TI has a free SPICE-based analog simulation program:
TINA is an easy-to-use, powerful circuit simulation tool based on a SPICE engine. TINA-TI is a fully functional version of TINA, loaded with a library of TI macromodels plus passive and active models.
TINA-TI’s new version 9.0 has changes from Version 7.0 in the following areas:
- Schematic Symbol Editor (useable with the Macro Wizard) is included, so you can create your own symbols for imported SPICE macromodels.
- Macros do not have to be from TI – you can import anyone’s SPICE model now!
- Does not require active or non-linear components for analysis (so you can now run a circuit using just passives).
- TINA-TI includes Initial Condition and Nodeset components
- TINA-TI includes Linear and nonlinear controlled sources (VCVS, CCVS, VCCS, CCCS), and the Controlled Source Wizard.
- TINA-TI now allows WAV files to be used as stimulus (signal sources). You can play calculated waveforms on PC’s multimedia system, and export calculated waveforms as a *.wav file.
- TINA-TI has Multi-core processor support; this along with other optimizations makes simulations run 2-20 times faster.
- Schematic file import/export in XML format
- Block Wizard included for making block diagrams
- TINA-TI has more SPICE models and example circuits included.
- Circuits developed in TINA-TI 9.0 will work with TINA Industrial version 9.
- TINA-TI Version 7.0 is forward compatible with Version 9.0, and version 9.0 supports saving schematics in version 7.0 format.
- Available in English, Traditional and Simplified Chinese, Japanese, and Russian versions.
Thanks McZ!
How does this differ from LTSpice? It looks pretty similar except that this is
a crippled version of a commercial product, and they make no claims of
Linux compatability via WINE. Maybe their advantage is that the user group
isn’t on Yahoo.
I’m a bit cynical about TI due to the crippleware devel environments for
their embedded processors.
Jim Narem,
You beat me to it. This is crippleware still – although they’re moving in the right direction (some Marketing Goon must be doing back-flips over that).
But – like LTSpice, it is free to download; and LTSpice is not open either. Sometimes I steer clear of TI too because of the (sometimes hidden) dangers with their crippled development systems.
If I had to make a choice of one or the other, I’d stick with LTSpice – I know it isn’t crippled in any way and there’s great support through the user group (even if it is on Yahoo Groups). Thanks to Helmut in-particular!
Keep in mind everyone, just because it is free to download, that doesn’t mean it is free to use. The time you invest in a tool is very valuable!
I worked for TI for 28 years. Their hardware is cheap but the software is very expensive. For example they have a very cool Bluetooth chip but the compile cost $3000. TI did not even do the compiler, some third party software company I never heard of. To make things even more aggravating is that it is just a 8051 chip.
I would rather have a one part compiler for $500 that is rock solid like the TMS320F28xxx compilers. Hell even Microchip compilers arent cheap. Those of us that do commercial work have to buy the full license compilers not the free downloads.