EP4CGX50DF27C8N - Cyclone IV GX FPGA 50K LE FBGA-672 | Intel
MPN: EP4CGX50DF27C8N ✓ Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $78.5 | $78.50 |
| 10 | $71.2 | $712.00 |
| 100 | $62.8 | $6,280.00 |
| 500 | $55.4 | $27,700.00 |
| 1,000 | $49.1 | $49,100.00 |
EP4CGX50DF27C8N Overview
An FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) is a semiconductor device built from a matrix of configurable logic blocks (CLBs) connected via programmable interconnect. FPGAs sit at the top of the programmable logic hierarchy: they are larger and more flexible than CPLDs (Complex Programmable Logic Devices), and they typically replace or augment ASICs (Application-Specific Integrated Circuits) in prototyping, low-volume production, and designs requiring post-deployment updates. The Cyclone IV family specifically targets cost- and power-optimized applications, with the GX sub-family adding high-speed serial transceivers that the Cyclone IV E family lacks.
Key specifications of the EP4CGX50DF27C8N include a core voltage of 1.2 V, an extended temperature grade marking of 'C' (commercial 0 C to +85 C), and a speed grade of '8' (faster performance bin). The device supports multiple I/O standards including LVDS, LVCMOS, LVTTL, and SSTL on its 310 user I/O pins. Eight integrated 3.125 Gbps transceivers enable protocols such as PCIe Gen1, Gigabit Ethernet, and CPRI without external PHY chips. The 2,562,048 bits of embedded SRAM are organized as M9K memory blocks, and the device includes 4 PLLs for clock management.
Typical applications span industrial control and machine vision, broadcast video processing, wireless baseband, automotive infotainment and driver assistance prototypes, and PCI Express endpoint cards in test equipment. The combination of integrated transceivers, abundant logic, and the 672-ball FBGA package makes the EP4CGX50DF27C8N a popular choice for designers migrating from older Cyclone III designs who need higher integration without moving to a more expensive Cyclone V or Cyclone 10 device.
When designing with this part, allocate sufficient PCB area for the 1.0 mm pitch BGA and use at least 6 PCB layers with microvia or via-in-pad technology to fan out the 672 balls. Plan power sequencing for the 1.2 V core, 2.5 V analog PLL supply, and the 1.2 V/2.5 V transceiver supplies. Quartus II (or the newer Quartus Prime) is the required toolchain for synthesis, place-and-route, and bitstream generation.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, drop-in same-package alternatives, and practical design notes that the manufacturer datasheet alone does not provide, helping engineers compare the EP4CGX50DF27C8N against other Cyclone IV GX speed-grade and temperature-grade variants.
Drop-in alternatives for EP4CGX50DF27C8N — same package, pin-to-pin compatible. Different-package parts requiring PCB rework are excluded.
Variants in this series
Same-series models that are drop-in compatible with EP4CGX50DF27C8N (same form factor and footprint) — differing in Package, Embedded Memory, Speed Grade, Transceivers, Process Technology.
Quick Comparison Tool — Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
EP4CGX50DF27C7N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$58.6 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4CGX50DF27C6N
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$155 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4CGX50DF27I8N
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ 参数待验证✓ In Stock
$58.9 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4CGX50DF27I7N
✅ Drop-In ⚠️ 参数待验证✓ In Stock
$155.4 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4CGX50DF27C8
✅ Drop-In✓ In Stock
$85.5 / Unit
View Datasheet →EP4CGX50DF27C8N Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Manufacturer | Intel (formerly Altera) |
| Series | Cyclone IV GX |
| Family | Cyclone IV GX |
| Device Type | FPGA - Field Programmable Gate Array |
| Logic Elements | 49,888 |
| Embedded Memory | 2,562,048 bits (M9K blocks) |
| Maximum User I/O | 310 |
| Package Type | FBGA-672 (672-ball Fine-pitch BGA) |
| Core Voltage | 1.2 V |
| Supply Voltage (datasheet range) | 1.2 V core |
| Speed Grade | 8 (faster performance bin) |
| Temperature Grade | C (commercial, 0 C to +85 C) |
| Transceivers | Up to 8 channels, up to 3.125 Gbps |
| Embedded Multipliers | 18x18 multipliers |
| PLLs | 4 |
| Operating Temperature | 0 C to +85 C (commercial) |
| Mounting Type | Surface Mount |
| RoHS Status | Compliant |
| Lead-Free | Yes |
EP4CGX50DF27C8N fbga-672 (672-ball fine-pitch bga) Pin Configuration Guide
Pin configuration for EP4CGX50DF27C8N (fbga-672 (672-ball fine-pitch bga) package). This digital IC includes GPIO, communication interfaces (UART, SPI, I2C), and power pins. Refer to the manufacturer datasheet for alternate pin functions and configuration options. Essential for embedded system design and PCB layout.
