Hi, I just recieved and upgraded my Pro 4896 w/ Nema 34 Steppers to the new EX Controller System w/ CNC 12. After spending a good 6 hours with it I have a few observations regarding CNC 12 vs Mach 4 as well as some overall features I hope are hidden in there but I just haven’t found yet… I’m not pointing any of these out as negative but just as things you might not think of unless you compare the old and new system back to back.
1.There doesn’t seem to be an overall disable/enable button that effectively locks out the machine without loosing power and (potentially) position to the steppers. Maybe the one in mach 4 worked the same way and I was just never aware that I was actaully disengaging the motors.
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CNC 12 doesn’t seem to like it if my spindle box isn’t powered on as well. I would usually leave my spindle off if I’m just jogging the machine around to set up my workholding or I was going to use a drag knife attachment.
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CNC 12 will let you know if you left the magnet on your touch plate stuck to itself. I feel like that was causing certain things not to work until I cleared that error but I haven’t conclusively confirmed that.
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When a program calls for a tool change it only flashes the number and not the tool discription that is included in the G code. Mach did this as well but the difference was you could see the tool discription right above in the G Code window.
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When a tool change is called, it heads over to the tool setter (which is awsome and is a big part of the reason I upgraded in the first place) but the problem I have is I don’t want to change my bit there. I don’t know if any one else has this problem but when I am changing a bit I will take my 2 wrenches and loosen the collet nut until it is only finger tight and then I can put down 1 wrench and use that hand to hold onto the bit and turn the nut at the same time. But 1/2 a turn later, the collet nut bind just enough that I need the second wrench again and then by the time I get it past the bind the bit drops out and hits the table (or the floor which is why I like to change my bit in the center of the table.)
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Lastly, this controller is SMOOTH! I noticed a huge improvement over mach 4 when I ran my first program. I think what stuck out the most is when my spindle was cutting out the tabs on a piece I cut out of 3/4" plywood. These used to be super jerky and abrubt but now are very smooth.
Again, these are just few initial observations from my first day running the new controller. Let me know if I’m missing a setting that adressed any of these or if anyone has developed a work around. I am very excited about the new controller, thank you AVID!