DSpic vs. Pic

[BobK]

Hi Nickster,

The DSPic is a much more advance controller chip than a regular PIC. Start with PIC's and work your way up. Of course it really depends on what your application is going to be.

I own an EasyPic2 board and have several of their modules. I also own the MikroBasic complier. I did a few demo programs on the EasyPIC board but for now that's about it. I have been building prototype boards for my big project so I really didn't need the EasyPIC 2 board for a while. The books from MikroElectronika are great learning tools. I also have 4 other books that relate to programming in Basic. I started out with the BasicStamps and have worked my way up.

We have some really great people answering requests for help on this forum. I also watch several other forums but this one has the most to offer as far as the quality of answers. The people that do reply get frustrated when someone asks for help without looking at the FAQ section first. They really want you to do as much for yourself as possible. Afterall this is suppose to be a great learning experience. I have found it to be alot of fun so far and have learned quite a bit just reading what others have posted here and the response they get. Make sure you look at the "goto here" posted by NavMicro as it really saves alot of time in their helping you with your situation.

Good luck and make sure you have fun doing whatever it is you are doing.

Regards,

BobK

P.S.
I also own the PicBasic Compiler as well as the PICBasicPro Compiler. I really only use the PBP program though.

[Nicksterjack]

I appreciate the input. I am just trying to figure out the easiest way to start and also the most affordable. Have to watch those greenbacks - LOL. My hobbies usually get expensive quick.

Thanks,

James

[BobK]

Hi James,

I bought "PIC Microcontroller Project Book" by John Iovine. Lots of good examples and real basic programs that don't cost much to get going with. I don't worry about the money end because I write it off in my business. It must be nice huh?

Anyway, I bought some PIC's and started with the examples. Moved onto "PIC BASIC, An Introduction" by Erice Edwards and Neil Roberts. Again another helpful book. 2 years ago I designed and built a system that detects when trains are blocking the railroad crossings here where I live. I used a Basic Stamp 2 to eliminate false triggering and to monitor the temperature and control a fan and heater inside the controller cabinet. The City bought 2 of my systems and they have been working great for over 1 1/2 years now. After that I moved on directly with PICs. Big difference in price. Basic Stamp2 @ $50 each vs PICs starting around $4US. I am currently working on a 160 zone annunciator panel for one of my clients. The main display panel has 160 bi-leds to indicate 2 different conditions with a 4x20 Vacuum Flourescent display showing the date/time and which apartment just had an alarm. The date/time and alarm data are alos printed out on a serial POS printer. A remote display in another building only shows alarm conditions. I am nearing completion on the assembly phase of the circuit boards and have the card cages going together nicely and have made contact with a local printing company to make label overlays for the front of the displays. It's really coming together!

Just so you know I am a professional alarm installer in the business over 30 years. Building electronic gadgets is what got me started in the business. I have made alot of custom devices over the years but only recently started using PICs. They do make the job alot easier.

Sorry for carrying on. It's just the excitement in me.

If I can help you with anthing else, just ask! (No money though. Ha Ha)

BobK

[nimonia]

did a search for dsp and i came across this thread... well wat i know is dsp processors they have multipliers and barrel shifters... just make a search on tht.. they have it but normal uCs dont thts all i guess.. anyoen witf dspic experience pls share,,i plan to make a guitar effects paddle using them..

[sougata]

Hi,

The dSPICs are much more complicated than the 16F or 18F series. It allows you to do serious math, have a software based stack, improved peripherals like much speedier buffered 12Bit ADC , auto multiplexing for reading a chain of inputs with a single read, motor control stuff, low latency flash read, linear memory space and so on. It is not supported by PBP nor mikrobasic(???). MikroPascal does support it but for serious programming I would suggest a Hi-Tech or Microchip C compiler.

I started off with PBP and work with it for 90% of my projects. Asm adds muscle to PBP and it really makes your life easier. I did work with the demo version of mikrobasic and it features sort of structured programming, High priority interrupt, online memory gauge and so. What impressed me is the interrupt handling and graphic LCD support.

So I will vote for PBP for a start-up. Build your own programmer if you can. Start off with a breadboard and use compile-spot or a demo version to taste it out.

Good Luck

Sougata