iCE40HX4K

[Adrian_Arg.]

learning boards with this iCE40HX4K (Lattice) FPGA chip, are they recommended or very limited?

[Adrian_Arg.]

Thanks for your prompt response, I was thinking of buying an Alambra II, since it has easy-to-learn graphic software and is opensource, I'll go for another board.

in spanish
Gracias por tu pronta respuesta, pensaba comprar una Alambra II, ya que tiene un software grafico de facil aprendizaje y es opensource, ire por otra placa.

[asmi]

Thanks for your prompt response, I was thinking of buying an Alambra II, since it has easy-to-learn graphic software and is opensource, I'll go for another board.

Forget about all that graphic software. For any serious design you will need to write HDL code.

[SiliconWizard]

Thanks for your prompt response, I was thinking of buying an Alambra II, since it has easy-to-learn graphic software and is opensource, I'll go for another board.

Forget about all that graphic software. For any serious design you will need to write HDL code.

Agreed.

Other than that, how can we answer the OP's question without knowing what they actually want to learn and what their current knowledge is.
If they are absolute beginners with digital design and HDLs, my own advice would be to start with a very simple board and a small FPGA. It's more than enough to learn the basics, it's cheaper, and it's usually easier to grasp. In that regard, Lattice parts are IMHO great. Other than the iCE40 series, the MachXO2/3 are great little FPGAs for learning purposes.

Once you have learned the basics and need something beefier, then you can move up to more powerful FPGAs. Xilinx Spartan 7/Artix 7 come to mind for instance.

This is my opinion. I know some people will suggest going for a beefy dev board right from the start, just because it won't limit you. It's not just the way I see how one should learn. Don't be tempted to go for complex designs right from the start. You would likely end up giving up, and even if you manage to implement working stuff with some point-and-click software tool, you will overlook the basics and won't have learned much in the end.

[Adrian_Arg.]

The Alhambra plaque has a cost of US $ 60.
the xilinx fpga I've been seeing is this, what surprises me is the size of the vivado file, 14.5 Gb. free software, 20 dollars cheaper

https://es.aliexpress.com/item/4000571298195.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.6abd7bedjdgrhG&algo_pvid=251d8527-2426-43fc-b5b4-e8cde905d977&algo_expid=251d8527-2426-43fc-b5b4-e8cde905d977-10&btsid=0bb0623316034827137361728e90f2&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_,searchweb201603_

[SiliconWizard]

The Alhambra plaque has a cost of US $ 60.
the xilinx fpga I've been seeing is this, what surprises me is the size of the vivado file, 14.5 Gb. free software, 20 dollars cheaper

https://es.aliexpress.com/item/4000571298195.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.6abd7bedjdgrhG&algo_pvid=251d8527-2426-43fc-b5b4-e8cde905d977&algo_expid=251d8527-2426-43fc-b5b4-e8cde905d977-10&btsid=0bb0623316034827137361728e90f2&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_,searchweb201603_

Alhambra boards are open source designs, which is nice, with a probably relatively low-volume prodution. It's obvious that those other low-cost Xilinx-based boards designed and produced at high volumes in China are cheaper. On Aliexpress, you can find even cheaper Spartan-6 dev boards (around $20!). Check them out.

Regarding the part, the Spartan-6, although very capable, is an already oldish part. The current series from Xilinx is the "7" series. And that said, Vivado is NOT the software to download for the Spartan-6. It doesn't support it. You'll have to use Xilinx ISE instead. (It's not as big as Vivado.)

[Adrian_Arg.]

thanks for your answer, i didn't know that vivado doesn't support spartan 6. I'm going to look at a spartan 7.

PD: where i find a list of boards that vivado supports

[SiliconWizard]

Note that Spartan-6 FPGAs are very capable FPGAs with modern features, and I still use them in some projects. I wouldn't necessarily reject them for learning purposes, especially if price is a concern, since you can find very cheap boards with those.

Xilinx ISE is free, it's not updated anymore by Xilinx, but is still available, so that's not a big concern there for now.

Anyway, if you're looking for low-cost dev boards with Xilinx parts, I'd recommend looking at QMTECH boards (available on Aliexpress and probably other means.) QMTECH also makes boards with Spartan-7 or Artix-7 FPGAs. Look for "QMTECH Official Store" on Aliexpress to see what they have.

If you have a little more cash, you can also take a look at Digilent's boards: https://store.digilentinc.com/
not as cheap though, but more polished.

[Adrian_Arg.]

I consult you, I have many arduino modules, I have seen that they are compatible with the fpga lattice, it is the same for this
https://es.aliexpress.com/item/32964497318.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0.24fe23f2sxspS2&algo_pvid=5d67614d-a835-41f6-ada7-1a9fbceed636&algo_expid=5d67614d-a835-41f6-ada7-1a9fbceed636-15&btsid=0bb0624116034900788448714e1a15&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_,searchweb201603_.
the problem here is that you have to choose the fpga and the software to use, a problem of choice.

[SiliconWizard]

I don't see a relationship between arduino modules and any FPGA. I don't see what would make them "compatible" with Lattice FPGAs in particular?

If you're going to interface arduino modules with some FPGA, you're going to have to do it through some bus - typically SPI or UART, or maybe parallel. All of this can be implemented on any FPGA.

Now I'm assuming you actually want to learn some HDL (VHDL or Verilog for instance.) I don't know if you were thinking of using some third-party software instead and whether that is what is implied when you say 'compatible with Lattice'.

[ebclr]

There is a lot of Arduino shields that are the reason they are there

https://www.google.com/search?q=arduino+shield