They pop up occasionally along with the alternative 'rainbow runner' upgrades (you can either boost a Mystique to 4 MB or have the rainbow runner upgrade). Personally I'd search for the rainbow runner instead as it really reduces stress from video encoding on vintage CPUs.

Hey Duncan!

I don't think Mystique benefits much from memory expansion. Most likely it will only help you increase your desktop resolution, it's too slow to play games at higher resolutions.

Keep your eye on the form-factor btw, Mystique was popular with OEM, which often made their own interfaces, namely Compaq.

Hi,

thanks for the input.

@raymangold: The rainbow runner seems to be even more seldom than the 4MB upgrade - and prices are simply horrible. Btw, my Mystique does have already 4MB, but there does exist a 4MB upgrate to give it the max. 8MB the good old Mystique can work with. I search it just for "fun", to have it as much completed as possible.

@RacoonRider: The machine this card is in isn´t meant for gaming (and, seriously, those early Matroxes aren´t either). It´s an experimental setup of a P55T2P4 Rev.3.10 with an AMD K6-2 400 (momentarily at 6x66,67), just to find out how far I can push this "stoneage" board 😉 Trying various parameters with "setk6" and different BIOSes (found a beta, 0207.002), which seem to support even the "+" - K6es 😉. Pity I haven´t one to test...
From Compaq I normally stay far away - I really do hate those manufacturers who, just for the "benefit" of chaining the customer, built proprietary stuff incl. BIOSes you can´t work with "normally"....

So if anyone knows/has such an extension/upgrade, please contact 😉

Greetings duncan

Never heard about a 4MB upgrade to the Mystique. I know a 2MB upgrade existed for the 2MB cards and ofc the Rainbow Runner module.

Are you sure you are not confusing it with the Millennium II which does have this upgrade available?

Hi,

@vetz: Yes, definitely sure. I´ve got as well the 6MB upgrade for the Millennium I (MGA-MIL/MOD6), just waiting a card with 2MB to arrive from a german "DOS forum" guy. If you like to look at it:

http://www.dane-memory.com/atd-fr/SystemDetai … .asp?SysID=5423

Here you see that it was at least available, but it will be hard to find one.....

greetings, duncan

You learn something new everyday 😀

Duncan,

Hehe I used a Compaq-branded 2Mb Mystique with that same board and 233MMX. Great card, cool even with that silly amount of memory. If you already have 4Mb, that's very good, I would not spend money on more if I were you. Better get a III+ CPU 😀

Hi RacoonRider,

looking for a K6/III at german "DOS forum". Don´t want to spend money but swap stuff I want/must (WIFE!) get rid of 😉

So, if you´ve got a spare one, I can offer for example a "BlueLightning" or an "it´s ST" 😉

greetings, duncan

Duncan,

No, I don't have any K6 chips at all, and shipping cost from Russia is a day time robbery 😀

Your might get lucky but you might have to wait a pretty good while before one pops up, I got mine with a card for pretty much peanuts last year.

Hi,
@racoonRider: Sorry, didn´t look at your location - would really be some way 😉
@nforce 4max: ENVY!!! 😉 nevertheless thanks for the encouragement...

greetings duncan

Not sure what 8MB on a Millenium or Mystique gets you these days (I do have at least one of them upgraded). The original Millenium had other upgrades besides RAM (one for video decoding I think).

The rainbow Runner was cool when new, I got one NIB in the early 2000's when they were dumped on ebay cheap.

Hi Unknown_K,

of course it doesn´t get you anywhere - besides the fun to build a rig with all maxed out that´s available in the boxes standing around 😉

For playing older (non-DOS) games, I´ve got my two BX machines. The P55T2P4 is, like the PVI-486SP3, just for the pleasure of having it, tweaking it, playing around with various combinations of hardware (of course, graphics wise I could put in my Elsa Victory Erazer VIVO, but that´s not the point...).
Do you remember the name of the video decoding add-on card? If I researched well, the rainbow runner existed for Mystique and Millennium (might be wrong, got to know about those add-ons only a few days ago searching for "mga-myst/mod4" ).
😉 haven´t got a spare rainbow runner 😉

Wish you lots of fun with your old rigs,

greetings duncan

Alternative approaches - buy a Mystique 220 or a Millennium II.

Mystique 220 usually comes with 4MB. Millennium II is frequently equipped with 8MB and functions indentically to Mystique in 3D from what I've seen.

Though frankly I don't like pre-G200 cards very much. They aren't particularly stable when doing their ugly 3D graphics.

swaaye wrote:

Alternative approaches - buy a Mystique 220 or a Millennium II.

Mystique 220 usually comes with 4MB. Millennium II is frequently equipped with 8MB and functions indentically to Mystique in 3D from what I've seen.

Though frankly I don't like pre-G200 cards very much. They aren't particularly stable when doing their ugly 3D graphics.

I see one every now and then on eBay at least in the US, got mine last December for like $9 shipped. It came with the upgrade but the 220 tends to get more attention bids wise.

Maybe it's the right time to sell my Rainbow Runners, i have 2 or 3 and i even have a brand new unopened MPEG module for the Millennium...

Hi,

@swaaye: as said, I prefer to upgrade stuff I already have to buying new things. And for playing (3D)games I do prefer my BX machines, ABIT BH6 wit GF2TI, ASUS CUBX with GF4TI. Knowing the limitations, I wouldn´t try to game with those old Matrox graphics.
@nforce 4max: Those 1st generation Mystiques and Millenniums you can get as cheap as 5€ in german bay. But, pity enough, upgrades are rare.
@sprcorreia: do you own one that works with the Mystique? Are you looking for something special I might have to swap?!? Interested 😉

greetings duncan