I have recently searched some USB logic analyzers to help me develop and test my projects. Has a Mac osX user one of mine greatest requirements was the support for Mac. After a small research I have found a great solution from Salae (http://www.saleae.com/logic/) at $149.
In this topic i will make a small review of this analyzer. I hope everyone enjoys it.
Tech Specs:
Geometry and Weight
- Length & Width: 1.7 in (43.2mm)
- Thickness: .365 in (9.3mm)
- Volume: 1 in3 (16.4 cm3)
- Weight: .9 oz (25.5 gm)
Inputs
- Input voltage range: -0.5V to 5.25V
- Input Low Voltage: -0.5V to 0.8V
- Input High Voltage: 2.0V to 5.25V
- Works with 5V, 3.3V, 2.5V, 2.0V systems. May work with 1.8V but not recommended.
- ESD protected per CE requirements
- Over-voltage protection to +/- 15V. Not meant for continuous operation outside -0.5V to 5.25V.
- Input Impedance: 1Mohm || 10pF (typical, approximate)
- Crystal: +/-20ppm, 24MHz
- Error/Accuracy: pulse-width measurement: +/- 42ns (at 24MHz).
Sample Rate & Depth
- 24MHz. 16MHz, 12MHz, 8MHz, 4MHz, 2MHz, 1MHz, 500KHz, 250KHz, 200KHz, 100KHz, 50KHz, 25KHz; Note that achieving the highest sample rates requires low USB latency; this may not be achievable on all computers. Performance may improve with the removal of other USB devices, using a different USB host controller, or increasing the software's process priority.
- 10B samples. Absolute max depends on data compressibility, available RAM and operating system. 10B samples assumes reasonably high compressibility.
System Requirements
- Windows XP (32-bit)
- Windows Vista (32-bit or 64-bit)
- Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit)
- Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger or higher
- Linux: recent Ubuntu, Fedora, or openSUSE. Other distributions are likely to work but not specifically supported.
- USB 2.0
What's in the Box
- Logic (fully tested)
- 1x9 Ultra-Flexible Test Lead Set
- x9 Micro Hook Clips
- USB Cable (2M length, A to mini-B)
- Custom Carrying Case
- Software not included — download here
Construction
- Custom CNC machined aluminum enclosure
- 2-part elastomer injection molded bottom cover
- 4-layer PCB, professionally designed, laid out, and design reviewed
Software:
Has mentioned before this analyzer is supported by the 3 major OS. The Salae Logic software can be downloaded from the Salae website, and you can even test it in simulation mode, where the program randomly generates signals for the 8 channels available and apply an analyzer to decode de signals.
This software works like a recorder. You specify the number of samples you want to acquire and the sample rate, and after that you start recording, allowing you to acquire up to 10 billion samples at a maximum rate of 24MHz. After or before the signals acquisition you can enable different analyzer. At the moment there are available this analyzers:
CAN;
I2C;
I2S/PCM;
1-WIRE;
ASYNC SERIAL;
SPI;
INI/O;
This analyzer should fit most users, but for those who need more, Salae informed me that they are currently working on new analyzers and a SDK, has is stated on an e-mail reply:
"Great to hear you liked the software! Yes, an quadrature encoder analyzer is on the list, we'll get to it as soon as we can, but it's likely to be sometime next year. We are releasing a SDK in a couple weeks so it's possible someone else will create it before we can get to it.
The software has a very clean and intuitive interface. Even if you're not familiar with it, you shoud not require more than a few minutes to understand all its features.
Conclusion:
This logic analyzer has really small size, but at the same time has some great features. It comes in a nice and robust carring case with a complete set of accessories and has an undeniable construction quality at the levels on an Apple product. The free and multi-platform software makes this a very complete product, especially for those who enjoy the mac osX expirience.
In my opinion the only thing missing in this product is some other analyzer, like a QEI interface, but from what Salae says this problem will be resolved soon.
I hope this review can be usefull for those who will read it, and if you have any question feel free to ask.
I would also like to thank Joe Garrison, from Salae LLC for the oportunity to test this product.
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