Anyone remember 486 DX4-100?

[chapmc]

I just removed an Intel 486 DX4-100 from an old Dell desktop. The CPU is mounted on a circuit board that mounts in the mb cpu socket. It has a Dell part number on the circuit board. It looks to have normal pins from the pcu inserted into the board. Is this a normal DX4? Or is it something Dell did? And why? Just curious.

Here is a picture (if I can get it to work).
http://www.deadzoom.com/uploads/UP278515.jpg

That's something Dell did. Not sure why...

Maybe it was an authorized Dell upgrade to move it from 25 mhz or 50 mhz to 100 mhz.

486's came with 25, 30, and 33 mhz busses. The extra PCB stuff could have been to add support for new multiplier settings. I know a lot of aftermarket upgrade chips had extra PCB stuff just for that purpose. Also configured write-through and write-back cache. Imagine the performance gain that might have come with this chip... A 25 mhz 486 SX (no FPU) to a 100 mhz 486 DX (with FPU)

The fact that it's a DX4 pushes me to believe that it probably was an upgrade for a 25 mhz part. DX4 implying with FPU and 4x multiplier...

[snaggle]

I think Dell did somthing to it, I was playing around with my Aunties old 486 DX4 100Mhz the other day, didn't remeber seeing the cpu mounted on a circuit board!

___/Snaggle\___

Sounds like they made an upgrade chip for an older bus, like prexaspes said. Maybe even it's a Powerleap upgrade or some such (non-Dell).

It probably runs on an older board with a slower bus, so the PC probably is not much faster than a DX4-75 anyway... interesting, nonetheless.

Cheers
Mick

[Richard Cranium]

I have a 486-100 that is not a dell unit, some no-name.

It's mobo only has ISA slots and NO PCI.

Runs Win 3.1 fine, but gives fits on the W95 installation, something about cannot find PCI bus, duhh, there ain't one.

Gave up, now it's a dust collector till I load Dos and sell it.

[chapmc]

Thanks for the information. The PSU looks like AT but the wire colors are different. I think it was proprietary. I think most of the proprietary junk has been superceded!!

Thanks..
Chap

[DanU]

In the picture, the small IC above the 486 is an LT1086 voltage regulator. Looks like Dell just tacked on a regulator IC so a 3.3V 486 would work in 5V motherboards. Pretty slick since it saves them from having to redesign the motherboard for lower voltage chips.

[ocit]

sure i remember them, have one in a shoebox round here somewhere, as i remember it went into a zif socket.

[Bob The Great]

I have a bunch of DX4 100's and they connect to the motherboard in all my experience.

[TOAD6147]

"...as i remember it went into a zif socket."
Other than 'slot' CPU's, all current CPU's go into ZIF sockets.