CPU family tree - help needed

[N. Brown]

There are references that say it was never “commercially released”, but it did supposedly make it into sampling. There was also supposedly a CMOS version of it called the Z320; here’s a website that has a picture of a chip package labeled “Z320 MPU” that matches the physical description in a “Preliminary Product Specification” of the part in a 1988 Zilog data book, but I can’t read the text or otherwise comment on authenticity. If not a fake it could still just be a marketing mock-up, but the evidence for it at least getting very close to production seems decently solid.

IC collection Z320

IC Collection

www.itofamily.com

Edit: Databook with the Z320 and Z80000. Includes references to an in-circuit-emulation support chip called the Z328. So again, looks pretty real.

http://www.bitsavers.org/components/zilog/z8000/1988_Zilog_Z8000_Family_Data_Book.pdf

Publicly the 32-bit version of the Z8000 was never real released. (se my other entries for a little more detail)

 

[N. Brown]

Interesting, certainly looks like a physical chip.

There is a thread here from 1987, and as you can see no follow-up from the person claiming that it was released to market:

Zilog Z320 32-bit chip

groups.google.com

Still surprising that is has disappeared so completely; hopefully more physical examples will turn up. Certainly even this thread existing might prompt someone to later find it and jump in with more evidence.

Trying to find that chip, good luck - but it did make it into a small production run, but mostly in none civilian products.
If you could get every old none civilian product that had them in it , you would have quite a few (of a so called ghost product). see my other entries for more data.

 

[N. Brown]

It seems like a lot of really wacky stuff picked out of recycle bins shows up for sale on the streets of Shanghai, maybe one of these days a pile of dev boards and a couple tubes of Z320s will see the light of day again.

Likely some defense contractor that has a use for them will acquire them before any else does, even off the streets of Shanghai before we get the chance to.
.

 

[Bruce Mardle]

The Z80K and the Z80320 where not really marketed in North America, but these chips did make it into some systems out side of North America. Mostly Latin America and some Asian countries. Zilog omitted some of the signal pins and deleted some of the 16-bit version instructions which lead customers to use the hybrid Hitachi OEM, NEC OEM versions. If not you need the 3Rd parity fix chip to solve these bugs.
There is another website that starts with a F that has some of them listed, but I forget who it was.
Yes there was some Aerospace/Avionics that do have those chips in them. (mostly Mil. Std related devices). Their also is some suppliers that still have them listed as available, but just
forget about because they are all reserved. You could check out https://planetonecomponents.com/index_about_en.phtml and search for Z8070, Z80000, Z80320 and find its 8MHZ and 10MHz version listed. But with a out a active (military) cage code and Government related Po to prove your order is ujit plus a hole lot of funds you wont be able to get any.
By the way some Mil. Defense Suppliers back in the 2000 where charging 6k pre 32-bit Z8000 chip in US funds.

Interesting!
I think I found the Planet Components page a few years ago and submitted an RFQ (for 1 or 2) but never got a reply.
I'm suspicious of their entry for the Z8070 (which they claim to have 4,083 of!) since they list the manufacturer's part number as just "Z8070". I would have thought the part number would include codes for speed, package, and temperature range. From what I'd heard before, Zilog made a board-level Z8070 emulator, but never made it as a chip.
I've got 2 Z8001APS. I'd be happy to give 1 away, free to a good home! (They cost me @£30 in the early '80s.)

 

[N. Brown]

@kuro68k
Great effort, this will be quite useful to everyone to better understand how the families developed over time.

My feedback:
IBM was producing copies of the Intel 486 too: https://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/80486/MANUF-IBM.html

Zilog Z80000 - I still think this was only a paper-design and was never taped out. I've asked any Zilog people I've bumped into about this, and kept watchful for any evidence that it ever made it into silicon but I see nothing so far. If anyone knows different I would be glad to learn about it.

Publicly the 32-bit version of the Z8000 was never real released, but was available for military uses until about 2012. I have several systems that use this ghost chip in them. There was 3 distributors in the USA that had active stock of them until about the end of 2022. But trying to order any was another story (, even with a Gov't PO and a active US cage code) most of there stock was in reserved (for selected customers only).
..
Who knows if it was globally available to other countries. This chip I use to be able to order of the Zilog's Canada office directly at one time.
There was a lot of Japanese hybrids that could run the Z80,0000 instruction set, but that is another goose chase.

 

[kuro68k]

Added Panafacom MN1610.