Active-HDL or Xilinx ISE ?

Salam,

What do you use? What is the better?

SphinX

their two different tools...

one is a simulation/verification package.. the other a fpga synthesis/mapping tool..

jelydonut

Active-Hdl is a simulation tool

ISE is the integrated environment for Xilinx FPGA/CPLDs

ISE contains a free synthesizer, mapper, router, and you will also get a free modelsim (very slow)

Active-Hdl is a good hdl code input soft

Dear friend! I think you are very new to fpga design! You should first understand the fpga design flow which is in simple manner : simulation, synthesis and implementation.
Active HDL is a tool for simulation. ISE is a tool that can do both synthesis and implementation.
Go to the xilinx site. You will find good info about fpga design flow

If you want Xilinx .. then ISE is definetly better .. specially after having modelsim integrated for free with it .. yet, u can use ur modelsim version as a stand-alone simulation tool ( as the one with ISE is somehow slow and limited ) .. i myself do that ..
about Active-HDL .. i guess it's not a better solution than the one i just gave .. though it's indeed a good tool ..
just make sure that ISE is to a good extent the best thing deals with xilinx FPGA .. and i myself believe that modelsim is better than Active-HDL .. specially that it's more available in companies .. it's true that it has some bugs .. but u can find a very very good support for it everywhere ..
just try

Hi

Like jelydonut said these are two diffrent kind of tools.

omara007, Why are you comparing very slow ModelsimXE to ActiveHDL? If you want make comparision take a Modelsim PE/SE (which are not free). At my Univ we were using both simulators. And I must said that support from Aldec is very, very good. Both tools have a good docummentation. Both tools can use SWIFT models - I have only experience with RocketIO, which in both simulators give good results.
In my mind, for beginner much better solution is to use ActiveHDL with XilinxISE implementation tools, but is only my personal felling.

Sphinx if you are beginner in FPGA world, try both simulators and try them with XIlinxISE. After this you could make a decission: you are using XilinxISE with slow ModelsimXE or you are spending lots of money for ModelsimPE/SE/ActiveHDL

Cheers to all

let me clarify something .. Modelsim is a tool chosen by Xilinx to be embedded in its ISE .. they support modelsim ..
another point is that .. Modelsim is supported inside of egypt from Mentor Graphics Egypt .. but Aldec is not .. this counts ..
Inside the egyptian universities, the dominate simulator is Modelsim .. Sphinx will find zero obsticles when he decides to use modelsim ..


and a personal experience .. modelsim is the real pioneer in HDL simulation world .. it's not bug free .. but it's a real tol that u can find everywhere in international companies ..

all and all .. this is my personal point of view .. u guys can take it .. or leave it

but after all .. ew have to enjoy what we'r doing




Mohammad

I think Xilinx ISE is bettet.But program is very big

If you , Sphinx, wanted to apply for a job in an FPGA Design company based on Xilinx FPGAs .. they surely will demand ISE experience .. it will be an added value if u know Active-HDL .. but without ISE u might not be able to conduct the interview ..

Hi,
New versions of Active-HDL include most of the ISE and other HDL softwares.
It seems that an integrated enviroment is better (like Active-HDL).
But I suggest to use ISE for xilinx FPGA design.
You must be aware you cannot work with Active-HDL without implementation tools like ISE.
Kasra