Hey guys im new to the TPI so I had a couple questions. First How hard is it to program a PROM? Im betting not too bad just expencive. Secondly, how much horsepower can I free up to tuning?

I am getting slightly discouraged at trying to make power with this engine because it seems like its just a huge uphill battle. Ive asked others before about maybe gaining power via the intake however everyone said there is no power to be had . How do you make HP with a TPI if not by freeing up airflow?

 

Go to DIY Prom, there is a "sticky" that outlines all you need to know to learn how to burn eproms.

Generally, you need to spend about 40 hours for reading material. Some take longer, others less. If someone can actually show you, that time can be greatly reduced.

On a completely bone stock engine, proper tuning can yield about 10% more power (over stock tuning). Plus, you can increase your gas mileage, which can pay for all your equipment & software.

I personally think eprom burning should be the FIRST thing you learn if you plan to modify your engine. It's far easier to learn eprom burning on a stock engine than one that is heavily modified. Then you can modify your engine "in steps" and make the appropriate tuning as you go. Before you know it, you'll have a serious engine and be completely confident in tuning it.

Good luck.

 

i think Grim pretty much covered the chip burning part of your question.
you need to know how to burn your own chips to see the full potential of your motor, doing mods even more so.
price wise, if you already have a lap top, it isn't too bad for just the basics, a data cable, chip burner, a ZIF, a chip carrier & a few chips will get you started.

there is decent power to be had from a L98 with the stock intake, but that intake will become a limiting factor sooner or later.
first thing you need is a good free flowing exhaust. if the exhaust system sucks, so will your motor.
if your going to do a little bit at a time, the next thing is a better cam.
a set of heads will give you some power, but a better flowing intake would probably help more.
some people get the LT1 intake, there is some mod work involved to install one on an L98, but a good number of people here have done it.
there are other intake options out there, a better base with runners, a mini ram, a super ram, a FIRST Injections complete intake setup, & some others. a search here will turn up a lot of info on which way you could go, but none of them are very cheap.
if your budget allows it, exhaust, some Vortec or better heads, intake & the right cam to match everything done all at once will give you some impressive numbers. but with doing everything all at once, if you don't already know how to tune your chip, it will be harder to do.

i'll add that FIRST Injections is suppose to be coming out with a vortec base for their TPI setup.