Is the Logic 8 suitable for professional embedded development work?

The Logic 8 is widely used in professional embedded development environments and is particularly valued for its reliability, comprehensive protocol support, and superior software experience. Its real-time streaming architecture and unlimited memory depth make it ideal for debugging complex embedded systems where traditional analysers with limited memory might miss critical events. The Logic 8's ability to simultaneously capture digital and analogue signals provides insights that separate instruments cannot match, whilst its portable form factor and robust design make it suitable for both laboratory and field applications. Many professional engineers choose the Logic 8 over significantly more expensive alternatives due to its superior usability and comprehensive feature set.

Can I extend Logic 8's capabilities with custom protocol analysers?

Absolutely. The Logic 8 supports extensive customisation through its Protocol Analyzer SDK and Extension API, allowing you to create custom low-level protocol analysers, high-level analysers, and measurement extensions. The extensions are written in Python for high-level analysers or C++ for low-level decoders, making them accessible to engineers with programming experience. The active Saleae community has contributed numerous extensions for specialised protocols, and Saleae provides comprehensive documentation and templates to help you develop custom analysers for proprietary protocols or specific measurement needs.

What warranty and support does Saleae provide for the Logic 8?

The Logic 8 includes Saleae's industry-leading 3-year no-questions-asked warranty that covers any malfunction regardless of cause, with all warranty service handled directly by Saleae rather than through distributors. Additionally, purchases direct from Saleae include a 180-day return policy with return shipping included. Saleae's support is widely regarded as exceptional within the test equipment industry, with comprehensive online documentation, active community forums, and responsive technical support that helps users maximise their investment.

Does the Logic 8 software work without the hardware for analysis and sharing?

Yes, the Saleae Logic software operates as a full-featured application without the hardware present, allowing you to analyse previously captured data, share recordings with colleagues, and demonstrate protocol behaviour. This capability is invaluable for collaborative debugging, technical support, and documentation purposes. You can save complete capture sessions and share them with other engineers who can then analyse the data using the free software, even without owning the hardware. This feature is particularly useful for remote troubleshooting and technical support scenarios where you need to share detailed timing and protocol information.

What is the actual bandwidth and sampling rate performance of the Logic 8?

The Logic 8 delivers 100 MS/s digital sampling on up to 3 channels simultaneously, 50 MS/s on up to 6 channels, or 25 MS/s across all 8 channels. The maximum digital bandwidth is 25 MHz, making it suitable for most embedded applications including USB Full Speed, moderate-speed SPI, and general microcontroller debugging. For analogue signals, it provides 10 MS/s sampling with 1 MHz bandwidth and 10-bit resolution. The USB 2.0 interface provides sufficient bandwidth for these sampling rates whilst maintaining real-time streaming to your computer's memory.

What protocol decoders are included with the Logic 8?

The Logic 8 includes over 24 built-in protocol analysers covering the most common embedded communication standards: SPI, I2C, Serial (UART), 1-Wire, CAN, I2S, JTAG, LIN, Manchester, MDIO, MIDI, Modbus, SMBus, USB, HDMI-CEC, HD44780, HDLC, DMX-512, and many others. Beyond the built-in decoders, the Logic 8 supports community-contributed extensions and custom protocol analysers through its plugin architecture, with over 47 community-developed extensions available. This extensive protocol support eliminates the need for separate protocol analysers and provides comprehensive debugging capabilities in a single instrument.

Can the Logic 8 simultaneously capture digital and analogue signals on the same channels?

Yes, the Logic 8's unique mixed-signal architecture allows all 8 channels to be configured as digital, analogue, or both simultaneously. This capability provides exceptional flexibility for debugging mixed-signal designs where you need to correlate digital protocol activity with corresponding analogue signal behaviour. The digital sampling operates at up to 100 MS/s whilst analogue sampling runs at 10 MS/s with 10-bit resolution and 1 MHz bandwidth, allowing you to observe both the logic states and underlying analogue characteristics of your signals in perfect time correlation.

How does the unlimited memory depth feature actually work?

The Logic 8 streams captured data directly over USB 2.0 to your computer's RAM in real-time, eliminating the memory constraints found in traditional logic analysers with fixed hardware buffers. This architecture means your capture length is limited only by your available system memory and the density of recorded data. Unlike traditional analysers that might offer only kilobytes or megabytes of storage, the Logic 8 can potentially record gigabytes or even terabytes of data, making it ideal for capturing long sequences or rare intermittent events that would be impossible to catch with conventional memory-limited instruments.

What makes the Saleae Logic 8 different from traditional logic analysers?

The Saleae Logic 8 revolutionises logic analysis by streaming data directly to your computer's RAM in real-time, providing virtually unlimited memory depth compared to traditional logic analysers with fixed buffer sizes. Unlike conventional bench instruments, it combines the portability of a USB device with professional-grade capabilities, featuring dual-purpose inputs that can simultaneously capture digital and analogue signals. The Logic 8's software-centric approach eliminates the complex button interfaces found on traditional analysers, instead offering an intuitive, cross-platform application with built-in protocol decoders and community extensions.