No detailed pinout data available for EP4CGX50DF27C8N.
Refer to the datasheet for full pin configuration.
Typical Applications
EP4CGX50DF27C8N is suitable for 6 applications: PCI Express Endpoint Card, Industrial Machine Vision Processing, Wireless Baseband and Digital Front-End, Broadcast Video Processing and Conversion, Automotive Infotainment and ADAS Prototyping, Test and Measurement Instrumentation.
PCI Express Endpoint Card
The EP4CGX50DF27C8N is widely used in low-cost PCIe Gen1 endpoint cards for industrial PCs, data-acquisition boards, and test equipment. Its eight integrated 3.125 Gbps transceivers and hard PCIe IP block support up to x4 lanes without an external PHY, eliminating BOM cost. The 49,888 logic elements and 2,562,048 bits of embedded memory are sufficient for DMA engines, scatter-gather controllers, and protocol-bridging logic between PCIe and parallel interfaces such as DDR2 or LVDS. In a typical x1 design, the FPGA's low 1.2 V core power keeps the card within PCIe slot power budgets while leaving thermal headroom for the rest of the board.
Recommended
Industrial Machine Vision Processing
In machine-vision pipelines, the EP4CGX50DF27C8N acts as a pre-processor that ingests LVDS or sub-LVDS streams from CMOS image sensors and performs real-time filtering, Bayer demosaicing, and region-of-interest cropping. Its 310 user I/O pins can interface to multiple camera lanes simultaneously, while the 2,562,048 bits of embedded memory serve as line buffers that resolve the throughput mismatch between the sensor and downstream GigE Vision or USB3 Vision links. The commercial 0 C to +85 C operating range covers most factory-floor enclosures, and the integrated transceivers enable direct connection to industrial Ethernet backbones.
Recommended
Wireless Baseband and Digital Front-End
The EP4CGX50DF27C8N's combination of 3.125 Gbps transceivers, 18x18 multipliers, and 4 PLLs makes it a good fit for small-cell wireless baseband processing, digital up/down-conversion (DUC/DDC), and CPRI fronthaul aggregation. Designers can implement crest-factor reduction (CFR) and digital predistortion (DPD) blocks in the 49,888 logic elements, while CPRI data is carried over the transceivers at up to 3.072 Gbps without external SerDes. The low 1.2 V core power simplifies thermal design in space-constrained remote-radio-head (RRH) enclosures.
Recommended
Broadcast Video Processing and Conversion
Broadcast studios and professional AV equipment use the EP4CGX50DF27C8N for SDI embedder/de-embedder cards, frame-rate converters, and scan-format up/down conversion. The integrated transceivers drive 3G-SDI links directly at 2.97 Gbps, while the FPGA fabric handles ANC data extraction, audio shuffling, and genlock alignment with the 4 PLLs. The 310 user I/O pins accommodate 8-16 channels of SDI alongside parallel video busses (BT.1120 / BT.656) and audio I2S/TDM interfaces, fitting the EP4CGX50DF27C8N into single-board multi-format converters.
Recommended
Automotive Infotainment and ADAS Prototyping
While the 'C' temperature grade targets commercial 0 C to +85 C operation, the EP4CGX50DF27C8N is widely used in prototype automotive infotainment head-units, driver-monitoring platforms, and ADAS pre-production boards where the broader industrial spec is acceptable. Its transceivers connect to automotive Ethernet (100BASE-T1, 1000BASE-T1) and surround-view camera LVDS links, while the 49,888 logic elements run convolutional-neural-network pre-processing kernels or H.264 encode pipelines. Production-bound automotive designs typically migrate to the 'I' suffix variants (e.g., EP4CGX50DF27I8N) for -40 C to +100 C operation.
