All I want for Chipmas is lots of 1's and 0's arranged as a P2 FPGA image nicely gift wrapped in a .jic or .sof package.
And I've tried to be a good boy this year, so a Parallax Cyclone V FPGA board would be cool too!
This would help to illuminate my favourite chipmas light.
I've been away for a while now, getting the schematic for the full-custom part of the chip done, avoiding any distractions. It's almost ready. I've got to test the complete I/O pin and then make sure the crystal pads and BOE/reset pads are in final order.
I've wanted to come check out the forum for a week, though I've been a little afraid to. I'm happy to see you guys are still around! You've got faith!
My goal now is to have all schematic-side work done by the end of this month. Then, I'll be back on the Verilog and hopefully producing FPGA images routinely.
Daniel, at Parallax, has finished our Cyclone V -A7 circuit board and it should be getting fab'd now. We'll have to make sure it's all good before we produce it, though.
This Prop2 project has been feeling like the movie Groundhog Day. Hopefully, this cycle will be broken in the next few months.
I've been away for a while now, getting the schematic for the full-custom part of the chip done, avoiding any distractions. It's almost ready. I've got to test the complete I/O pin and then make sure the crystal pads and BOE/reset pads are in final order.
I've wanted to come check out the forum for a week, though I've been a little afraid to. I'm happy to see you guys are still around! You've got faith!
My goal now is to have all schematic-side work done by the end of this month. Then, I'll be back on the Verilog and hopefully producing FPGA images routinely.
That sounds great! I suppose this effort with the full-custom part of the chip was slowed down because Beau left?
Daniel, at Parallax, has finished our Cyclone V -A7 circuit board and it should be getting fab'd now. We'll have to make sure it's all good before we produce it, though.
There was a description of this board posted on the Parallax web site but it didn't mention any SDRAM on board. Will there be one?
This Prop2 project has been feeling like the movie Groundhog Day. Hopefully, this cycle will be broken in the next few months.
Thanks for your patience, Everyone.
I think we're all having fun doing other Propeller projects while we wait. :-)
That sounds great! I suppose this effort with the full-custom part of the chip was slowed down because Beau left?
There was a description of this board posted on the Parallax web site but it didn't mention any SDRAM on board. Will there be one?
I think we're all having fun doing other Propeller projects while we wait. :-)
This is work that I would have to do, even if Beau was here. It was a problem that I couldn't feed him this work fast enough. Now, we'll spool it all up and deliver it to a layout contractor.
Our -A7 board has a slot connector into which different kinds of simple memory-chip boards can be plugged. We knew we'd need both SDRAM and DDRx memory types, and we didn't have enough pins for everything. That slot has some signals which allow the VDD to be set to whatever is needed for the particular memory chip.
I'm happy that you guys are still busy and looking forward to Prop2!
Oh Chip, yes, there as been all kinds of development going on out here with web based IDEs for Propellers, web based oscilloscopes for Propellers, programming Propellers from Chrome books. All kind of weird stuff. All useful for the P2 as well.
I've been away for a while now, getting the schematic for the full-custom part of the chip done, avoiding any distractions. It's almost ready. I've got to test the complete I/O pin and then make sure the crystal pads and BOE/reset pads are in final order.
I've wanted to come check out the forum for a week, though I've been a little afraid to. I'm happy to see you guys are still around! You've got faith!
My goal now is to have all schematic-side work done by the end of this month. Then, I'll be back on the Verilog and hopefully producing FPGA images routinely.
Daniel, at Parallax, has finished our Cyclone V -A7 circuit board and it should be getting fab'd now. We'll have to make sure it's all good before we produce it, though.
This Prop2 project has been feeling like the movie Groundhog Day. Hopefully, this cycle will be broken in the next few months.
Daniel, at Parallax, has finished our Cyclone V -A7 circuit board and it should be getting fab'd now. We'll have to make sure it's all good before we produce it, though.
