Yes, the jumper wires connect the +5V and Gnd to the board using the receptacles at the end of the board. They're pretty long, though. If you don't need the entire length, cut them shorter. Be sure to check the 3.3V supply before plugging in the Propeller chip!
-Phil
Post Edited (Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)) : 5/4/2006 5:24:25 PM GMT
Just got my propstick! Here's a stupid question. It says I need a 5V supply, but I see no reason I can't just use a pack of four batteries at 6V, right?
I like to minimize the cords, and I don't want another big 5V supply. Plus, the batteries just make it even more portable.
This is gonna be fun; it's been a while since I actually messed with hardware.
I recommend testing first with a 5V supply and without the Propeller plugged in, because if there's a short somewhere that causes voltage to bypass the 3.3V regulator, the EEPROM and MAX3232 won't be harmed. After that, sure, a 6V supply is fine. But keep the supply voltage as low as you can. Remember, the regulator has to dissipate the difference between Vin and 3.3V at whatever current you're drawing. It has over-temp protection, but cool is ... well ... cool.
Perfect, exactly what I was looking for! What you are saying is that the EEPROM and MAX3232 are 5-volt tolerant, but
6 volts will probably fry them, so it is definitely worthwhile testing it at 5 volts first. Thank you!
You might make this reasoning explicit in the next go-round of the documentation; I couldn't figure out why it said input
could be 5..9 volts, but you needed a 5V supply to test. You bullet-proof most of the rest (e.g., explicitly saying
rosin-core, so no one uses acid-core accidentally) and the instructions really hedge against all the common errors.
I like how you are very careful to say, do this, check that, and only then do this third (like when soldering in the
voltage regulator and sockets); I'm sure you've saved tons of people a lot of time from unsoldering things that aren't quite
aligned right!
Ken Gracey (Parallax) said...
...
The price will be $79.95. This may seem expensive to some of us, but it's the only price at which we can offer the product. I'd like to give a little cost justification....
I realize nobody is complaining about the price, but I thought it would be worthwhile to provide some justification to $79.95. ...
I hope this is acceptable and beneficial to our valued Propeller customers.
Ken,
Thank you sincerely for this "extra step" (a thoughtful explanation of pricing). As a company, Parallax continues to amaze and to·earn·respect·in the customer service arena.
Comments
-Phil
Post Edited (Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)) : 5/4/2006 5:24:25 PM GMT
I like to minimize the cords, and I don't want another big 5V supply. Plus, the batteries just make it even more portable.
This is gonna be fun; it's been a while since I actually messed with hardware.
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Chris Savage
Parallax Tech Support
csavage@parallax.com
-Phil
6 volts will probably fry them, so it is definitely worthwhile testing it at 5 volts first. Thank you!
You might make this reasoning explicit in the next go-round of the documentation; I couldn't figure out why it said input
could be 5..9 volts, but you needed a 5V supply to test. You bullet-proof most of the rest (e.g., explicitly saying
rosin-core, so no one uses acid-core accidentally) and the instructions really hedge against all the common errors.
I like how you are very careful to say, do this, check that, and only then do this third (like when soldering in the
voltage regulator and sockets); I'm sure you've saved tons of people a lot of time from unsoldering things that aren't quite
aligned right!
Post Edited (rokicki) : 5/5/2006 6:07:34 PM GMT
Thank you sincerely for this "extra step" (a thoughtful explanation of pricing). As a company, Parallax continues to amaze and to·earn·respect·in the customer service arena.
PAR