Spartan-3 3S50 in Web ISE 5.2i = no block RAM, no multiplier?

I downloaded Xilinx free Web ISE 5.2i, and toying with different design to get the feeling of this Spartan-3 thingy. The only Spartan-3 device supposed to be supported by the free verison is 3S50. I am saying "supposed", because I cannot make it instantiate neither multipliers nor block RAMs. According to the data sheet, there are enough of them in the device, but mapper thinks there are none. Why is that? - My error (so I hope!) - Bug in ISE - Limitation of the free version - Typo in the datasheet, and there are no multipliers really.

Code follows. In this test (one of so many!) I let ISE infer a multiplier:

Synthesizer infers one:

but then, in the final report, says *something* is overmapped. Note it does not mark overused resource with an asterisk like '(*)':

There supposed to be 4 of MULT18X18S in this part, but then maper fails with a more detailed, but not more explainable diagnostics:

-kkm

Reply to
Kirill 'Big K' Katsnelson
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Kirill 'Big K' Katsnelson wrote: : I downloaded Xilinx free Web ISE 5.2i, and toying with different design to : get the feeling of this Spartan-3 thingy. The only Spartan-3 device : supposed to be supported by the free verison is 3S50. I am saying : "supposed", because I cannot make it instantiate neither multipliers nor : block RAMs. According to the data sheet, there are enough of them in the : device, but mapper thinks there are none. Why is that? - My error (so : I hope!) : - Bug in ISE : - Limitation of the free version - Typo in the : datasheet, and there are no multipliers really.

The first batch of XC3S50 (labeled XC3S50J) has no block ram and no multipliers. Later batches will have those things as stated in the datasheet.

Bye

--
Uwe Bonnes                bon@elektron.ikp.physik.tu-darmstadt.de

Institut fuer Kernphysik  Schlossgartenstrasse 9  64289 Darmstadt
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Reply to
Uwe Bonnes

WebPack ISE 5.2i only supports the device called the XC3S50J (note the 'J'), which has no block RAM or multipliers.

WebPack ISE 6.1i, due out at the end of September, supports the XC3S50 (no 'J'), which has four 18Kbit block RAMs, four 18x18 hardware multipliers, and two Digital Clock Managers (DCMs). WebPack 6.1i also supports the next few larger Spartan-3 devices, namely the XC3S200 and the XC3S400.

My apologies on the short-term confusion.

--------------------------------- Steven K. Knapp Applications Manager, Xilinx Inc. Spartan-3/II/IIE FPGAs

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--------------------------------- Spartan-3: Make it Your ASIC

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Reply to
Steven K. Knapp

Will 6.1i and future versions continue to support the XC3S50J? Or do we need to keep the 5.2i release around for those?

What does the "i" at the end of the software version mean, anyhow?

Reply to
Eric Smith

Correct, for the XC3S50J devices, you'll want to keep ISE5.2i around.

What does the "i" stand for? For me, it stands for "I don't know". :-). I believe that it stands for ISE (Integrated Software Environment) to distinguish it from earlier "Foundation" software. Still, just a guess.

--------------------------------- Steven K. Knapp Applications Manager, Xilinx Inc. Spartan-3/II/IIE FPGAs

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--------------------------------- Spartan-3: Make it Your ASIC

'J'),

(no

multipliers,

Reply to
Steven K. Knapp

IIRC, the 'i' was added on the first version that was Internet aware. I can't say what features were made possible by having web connectivity, but they have never dropped the designation.

--
Rick "rickman" Collins

rick.collins@XYarius.com
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Reply to
rickman

I think after XACT 6 was rechristened to "M" ("merged" due to Neocad purchase) it became M1, M1.5 etc. and AFAIR it was somewhere there the "i" was added. (and later M was replaced by ISE when XST was added) "i" meant "internet aware" as Rickman pointed out, and the reasons I think was context sensitive help documents being linked to the web documents...or something similar...

I
Reply to
Neeraj Varma

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