Change In Mhz Ratings..

[Exophase]

http://focus.ti.com/docs/prod/folders/print/omap3530.html

Now the Cortex-A8 is listed as up to 720MHz and the DSP as 520MHz. The datasheet of course reflects this too. This doesn't sound like that big of a deal - guess they realized that the chips have more headroom than they thought - but it's kind of surprising to me since the clock caps strongly correlated with voltage range settings. Of course, all Pandora boards I've known of could do 720MHz on the Cortex-A8, but this is the first I've heard of the DSP going beyond 430MHz. In fact, I didn't even realize it was possible.

The new voltage domain is OPP6 and the datasheet says this:

[quote name=datasheet]To avoid significant device degradation for commercial temperature OMAP3530/OMAP3525 devices (0°C
≤ Tj ≤ 90°C), the device power-on hours (POH) must be limited to one of the following:
• 100K total POH when operating across all OPPs and keeping the time spent at OPP5-OPP6 to less
than 23K POH.
• 50K total POH when operating at OPP5 - OPP6.
• 44K total POH with no restrictions to the proportion of these POH at operating points OPP1 - OPP6.[/quote]

In other words, they don't differentiate between OPP5 and OPP6. Of course, OPP6 draws more on the processor block (the voltage domain where most of the draw comes from) but that's to be expected. Having said that, OPP6 is somehow listed at the same voltage range (1.35V) as OPP5.

(unfortunately, the SGX clock is the same and still limited to 110MHz, and if you were somehow able to overclock it you'd be overclocking the RAM too which is probably not good)

So does this mean Pandora can be listed as being up to 720/520MHz now?

 

[Trip]

Sweet as, nicely spotted

So does this mean Pandora can be listed as being up to 720/520MHz now?

I don't see why not if they've added it to all the data sheets etc., wouldn't that mean that it's being sold as that?

Good to know that all Pandoras will be able to run at least that fast

 

[MWeston]

http://focus.ti.com/docs/prod/folders/print/omap3530.html

Now the Cortex-A8 is listed as up to 720MHz and the DSP as 520MHz. The datasheet of course reflects this too. This doesn't sound like that big of a deal - guess they realized that the chips have more headroom than they thought - but it's kind of surprising to me since the clock caps strongly correlated with voltage range settings. Of course, all Pandora boards I've known of could do 720MHz on the Cortex-A8, but this is the first I've heard of the DSP going beyond 430MHz. In fact, I didn't even realize it was possible.

The new voltage domain is OPP6 and the datasheet says this:

[quote name=datasheet]To avoid significant device degradation for commercial temperature OMAP3530/OMAP3525 devices (0°C
≤ Tj ≤ 90°C), the device power-on hours (POH) must be limited to one of the following:
• 100K total POH when operating across all OPPs and keeping the time spent at OPP5-OPP6 to less
than 23K POH.
• 50K total POH when operating at OPP5 - OPP6.
• 44K total POH with no restrictions to the proportion of these POH at operating points OPP1 - OPP6.

In other words, they don't differentiate between OPP5 and OPP6. Of course, OPP6 draws more on the processor block (the voltage domain where most of the draw comes from) but that's to be expected. Having said that, OPP6 is somehow listed at the same voltage range (1.35V) as OPP5.

(unfortunately, the SGX clock is the same and still limited to 110MHz, and if you were somehow able to overclock it you'd be overclocking the RAM too which is probably not good)

So does this mean Pandora can be listed as being up to 720/520MHz now?
[/quote]

Hmmn, interesting. Maybe they needed the numbers to sound better to compete with the Samsung chip in the iPhone. The truth is that the chips all seem to do 720MHz for sure but TI only lists speeds they have tested so maybe they have finally qualified it at 720/520 now. We've been running at 750-800MHz in OPP3 all along, but wow, now it goes up to OPP6! Maybe there is hope for some 1080p video decoding as well with the 21% boost in DSP speed (other than the 86MHz PCLK limitation).

 

[Trip]

..Maybe there is hope for some 1080p video decoding as well with the 21% boost in DSP speed (other than the 86MHz PCLK limitation).

Not too bothered by the lack of 1080p myself, but it would be nice to keep up with/out do the new iPhone

 

[atomicthumbs]

I'm glad I can clock my Pandora higher now without device degradation

 

[greendots]

Why is it bad to overclock the ram? Has anyone tried it?

