Would you buy Masso again?

[canmorebrewguy]

Hello All,

I would like to poll the forum with all the things you have learned from purchasing and using a Masso would you buy it again?

I am struggling with purchasing a Masso or go towards a Smooth stepper/Mach 4 set up.

I also asked for some advice on Steppers and Motor drivers but no one has answered, I am looking at the Gecko g214 Raptor driver is any one using them with a Masso?

Does any have a good supplier for Nema 34 1500-1700 oz motors?

Just trying to get more info before I purchase.

Cheers,

Todd

 

[testyourdesign]

@canmorebrewguy

I would definitely buy a Masso over Mach 4. It's much easier to set up, more cost-effective, and more reliable. I prefer using KL Digital Stepper Drivers and Hybrid Stepper motors from automationtechnologiesinc.com. The combination of motor and drivers is much smoother than the old Gecko's I used to use with Mach 3. You might consider using a closed-loop solution instead of standard steppers if you are planning on heavy loads. I would also separate the power sources between the Masso and motor drives to keep emissions at bay.

Cheers, Stephen Brown

 

[canmorebrewguy]

Thank you Stephen for the feedback on the drivers and Hybrid steppers, have you had any interactions with Clearpath servos?

Quote from testyourdesign on February 16, 2020, 11:09 pm

@canmorebrewguy

I would definitely buy a Masso over Mach 4. It's much easier to set up, more cost-effective, and more reliable. I prefer using KL Digital Stepper Drivers and Hybrid Stepper motors from automationtechnologiesinc.com. The combination of motor and drivers is much smoother than the old Gecko's I used to use with Mach 3. You might consider using a closed-loop solution instead of standard steppers if you are planning on heavy loads. I would also separate the power sources between the Masso and motor drives to keep emissions at bay.

Cheers, Stephen Brown

 

[segoman-designs]

Happy with my G3 and Nema 34 SDSK's from Teknic / Clearpath. I have a traverse speed of 1000ipm on a 385lb gantry. Both companies have great customer support.

 

[keymont]

No question - I d buy Masso again.

FWIW, I m coming from the GRBL/bCNC running on a Raspberry Pi world, which is a nightmare. Fun for hobby-level playing around, but it gets old fast. I shopped around for a good amount of time, looked at Mach3/4 and the variety of interfaces to the machine. The price isn t that much lower going with a bunch of discreet components hooked up to a PC, even if you have an extra PC laying around.

Here s the key, IMHO: Masso just works, within a handful of seconds of plugging it in. Compared to any of the PC based solutions that I ve looked at, this is a HUGE improvement in workflow. I can plug in the AC outlet, hit the home button and be ready to work, just like that.

It s not perfect - nothing is - but it s the smoothest experience with this stuff that I ve come across.

 

[evermech]

I used a Masso G2 to replace a MachMotion system on a custom purpose built industrial router. The Mach system never did work properly and it took about 4 years of numerous service calls, with no solutions, to finally convince the owner to change controls. At the end it barely ran at all. In less than 1 week I had the old control in the bin, and the Masso hooked up to 3 Teco servos and drives and functioning almost perfectly. It took another 2 months after the machine went back in service to get out the last little bug in the system. Now it never breaks down or fails in any way, and is running to its expected abilities as it should be. Hell ya I'd buy Masso again and already have a G3 on the shelf waiting for the next project I can use it on.

Guy

 

[evermech]

@canmorebrewguy

Quote from canmorebrewguy on February 16, 2020, 8:16 pm

I also asked for some advice on Steppers and Motor drivers but no one has answered, I am looking at the Gecko g214 Raptor driver is any one using them with a Masso?

Does any have a good supplier for Nema 34 1500-1700 oz motors?

Steppers verses servos that's a good question. For me it depends on the application. If I want to know if my positioning system has lost its place then yes I would go servo for sure. Also servos work better at higher rpm's and steppers prefer lower rpm's so I consider that when designing a system. Then there is the cost, steppers are certainly way cheaper. It really depends on what I am trying to do with the system.

I purchase a lot of my automation related supplies from automation direct. I've used they're stepper motors and drives in many systems I've built, and I've used they're servos and drives in one system. I also buy wiring supplies etc. To make the projects professional quality. I use they're do more plc's and they have some nice touch screens also. Even if you don't end up using they're stuff it's good to go through the extensive catalogue they have to get an idea of the kind of equipment available. They also have excellent documentation on the products so you can read up on everything .

