Gecko 540 Driver

[rlwoodjr]

Since the Gecko 540 is a microstep driver, it takes 2000 steps/rev, correct? What kind of computer do you need a pulse rate to make a stepper motor move at high speed?

[Torchhead]

Assuming you can get about 800 RPM or less from a stepper motor at 48 volts that is 13.33 rev /sec. That means you have to send 2000 * 13.33 pulses per sec = 26,600 PPS. So just about any old P4 running MACH at 35KHZ core frequency would work fine. We recommend a 1.8GHZ or better and 256M RAM. Really basic PC. They go for 80 to 129 bucks on ebay all the time.

The 800 RPM is pretty much full out with a small load. We actually use 650 RPM with the G540 as a design number. It will depend on the motor itself to some extent but that is with modern hybrid steppers. Older steppers won't quite hit that RPM.

TOM CAUDLE
www.CandCNC.com
Totally Modular CNC Electronics

[revwarguy]

You need a quiet, fast one. By quiet, I mean no other programs that can wake up and take CPU cycles away, like network updaters, virus checkers, etc. This a worse problem than raw CPU speed. If you are going to use Mach 3, it provides a nice little utility that shows you a window measuring the interrupt "noise" from other applications, something you want to make sure is turned off.

By fast, I mean one that at least P4 style, with enough memory to avoid paging, etc.

[Crevice Reamer]

Hi rlwoodjr.

With Mach3 set to 100,000 PPS, a fairly well matched stepper will turn 3000 RPM with a G540. You won't have much torque at that speed, but it is enough to move an X2 mini mill table with stock 16TPI lead screws at 187 IPM. This with 48V and a Keling 270.

The computer I used in this test was a P4 3.2 GHZ.

CR.