Author Topic: Which logic circuit simulator (freeware) do you recommend ?  (Read 6090 times)

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Offline BravoVTopic starter

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Just for novice design, and what I need is just to proof my logic design, and also hopefully supports the common logic ICs like 4xxx or 74xxx too.

Interface and gui wise, I wish its quite similar to ltspice to reduce the learning time and effort.

Prefer offline version rather than have to be online to use it.

Offline free_electron

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Re: Which logic circuit simulator (freeware) do you recommend ?
« Reply #1 on: June 26, 2014, 12:23:20 pm »
Download an older (pre version 10.0) version of altera quartus. You can pick the oldest one you can find.
Fire it up
File -> new schematic
File -> save
Double click on the drawing area to bring up library. Simp,y type things like nand2 , 74138 , input , output , nor4 and so on, place , connect wires. Doubleclick io na,es to change them. When happy -> save
File -> add new to project -> vector waveform file.

Now, at the top menu bar there are two arrows (right pointing triangles like you would start playing music. The left one compiles, the right one fires the simulator. After a change in schematic you need to compile. Just click the left arrow and wait for comp,etion.

After a first compile : in the waveform editor , left panel right-click and select import nodes.
A panel opens. Simp,y click the button 'list' and throw them all in the right panel (or the ones you want to see)
Then simp,y draw waveforms. Right click a signal to alter it.

This software is very easy to learn.
Big advantage is that, later on, you can start designing logic also with verilog or vhdl , drop that in you system and wire it up as well. And ultimately you can spit out the config file to load in an FPGA or CPLD.

It has a library with almost any ttl 74xx series out there as well as many gates that don't exist. If you need a 7 input or gate simp,y place an OR7

There are wizards to create all kinds of special functions like ram and rom , clock generators , arithmetic units and much much more.

The software is free and exists for both windows and linux, so you can't complain there.
The download is large... This is, after all, a professional tool used by logic designers to develop multimillion gate FPGA designs.
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Any comments, or points of view expressed, are my own and not endorsed , induced or compensated by my employer(s).
 

Offline BravoVTopic starter

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Re: Which logic circuit simulator (freeware) do you recommend ?
« Reply #2 on: June 26, 2014, 03:16:05 pm »
Download an older (pre version 10.0) version of altera quartus.

Thanks Vincent, I'm going to try it.

Wow .. its a 961 MB download :o

Btw, please verify is this the right page to download it ? -> Quartus II Subscription Edition Software Version 9.0 Service Pack 2 , not the "web" edition.  ::)


I'm still open to other recommendations while I'm reviewing this heavy Altera Quartus application, surely its way overkill for my novice level needs.

Offline tautech

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Re: Which logic circuit simulator (freeware) do you recommend ?
« Reply #3 on: June 26, 2014, 03:34:58 pm »
Yes you preferred a download, but just in case you have not seen this, I have found it useful over the years: http://tams-www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/applets/hades/webdemos/10-gates/00-gates/chapter.html
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Offline dentaku

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Re: Which logic circuit simulator (freeware) do you recommend ?
« Reply #4 on: June 26, 2014, 10:49:59 pm »
 

Offline zapta

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Re: Which logic circuit simulator (freeware) do you recommend ?
« Reply #5 on: July 03, 2014, 09:23:42 pm »
Have you tried logisim?
http://ozark.hendrix.edu/~burch/logisim/

Just installed it and it's a very nice basic simulator. Compact, easy to install, multi platform support, works out of the box, extensible and easy to use. I like it.
 

Offline sfiber

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Re: Which logic circuit simulator (freeware) do you recommend ?
« Reply #6 on: July 03, 2014, 09:26:57 pm »
I recommend proteus for logic simulation.Its good at digital electronic
 

Offline amyk

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Re: Which logic circuit simulator (freeware) do you recommend ?
« Reply #7 on: July 04, 2014, 04:08:20 am »
Have you tried logisim?
http://ozark.hendrix.edu/~burch/logisim/

Just installed it and it's a very nice basic simulator. Compact, easy to install, multi platform support, works out of the box, extensible and easy to use. I like it.
Unfortunately it has two limitations which are rather irritating: not all components can be rotated, and bidirectional pins on subcircuits are not supported. The former makes for messier layouts, but the latter means a ton of elaborate and impractical workarounds are needed for simulating common structures like buses since circuits don't quite behave like reality anymore.
 


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