tom@math.berkeley.edu (04/14/89)
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I am looking for a logic analyzer card and software to drive it for my
IBM-PC. I am hoping that this is a cheaper way to go than buying a
stand-alone logic analyzer. My needs are modest, 8 or 16 channels with
20 nanosecond resolution would be great. Does such a beast exist?
thanks,
tom erbe-technical director-center for contemporary music-mills college
tom@mills.berkeley.edu -or- tom@jif.berkeley.edubyronl@copper.MDP.TEK.COM (Byron Lunz) (04/15/89)
In article <23069@agate.BERKELEY.EDU> tom@math.berkeley.edu () writes: >- >I am looking for a logic analyzer card and software to drive it for my >IBM-PC. I am hoping that this is a cheaper way to go than buying a >stand-alone logic analyzer. My needs are modest, 8 or 16 channels with >20 nanosecond resolution would be great. Does such a beast exist? > I'll probably get some flames for this, but since I work for the Logic Analyzer Division at Tektronix, I just had to tell you that you can get a stand-alone analyzer from Tek for only $2995. That _is_ probably more expensive than most PC-based LAs, but it won't tie up your PC while waiting for a trigger. In addition it's expandable from the built-in 16 channels to 64 channels, offers a long list of microprocessor probes, and comes with high-quality grabber tips. The model is the 1230. It's a 100Mhz analyzer (samples at 10ns maximum rate) with glitch capture and glitch triggering. If you'd like, I'd be happy to send you some info. Byron Lunz Tektronix Logic Analyzer Division byronl@copper.MDP.TEK.COM
tim@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu (Timothy L. Kay) (04/17/89)
In article (Byron Lunz) writes: >In article tom@math.berkeley.edu () writes: >>I am looking for a logic analyzer card and software to drive it for my >I'll probably get some flames for this, but since I work for the Logic >Analyzer Division at Tektronix, I just had to tell you that you can get >a stand-alone analyzer from Tek for only $2995. That _is_ probably more >expensive than most PC-based LAs, but it won't tie up your PC while Not only is it more expensive, but it probably doesn't have half the features. Does the Tektronix logic analyzer have o A large, easy-to-read screen? o A nice alpha keyboard? o A mouse? o A floppy disk drive to store acquired data? o The ability to generate plots that can be included directly in my word processing (e.g. the data sheet, I am writing)? o The ability to hook up a $150 printer to get hardcopy? There are tremendous advantages in basing products on a standard platform. The manufactuer can take advantage of many of the standard features almost for free. Tim
tom@jif.berkeley.edu (Tom Erbe) (04/17/89)
Byron Lunz writes: "...a stand-alone analyzer from Tek for only $2995. That _is_ probably more expensive than most PC-based LAs, but it won't tie up your PC while...." Timothy L. Kay writes: "Not only is it more expensive, but it probably doesn't have half the features. Does the Tektronix logic analyzer have o A large, easy-to-read screen? o A nice alpha keyboard? ..." I agree, a PC based LA would be very nice, because of all these features. However, I must repeat my query. Does a PC based logic analyzer exist? If one does, please send me and/or the net some information on it. thanks again, tom erbe-technical director-center for contemporary music-mills college tom@mills.berkeley.edu -or- tom@jif.berkeley.edu
garnett@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu (Roger Garnett) (04/18/89)
In article <23199@agate.BERKELEY.EDU> tom@jif.UUCP (Tom Erbe) writes: >Does a PC based logic analyzer exist? There is a company in Ithaca called Array Analysis which makes Logic Analyzers which can be operated stand alone, or, when connected to a PC become a much more powerful device. I have used some of their older models, and they aren't bad. I can't compare them to current Tek, or HP's, because I haven't used them. They consist of appx. 15"W x 18" D x 2" H boxes, which may be stacked for more channels. I think one box does up to 32 channels. There are uP modules available which let you view the bus activity as dissasembled code, (nice), binary, hex, or whatever. You can store images for later comparison, and you can also create stimuli. (data signatures, patterns, etc.) or output an old pattern. I have no idea what pricing is like. Address: Array Analysis inc. Brown Rd. Ithaca N.Y. 14850 (607) 257-6800 Disclaimer: I have no connection with this company, other than having used their equipment, and I may know someone who works there. (Small town...) ___________________________________________________________ Roger Garnett (garnett@tcgould.TN.CORNELL.EDU) Cornell Phonetics Lab (plab!roger@cornell.uucp) Ithaca N.Y. (sggy@cornellC) (607) 255-0704 (sggy@vax5.ccs.cornell.edu)
