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Stocking my workbench with microprocessors that have Interfaces

pyromaniac4382

Feb 7, 2013
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Hello,

I just finished up my degree in computer engineering, and as a present to myself I decided to set up my home with an electronics workbench. For a while now I have been accumulating parts and passive components, but other than the PIC microprocessors I used to get from school I have no micro-controllers. Anyways looking on mouser and digi-key makes my broken "right out of college student" wallet hurt.
Well that is if I neglect micro-controllers that have any type of hardware interfacing such as I2C and SPI than I can get away with (25) PIC16F54 's @ a decent 54 cents a piece. The problem is that I would like to keep my building simple and have these features included in the micro controller.

One such MCU I found was this

http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail...=sGAEpiMZZMvfhsTlJjecMEndkK9gweuL35awyVEGe3U=

I guess it is just a little pain that I have all of these LM7805 regulators, and this processor runs at a mere 1.8v - 3.6V :(

So in short if anyone knows of an MCU that runs at 5V, is a through-hole DIP package, and supports I2C and SPI I would be so grateful if you pointed it out to me. Oh and also keep the price down per unit. I think $1-2 should be good. I am not going to break the bank getting Atmel :p
 

(*steve*)

¡sǝpodᴉʇuɐ ǝɥʇ ɹɐǝɥd
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Jan 21, 2010
25,510
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25,510
Break the bank and get some atmel chips. atmega8's are available in DIL for about $1 each. Arduino nano clones are less than $10 (useful to program blank chips). You can get various programmers for a couple of dollars. Set them up for internal oscillator (8Mhz) and you don't even need a crystal.

This post brought to you by the number 7 and the letters "atmel won't break the bank" :)
 

pyromaniac4382

Feb 7, 2013
61
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Feb 7, 2013
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ATmega8 comparison

Hello,

Yes I just figured that with Arduino being so expensive that the chips would also be as expensive. I had looked online before and they were pricey. (probably because of the preloaded bootloader). I found two though I am thinking about getting.

A bulk order of 25 sounds reasonable. Mouser gives their discounts based off quantity so why not. The first one I am thinking of is this 556-ATMEGA88PA-PU @ $1.54 for 25 and the second is this 556-ATMEGA88-20PU @ $2.35 for 25. I have attached a capture of a comparison, but I do not see much of a difference besides operating voltage, size, and the 20PU supporting a serial interface. What are your thoughts?
 

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(*steve*)

¡sǝpodᴉʇuɐ ǝɥʇ ɹɐǝɥd
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Jan 21, 2010
25,510
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25,510
I got mine most recently from eBay!

And you can do slightly cheaper in quantity.

Don't expect super-fast delivery, but I wasn't in a hurry.

edit: these are 16MHz parts, but I use the 8MHz internal oscillator
 

pyromaniac4382

Feb 7, 2013
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Feb 7, 2013
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Is this a family or MCU's or do they have specific data sheets for each. I would like to compare features. It looks like you have listed the ATMEGA8-16PU and the ATMEGA8L-8PU.

I am not crunched for time since these will only be used in hobby projects. I would just like to get the most for my dollar feature wise since I will be going for quantities upwards of 100
 

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Last edited:

(*steve*)

¡sǝpodᴉʇuɐ ǝɥʇ ɹɐǝɥd
Moderator
Jan 21, 2010
25,510
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25,510
The major difference is the clock speed and the minimum voltage.

I use the internal oscillator at 8MHz and run them at 5V, so all are the same for me.

If you want to run them at lower voltages or higher clock speeds then you will see a difference.

The 88 shows as having more features, but I'm not sure that's correct (but I'm not an expert and I haven't checked)
 

pyromaniac4382

Feb 7, 2013
61
Joined
Feb 7, 2013
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Actually looking again at the shipping time it is a little on the long side with that seller since he is away for a few weeks. I think I will just go with mouser with the economy residential shipping.

The sockets off mouser aren't that bad either. I was arguing online with a rep for a good portion of the night over the spec on a certain socket. 28-pin 7.62 mm width chips like the ones you have shown me above will fit this socket.

http://www.mouser.com/Search/Produc...1-9virtualkey57100000virtualkey571-1-390261-9

At 30 cents a piece for 25 that doesn't seem bad. I found upwards of 19 cents for over 100 else where though, not sure if at that point its worth splitting pennies over...:p
 
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