I want to start working with PIC microprocessors.
There are 2 kits available for programming the PIC’s (no. 8048 and no. 8076).
Which one of these 2 is the best to start with ?
Thanks
{from another forum user, not on behalf of Velleman.}
I think there is no clear ‘best’ - you will have your own preferences in coming to a choice.
1] The range of PIC microcontrollers supported by the two devices is different and non-overlapping - you will need to make sure the device you want to program is supported.
2] The 8076 has a single ZIF socket, so getting any size of chip in and out is simple, just some jumpers have to be set to suit the chip. The 8048 has 8, 14, 18 and 28 pin sockets only - no on-board provision for 40pin chips. Only one pair of jumpers has to be moved to select the socket to use.
3] The 8076 is simply a programmer. The 8048 is also an experimentation environment that gives you LEDs to flash and buttons to press, all available without taking the PIC off the programmer board. The 8048 is supplied with a PIC16F627 to experiment with - there is no PIC mentioned in the 8076 documentation as part of the kit.
4] Both kits need an rs232 serial port on the PC you will be using. A serial port emulated by a USB adaptor is not a good enough equivalent.
5] The K8048 is available pre-built as module VM111, and recently the K8076 has become available pre-built as VM134.
Hope that helps -
I noticed that SmartGPX is in Leicester, so am I…
Has anyone any idea where I can get VM134 or K8076 in the UK as it appears that Rapid, CPC or Maplin do NOT stock this kit, at least from searching their sites…
I do have a K8048 I built a couple of years ago, but I want to try my hand at my own USB devices and I rather suspect I will have problems trying to program the larger PICs with it. Can’t really be bothered to build (yet) another kit, no offense Velleman I think your stuff is great, so I would prefer VM134 if the price difference isn’t stupid. Plus it has a ZIF socket on it, a big plus for not bending pins!
I looked at the USB kits, but they are a bit limited for what I have in mind, although if any more info on the DLL used for them is available I would appreciate it! All I’m looking for is a means of passing a data block that is then sent down the USB from the PC, and the same for receiving info back.
Hope someone has ideas on these things!
[quote=“Ardingthoth”]I noticed that SmartGPX is in Leicester, so am I…
[/quote]
ooh yer bewtih - eh oop mi duk! <local joke!>
Has anyone any idea where I can get VM134 or K8076 in the UK as it appears that Rapid, CPC or Maplin do NOT stock this kit, at least from searching their sites…
I think it is very new - maybe distributors don’t have it yet.
I do have a K8048 I built a couple of years ago, but I want to try my hand at my own USB devices and I rather suspect I will have problems trying to program the larger PICs with it. Can’t really be bothered to build (yet) another kit, no offense Velleman I think your stuff is great, so I would prefer VM134 if the price difference isn’t stupid. Plus it has a ZIF socket on it, a big plus for not bending pins!
I think the K8076/VM134 is effectively an ICSP system: the
5 signal lines from the board are patched via flying leads to the
correct pins on the ZIF socket.
With a ZIF socket on a breadboard you could replicate much of
this using the ICSP signals on the 5-pin header on the K4048?
The ProgPic2006 support program shows you visually which
pins to patch - neat!
I looked at the USB kits, but they are a bit limited for what I have in mind, although if any more info on the DLL used for them is available I would appreciate it! All I’m looking for is a means of passing a data block that is then sent down the USB from the PC, and the same for receiving info back.
The DLL for the K8055 kit is well-documented in the file you
can find on the Downloads section of the Velleman support site.