Ok! I got it in the mail, and I am actually a bit disappointed in it. Sure its cool, but once you see the operational flaws with it, it becomes an expensive toy.
For one thing, it only accelerates some of Photoshop 3's filters and functions. A lot of stuff is still done on the CPU only.
I am confident that if someone wrote plugins, you could use the DSP for more than just some Photoshop functions. Perhaps to decode an MP3, or encode video taken with a capture card. The possibilities are limitless until you realize that information to accomplish this is long gone.
Coolness factor is a 5/5. 4 60mhz DSPs? That just sounds and looks cool. It has blinkenlights.
Actual review score is a 2/5. Without extra plugins that work with it, and the limit to only accelerating Photoshop when it could in theory do so much more, it gets a C. But, it is a good slot filler to put in those extra nubus slots. If all photoshop render actions were offloaded to the DSP it would get a 4/5. Sadly not.
The box is propaganda.
For one thing, it only accelerates some of Photoshop 3's filters and functions. A lot of stuff is still done on the CPU only.
I am confident that if someone wrote plugins, you could use the DSP for more than just some Photoshop functions. Perhaps to decode an MP3, or encode video taken with a capture card. The possibilities are limitless until you realize that information to accomplish this is long gone.
Coolness factor is a 5/5. 4 60mhz DSPs? That just sounds and looks cool. It has blinkenlights.
Actual review score is a 2/5. Without extra plugins that work with it, and the limit to only accelerating Photoshop when it could in theory do so much more, it gets a C. But, it is a good slot filler to put in those extra nubus slots. If all photoshop render actions were offloaded to the DSP it would get a 4/5. Sadly not.
The box is propaganda.