840z Zif Adaptor Problem

[-Dan-]

ive just noticed something about the ribbon cable

forgive my crude drawings here mspaint was a quick option.

This is how my ribbon cable is :

<img src="http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/17/ribboncable1lg1.jpg"></img>


I'm just wondering should it be like this :


<img src="http://img126.imageshack.us/img126/8946/ribboncable2qa8.jpg"></img>

[Darrel Taylor]

My cable is like your first picture.
Both keys face the same direction.

Just wondering if you've ever programmed any chips with that EPIC before?
Does the problem only happen with that adapter?
Or has it never worked on anything.

Do you have an 18-pin PIC that you can try to program in the EPIC's ON-Board socket?
Might eliminate questions about the adapter if it won't program an 18-pin.

Have you gone through the EPIC troubleshooting guide ...
http://www.melabs.com/support/epicfixs.htm
<br>

[duncan303]

I have dug out an melabs zif convertor, I personally use the RS232 serial melabs programmers, and am not familiar with the epic programmer.

I have taken a couple of photos
<img width="342" height="256" src="http://www.picbasic.co.uk/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=2225&stc=1&d=119921565 3"/> <img width="371" height="278"src="http://www.picbasic.co.uk/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=2226&stc=1&d=119921565 3"/>

As can be seen the tracks on the board are fairly straighforward but more importantly they are also substantial for the task, the PCB is also good quality, I would suggest that the chances of the board itself failing, probably should be ignored; Likewise the zif socket. In any event the continuity check would have revealed any of the five connections failing.

Melabs do not use boxed headers on either this module or the programmer and I have several times misaligned the IDC socket onto the pin headers as supplied. When this happens I curse them for not providing a boxed header, alternativly I am pleased as most of my connectors I make up and then I do not have to worry about the orientation when clamping the socket.

The led on my serial programmer is a tri-colour, green when power on and red when programming, am I correct in assuming that yours is red all the time you are connected, this would possibly suggest that the socket indeed might not be correctly aligned.

Just another thought (rethink) perhaps there could be residual conductive material floating about inside the zif.
Am now considering how the masking is done during wave soldering on a zif, is it a post assembled component. I regret that the Zif is about to become discombobulated shows how bored I am at Christmas

[-Dan-]

Hi thanks for the the pics ^

i found the problem the adaptor seemed ok so i looked at the programmer and found that for some mad reason the 10 pin header on my programmer is not oriented correctly.

Instead of pin 1 being the bottom right, on mine it is the top left so its basically the wrong way round.