Assuming this is the process, it eludes to this kind of driver to write the firmware: https://www.digikey.co.uk/product-detail/en/P0302/P0302-ND/2003484
Yes… BUT you can use a cheap Chinese USB Blaster Clone instead:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/USB-Blaster-ALTERA-CPLD-FPGA-Programmer/1995946870.html
You may have to use an older Quartus Prime version for it to work… but it gets the job done as well as the original USB Blaster.
that blaster has an 8 pin connector
No… it has a 10 pin JTAG connector.
is there an associated 8 pin out on the OSSC V1.5 board I connect this to?
The OSSC Board indeed has an appropriate 10 pin counterpiece JTAG connector.
is that connected directly to the 16mbit flash memory linked above?
No. The JTAG connector on the OSSC board is connected to the FPGA… as seen in the schematics:
https://www.niksula.hut.fi/~mhiienka/ossc/diy-v1.5/ossc_v1.5-diy_schematic.pdf
I assume I cannot do an SDcard firmware flash, without there being at least one version of the firmware already on the 16mbit chip.
That’s right. Without at least one existing firmware version written to the flash memory there’s no update via SD card possible.
While it’s the cheapest way to flash the firmware onto the empty chip via JTAG/USB-Blaster-Clone, it is also possible to use a programmer like this one:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100-Original-New-MiniPro-TL866A-Programmer-TL866-Universal-MCU-USB-Programmer-have-also-EZP2013-RT809F-TL866CS/32809436819.html
But therefore you have to use the *.rbf firmware file.