accuracy of PSpice - MultiSim - AltiumSPICE etc

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kingdano

Joined Apr 14, 2010
377
At work they are moving to a new set of ECAD tools in the hear future.

Right now we dont even have a simulation software package - we simply have Capture 16.2

For the love of all that is holy i dont understand how a $700 million dollar revenue company can not own a SPICE program for their electrical engineers - its beyond absurd in my book.

So i use LTSpice to simulate my circuits - my design flow has been design - simulate - build - test

thats simply the best (IMO) way to work - most efficient, most likely to find mistakes early, most likely to get it right the 1st time.

seems that now they are looking at moving to Altium's suite of tools.

has anyone even used this crap before?

i have always perceived PSpice as the market leader in SPICE software - i really think their advanced analysis package looks extremely impressive and useful as well. the parts stress analysis, specifications checking etc - it all seems so incredibly useful as a first "dummy" proofing step.

has anyone used that package?

what are the benefits in terms of accuracy in the costly programs like PSpice etc vs a freebie program like LTSpice?

are they non-trivial differences in the models? differences in algorithms? less bells and whistles?

what are we missing out on, essentially, what can i hound these morons about to try and get us the good tools for once!
 

timrobbins

Joined Aug 29, 2009
318
I thought this was a peaceful forum - not subject to tirades?

PSpice - even from 15 years ago is fine for many standard applications, and provides a key feature in my mind - monte carlo analysis for assessment of impact of tolerances - quite important for switchmodes for example where many tolerances can impact in so many ways. Modern PC's have certainly helped churning those results.

If you specifically need to access models of new parts, then suggest you aim for a product with a good forum and model growth community, and support from the manufacturers that you are keen on.

That said, the glossier and more bejewelled the program, the more the sh*t is hidden that comes out after putting sh*t in. You always need to look for hidden sh*t with any simulation.

Ciao, Tim
 
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