Merlin GFX card
4 messages in this thread
Hello, I am seriously considering a Merlin GFX card for my 4000/040. I have
heard many wonderful things about this cards abilities, but I don't know much
else. Here's what I plan to use it for;
– 3D rendering via Real 3D
– Boosting my Emplant Mac video performance
If anyone has the board or knows of someone, could you please let me know how
well it works? I'd really appreciate it.
Some questions I have are; Do 24 bit Paint programs support it? Could
I use Dpaint 4 AGA with it in 24 bit mode? Would it work with the new 3.1
ROM's? Is it really worth the money?
Thanks for all of your help!
Craig C Randall – Motorollin A4000/040 @ USMMA –
NEVER buy a Merlin GFX board!!!!!
I've read so many reviews on them, saw them demonstrated etc. and they
were absolutely not worth ANY money. I state this so strongly because I've
seen a few people get very disappointed with their Merlin. When one of my
favourite magazines tested it, they stopped because they had to restart
their A2000 more than 20 times per hour. The software clearly wasn't past
gamma stage, and since the company went belly-up, it never got any
further. Now, a few enthusiasts in Germany have started working on it
again, and they are offering to alter the hardware and trying to write
better software for it. This could work out okay, but why not save
yourself the hassle and buy a board that's still supported by its
manufacturers.
As you have an A4000 with a Zorro III bus (which buster chip do you have?)
I would not consider the Picasso II board which is only Zorro II. GVP has
discontinued the Spectrum, but the EGS software is still being developed
and upgraded by the German manufacturers of EGS. Maybe a few good deals
are out there.
When you're looking for higher resolutions and refresh rates, you could go
Retina ZIII but that board is seriously flawed when it comes to the
supporting software. Has problems with OS3.1 as well. The same resolutions
are offered by the Piccolo SD64, which is the gfx-board I own myself. It
uses EGS as its software, and can do 800×600 in 24bit at 70 Hz
noninterlaced. Also, 1024×768 in 24bit at 90 Hz interlaced (with 4 megs of
ram on it). I like this board because setting up new screenmodes to suit
your own needs is so easy, and tuning the whole thing to your monitor is
quite easy too. It has a zorro III interface and IMHO, is worth its price
(DM 1000 I think).
Using DPaint with any gfx-board is asking for trouble. As to the rest of
your questions: I'd recommend my SD64 to anyone any day.
>F<riso
PS: I just read in AmigaVend that you (or your parents) already made the
decision to install a Merlin gfx board. I hope it does what you want
it to do. Ever wonder why you could get it so cheap? 😉
Friso P. Gosliga | Auto
CIS: 100341,464 – Internet: Friso.Gosliga@kub.nl | Pilot
There was a recent software upgrade for Retina Z-III which fixes the ADOS
3.1 problem, as well as other enhancements. So that argument is no longer
valid.
I work part-time for a dealer and sold a standard Retina Zorro II card and
he has told me it works great and nothing has gone wrong yet. He's been
using his card with Workbench 2.1 and software such as Imagine 2.9. He has
had no problems running software.
I also know of people who have used the Retina card with Imagemaster R/t,
and the Retina, in fact comes with special drivers to ensure working
compatibility with this, ADPro, and other image processing software. It
also comes with a very nice paint program. I see no reason to eliminate it
from possible purchase. The card has also had consistantly good reviews.
The Retina also goes beyond a 256 colour workbench, allowing users to have
a true 24 bit workbench display.
The Piccolo, from what I have heard, is also a good card.
-= Vance =- Image Master
Internet: viking@freenet.edmonton.ab.ca
Hello Mr. Friso
Retina and OS 3.1 . With the new update in Amiga Users Forum you can run PPage
on Retina with 256 colors! No problems .
Andres Staubli from Switzerland on Windows/NAVCIS