usb to gpib cable

[Brian_Powell]

Mine has it printed on the GPIB connector.

[analog]

Hm....mine just says "488-USB" on the cable, and when you try to add it in MAX, the options is either 488 USB A or 488 USB B, I tried both, but neither works, and I use version 2.1.

[Brian_Powell]

Well, if we can assume that this is the "GPIB-USB" on NI's GPIB Troubleshooter web site, then it looks like you were right to be using the 1.7 driver. I assume you were using Windows 95, 98 or ME; it sounds like the obsolete GPIB-USB wasn't supported anywhere else.

If all that's true, I'm not sure what the problem is.

Brian

[analog]

I have Windows XP, so that explains why version 1.7 didn't work. Did you order your USB-to-GPIB cable from ICS Electronics?

[Brian_Powell]

I got mine directly from National Instruments.

I thought you were talking about NI hardware all along. Have you not been? If so, then no NI driver will work with your non-NI hardware. You have to use the ICS driver software, and you'll have to configure it in their software--not in MAX.

Sorry for the confusion.

Brian

[Brian_Powell]

Going all the way back to your original question, I think the problem is that the HP34401A driver uses VISA, but the VISA you have does not support your GPIB device.

(VISA is a standard programming interface for buses like GPIB, USB, Serial, Ethernet, etc.)

I would contact ICS and ask them if they have a version of VISA that you can install, or ask them how they can make their GPIB software work with NI's VISA.

Brian

[analog]

But if they say "ICS's 488.2 Drivers support VB,C/C++, LabView, NI's MAX, Agilent BenchLink, IntuiLink, VEE, and MCC'a Softwire", so that means that their driver should be ok to use with LabView, right? Or does VISA needs a completely different driver? Thanks.

[Brian_Powell]

Looking at the ICS web site, it sounds like they don't support programming through VISA; just through the GPIB functions.

Most of NI's instrument drivers (including the 34401A) are written using VISA, not the GPIB functions. This is so that the 34401A driver will work for both GPIB and RS-232 interfaces without duplicating code.

You have a few choices...

* Contact ICS to see how to make their controller work with VISA. (Preferably NI-VISA, but maybe Agilent VISA or their own VISA. Any VISA that properly conforms to the VISA standard should work with LabVIEW.)

* Bypass NI's vast Instrument Driver Libra
ry and write your own VIs using the GPIB functions (or maybe ICS VIs that are similar to NI's GPIB functions) instead of VISA.

* Use one of NI's GPIB controllers instead.

The first of these is easiest if they have a solution for you. For small systems, the second option isn't bad. If the first option doesn't work out, and you plan to write many VIs, you'll probably save money by doing the third option.

Good luck.

Brian