Willem.org : "caveat emptor"

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Willem.org : "caveat emptor"
by on (#41844)
I'm in the market for an EPROM burner and as directed here, i went to www.willem.org and Sivava. Willem seems to be plastered with messages from angry customers that they never received their orders. And Sivava won't return my email questions about products and shipping. Any corroboration on whether these companies are to be trusted or not would be appreciated. Maybe i should just go on ebay? If so, what should i look for or avoid (brands, countries of origin, tech specs, etc.) ?

by on (#41849)
I ordered mine from Sivava, but that was several years ago. If you're OK with the Willem's limitations you'll be fine, just be sure to keep the sheet that shows the jumper settings (should come with it) because you will need it eventually. There are so many different versions that it may be hard to find that info online.

In retrospect I would've bought a more universal programmer, but that's just me, I'm up for using any IC for anything. :)

by on (#41856)
limitations? i thought you could program almost any IC with a willem :/
care to elaborate?

by on (#41874)
It can program most memory chips like EPROM and Flash, and some microcontrollers. It didn't program the PIC I was using, so I had to get another programmer to use with MPLAB. And it can't burn any PLDs.

If all you need is memory chips and maybe a microcontroller, it should be enough.

by on (#41879)
What programmer would to recamend?

by on (#41888)
Memblers wrote:
It can program most memory chips like EPROM and Flash, and some microcontrollers. It didn't program the PIC I was using, so I had to get another programmer to use with MPLAB. And it can't burn any PLDs.

If all you need is memory chips and maybe a microcontroller, it should be enough.


for now i'm okay with just making NES devcarts. i would like to eventually get into robotics, program microcontrollers, create mini systems, display arrays etc. i guess it doesn't do as much as i expected, but just enough.

who's dealt with willem.org?

by on (#41907)
Roni wrote:
who's dealt with willem.org?

I didn't, but if it helps, I got mine from Sivava.

by on (#42011)
tokumaru wrote:
Roni wrote:
who's dealt with willem.org?

I didn't, but if it helps, I got mine from Sivava.


Mine, too - with no problems.

by on (#42014)
peppers wrote:
What programmer would to recamend?


There are some cheap universal programmers, I think TopMax, ChipMax or something was the company making those. I can't say I'd recommend them for sure, but it's probably what I would have gotten if I had been aware of it (or if it was available then, I don't recall).

Willem burner is probably a better value if it's only for burning DIP and PLCC EPROMs, EEPROMs and FlashROMs.

Either way, you may be stuck needing obscure adapters for the more modern parts (especially since lots of newer stuff is SMT).