Given that A7 FPGA Board has 40 pin headers already, it would be nice if the final production release included mounting holes and compatible pinouts to "HAT (Hardware Attached on Top) add-on board"
( see http://www.raspi.today/raspberry-pi-model-a-plus-out-now/ )
Don't get me wrong - I like my Pi's of all the assorted flavors (obviously, as I design add-on boards for Pi's) - but that does not mean I have to like the ordering of the pins on their header.
I'd prefer the same pinout as the Nano, or Quickstart for the Parallax FPGA board.
Given that A7 FPGA Board has 40 pin headers already, it would be nice if the final production release included mounting holes and compatible pinouts to "HAT (Hardware Attached on Top) add-on board"
( see http://www.raspi.today/raspberry-pi-model-a-plus-out-now/ )
I've been away for a while now, getting the schematic for the full-custom part of the chip done, avoiding any distractions. It's almost ready. I've got to test the complete I/O pin and then make sure the crystal pads and BOE/reset pads are in final order.
I've wanted to come check out the forum for a week, though I've been a little afraid to. I'm happy to see you guys are still around! You've got faith!
My goal now is to have all schematic-side work done by the end of this month. Then, I'll be back on the Verilog and hopefully producing FPGA images routinely.
Daniel, at Parallax, has finished our Cyclone V -A7 circuit board and it should be getting fab'd now. We'll have to make sure it's all good before we produce it, though.
This Prop2 project has been feeling like the movie Groundhog Day. Hopefully, this cycle will be broken in the next few months.
Are you still planning to support the DE2-115 and DE0 for those of us who made a significant investment already?
Regards,
Coley
Of course! I did mean to give an impression otherwise. I'm just excited that we'll have a platform that is optimal for what we're up to. I'll keep making FPGA images for the other three boards that we are currently supporting.
Of course! I did mean to give an impression otherwise. I'm just excited that we'll have a platform that is optimal for what we're up to. I'll keep making FPGA images for the other three boards that we are currently supporting.
That's great!
I did think that was the case but just wanted to be certain after you mentioned the Parallax Cyclone board.
Looking forward to the next release with much anticipation ;-)
I've been away for a while now, getting the schematic for the full-custom part of the chip done, avoiding any distractions. It's almost ready. I've got to test the complete I/O pin and then make sure the crystal pads and BOE/reset pads are in final order.
I've wanted to come check out the forum for a week, though I've been a little afraid to. I'm happy to see you guys are still around! You've got faith!
My goal now is to have all schematic-side work done by the end of this month. Then, I'll be back on the Verilog and hopefully producing FPGA images routinely.
Daniel, at Parallax, has finished our Cyclone V -A7 circuit board and it should be getting fab'd now. We'll have to make sure it's all good before we produce it, though.
This Prop2 project has been feeling like the movie Groundhog Day. Hopefully, this cycle will be broken in the next few months.
Thanks for your patience, Everyone.
Thanks Chip, sounds positive, faith is based on substance and we have seen what you can do and are doing!
Will the new FPGA board be able to emulate the A/D pin functions? What are we limited to with this board and the older FPGAs?
Thanks Chip, sounds positive, faith is based on substance and we have seen what you can do and are doing!
Will the new FPGA board be able to emulate the A/D pin functions? What are we limited to with this board and the older FPGAs?
Early in the spec I had requested that we put an A/D converter on the FPGA board but unfortunately it didn't make it into the design. However, there's a connector that can be used for an external A/D. My thoughts are that with a simple object swap you could be doing near-full prototyping with an external A/D while we continue to develop the internal A/D on P2.
The problem with using a standard SPI ADC is that its performance will be very poor compared to what the Prop2 will be capable of, as from what I read before, the P2 will be able to sample at rather high rates if you limit the resolution.
Having said that, something like an ADS72822P can trade bits/for speed in a similar fashion to how a P2 ADC input may work, so it may be worth a look.