 

[Exophase]

It doesn't just overclock the RAM, and it's a different PLL altogether. I don't even know if it'll go higher.

 

[darkblu]

good find, Exophase! i, for one, intend to use neither this nor OPP5, but it's good to know the silicon has a tad of headroom.

 

[Kramy]

I'm glad I can clock my Pandora higher now without device degradation

You always could. Now it's just official from TI.

Running your Pandora at 800mhz in OPP3 (whatever that is; seems to affect the CPU voltage) would have less effect than running it in OPP5/6 (@720mhz) - and yet officially it can handle that too, so I figure a voltage bump and 900mhz should be pretty safe.

I run all my computers overclocked a bit. No more than 40%, usually. As long as you don't touch the voltage, they should have a happy healthy lifespan. Even if you do touch the voltage, and bump it up .2v, it probably won't do a thing. I still have an Athlon XP running fine after about a half-decade.

 

[j.pickens]

So, if I overclock, I'll only get 44,000 hours of operation?
That's only 5 years!
I am depressed...

 

[darionapole]

So, if I overclock, I'll only get 44,000 hours of operation?
That's only 5 years!
I am depressed...

well that would be 5 years only if you played 24 hours a day for 5 years.
if you play, let's think like as in primary school, 8 hours a day, and that's a lot, the pandora would last 15 years. By that time you'll sure have the pandora 2

 

[john4p]

I have 3 questions:

1) What is OPP3?

2) What is OPP5?

3) What is OPP6?

Thanks in advance!

 

[borgqueenx]

so why not overclock until 800~1000mhz if it cant really harm the pandora? makes me feel i have a more powerful device and its ofcource great for programmers and coders.

 

[Bosbeetle]

why is it great for coders, Its great if they can make their software run just as good on less MHz's

 

[borgqueenx]

why is it great for coders, Its great if they can make their software run just as good on less MHz's

well more mhz means more processing power. ofcource its greater if they could make it work with less mhz, but with more available, its easier to create more powerful stuff.

 

[Bosbeetle]

why is it great for coders, Its great if they can make their software run just as good on less MHz's

well more mhz means more processing power. ofcource its greater if they could make it work with less mhz, but with more available, its easier to create more powerful stuff.

It's easier to create more powerfull stuff on a full desktop, they could code for that always. I do agree pandora is a powerfull handheld but you need more than raw power to create great software, here the handheldness of the pandora becomes a great asset. And I like to add durability of the device is also something I hold dear, I am not the kind of guy that will buy a new gadget every year. This will be my first handheld I hope it will stay that way for a long time.

I think I am oldfashioned but I think of the pandora as a handheld msx, and my msx lasted my whole childhood

 

[borgqueenx]

why is it great for coders, Its great if they can make their software run just as good on less MHz's

well more mhz means more processing power. ofcource its greater if they could make it work with less mhz, but with more available, its easier to create more powerful stuff.

It's easier to create more powerfull stuff on a full desktop, they could code for that always. I do agree pandora is a powerfull handheld but you need more than raw power to create great software, here the handheldness of the pandora becomes a great asset. And I like to add durability of the device is also something I hold dear, I am not the kind of guy that will buy a new gadget every year. This will be my first handheld I hope it will stay that way for a long time.

I think I am oldfashioned but I think of the pandora as a handheld msx, and my msx lasted my whole childhood

i think il have the pandora for 2 years long. then il sell it, because the hardware capabilities have doubled by then.
And durability is fine if you overlclock it - so ive heard on this topic.

 

[Bosbeetle]

I dont mind speed as much as available software. I think the community can thrive by having a little less hardware updates.

 

[j.pickens]

So, if I overclock, I'll only get 44,000 hours of operation?
That's only 5 years!
I am depressed...

well that would be 5 years only if you played 24 hours a day for 5 years.
if you play, let's think like as in primary school, 8 hours a day, and that's a lot, the pandora would last 15 years. By that time you'll sure have the pandora 2

8 hours a day? I can do that standing on my head!

 

[Exophase]

why is it great for coders, Its great if they can make their software run just as good on less MHz's

Maybe you'd prefer it if Pandora were 50MHz?

For some demanding applications people have in mind every little bit is going to help. Ultimately it will be you who is in control of how fast your Pandora can get, so if you don't like it don't let it get that high. I don't think there are programs that will be optimized less aggressively because of a few more MHz of headroom - anyone with this mentality probably wouldn't have bothered to throw a lot of optimization at their program in the first place.