What controller would you recomend?????

[ravihotwok]

Hi all, its been a good while since ive posted anything on here but I need your help as usual. I have a large cnc machine in the form of a Ooznest Workbee 1000 x 1500. I chose the Duet WIFI controller when I purchased it, but upon more research I think its more of a 3d printer based unit although they have adapted it to suit cnc. My question is would you recommend any other options? I have a small cnc machine which I use the planet CNC controller and im very comfortable with that but at £500 plus its a but expensive to buy again for a big router.
Any help and advice would be most appreciated.
Many thanks Ravi

[JohnHaine]

Why not try it first? Why wouldn't it be suitable?

[ravihotwok]

Why not try it first? Why wouldn't it be suitable?

hi mate sorry for the delay,

I will give it a go :-)

[ravihotwok]

well after some research it looks like the duet 2 is just going to be too much of a faff for what i need. I want to be able to control the vfd spindle which is a no go, and i want to home the y axis linear rails individually which can be done but there are all sorts of hoops I would need to jump through in order to get this to work.

Can anyone recommend another controller? seen a few on ebay but im not sure on the support if any

[JohnHaine]

One option is to go for a standard PC-based CNC application such as Mach3 or Mach4, with a separate motion controller and stepper drives. This will do everything you want but would be more involved to set up. I have used Mach3 for many years but as it is long out of support, a new user would be better advised to use Mach4. There are alternatives such as UCCNC and Centroid Acorn as well. All these are designed for proper CNC rather than being aimed at 3G printers. Google will find them. If you don't mind a lot of home brewing you could also look at GRBL.

[ravihotwok]

Thanks John will look at those suggestions, im thinking of going planet cnc though as ive already got to grips with their software and control box, just the price which is a kicker lol. Yes im tight

[routerdriver]

If cost is an issue you might look at LinuxCNC which is absolutely free.The obstacle to overcome is moving away from the Microsoft ecosystem,which lots of people can't contemplate.You can download a copy and try it as a live install,from a USB stick and when the computer shuts down it reverts to the version of Windows you were running and no permanent changes have been made.You could have a look on youtube to see what it can do once you invest a few hours in learning.

[ravihotwok]

Hi Routerdriver, thanks a lot for the reply, yes ive seen some good stuff on that and used Linux operating system some years ago. The problem ive got at the moment is that im currently using a planet cnc controller on one machine, I generate thecode using esltcam. With this additional machine im trying to make it as close to what i currently have in regards to the process, im starting to think a standalone controller like of ebay maybe the way or just bite the bullet and make my own controller using the planet cnc products which means I will have to buy a license from them but both machines will be on the same platforms and the process in the same for both. Sorry if im waffling lol im crap at explaining stuff. My cnc knowledge is very basic and ive kept my cnc maching methods the same for years and it works great, but i just need to see the best way forward, If I could get the Duet 2 wifi to control the spindle, or even just home the y axis sides individually and have no issues with the gcode then I could make that work but ive read a few times now the gcode having to be revised to suit the duet. I cant find any real kind of reviews on the Chinese stand alone controllers which is a bit worrying, they seem to be around "250 complete with pendant so that is good value, but setting hem up may be another world of pain lol