Early in the spec I had requested that we put an A/D converter on the FPGA board but unfortunately it didn't make it into the design. However, there's a connector that can be used for an external A/D. My thoughts are that with a simple object swap you could be doing near-full prototyping with an external A/D while we continue to develop the internal A/D on P2.
The problem with using a standard SPI ADC is that its performance will be very poor compared to what the Prop2 will be capable of, as from what I read before, the P2 will be able to sample at rather high rates if you limit the resolution.
Having said that, something like an ADS72822P can trade bits/for speed in a similar fashion to how a P2 ADC input may work, so it may be worth a look.
Yeah, I understand the limitations. The thing is, we want to sell lots of chips. Anything that gives our customers a serious headstart in their product development process will help us recover our investment.
An external parallel A/D module is a good idea and I'll get it started internally. Got a favorite or recommended A/D for this add-on?
An external parallel A/D module is a good idea and I'll get it started internally. Got a favorite or recommended A/D for this add-on?
That depends a little on
* how fast the P2 ADC is expected to operate
* The parallel interface choices & speeds ? - Chip did talk about having the fast-video-streaming work in a choice of either direction ? (ie camera / ADC capture, as well as Video /LCD out optionally via CLUT )
That depends a little on
* how fast the P2 ADC is expected to operate
* The parallel interface choices & speeds ? - Chip did talk about having the fast-video-streaming work in a choice of either direction ? (ie camera / ADC capture, as well as Video /LCD out optionally via CLUT )
That one looks good for starters but I basically have the same questions as you in that I would want an ADC that matches the P2 as much as we can. The price of the ADC is unimportant for evaluation purposes but these parts still look reasonably priced. We would have to allow for multiple devices on the board though as 8 channels might not be enough. I don't know if the tight packaging is going to be a problem for layout.
AFAIK, the built-in Prop2 ADCs are single-order bit-streaming only. A counter is required to capture samples. They can't go all that fast unless you just want 4-bit resolution or similar. Should be okay for audio though. Anything else is too bulky.
Yeah, I understand the limitations. The thing is, we want to sell lots of chips. Anything that gives our customers a serious headstart in their product development process will help us recover our investment.
An external parallel A/D module is a good idea and I'll get it started internally. Got a favorite or recommended A/D for this add-on?
Comments
I'm thinking we should start adding some other items to our Christmas lists so our trees don't look so barre come December 25th! :frown:
Perhaps if we are very, very good we might get a surprise treat of a P2 FPGA configuration.
And I've tried to be a good boy this year, so a Parallax Cyclone V FPGA board would be cool too!
This would help to illuminate my favourite chipmas light.
I've been away for a while now, getting the schematic for the full-custom part of the chip done, avoiding any distractions. It's almost ready. I've got to test the complete I/O pin and then make sure the crystal pads and BOE/reset pads are in final order.
I've wanted to come check out the forum for a week, though I've been a little afraid to. I'm happy to see you guys are still around! You've got faith!
My goal now is to have all schematic-side work done by the end of this month. Then, I'll be back on the Verilog and hopefully producing FPGA images routinely.
Daniel, at Parallax, has finished our Cyclone V -A7 circuit board and it should be getting fab'd now. We'll have to make sure it's all good before we produce it, though.
This Prop2 project has been feeling like the movie Groundhog Day. Hopefully, this cycle will be broken in the next few months.
Thanks for your patience, Everyone.
This is work that I would have to do, even if Beau was here. It was a problem that I couldn't feed him this work fast enough. Now, we'll spool it all up and deliver it to a layout contractor.
Our -A7 board has a slot connector into which different kinds of simple memory-chip boards can be plugged. We knew we'd need both SDRAM and DDRx memory types, and we didn't have enough pins for everything. That slot has some signals which allow the VDD to be set to whatever is needed for the particular memory chip.
I'm happy that you guys are still busy and looking forward to Prop2!
Looking forward to an image for my DE2-115... but I think wifey would prefer that no such image was available until January :-(
(She has this funny idea that xmas is for family, NOT for playing with FPGA's! Imagine that!)
