Few questions

[fzmn321]

Im looking into buying one of these boards, but i have a few questions, what is the difference between unipolar and bipolar, dual shaft/single shaft, and if this controller would work with mach3. -what specifics should i be looking for in steppers that would be compatible with this?
Thanks

[paulC]

Check out
www.pminmo.com
and
www.geckodrive.com/photos/Step_motor_basics.pdf

Dual shaft means there is a shaft extending out each end of motor.
Mach3 will have no problems with HobbyCNC.

Paul

[tintruder]

Skip HobbyCNC.

Better systems using the same chipset are now available from www.cncresource.com and www.ohmicron.com.

Better customer service too. Read the threads over at CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO about these great new alternatives too.

Tom

[paulC]

Originally Posted by tintruder Skip HobbyCNC. Better systems using the same chipset are now available from www.cncresource.com and www.ohmicron.com. Better customer service too. Read the threads over at CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO about these great new alternatives too. Tom

Tom seems to have had a problem and doesn't think he got satisfactory service. HobbyCNC is a hobby kit and you must take some responsibility for what you build yourself. The other kits are prebuilt, have smaller steppers and cost more. Some may say you get what you pay for and that is true to an extent. Tom does say he was kicked out of Daves (HobbyCNC) support group. This is rather drastic and I suspect Tom may have been a bit abrasive. He blew a chip after upgrading his power supply but we don't know that he did not cause the problem due to something he did. If the problem was the chip then the manufacture would be more to blame than Dave but you would expect to see a lot more failures of this component. If electronics scare you then the other options Tom gives may be for you. Dave also has many happy users and I am one, having brought two kits so far.
Paul

[tintruder]

By the way, though the other products offer kits with smaller steppers, they use the same driver chip and thus support up to the same current limit per chip, hence the same motors if you so choose.

I would have been more understanding of the problem I had if I received suggestions of where to look for problems. I did ask politely and in great detail. I received the same answer as another customer who experienced the exact same malfunction the same week; buy more chips at $15 each and reflow the solder. As I had exhaustively checked every connection and used known-good components, there was clearly some other factor at work and "support" offered nothing but a "the customer is always wrong and dumb too" response.

Contrast this with Marius from Gecko...he is willing and frequently does assist people with their problems with products he didn't even sell. No wonder Gecko has such a loyal following. It will be hard to resist doing business with Gecko in the future...should have done so previously.

Please don't take this as a condemnation of the products Dave sells. I know he has done his best. My problem is with terrible professional conduct and is something that satisfied customers have been fortunate enough NOT to encounter. I wish I was in your camp, but I'm not. In my opinion, if you cannot fully understand the design of the product, meaning that you can read, understand and implement without assistance the data on the manufacturer's datasheet for the SLA7062, even if you enjoy building kits, you are probably better off with one of the pre-built units. If you get the kit and it works, great, but if you have problems, well...you have PROBLEMS.