MSP430 Compilers and Tool question

I am looking into the MSP430 series of microcontrollers for a project.

I have surveyed the tools and I found the following companies make C 
compilers for it:

1. Quadravox
2. IAR
3. Rowley & Associates
4. HiTech
5. ICC430
6. MSPGCC (free)

Hardware/JTAG debugging toolwise I see:

1. Softbaugh (USBP(E), USBPPRO)
2. Elprotronic (http://www.elprotronic.com/Products.asp)

What did you think of the compiler? The hardware JTAG debugging 
interfaces? Cost for the tools? (I need just one seat).  IAR seems to 
expensive and overhyped.

I tried out AVR-GCC one time but found the lack of useful pragmas/macros 
for microcontrollerish things to be frustrating.  I have used the HiTech 
C compiler for PIC and also the CCS PIC compiler.  Both were good, CCS 
had a lot of nifty features (#use rs232, #fuse, etc).

John.

"John" <localhost@localhost.com.com> wrote in message 
news:mPHid.34938$hN1.13771@twister.socal.rr.com...
>I am looking into the MSP430 series of microcontrollers for a project.
>
> I have surveyed the tools and I found the following companies make C
> compilers for it:
>
> 1. Quadravox
> 2. IAR
> 3. Rowley & Associates
> 4. HiTech
> 5. ICC430
> 6. MSPGCC (free)
>
> Hardware/JTAG debugging toolwise I see:
>
> 1. Softbaugh (USBP(E), USBPPRO)
> 2. Elprotronic (http://www.elprotronic.com/Products.asp)
>
> What did you think of the compiler? The hardware JTAG debugging
> interfaces? Cost for the tools? (I need just one seat).  IAR seems to
> expensive and overhyped.
>
> I tried out AVR-GCC one time but found the lack of useful pragmas/macros
> for microcontrollerish things to be frustrating.  I have used the HiTech
> C compiler for PIC and also the CCS PIC compiler.  Both were good, CCS
> had a lot of nifty features (#use rs232, #fuse, etc).

I like the Rowley tools. They work very well with the Olimex FET (only $9), 
and support is excellent.

You ought to join the MSP430 Yahoo group: 
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/msp430/

Leon

Leon 

"John" <localhost@localhost.com.com> wrote:

>I am looking into the MSP430 series of microcontrollers for a project.
>
> I have surveyed the tools and I found the following companies make C
> compilers for it:
>
> 1. Quadravox
> 2. IAR
> 3. Rowley & Associates
> 4. HiTech
> 5. ICC430
> 6. MSPGCC (free)
>
> Hardware/JTAG debugging toolwise I see:
>
> 1. Softbaugh (USBP(E), USBPPRO)
> 2. Elprotronic (http://www.elprotronic.com/Products.asp)
>
> What did you think of the compiler? The hardware JTAG debugging
> interfaces? Cost for the tools? (I need just one seat).  IAR seems to
> expensive and overhyped.

You missed Imagecraft (www.imagecraft.com).

I tried doing some benchmarks with a couple of them and found
the IDEs to be awkward at best.  I don't remember for certain
which ones they were, so I won't name names.

In article <mPHid.34938$hN1.13771@twister.socal.rr.com>, 
localhost@localhost.com.com says...
> I am looking into the MSP430 series of microcontrollers for a project.
> 
> I have surveyed the tools and I found the following companies make C 
> compilers for it:
> 
> 1. Quadravox
> 2. IAR
> 3. Rowley & Associates
> 4. HiTech
> 5. ICC430
> 6. MSPGCC (free)
> 
> Hardware/JTAG debugging toolwise I see:
> 
> 1. Softbaugh (USBP(E), USBPPRO)
> 2. Elprotronic (http://www.elprotronic.com/Products.asp)
> 
> What did you think of the compiler? The hardware JTAG debugging 
> interfaces? Cost for the tools? (I need just one seat).  IAR seems to 
> expensive and overhyped.
> 
> I tried out AVR-GCC one time but found the lack of useful pragmas/macros 
> for microcontrollerish things to be frustrating.  I have used the HiTech 
> C compiler for PIC and also the CCS PIC compiler.  Both were good, CCS 
> had a lot of nifty features (#use rs232, #fuse, etc).
>

I've been using ICC430 since it came out in Beta a few years back.
It's worked out well for me.  There are still a few times when 
I spot some extraneous register loads in the assembly code, but there's
nothing that has been too objectionable.

I use the included NOIce debugger and either the MSP430 FET JTAG
dongle or a homemade jtag dongle for programming and debugging.

