Messages

1

General Mach Discussion / Re: New Parallel Port not working

« on: September 26, 2010, 12:46:09 AM »

I don’t know if this will help you but when I was trying to get Mach3 to communicate with a Gecko G540 based controller system it would not work because the parallel port was not in EPP mode. You have to boot into the computer’s bios to change this.

2

General Mach Discussion / Re: Computer and Operating System Choice

« on: September 25, 2010, 06:24:00 PM »

I found the problem. I stupidly plugged the stepper cables into the wrong plugs on the Gecko G540. How do I set the limits on axis travel?

3

General Mach Discussion / Re: Computer and Operating System Choice

« on: September 25, 2010, 04:27:10 PM »

Well it does work, sort of. It did not work at all at first because the parallel port was not in EPP mode. For those of you thinking of using a Compaq Presario 6300US holding down the F10 button on boot gets you into the bios to change this.

After this fix, I got the axes to jog, sort of. When I try the Y- the mill does Z+. When I try the Z- the mill does Y+. When I try the 4+ the mill does X-. The X jogs do nothing. How do I correct this? Also, how do I set the limits on axis travel?

Thanks again for your help.

4

General Mach Discussion / Re: Computer and Operating System Choice

« on: September 12, 2010, 01:00:39 PM »

Hood,

The line in the graph is mostly smooth with occasional small spikes.

Thanks again for your help.

5

General Mach Discussion / Re: Computer and Operating System Choice

« on: September 12, 2010, 12:16:20 AM »

I installed W2K and SP4 then Mach3. I ran the driver test which stated "SYSTEM UNDER MACH3 CONTROL." Under "Pulse Rating" for a few seconds it stated "Pulsing Too Fast" then it stated "System Excellent". Does this mean that Mach3 runs OK on the Compaq?

6

General Mach Discussion / Re: Computer and Operating System Choice

« on: September 11, 2010, 04:37:15 PM »

TramAlot,

The Presario graphics is built into the motherboard. The one I built has a GIGABYTE GV-NX76G256D-RH Geforce 7600GS 256MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Silent Pipe, Lead Free Video Card.

7

General Mach Discussion / Computer and Operating System Choice

« on: September 11, 2010, 03:18:36 PM »

Soon I will be attempting to use Mach3 to control a Taig CNC mill with a Gecko G540 based controller system. I have a choice of two computers to accomplish this. The first is a Compaq Presario 6300US Desktop PC with a 1.4 GHz Celeron processor and 512MB RAM.  The second I built with an Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Conroe 1.86GHz processor and 3GB RAM. Both have one motherboard based parallel port. I realize that the Compaq is by far the weaker system but I would prefer to use it if it is adequate as the other system has many other uses.

For an operating system I can choose between Windows 2000 Professional and Windows XP Professional. Which is the easiest to set up Mach3 with and which is the most reliable?

Any other tips or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.