the same.

Ny guess is that there are three reason why the price is higher.

1.) They don't think they'll sell as many.

2.) They don't like IBM.

3.) They think that people that buy IBM products are millionaires or
    Government offices :=) and don't CARE how much the thing costs.
    I.e., they think they can get more, so they're gonna try to. . . 

Only # 1 is a lagit reason. The problem, is that it's a no win situation.
If we protest by not buying it, they'll say "Ah-HA!! we were right. The
IBMers don't WANT a soundblaster." If we BUY it, we loose bucks. I guess 
it's time somebody designed and sold a Soundblaster/Adlib clone just for
MCA.  :=))))

>Don

hh
---
Harry Haas  GTRI/RIDL/EB    |    Georgia Tech Research Institute
Research Engineer II        |    Georgia Institute of Technology
404-528-7679                |    Atlanta Georgia, 30332
hh2@prism.gatech.edu        |    "What makes it DO that?!" - Bones