combined BOB with drivers or seperate?

Looking for a USB breakout board to run Mach3 and see that we can buy a control board with integrated driver. Anyone tried the new integrated boards? Something tells me to stick to separate parts.

bump

Integrated board will be smaller and cheaper than using separate driver modules, but if you manage to blow a driver you can't just swap it out as easily as with separate units. Less wiring to do with an integrated board. Less choice of driver current ratings etc. with an integrated board, you get what the board maker gives you.

I've used integrated parallel breakout boards in the past without problems, but I wasn't pushing the drivers hard.

If you mean one of this sort of thing the general recommendation on other forums is to avoid them for the reason that David gives.

What do you mean by a "USB breakout board for Mach 3"? You can't use a USB - parallel port for Mach 3, has to be a motion controller with a USB input such as this. It looks like a standard parallel port plug with a USB socket on the back, but contains all the electronics to generate stepper drive pulses. This then plugs in to a standard BoB designed for a parallel port interface, of which there are many around.

And to add that apparently there a number of clones available from China which are NOT recommended - the one from CNCDrive is reasonably priced and people seem to recommend them. You need to have a Mach 3 plug-in to support them, which is not likely to support the Chinese ones so well.

My Mach3 works with a USB and no adaptor from USB to Parallel. USB socket is direct to the board. that silver box is the USB socket

Edited By JasonB on 14/03/2019 12:04:42

Thanks all - Jason, thats similar to what I had in mind but the board has the drivers built in. I think direct USB is quite a new thing. Ive also looked at ethernet connected boards but im way out of my comfort zone with those. Im also wondering if the new boards will run with windows 7 64bit. The simulator has no problems with it.