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From: c60b-1eq@web-4e.berkeley.edu (Noam Mendelson)
Subject: Re: Replacing an 8250 with a 16550a chip
Message-ID: <1991Apr24.213011.26141@agate.berkeley.edu>
Sender: root@agate.berkeley.edu (Charlie Root)
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
References: <6549@bwdls58.bnr.ca> <13357.281435fc@ecs.umass.edu> <91113.232836DSB100@psuvm.psu.edu>
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Date: Wed, 24 Apr 1991 21:30:11 GMT
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In article <91113.232836DSB100@psuvm.psu.edu> DSB100@psuvm.psu.edu (David Barr) writes:
>With this discussion about the 8250 and the 16550a, I have gotten
>more interested.  My Dell 310 has an 8250 chip, and I'm worried about
>how fast of a modem I can use on it.  I'm currently in the market for
>a v.42bis (hopefully v.32bis when it becomes available) modem.  I don't
>want to spend the extra money for a modem if I can't use it to its full
>potential.

You'll only notice the 16550's performance increase when you're doing
HIGH SPEED transfers, such as 115,200 bps.  I'm currently using a
V.42bis modem with an 8250 and haven't had any trouble.  I have had
trouble, however, with high speed transfers so I am planning on
replacing the chip.

>If I can't go fast enough with an 8250, is it possible to
>upgrade my motherboard to 16550a UART?  Certainly I can't just buy a
>16550a chip, pull out my 8250, and off I go, can I?  (BTW the Dell 310
>is a 386/20Mhz)

If you're using a serial port card, you'll find the 8250 there.  It's
a large 40-pin IC.  And yes, it is plug-compatible with the 16550.

-- 
+==========================================================================+
| Noam Mendelson   ..!ucbvax!web!c60b-1eq       | "I haven't lost my mind, |
| c60b-1eq@web.Berkeley.EDU                     |  it's backed up on tape  |
| University of California at Berkeley          |  somewhere."             |