Build Or Buy That Ultimate Pic Programmer?

[RSABear 0]

There are literally hundreds of DIY PIC programmers on the internet and market however, I would like to invest in a programmer that connects USB or RS232, and which software integrates well with the MPLAB – and the SourceBoost IDE.

 

I started programming Microchip PICs a few months ago and purchased the Velleman K8048 programmer/experimentation board. Although it works and I get most chips programmed using the ICSP socket, I feel that the time has come to move on to my next programmer. The EZ-Controllers are a very cleaver option however, for my next project a required lots of I/O and I would like to use the new PIC16F887 processor.

 

I would like to know if any member of the forum has built the PICSTARTER+ programmer form http://www.5v.ru/psp.htm ?

[trossin 0]

I like the look of the Russian text but I can't understand it. Is there a translation of this site?

[Pavel 0]

...I would like to know if any member of the forum has built the PICSTARTER+ programmer form http://www.5v.ru/psp.htm ?

 

Before you go any further consider what they say on the very bottom of this page: (translation) Model PICSTARTER+ is not manufactured any more.

 

Regards,

Pavel

[RSABear 0]

PICSTARTER+ not manufactured anymore - now that is a pity. It seems that using RS232 and USB makes the design of the programmer hardware and software a little more complex and out of the open source and DIY users. The option of a good PIC programmer in the form of an electronics kit is still open. Thank you for the translation.

[sdujolo 0]

I have Presto programer http://www.pic-tools.com/ it works good and support PIC, dsPIC, AVR, Atmel 8051, eCOG, serial EEPROM & Flash, JTAG, CPLD, ...

 

/Jörgen

[RSABear 0]

Judging from the speed quoted Presto is a good descriptive product name for the programmer. With many programmable devices combined with hundreds of options and features on each device I can understand that a programmer will need some sort of firmware to reduce the complexity in the host application. Taken the effort to design, code, test and manufacture the programmer, the price quoted is very reasonable for the functionality provided. Thank you sdujolo.

[emte 0]

It is quite trivial to do this, but the USB tranceivers can get quite expensive comparativly and they require a bit of extra firmware work.

 

 

PICSTARTER+ not manufactured anymore - now that is a pity. It seems that using RS232 and USB makes the design of the programmer hardware and software a little more complex and out of the open source and DIY users. The option of a good PIC programmer in the form of an electronics kit is still open. Thank you for the translation.

[RSABear 0]

I finally did it - There is a Michrochip promotion on the ICD-2 and I purchased one at my local distributor. Not really a bargain but maybe the value is in the debugger. As I was doing ICSP and working on a target circuit the ICD-2 sould suffice for programming flash devices. Let's see how it goes.

[Carlos 0]

I bought an ICD2 clone on eBay recently and had several trying hours trying to get MPLAB to work with it. Never did get it to hang in there....UNTIL! Ever time I would loose the ICD2 clone, I would see a flash of the ERROR light and another red LED that does something. It would also flash brightly. THE FIX is simple. Isolate the USB power with an inline diode and power the ICD2 clone externally. That did it. Two days and perfectly stable operation. It is a neat programmer and does it all. Check eBay for Jeff's Store if you're lookin'. I got the version with the external ZIF sockets. I use it for my 3 fav's; 16F684, 16F873/A and the 18F8722.