4095
« on: July 07, 2018, 03:10:20 PM »
Hi,
it has always been recommended that Mach run on its own PC. Someone described it that 'once a PC is hooked to and controlling a machine....it is
no longer a PC.....but a machine controller that happens to use Windows OS'
Mach's origins start with the parallel port driver. It is a very clever piece of code that lives at the kernel level of the PC. I works remarkably well
but is subject to interference by other software running on the PC, including anti-virus and a firewall. If you eliminate those programs then it
makes sense to keep it off the Net.
In more recent years external motion controllers have become popular, maybe half of all users. They relieve the PC of the need for realtime
communication with the machine that is required by the parallel port driver and therefore Mach is very much less prone to interference from
other software. It is still recommended that the PC be for machine control only but many users ignore that and use the PC for all sorts of other
things as well, not usually when the machine is in operation!
I have a dual core Atom single board PC with on chip graphics, its a very low powered PC, less than most recommendations. I installed Windows 7
32 bit. I ran Mach3 and two parallel ports for three years very successfully. I have since stepped up to Mach4 with a SmoothStepper motion control
board on the same little teeny-tiny PC, again very successfully.
The upshot is that you don't need a powerful PC to run Mach, you need a PC that sticks to running Mach and not much else, if Mach gets interrupted
when machining bad things happen!
If you want to get into CNC cheaply then an old XP clunker and Mach3 with a parallel port is the way to go. All development on Mach3 ceased five years ago
and its possible that changes in PC's and OS's will render Mach3 obsolete eventually. Mach4 is actively being developed and is ready for router/mill/lathe
applications. While there is a parallel port plugin (a $25.00 fee applies) for Mach4 called Darwin, it works well but it doesn't have features like
lathe threading or THC, nor will it ever. As a consequence Mach4 all but requires you use an external motion controller like a SmoothStepper.
There are six manufacturers of such boards from about $120 to $600 depending on features and requirements. My Ethernet Smooth Stepper cost $180
for instance.
There are a number of good videos on YouTube about Mach.
You can download and run (in demo) both Mach3 and Mach4 free of charge and for as long as you like.
Craig