[sdiy] uC with mul

[Paul Maddox]

JB,

> Yep, the programmable logic is a tempting solution...
> (BTW I'm wondering how much these Xilinx / Altera chips might cost...)

Im going to be useing a spartan II for something
XC2S30, cost about 10UKP each...

> But for a DIYer with very limited time, a 16x16 multiplier looks like a
better
> choice (at least at the beginning) for several reasons :
> 1) I only have have a Mac at home (all development software run on Windoze
AFAIK)
> so I need to get a PC only for this project

this is true for some daft reason...

> 2) I guess I need to get the development board + soft tools

You dont need the board, just the chip in your own design..
The tools, perhaps, at least some method of transfering data from the file
into the binary format for the FPGA.
The projet I am building with an FPGA will have the FPGA code stored on
eprom, and the CPU will program the FPGA each time it powers up...

> 3) I need to find the time to learn how to use them (or to understand at
least a
> little of any code I might pick on the net)

This is the biggest problem..

> 4) I always had the feeling that these chips had weird surface mount
packages that
> make them hard to implement on a PCB...

nah!
take a look here ;- http://www.ppg.wavesynth.com/wtc.htm
The PCB at the bottom is SOLEY surface mount...
It was a doddle to do, and I did two boards in an hour, SMD soldering is
MUCH quicker than DIL!

> For the above reasons, a mul on a chip looks like a more attractive "plug
& play"
> solution... Besides, some Logicdevices chips can perform a 16x16 mul in 20
ns
> AFAIR...
> If my project works, then I might consider replacing the mul by some
FPGA...
> Does that make sense ?

yep, seems to..
But then if it works, why change it?

> And while I'm at it, here's another question :
> if you guys need some FAST flash EPROM & RAM (both 64K x 16), which parts
> would you choose ? I've seen some tempting AMD chips...

how fast?

Paul
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