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Pak-8+BS2? — Parallax Forums

Pak-8+BS2?

ArchiverArchiver Posts: 46,084
edited 2000-11-21 22:09 in General Discussion
Hello.

Has anyone worked with the AWC Pak-8's ? I purchased mine about a week ago, and have been having problems understanding how the thing is programmed from a BS2.

Comments

  • ArchiverArchiver Posts: 46,084
    edited 2000-11-18 15:55
    At 10:49 AM 11/18/2000 -0500, you wrote:
    >Hello.
    >
    >Has anyone worked with the AWC Pak-8's ? I purchased mine about a week ago, and
    have been having problems understanding how the thing is programmed from a BS2.
    Hi - Charley

    If you haven't looked yet, wander over to Al's web site to the PAK-8 section
    which can be found here:

    [noparse][[/noparse] http://www.al-williams.com/awce/pak8.htm ]

    Hope that gets you started.

    Regards,

    Bruce Bates
  • ArchiverArchiver Posts: 46,084
    edited 2000-11-21 20:12
    Thanks for the information. The only problem I had was learning how to
    program the Pak8, which because of Al Williams (THANK YOU AL!) help, I am
    now all set. I made a circuit board out of a Radio Shack Component board
    which already had the copper on it, just had to make the solder connections.


    Original Message
    From: "john & lisa" <johnlisa@c...>
    To: <basicstamps@egroups.com>
    Sent: Tuesday, November 21, 2000 5:09 PM
    Subject: Re: [noparse][[/noparse]basicstamps] Pak-8+BS2?


    > If your using stripboard to build your PAK-VIII circuit you'll find a 10
    to
    > 15 nf capacitor from the middle pin on the resonator to ground, and a 10k
    > resistor across the two outer pins of the resonator, really helps. I spent
    > hours trying to get the circuit to work until Al told me about these
    mod's.
    > As for the programme well it's all double Dutch to me.
    >
    Original Message
    > From: Bruce Bates <bvbates@u...>
    > To: <basicstamps@egroups.com>
    > Sent: Saturday, November 18, 2000 3:55 PM
    > Subject: Re: [noparse][[/noparse]basicstamps] Pak-8+BS2?
    >
    >
    > > At 10:49 AM 11/18/2000 -0500, you wrote:
    > > >Hello.
    > > >
    > > >Has anyone worked with the AWC Pak-8's ? I purchased mine about a week
    > ago, and have been having problems understanding how the thing is
    programmed
    > from a BS2.
    > > Hi - Charley
    > >
    > > If you haven't looked yet, wander over to Al's web site to the PAK-8
    > section which can be found here:
    > >
    > > [noparse][[/noparse] http://www.al-williams.com/awce/pak8.htm ]
    > >
    > > Hope that gets you started.
    > >
    > > Regards,
    > >
    > > Bruce Bates
    > >
    > >
    > >
    > >
    > >
    >
    >
    >
    >
  • ArchiverArchiver Posts: 46,084
    edited 2000-11-21 20:30
    Just for the record, hooking up a 50MHz oscillator will depend on your exact
    circuit construction. Here are a few tips that will generally apply to any
    circuit like a PAK-V to PAK-VIII that uses a 50MHz oscillator.

    1) Keep the leads very short. This includes the ground lead from the center
    leg.

    2) You may have better luck starting the oscillator with a small capacitor
    (15pF or so) from either of the end leads of the resonator to ground. You
    can also try from both end leads of the resonator to ground. You should not
    need any capacitance on the center leg unless you are having grounding
    problems to begin with. If you are using a prototyping board, you probably
    don't need any capacitors. Double-sided PC board construction with a ground
    plane probably doesn't need any capacitance either. Your milage may vary and
    you may get better results with a larger or smaller capacitor depending on
    the stray capacitance in your circuit which we can't control.

    3) A 10K resistor across the two outer pins of the resonator may help the
    clock start.

    I'm planning on documenting all this soon, but just in case anyone else is
    having this sort of problem I thought I'd mention it now. The problem is, of
    course, each case is different. I'd say 99% of these start right up with no
    external components at all.

    The number one problem we see with these resonator circuits is long leads
    (excluding bad solder joints and bridges). A scope is very helpful to see if
    the oscillator is running or not. Even if you don't have a 50MHz scope you
    should see some activity on the clock pins.

    Hope that helps.

    Al Williams
    AWC
    * Floating point math for the Stamp, PIC, SX, or any microcontroller at
    http://www.al-williams.com/awce/pak1.htm
  • ArchiverArchiver Posts: 46,084
    edited 2000-11-21 22:09
    If your using stripboard to build your PAK-VIII circuit you'll find a 10 to
    15 nf capacitor from the middle pin on the resonator to ground, and a 10k
    resistor across the two outer pins of the resonator, really helps. I spent
    hours trying to get the circuit to work until Al told me about these mod's.
    As for the programme well it's all double Dutch to me.
    Original Message
    From: Bruce Bates <bvbates@u...>
    To: <basicstamps@egroups.com>
    Sent: Saturday, November 18, 2000 3:55 PM
    Subject: Re: [noparse][[/noparse]basicstamps] Pak-8+BS2?


    > At 10:49 AM 11/18/2000 -0500, you wrote:
    > >Hello.
    > >
    > >Has anyone worked with the AWC Pak-8's ? I purchased mine about a week
    ago, and have been having problems understanding how the thing is programmed
    from a BS2.
    > Hi - Charley
    >
    > If you haven't looked yet, wander over to Al's web site to the PAK-8
    section which can be found here:
    >
    > [noparse][[/noparse] http://www.al-williams.com/awce/pak8.htm ]
    >
    > Hope that gets you started.
    >
    > Regards,
    >
    > Bruce Bates
    >
    >
    >
    >
    >
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