Guy

 

[canmorebrewguy]

Quote from evermech on February 17, 2020, 5:14 pm

@canmorebrewguy

Thank you for the info, I just ran across DMM and they are canadian and not that far away so now I am looking at their servos and drives!

Cheers,

Todd

Quote from canmorebrewguy on February 16, 2020, 8:16 pm

I also asked for some advice on Steppers and Motor drivers but no one has answered, I am looking at the Gecko g214 Raptor driver is any one using them with a Masso?

Does any have a good supplier for Nema 34 1500-1700 oz motors?

Steppers verses servos that's a good question. For me it depends on the application. If I want to know if my positioning system has lost its place then yes I would go servo for sure. Also servos work better at higher rpm's and steppers prefer lower rpm's so I consider that when designing a system. Then there is the cost, steppers are certainly way cheaper. It really depends on what I am trying to do with the system.

I purchase a lot of my automation related supplies from automation direct. I've used they're stepper motors and drives in many systems I've built, and I've used they're servos and drives in one system. I also buy wiring supplies etc. To make the projects professional quality. I use they're do more plc's and they have some nice touch screens also. Even if you don't end up using they're stuff it's good to go through the extensive catalogue they have to get an idea of the kind of equipment available. They also have excellent documentation on the products so you can read up on everything .

Guy

 

[canmorebrewguy]

Quote from keymont on February 17, 2020, 2:25 pm

No question - I d buy Masso again.

FWIW, I m coming from the GRBL/bCNC running on a Raspberry Pi world, which is a nightmare. Fun for hobby-level playing around, but it gets old fast. I shopped around for a good amount of time, looked at Mach3/4 and the variety of interfaces to the machine. The price isn t that much lower going with a bunch of discreet components hooked up to a PC, even if you have an extra PC laying around.

Here s the key, IMHO: Masso just works, within a handful of seconds of plugging it in. Compared to any of the PC based solutions that I ve looked at, this is a HUGE improvement in workflow. I can plug in the AC outlet, hit the home button and be ready to work, just like that.

It s not perfect - nothing is - but it s the smoothest experience with this stuff that I ve come across.

Thank you for the info, I think I am leaning more and more towards the Masso

Cheers,

Todd

 

[canmorebrewguy]

Quote from SegoMan DeSigns on February 17, 2020, 1:56 am

Happy with my G3 and Nema 34 SDSK's from Teknic / Clearpath. I have a traverse speed of 1000ipm on a 385lb gantry. Both companies have great customer support.

Thank you for the reply, I am now trying to narrow down the servos to DMM or Clearpaths!

Cheers,

Todd

 

[segoman-designs]

Todd,

I have a torchmate that I used to make parts for the new table, the first thing that I do with it is turn on the laptop and leave it for 10 minutes to allow it's slo..mo..booting ritual. The Masso boots in less than 20 seconds, it requires no fan cooling therefore the ingress of plasma dust will be at a minimum. The TM laptop on the other hand is always getting the dust bunnies blown out of it. The techs are great at Teknic and will assist you in specking out the motors you need. They also have a 90 day no argument / return policy that works. Both the Masso and Clearpath are cheap when you consider what the cost of individual component costs.

 

[canmorebrewguy]

Quote from SegoMan DeSigns on February 17, 2020, 10:44 pm

Todd,

I have a torchmate that I used to make parts for the new table, the first thing that I do with it is turn on the laptop and leave it for 10 minutes to allow it's slo..mo..booting ritual. The Masso boots in less than 20 seconds, it requires no fan cooling therefore the ingress of plasma dust will be at a minimum. The TM laptop on the other hand is always getting the dust bunnies blown out of it. The techs are great at Teknic and will assist you in specking out the motors you need. They also have a 90 day no argument / return policy that works. Both the Masso and Clearpath are cheap when you consider what the cost of individual component costs.

Thank you for the reply, It is so funny that I have spent days on researching Steppers and Drives and now with less than a few hours I am going in a completely different direction with servos. I am looking at both the Clear path and DMM servos and just waiting to hear back from Clearpath on recommendations and such.

I emailed both DMM and Clearpath today and I have already received 2 emails about questions and quotes from DMM so I love the customer service so far as it is a holiday here today!

Cheers,

Todd

 

[lilow]

Yes.

You will after you can understand a lot of things regarding this controller.

Easy to work, but information , you have to search for.

Follow info on this site.

Stay with what you decide to work with, don't deviate to what others say.

It will confuse you.

I have purchased 3 now.

Cheers.

It's no easy path when starting.