They're fun to have around, they are entertaining, you can learn from them, they cost a lot of money, they grow up and marry lazy.......
OK, maybe they are like some people's families!
A bunch of us down under are busy tinkering with the Propeller Verilog and our FPGA boards.
I prefer to think of it as "Every day is Propeller Day "
Cheers
Brian
P.S. Nice to see "Fozzie Bear" pop up on the forum.
Given that A7 FPGA Board has 40 pin headers already, it would be nice if the final production release included mounting holes and compatible pinouts to "HAT (Hardware Attached on Top) add-on board"
( see http://www.raspi.today/raspberry-pi-model-a-plus-out-now/ )
Have you seen how arbitrary that pinout is???
http://pi4j.com/pins/model-b-plus.html
I'll take a nice logical pinout instead.
Don't get me wrong - I like my Pi's of all the assorted flavors (obviously, as I design add-on boards for Pi's) - but that does not mean I have to like the ordering of the pins on their header.
I'd prefer the same pinout as the Nano, or Quickstart for the Parallax FPGA board.
To a FPGA that is not too bad, only GND / VCC are firmly defined.
Given there is more than one 40 pin header on the FPGA board, I can see that both can be supported
Thanks for the update.
Are you still planning to support the DE2-115 and DE0 for those of us who made a significant investment already?
Regards,
Coley
Of course! I did mean to give an impression otherwise. I'm just excited that we'll have a platform that is optimal for what we're up to. I'll keep making FPGA images for the other three boards that we are currently supporting.
That's great!
I did think that was the case but just wanted to be certain after you mentioned the Parallax Cyclone board.
Looking forward to the next release with much anticipation ;-)
Thanks Chip, sounds positive, faith is based on substance and we have seen what you can do and are doing!
Will the new FPGA board be able to emulate the A/D pin functions? What are we limited to with this board and the older FPGAs?
Early in the spec I had requested that we put an A/D converter on the FPGA board but unfortunately it didn't make it into the design. However, there's a connector that can be used for an external A/D. My thoughts are that with a simple object swap you could be doing near-full prototyping with an external A/D while we continue to develop the internal A/D on P2.
The problem with using a standard SPI ADC is that its performance will be very poor compared to what the Prop2 will be capable of, as from what I read before, the P2 will be able to sample at rather high rates if you limit the resolution.
Having said that, something like an ADS72822P can trade bits/for speed in a similar fashion to how a P2 ADC input may work, so it may be worth a look.
Yeah, I understand the limitations. The thing is, we want to sell lots of chips. Anything that gives our customers a serious headstart in their product development process will help us recover our investment.
An external parallel A/D module is a good idea and I'll get it started internally. Got a favorite or recommended A/D for this add-on?
Ken Gracey
That depends a little on
* how fast the P2 ADC is expected to operate
* The parallel interface choices & speeds ? - Chip did talk about having the fast-video-streaming work in a choice of either direction ? (ie camera / ADC capture, as well as Video /LCD out optionally via CLUT )
I see Microchip now have 200MSPS ADCs, at the more serious performance end
http://www.microchipdirect.com/Chart.aspx?branchId=20161&mid=11&treeid=2&lmid=20161
That one looks good for starters but I basically have the same questions as you in that I would want an ADC that matches the P2 as much as we can. The price of the ADC is unimportant for evaluation purposes but these parts still look reasonably priced. We would have to allow for multiple devices on the board though as 8 channels might not be enough. I don't know if the tight packaging is going to be a problem for layout.
http://www.analog.com/en/analog-to-digital-converters/ad-converters/ad7641/products/product.html
With a bit of FPGA magic, it may be possible to make it look like the final ADC's.
It is capable of 18 bits at up to 2Msps.
If the real P2 will be able to do better than 2Msps, the following parallel ADC's may be helpful:
2oMsps AD9200ARSZAD9200ARSZ
10Msps LTC1420CGN
10Msps LTC2225IUH#TRPBF
There are many others.