Hi, i have just purchased my license for Mach3 and now i am in need of some advice/ help. This is my first venture into the forum so please excuse any glaring errors. I am putting the final touches to the mechanical components of my  router and must now turn my attention to the  tricky bit as far as i am concerned the electronics. I have been offered a free gallil 1880 PCI controller but have no idea if it is fully compatible with Mach3 or indeed how to go about connecting it up to the stepper drivers. The other choice is to go the USB ncpod route but again i cannot find any current info on its status and availability. I have 3 MSD 980 stepper drivers with matching steppers and 70V power supplies. Ideally i would like to be able to control the machine from a small keypad on the machine or hand held pendant( if i can find one at a reasonable price Any advice or help would be much appreciated.

Hi scratch
I`m one of the less knowledgeable on this great site but I can give a simplistic approach.
I run MSD980 drivers direct from Mach3 via the PC Parallel port, all you need is a DB-25 breakout board to be able to route your motor signal pins.
I use a Shuttlepro2  pendant for which there is a downloadable pluggin for Mach3, really easy to configure, you can name the buttons what ever you like and select the function they do. The shuttle also has small wheels for manual jogging etc.
here`s an ebay link
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CONTOUR-DESIGN-ShuttlePRO-V-2-Jog-Shuttle-Pro-V2_W0QQitemZ220193960554QQihZ012QQcategoryZ170QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

When I bought mine it was cheaper to have it shipped from the US.

Sorry I cant comment on the Galil or NCPod but yes if you will need the extra functionality that is the way to go. Grab the free Galil for sure

There is a Galil forum on the Galil web site.

This link will put you into the forum. 

http://www.galilmc.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Board=6&Number=6226&Searchpage=1&Main=1915&Words=Backlash&topic=0&Search=true#Post6226

This is the Galil forum home link

http://www.galilmc.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=cfrm

I have gathered a bit of info on Galil.  You may PM me if you wish

Jim H