byronl@copper.MDP.TEK.COM (Byron Lunz) (04/18/89)
In article <10390@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> tim@cit-vax.UUCP (Timothy L. Kay) writes: (in response to my suggestion that a standalone logic analyzer like the Tektronix 1230 could be an alternative to a PC-based logic analyzer card) > >Not only is it more expensive, but it probably doesn't have half the >features. Does the Tektronix logic analyzer have > > o A large, easy-to-read screen? Large is relative, I guess. No, it's not as large as a PC display, but many analyzers including the 1230 have very easy to read screens. A dedicated screen also means that features like faster horizontal scrolling or touch screen operation can be added. > > o A nice alpha keyboard? No, the 1230 does not, for this price. Most low-cost logic analyzers do not. However, more sophisticated logic analyzers like the DAS (Digital Analysis System) from Tek do have. I agree it's quite nice, especially if you are debugging primarily software. > > o A mouse? No. Some dedicated LAs do; the one that comes to mind is the HP16500 - again, a higher-priced product. I'm not too familiar with all the various PC-based analyzers - do they work with a mouse? > > o A floppy disk drive to store acquired data? Again, a nice feature. No, the 1230 doesn't have a built-in disc drive. However, it does have either RS-232 or GPIB interfaces which allow it to be controlled by a PC or other host. This does allow you to use it with a PC, though not IN a PC. > > o The ability to generate plots that can be included directly > in my word processing (e.g. the data sheet, I am writing)? No, not presently. That's a great idea though! Mind if I suggest it to our engineers? Actually, it has come up before, especially since you can do that with various Tek scopes. The 1230 has only been on the market for one year, and we're still adding support and new features, so we'll take this one as a suggestion, OK? > > o The ability to hook up a $150 printer to get hardcopy? YES. This one the 1230 does very well, though it requires a $195 option. Then you can simply connect any Epson-graphic compatible printer and make screen copies or dump the stored memories. > >There are tremendous advantages in basing products on a standard >platform. The manufactuer can take advantage of many of the standard >features almost for free. Tim, this is really the heart of your argument, and you are correct. For many users, PC-based "instruments" are an excellent answer. However, solving problems with a logic analyzer often means setting up a trigger condition and waiting for something to happen. On many of the PC-based analyzers this will tie up your entire PC waiting for that event. Often, this is not acceptable. In addition, some "instruments" don't lend themselves to being designed into the PC environment. That is especially true of high-performance instruments. I hope you'll agree that no single answer is right for everybody. All I wanted to point out is that the price/ performance curve is affecting instruments as well as PCs and you can get a dedicated analyzer for a lot less than you might think. Now we'll _both_ get flamed for taking up net bandwidth :-) ! Byron Lunz Tektronix Logic Analyzer Division byronl@copper.MDP.TEK.COM
henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer) (04/23/89)
In article <10390@cit-vax.Caltech.Edu> tim@cit-vax.UUCP (Timothy L. Kay) writes: >Not only is it more expensive, but it probably doesn't have half the >features [of the PC-based one]. Does the Tektronix logic analyzer have > > o A large, easy-to-read screen? > > o A nice alpha keyboard? Surely you are not speaking of PC screens and keyboards, which often qualify for none of those adjectives! (only half :-)) >There are tremendous advantages in basing products on a standard >platform. The manufactuer can take advantage of many of the standard >features almost for free. He also gets any standard defects for free, which is not a trivial issue. Also, either the PC is dedicated to the product's function (in which case it is overdesigned and possibly overpriced compared to a custom solution) or it's shared with other functions, which can result in compromises. -- Mars in 1980s: USSR, 2 tries, | Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology 2 failures; USA, 0 tries. | uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry@zoo.toronto.edu