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View Full Version : Help with Mach 3 - Cant get the motors to respond


Lloyd Barnes
21-02-2019, 08:14 PM
Hi,

I think I'm going mad! Can you help?!

I converted a manual mill a couple of years with some help from this forum, and its been working great with Mach 3. However the PC running it died recently. I did manage to get the PC to start one last time, and I photographed every page of Mach3's set up. The mill was working 100% until the PC died.

I've bought a refurbed PC to get the parallel port, and literally transferred all the cables from the old PC to the new. Installed Mach 3 and added in the licence file. Have gone through and replicated all the settings. Checked the address of the parallel port and its correct (its the normal 0x378).

My MPG is jogging all 3 axis in Mach 3, but for some reason no movement from the motors. Giving it some G0 manual inputs results in nothing

On my diagnostics screen I'm showing pins on the top row 4-8 green.

Its been 2 years since I set up Mach 3 and I'm struggling with this. I don't know why an identical configuration would not work, and am not sure how to test it.

The new PC's parallel port wouldnt have the pins numbered differently or something odd?

Can anyone point me in a direction to try to sort this as I think I'm going daft!
Doddy
22-02-2019, 08:25 AM
One possibility is the new PC's parallel port being a low-voltage variant (3.3V rather than 5V) - take a DVM and measure the pin voltages on the outputs from the PC.
Lloyd Barnes
22-02-2019, 09:46 AM
One possibility is the new PC's parallel port being a low-voltage variant (3.3V rather than 5V) - take a DVM and measure the pin voltages on the outputs from the PC.

Hi Doddy

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I found the problem about 2am last night. Its down to the fact that I'm an idiot (not surprisingly!)

I'd quickly photographed each config screen before the old PC died, but I didnt spot on inputs and ports and pins I hadnt scrolled down and photographed the "lower" part of the screen. Hadnt set up charge pump :chargrined:

I'll take being an idiot and having the machine working though! :encouragement:

Have a good weekend

Lloyd