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MiniPro programmer

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Dennis edited this page Aug 26, 2026 · 3 revisions

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CRT can test logic ICs and the C64 PLA with a MiniPro programmer (TL866/T48/T56-class), directly from the component info popup. The IC must be out of the board and seated in the ZIF socket - nothing is tested in-circuit.

Enable it in CRT

  • Go to the "Configuration" tab:
    • Tick Enable MiniPro programmer functionality
    • There is no need for you to enable the simulated demo mode, as this is used for CRT development only

What to install on your local system?

If you use Windows, then the MiniPro application is distributed with the CRT application and can be used out-of-the-box. If you use Linux or macOS, then you will need to install or compile MiniPro yourself and make the executable available to CRT.

For Linux and macOS then it looks for the minipro executable in your PATH, and additionally in these locations:

  • /usr/local/bin
  • /opt/homebrew/bin
  • /opt/homebrew/sbin
  • /usr/local/sbin
  • ~/.local/bin

Note that adding a directory to PATH in ~/.profile is not enough on its own: a desktop application is not started from a login shell, so it never sees that file. If you build MiniPro yourself, then copy or symlink the executable into one of the directories above - that is what CRT actually looks at.

Source for MiniPro on Linux and macOS:

Windows

Nothing special needed here, as the Windows binary is included.

Linux

  • sudo apt install build-essential
  • sudo apt install pkg-config
  • sudo apt install libusb-1.0-0-dev
  • sudo apt install zlib1g-dev
  • Build MiniPro, and then copy the minipro executable to ~/.local/bin (or another of the directories listed above)
  • Check from anywhere in a terminal session that you can execute the minipro application

macOS

  • brew install minipro

This installs into a location CRT already looks in, so nothing else is needed. If you need to build it manually, then you can try these steps, and let me know what to change if it does not work (as a help for others):

  • brew install pkg-config
  • brew install libusb
  • brew link libusb
  • Build MiniPro, and then copy the minipro executable to /usr/local/bin
  • Check from anywhere in a terminal session that you can execute the minipro application

Which ICs can be tested?

The Test IC with MiniPro programmer button only appears for components that are categorized as an IC and that have a test in CRT's test catalogue - currently 29 of the 74-series logic ICs plus the C64 PLA (906114-01). The catalogue is part of the online-synchronized data, so new tests can arrive without a new version of CRT.

How to test a logic IC in CRT?

  • Insert the IC in the ZIF socket, with pin 1 of the IC aligned with pin 1 of the socket
  • Go to a logic component (e.g. 7406 or 74LS139 or alike) and open the component information popup
    • Click the Test IC with MiniPro programmer button
    • Click the Run test button - it should finish almost instantly

How to test a C64 PLA IC in CRT?

  • Insert the IC in the ZIF socket, with pin 1 of the IC aligned with pin 1 of the socket
  • Go to the PLA component and open the component information popup
    • Click the Test IC with MiniPro programmer button
    • Choose either Quick (25 vectors) or Standard (512 vectors) in the Test depth drop-down
    • Click the Run test button - it should finish almost instantly

Important note for test results

You can for sure trust the result if the test reports a FAIL - then the IC is for sure broken - but if the test reports a SUCCESS, then you need to pay attention to this fact:

  • The truth-table is tested OK - no issues in that, so logically the IC is working
  • Timing is not tested, so in some cases it could potentially be problematic or fail in the real physical C64, if it switches faster than what is being tested in CRT

The reason for this is that the MiniPro hardware (TL866/T48/T56) is simply not fast enough for this timing test! As a best guess, the IC will most likely work without any issues in the C64 if it tested OK in CRT.

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