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Sota 386Si 8088 to 386sx Accelerator

8088 to 386sx

8088 to 386sx

hello
I have 8088->386sx , but have to find the manual
I will leave massage when I find the manual....
/cimonvg
 
I'd like to have a look at this manual also. The Sota 286i supports the 8086 in addition to the 8088. I wonder if the same is true of the 386si.
 
I have only the 286 board not the manual for it.
But 386si supports both 8088 and 8086 motherboards.
286 and 386 look alike , and perhaps my (at the moment non functioning) "Memory /16i" supports the 286 as well (?) :)
/cimonvg
 
Hey, thanks for the manual. It was a very good read. It seems like a very nice product in that it can work on almost any XT system from 4.77 to 10MHz, either 8088 or 8086. But I do have a few gripes. It seems that finding the memory board for one of these might be borderline impossible, and it might even be vapourware. Secondly, it's a damn shame I can't leave the 8087 in with this card installed. It took me forever to find an 8087-1, and I'd feel horrible if I couldn't actually use it.
I've passed up these SOTA cards on numerous occasions. I didn't know they were 8086 10MHz compatible. Next time I find one I'll probably go for it.
 
The reason I started this post was because there was one on ebay a few weeks back and I wanted some info on it. Well I didn't bid on it because I thought it might sell for a $100.00+ bucks. Well I've been kicking myself ever since because the sold for price was $47.88. Ugh!!! Well hope that others will enjoy the manual as much as I did. Must give credit Cimonvg for sending it (manual)to me. :p
 
[necropost]

So, I got one of these in the mail today. Actually, I got both the Sota 286 and the Sota 386Si in the mail today, including two floppy disks (both seem to go to the 386Si) and two of the CPU cables (one is missing two pins, however, unfortunately snapped off at the plastic)

They were working pulls, purchased together in the same auction for a surprising $39.95 shipped. Really surprising in that he had "286 386 accelerator" in the auction title, and I'm totally surprised that no one saw it and bid me up considering what the Tiny Turbo's have been pulling on eBay lately (last one I saw went for > $300 about a month ago)

Anyways... Anybody actually used these things? Anyone know where I could get a replacement cable (or even just the crimp-style socket?) Has anyone actually put one within an 8086?

I must say - the idea of popping one of these into my PS/2 Model 25 along with an XT-IDE is quite appealing. As is the idea of popping one into my 5160.

*edit - found an interesting file here that has detailed testing results from Epson's study of both of these accelerators as well as other hardware and jumper settings with several of their machines.
 
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Think I found the connector needed to crimp onto my cable to fix the broken pins... Jameco seems to have it (maybe old news to you guys, but I figured these would've long since gone the way of the dodo!)

I figure that you're asking how they work, as in performance, but I'm going to play dumb, just in case (and for anyone that happens along this thread that doesn't already know)... Card plugs into 8-bit slot, remove the 8088 from the motherboard and plug into he empty socket on the card, connect the ribbon cable to the card, plug the other end into the 8088 socket on the motherboard, and BAM! - instant upgrade.

Now what's really tweaking me now (as I've not had a chance to even think about trying this in an actual system yet) is whether or not this upgrade card has direct-level access to the other expansion cards on the bus (thinking memory expansion and FDC), or if it's required that you utilize the Sota Memory Expansion and FDC expansion that were offered (at least on the 386Si - I saw reference to this in old newsgroup postings circa 1990, but never anything definite)

I'm hoping that Cimonvg or Chromedome45 still have the Sota 286 manual, as that should help shed some light on things. Maybe I'll luck up and someone has a 386 manual out there :)
 
hello
I have the 386 not the 286 manual - but today and until like one week from now, I am 600 km away for home..
/cimonvg
 
No worries at all! I'm in no rush whatsoever...

If you wouldn't mind sending them to me, I'll definitely put them to use.. and I'd be glad to post them on the web for others - with your permission, of course!

Thanks for chiming in!
 
I was really wondering why the board has a socket for the original CPU. I guess it's only using the ISA interface for power, everything else coming from the CPU socket. So when is the i386 enabled; does it need some device driver in the boot process for example?
 
There's a switch on the back of the card to choose which chip to boot. I did see reference in a newsgoup posting to a device driver, but not sure if it was to make the CPU portion function, or if it was for some extended functions on the card, such as the extended RAM card which that OP had?

I haven't had a chance to test the diskettes I received with my cards yet, so as of right now, my information is pure speculation.
 
hello
Maverick1978 said:
[necropost]
..... Really surprising in that he had "286 386 accelerator" in the auction title, and I'm totally surprised that no one saw it and bid me up considering what the Tiny Turbo's have been pulling on eBay lately (last one I saw went for > $300 about a month ago)
...
Click to expand...

well not all items are not for sale woldwide. If I remember correct you 286+386 were only USA... and these days a 5150 motherboard version A is for sale..... but again only in US :(
/cimonvg
 
Just ask the seller privately if they'll ship outside of their country - many sellers will do so on a case-by-case basis, but they don't want to offer it wholesale to just anyone, as then a new bidder or an old scammer can nail them. At least in this manner, they have the opportunity to review feedback and search usernames in Google (I've had great success with this with "UK-ONLY" auctions)
 
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