AxePad(Mac) to 8M2+ Verification Error 0xFFFFFFFE

loudboy

New Member
Hi. Brand new to AxePad, but a little more experienced with Arduino and plenty experienced searching through forums for my answer. This problem has not been addressed before that I can find.

I am using the latest version of AxePad on my Mac (OSX 10.6.8) connecting to a 8M2+ via a USB cord to a Sparkfun USB adaptor and a headphone jack I cut open. I am delivering power via 3 AA batteries at a verified 4.5volts. I have all non-used inputs tied low via 10K resisters to ground.

AxePad terminal happily returns "Hello, I am your Picaxe 8M2" over and over again, but when I try to download a sketch it returns " Verification Error: Transmitted 0x00 but received 0xFFFFFFFE at byte 0."

Any clues? Thanks all!
 

hippy

Technical Support
Staff member
Welcome to the PICAXE Forum.

First check that you have wired the jack plug correctly -

Tip : 0V
Ring : TX from adapter to Serial In
Sleeve : Serial out to adapter RX

If correct, unplug the jack plug from the PICAXE board, short the ring and shield using a piece of wire or a paper clip ( taking care not to short to the tip ), use PICAXE -> Terminal to pen the Terminal display, then check that what is typed in the Output Buffer appears in the Input Buffer when the Send Button is pressed.

This will check that the cable is both sending and receiving and is wired correctly.
 

loudboy

New Member
Hi, Hippy.

Yeaup, shorting ring to shield returns Output to Input correctly. Still getting "Verification Error: Transmitted 0x00 but received 0xFFFFFFFE at byte 0." when I try to upload a sketch...
 

shakespeare

New Member
I get the same error intermittently with Axepad on Ubuntu 11.10 when I'm downloading to an 18M2. I found if you kep trying, eventually the download works, so I'm guessing it's a dodgy connection, but if I'm not the only one with this problem, maybe it's Axepad?

Have you tried truning off power to the 8M2, then starting the download and switching on during that? That should make the 8M2 reset.
 

nick12ab

Senior Member
Try fitting both a decoupling capacitor and a bulk capacitor across the power rails.
Decoupling capacitor = 100nF ceramic, which goes near to the chip
Bulk capacitor = 100µF or more

when I try to upload a sketch...
Er... PICAXE {BASIC} program.
 
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