USB Breakout Board Recomendations?

[6696]

Hey Guys,

Well I was trying to isolate some accuracy issues with my G0704 CNC conversion and I ended up killing my PC. Rather than tracking down a base image with windows XP, I thought maybe I would upgrade to a newer PC and get a breakout board with a USB port. I ordered my kit from Automated Technologies who carry one, are they the only show in town? I don't need anything fancy, just replacing a C10. I just need something that will work with a new PC with windows 8 preferably. I think my Mach 3 will work on 8?

Been a year and I still haven't made anything

Thanks,

Dust.

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[Roadstercycle]

If I where starting over I would go Centroid acorn setup. You have to go with windows 10 which is no big deal, it works fine. It will be ethernet plug in reliability and won't depend on a PC internal clock for moves. The machine control is built on the board. I was so happy to leave Mach 3 finally. Look up Centroid Acorn on line. They have been around for years and finally made a setup for us DIYers.

Jack

[OlfCNC]

Look up UCCNC. It works fine on Windows 10., it is like a bug-fixed Mach3.
I think Automated Technologies selling it too.

[Roadstercycle]

Look up UCCNC. It works fine on Windows 10., it is like a bug-fixed Mach3.
I think Automated Technologies selling it too.

Actually it's not. USB connect disconnect issues. I've used it for a year and that's another reason I went with Centroid. UCCNC worked OK for awhile. then started having issues with it on 2 different machines. I've built a few CNC machines, do yourself a favor and move on. I've used mach for years, UCCNC, Smooth stepper, and ethernet smooth stepper. When Centroid Acorn came out last year it was time to move. I don't work for them so I'm not advertising for them just trying to help you out.

[OlfCNC]

Acorn has very limited functionality in terms of customizeability and is very new, not matured yet.
I'm using UCCNC on 2 machines for more than 1.5 years now, one plasma and one router, never had a single issue. I can't tell the same about when I was using Mach3.
Don't beleive what Roadstercycle is saying. Do yourself a favor and look up UCCNC, you will not regret it.

[Roadstercycle]

Acorn has very limited functionality in terms of customizeability and is very new, not matured yet.
I'm using UCCNC on 2 machines for more than 1.5 years now, one plasma and one router, never had a single issue. I can't tell the same about when I was using Mach3.
Don't beleive what Roadstercycle is saying. Do yourself a favor and look up UCCNC, you will not regret it.

I agree with Olfcnc just buy a UCCNC and run it. I'm just referring to my experience. May work great for you for years. I used it on 3 CNC mills and 2 plasma tables and a lathe and it was a great upgrade. But I moved on.

[OlfCNC]

I agree, you can run it and see how it works. If it does not work out for you then you can return it, but from my experience with the software I'm confident that it will not happen.
And take Roadstercycle's advice to get an ethernet controller and not a USB. USB is not too reliable in electrically noisy environments.

[ger21]

Buy a UC400ETH ethernet board for UCCNC. Some people have issues with USB connections, so the ethernet board is a better choice.

[OlfCNC]

One more advice for you is that if you will get something else than UCCNC, don't buy a chinese motion controller. They might be cheap, but will regret that quickly.

[rodw]

Of course if you were not wedded to Windows, you could also consider LinuxCNC You can't use USB hardware with it, but the Mesa 7i76e ethernet board is a very nice piece of kit.

[6696]

Thanks guys,

It looks like if I go with the UC400ETH then I will have the option to either stay with Mach 3 or try UCCNC.

[CL_MotoTech]

Ethernet is definitely the way to go.

I currently have Mach 3 and Mach 4 with ESS on Windows 7. There would be no issues running Windows 10. I hate to say this, but with the Mach Standard Mill screen set I much prefer Mach 3 over Mach 4, even with Mach 3 being goofy from time to time. Mach 4 feels very incomplete to me and I have no interest in learning Lua to complete it on my own time, especially after paying $200 for a license. That said, the ESS is rock solid and my PC and machine tend to run extremely well. I have said this in other threads, but I often run Fusion360 and adjust CAD/CAM while that same PC actively controls my mill. This has never caused an issue.

I will be purchasing a UC300ETH controller in one of the variants to run my machine in the near future. I have a very complex project coming up, one with expensive materials, and I'm hoping that UCCNC will be an improvement over Mach 3. If it isn't I will still have it to fall back on. With Acorn or LinuxCNC that is not as feasible. That said, if I had to choose between Linux CNC and Acorn i'd probably go Acorn simply because it preserves my ability to have CAD/CAM on my control PC and avoids needing a second PC in my shop space. One counter point in the Acorn verus Linux debate is that Linux is a far superior system to Windows NT (which all Windows systems operate on). So if you have the option to have a truly dedicated controller PC, then Linux likely has the reliability factor covered, at least from an OS standpoint. It is a shame that nobody is offering a Mac OSX (unix based) controller. My Macs have up times in the hundreds of days, much like you would see in Linux based systems, but Mac computers being hardware and software that are mated (similar to UCCNC, Acorn, Pathpilot) they tend to have way less issues than Windows based PC's and Linux based homebuilt PC's (driver issues).