Mark Borgerson

John schrieb:
> I am looking into the MSP430 series of microcontrollers for a project.
> 
> I have surveyed the tools and I found the following companies make C 
> compilers for it:
> 
> 1. Quadravox
> 2. IAR
> 3. Rowley & Associates
> 4. HiTech
> 5. ICC430
> 6. MSPGCC (free)
> 
> Hardware/JTAG debugging toolwise I see:
> 
> 1. Softbaugh (USBP(E), USBPPRO)
> 2. Elprotronic (http://www.elprotronic.com/Products.asp)
> 
> What did you think of the compiler? The hardware JTAG debugging 
> interfaces? Cost for the tools? (I need just one seat).  IAR seems to 
> expensive and overhyped.
> 
> I tried out AVR-GCC one time but found the lack of useful pragmas/macros 
> for microcontrollerish things to be frustrating.  I have used the HiTech 
> C compiler for PIC and also the CCS PIC compiler.  Both were good, CCS 
> had a lot of nifty features (#use rs232, #fuse, etc).
> 
> John.

I am using MSPGCC with KDevelop as a frontend for sourcecodedebugging.
Works great. It took me some time though to figure out how to set things up.
If you want to have a quick start you are better of with Quadravox or Rowley.

Markus

John wrote:
> I am looking into the MSP430 series of microcontrollers for a project.
> 
> I have surveyed the tools and I found the following companies make C 
> compilers for it:
> 
> 1. Quadravox
> 2. IAR
> 3. Rowley & Associates
> 4. HiTech
> 5. ICC430
> 6. MSPGCC (free)
> 
> Hardware/JTAG debugging toolwise I see:
> 
> 1. Softbaugh (USBP(E), USBPPRO)
> 2. Elprotronic (http://www.elprotronic.com/Products.asp)
> 
> What did you think of the compiler? The hardware JTAG debugging 
> interfaces? Cost for the tools? (I need just one seat).  IAR seems to 
> expensive and overhyped.

When I started MSP430 IAR/ICC430 was the only choice. It's very good. 
Little niggles (like low power mode from C) are really only due to me 
not having paid for support. The version I use remains very applicable 
and produces compact code. Integration with Texas's FET modules are 
fine, and all I need. They provide rapid JTAG programming with a 
breakpoint or two. Look them up. If you want to do anything more serious 
like tracing you'll need something more expensive.

However, I seriously hope you can find a better value for money toolset. 
The Texas rep suggested I look at Rowley (make of that what you will); 
he didn't seem to know about mspgcc. I have used Hitech PIC compilers 
and they're the best, worth a look for any target.

Best Regards,
Mike.
-- 
Mike Page BEng(Hons) MIEE                 www.eclectic-web.co.uk
    "Ask a Liberal Democrat, while he still knows everything"

On Sat, 06 Nov 2004 00:47:42 +0000, Mike Page
<mike@SCRUBeclectic-CAPSweb.BLAMEco.SWENuk> wrote:

>John wrote:
>> I am looking into the MSP430 series of microcontrollers for a project.
>> 
>> I have surveyed the tools and I found the following companies make C 
>> compilers for it:
>> 
>> 1. Quadravox
>> 2. IAR
>> 3. Rowley & Associates
>> 4. HiTech
>> 5. ICC430
>> 6. MSPGCC (free)
>> 
>> Hardware/JTAG debugging toolwise I see:
>> 
>> 1. Softbaugh (USBP(E), USBPPRO)
>> 2. Elprotronic (http://www.elprotronic.com/Products.asp)
>> 
>> What did you think of the compiler? The hardware JTAG debugging 
>> interfaces? Cost for the tools? (I need just one seat).  IAR seems to 
>> expensive and overhyped.
>
>When I started MSP430 IAR/ICC430 was the only choice. It's very good. 

IAR != ICC.

A limited version of the IAR MSP430 compiler comes with (or came with --
haven't gotten any, lately) the TI dev kits. http://www.iar.com/

ICC430 is a completely different compiler.
http://www.imagecraft.com/software/

-- 
Rich Webb   Norfolk, VA

Rich Webb wrote:

>IAR != ICC.
>
>A limited version of the IAR MSP430 compiler comes with (or came with --
>haven't gotten any, lately) the TI dev kits. http://www.iar.com/
>
>ICC430 is a completely different compiler.
>http://www.imagecraft.com/software/
>
>  
>
Yes, it's unfortunate coincidence that we name our products the same way 
IAR calls their command line tools. Usually it's not so bad since their 
product name is official EW. We are bumping our version #, and I think 
the official name will become ICCV7 for ???, e.g. ICCV7 for MSP430. This 
hopefully will make it a little less confusing.

-- 
// richard
http://www.imagecraft.com