Re: [oc] Modular FPGA board (PCI)

[John Dalton <john.dalton@bigfoot.com>]

My work on the FPGA card has been sidelined for a while.
As much as I would like to get back into it, I can't
see me doing anything on it in the near future.  I'm
keen to see the idea lwo cost SIMM modules developed.

I notice that there have been discussions about using
Virtex devices in PCI systems.  I have built Virtex
devices into PCI systems in the past.  The way I
did it was to place a Virtex and Spartan next to
each other on the PCB.  The PCI interface then lives
in the Spartan.  This provides buffering for the Virtex
while eliminating timing/load problems with external
buffers.  The cost (A$60) for a Spartan is not much in
addition to the Virtex (A$1000's).  I always prefer
to put everything on one chip (helps moving to ASIC),
but sometime compromises have to be made.

If building a low cost system, I think I would put
only Spartan on the PCB.  Cost per gate i smuch lower
than a Virtex and 200k gates is enough for quite a 
sophisticated system with careful design.

Best wishes
John
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