SX-Key Rev F Debug Greyed Out

Medic

Hello.

I received my SX Tech Tool Kit in the mail a few days ago, and have been trying to get Debugging working properly. The STEP, WALK and RUN buttons in the Debugger are greyed out, and the debugger starts in RUNNING mode.

I've read through the SX FAQ posted by G

T&E Engineer

I have gone through this in the past. Biggest culprit was having the external resonator while in debug mode which can kill the SX-key. However, in your case you stated you did not have it in. Have you tried any other programs using WATCH and BREAK statements?

Try this one that JonnyMac wrote for debuging purposes.

JonnyMac

You've got the internal oscillator selected (the key needs to provide the clock for debugging) -- change OSC4MHZ to OSCXT1.

Medic

T&E: Just to confirm, I do not have an external oscillator plugged in. I haven't even taken them out of the bag.

I tried the attached Debug_Test.SXB program with the same results on both the SX Tech Board and the SX 48/52 Proto Board.

JonnyMac: Thanks for the response. I changed to various oscillators per other forums posts for testing and had the same results with all of them.

Thanks for the responses.

-Tim

T&E Engineer

I would call Parallax as you may have fried the oscillator section out of the SX-key used for DEBUG. "IF" this is the case, many times they will offer a 50%·credit towards a new one. They can help you determine the problem. Either way it probably wont hurt to call them to get an RMA to return it for a replacement.

Medic

Cool, Thanks. I just wanted to exhaust all of my troubleshooting options before making that call.

-Tim

PJMonty

Tim,

One more thing to try. Remove any "break" lines in the source code and then download the code via Debug. You don't need the break lines in the source since the debugger starts up (normally) with the clock stopped and ready for you to set breakpoints, hit run, step, etc.

Thanks,
PeterM

Medic

Hey Peter.
The original code had no breaks. I added that one to get a hard breakpoint to see if i could force the debugger into a idle state. no such luck.

Thanks,
-Tim

Bean

The reason is because the SX-Key can only debug down to about 320KHz, if you specify a frequency below that (you have 32_000) everything gets greyed out because it is unable to generate that frequency.

Bean.

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Student: I don't know and I don't care
Teacher: Correct !
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Post Edited (Bean (Hitt Consulting)) : 8/23/2007 2:27:49 AM GMT

Medic

Hey Bean.
I lowered the frequency during troubleshooting to see if that may be the problem. Attached is a screenshot of the demo program in "Programming the SX Microcontroller"

Thanks for the suggestion, though. I'll have to remember that for future projects.
-Tim

Guenther Daubach

Medic,

in case you have an O-scope available, please connect the probe to the OSC1 pin (and ground to Vss), and check if a signal is available on that pin. In case the O-scope's bandwith is less than 50 MHz, simply change the FREQ directive in your program to some lower value, say 4 MHz.

To make sure that the SX does not cause trouble, you could also remove the SX from its socket but leave the SX-Key plugged on the 4-pin header. After you have powered the board, do a "Run - Clock", and select a clock frequency, like 4 MHz and click "Okay". This should activate the clock generator on the SX-Key, and the O-scope should display the clock signal when you touch the OSC1 pin with the probe. This would verify that the SX-Key's clock generator is working.

Although, as you've got the same bad results with two different SX28s on the Tech Board, and with different SX48/52 Proto Boards, it is most likely that the SX-Key is defective.

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Greetings from Germany,

G

Medic

Hey Gunther.

· Thanks for the reply.· Unfortunately, I do not have an oscilloscope available.· From my testing, it seems as if the oscillator on the SX-Key is non functional.· If i set a short program to use the internal oscillator, program the sx and·remove the sx-key, it will function fine.· If i set it to use an external oscillator, program the sx, insert an external oscillator·and remove the sx-key, it functions fine as well.· However, if i set it to use an external oscillator, leave the sx-key attached and tell it to "Run", the program will not run (well, the LEDs won't blink..)

I'll call Parallax this afternoon for RMA information.· Thanks, all, for the troubleshooting tips and information.·

-Tim

Guenther Daubach

Tim,

too bad, but it seems as if you are right with your assumptions. When the SX works as expected with its internal oscillator, or an external resonator/crystal or clock device, it is most likely that the SX-Key is broken when neither debugging, or the "Run-Run", or "Run -Clock" options work as expected. So you better contact Parallax, and I'm pretty sure they will give you the support you need.

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Greetings from Germany,

G

Medic

I just wanted to say "Thanks" for all the troubleshooting help. I sent in the SX-Key for repair, and the tech said it had the incorrect firmware, so they flashed it and shipped it back (Thanks, Dave!). The new firmware works like a Charm.

Thanks Again for the help.

--Tim

PJMonty

Tim,

I'd like to thank you for keeping your cool during all of this. I know how annoying it is when your shiny new gizmo doesn't work right, and there have been plenty of people on this (and other) forums who get angry first when this happens. That never helps anyone. You've been very cool during all of this, and willing to try the various suggestions.

Thanks,
PeterM

T&E Engineer

Did they tell you what the firmware version should be so that we can all verify our SX-KEYs? How do you verify the version? I had a·replacement one sent to me a few months ago and it is working well but....it would be nice to know what we "should" be using.