Pacer 900

[gavztheouch]

Don't get hung up on changing the old computer until you have to. I have a thermwood from 1998 and I assumed I would need a new control unit to modernise the machine. Once I started using the machine I found the control unit to be as good if not better than mach 3. What makes the biggest difference to how flexible and capable your setup can be is the tool path generation software and the pc you have to run it on.

[JAZZCNC]

Don't get hung up on changing the old computer until you have to. I have a thermwood from 1998 and I assumed I would need a new control unit to modernise the machine. Once I started using the machine I found the control unit to be as good if not better than mach 3. What makes the biggest difference to how flexible and capable your setup can be is the tool path generation software and the pc you have to run it on.

Agree with Gaz that if it's working and you can load code generated from CAM then your probably creating work for the sake of it and not always for the better.
Some of these Old controls and custom boards have very fast dedicated pulse generators that work better than the parallel port and Mach and to get anywhere near matching them could cost plenty of money buying external motion control cards and still not make it much better.
I would only change if the software is restrictive or difficult to use. Or the machine doesn't meet the speeds you'd like from it and if this is the case then you'll definately be into much more money and work.