Recommended
Test and Measurement Instrumentation
Test-equipment manufacturers embed the EP4CGX50DF27C8N in protocol analyzers, logic-analyzer probe heads, and bit-error-rate testers (BERTs). Its transceivers generate and check 3.125 Gbps PRBS patterns with the M9K memory blocks acting as deep pattern buffers, while the FPGA fabric implements protocol-aware decoding for PCIe, SATA, and 10GbE KR-style links. The 4 PLLs provide the multiple reference clocks these testers need for swept-rate measurements, and the 310 I/O pins allow front-panel stimulus routing without external muxes.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for EP4CGX50DF27C8N — comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | EP4CGX50DF27C7N | EP4CGX50DF27C6N | EP4CGX50DF27I8N | EP4CGX50DF27I7N | EP4CGX50DF27C8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel | Intel |
| Package | FBGA-672 | FBGA-672 - same | FBGA-672 - same | FBGA-672 - same | FBGA-672 - same | FBGA-672 - same |
| Speed Grade | 8 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 8 |
| Temperature Grade | C (commercial) | C (commercial) | C (commercial) | I (industrial) | I (industrial) | C (commercial) |
| Logic Elements | 49,888 | 49,888 | 49,888 | 49,888 | 49,888 | 49,888 |
| Embedded Memory (bits) | 2,562,048 | 2,562,048 | 2,562,048 | 2,562,048 | 2,562,048 | 2,562,048 |
| Max User I/O | 310 | 310 | 310 | 310 | 310 | 310 |
| Transceivers | Up to 8 x 3.125 Gbps | Up to 8 x 3.125 Gbps | Up to 8 x 3.125 Gbps | Up to 8 x 3.125 Gbps | Up to 8 x 3.125 Gbps | Up to 8 x 3.125 Gbps |
Key Differentiators
- Faster Fmax margin from speed grade 8 (vs EP4CGX50DF27C7N)
- Industrial temperature operation (vs EP4CGX50DF27I8N)
- Hard PCIe IP block and 8 integrated transceivers (vs Cyclone IV E (e.g., EP4CE75F29C8N))
Design Notes
Estimated: the 672-ball FBGA at typical 1.0 mm ball pitch requires at least 6 PCB layers with HDI microvia (laser-drilled) or via-in-pad construction to fan out the inner balls. Use 0.5 oz copper on outer layers and 1 oz on inner power/ground planes. Allocate a continuous ground plane under the BGA footprint to provide the low-impedance return path for the 3.125 Gbps transceivers; break this plane only for the transceiver channels that must cross it.
Power sequencing per the Cyclone IV Device Handbook must follow VCCINT (1.2 V core) -> VCCA (2.5 V analog PLL) -> VCCD_PLL (1.2 V digital PLL) -> VCCIO (I/O banks) to avoid latch-up. Use a multi-rail controller such as the LTC3554 or TPS650250 with PG (power-good) feed-forward between stages. Decoupling: place 0.1 uF X7R 0402 caps within 100 mils of every VCCINT pin, plus bulk 470 uF polymer caps per power rail near the BGA edge.
The 3.125 Gbps transceivers require 100-ohm differential routing with intra-pair skew under 5 mil and length matching to within 50 mil across all eight channels. Use stripline on inner layers between continuous ground planes; avoid routes over plane splits. AC-couple each transmit and receive pair with 0.1 uF 0201 caps placed symmetrically within 200 mil of the FPGA balls.
Do not reuse the JTAG chain between Cyclone IV GX and 5 V-tolerant devices without a level shifter - JTAG lines are 2.5 V referenced. Always issue a 'reset' pulse to the FPGA after configuration via the nCONFIG pin to ensure all PLLs lock cleanly. For configuration, EPCS16 or EPCS64 serial flash devices are supported; verify the FPGA bitstream size does not exceed flash capacity (49,888 LE designs typically compile to 8-12 Mbit bitstreams).
Compliance Information
RoHS and REACH compliance confirmed from Altera/Intel product page. Commercial temperature grade; not AEC-Q100 qualified - migrate to EP4CGX50DF27I8N for industrial or AEC-Q100 contexts.
